MRDA Endorses the Men’s Roller Derby World Cup

For Immediate Release

August 29, 2013 – The Men’s Roller Derby Association announces its support and recognition of the Men’s Roller Derby World Cup (MRDWC) as the championship of national men’s roller derby teams.. 

The MRDWC recognizes MRDA as the global governing body of men’s roller derby and will play by the Rules of Flat Track Roller Derby followed by MRDA.

Seventeen nations have been invited to compete in the Men’s Roller Derby World Cup taking place at the Futsal Centre in Birmingham, England, March 14-16, 2014.

To find out more about the Men’s Roller Derby World Cup visit: http://mrdwc.com/ .

If you would like to apply to Officiate/Announce/Volunteer at this event, applications can be found here: http://mrdwc.com/help-out/ .

MRDA Announces Creation of Rules Committee

For Immediate Release

August 12, 2013 – The Men’s Roller Derby Association’s Board of Directors recently approved the creation of a Rules Committee. The Rules Committee will initially be headed by MRDA Director of Officiating, Miss Trial.

The Rules Committee will primarily:

• offer insight and perspectives on any rules-related issues that develop.
• propose ways in which the rules can evolve to accommodate the needs of the game and MRDA member leagues.
• encourage rules discussions within MRDA membership.
• assist in collating feedback from MRDA members on rules-related issues.
• present feedback to WFTDA through MRDA’s seat on WFTDA’s Rules Committee Theory Panel.

In addition, the Rules Committee will be comprised of six members, four skaters and two officials. The initial Rules Committee members as voted on by MRDA’s membership are:

• Camel Joe – Sioux City KornStalkers Skater
• L8R SK8R – Carolina Wreckingballs Skater
• Stryker – Mass Maelstrom Skater
• Tony Muse – Your Mom Men’s Derby Skater
• Judge Injury – Independent MRDA Official
• Pol E. Dangerous – Independent MRDA Official

Please join MRDA in welcoming these new positions.

MRDA Announces Topics for August 15-16 Officiating Clinic

For Immediate Release

August 1, 2013 – Continuing its goal of building a strong and influential organization, MRDA is offering its first officiating clinic. The clinic will take place August 15th and 16th at the JFK Arena in Rome, New York.

Anne Persand and The Gorram Reaver will be leading the clinic covering many off- and on-skates activities including focus work, skating drills, impact assessment, and hypothetical situations, among other topics, with an emphasis on the unique challenges of officiating men’s roller derby.

There will also be other sections of the clinic covered by a variety of teachers:

• Bambi Lance, Head of the MRDA Safety Committee, will cover current safety training protocols, including gear checks and concussion protocols.
• Kilty Conscience will conduct a session on mediation and conflict resolution in officiating.
• Lethe L. Ejection will run a workshop on proprioception, adrenaline, and impact.
• Goldie Gloves will teach a stats workbook workshop called “Understanding Stats.”

There are still open spots for the clinic. To register visit http://tinyurl.com/MRDAOfficiatingClinic2013 . The deadline to register is August 8^th.

For more information, visit the Facebook event, the MRDA website, or contact clinic coordinator Anne Persand at officials_training@mrda.org.

 

MRDA Expands to 34 Member Leagues

For Immediate Release

July 16, 2013 – One of the guiding principles of the Men’s Roller Derby Association is to foster the development of sustainable roller derby leagues. In its efforts to help grow men’s roller derby, MRDA is pleased to announce the addition of three new leagues. 

Uinta Madness Roller Derby formed in 2010 and continue to grow as a part of Salt Lake City, Utah’s great roller derby community. Learn more about Uinta Madness by visiting their Facebook page.

The Hitmen of Manatee County (Bradenton/Sarasota, Florida) were founded in November 2011.  They are part of the Manatee County Hit Crew Roller Derby League, which includes women’s and junior derby. To learn more, check out their webpage.

Slick City Rollerz from Bakersfield, California were founded in August 2010. They are the third MRDA team in California. Go to Facebook for more information about Slick City.

Please join MRDA in welcoming these leagues. MRDA is now 34 leagues strong and continues to grow. For information on how to become a member league, visit http://www.mrda.org/membershiprequirements/.

Officiating Applications for 2013 MRDA Championships Are Live

For Immediate Release

July 10, 2013 – The 2013 Men’s Roller Derby Association Championships is a little over three months away, and MRDA is currently accepting applications for the event’s officiating crews. MRDA Championships will take place October 19-20, 2013 in Sioux City, Iowa and will feature competition by the top eight MRDA leagues.

The deadline to submit interest in Tournament Head Referee and Tournament Head Non-Skating Official (NSO) positions is this Friday, July 12, 2013. Details are on the application. The deadline for applying to be a Crew Head Referee and Crew Head NSO, in addition to Apprentice, general Skating Official and NSO positions, is August 23, 2013.

To apply, visit the following URL: http://tinyurl.com/MRDA2013ChampsOffApp.

The official Facebook page for the 2013 MRDA Championships is here. 

MRDA Announces 2013 Mid-Season Rankings

For Immediate Release

July 2, 2013 – MRDA announced the mid-season rankings for the 2013 season.  The biggest debut to the rankings is London’s formerly-unranked Southern Discomfort Roller Derby entering at #10 after a great showing at the Big O. Another big mover is the Deep Valley Belligerents moving up six spots to #8 after nearly pulling off an upset against #6 Portland Men’s Roller Derby’s Bridgetown Menace in April. 

The top five spots remained the same with Your Mom Men’s Derby retaining the top spot. You can see the initial 2013 rankings here.

The Mohawk Valley Cup August 17-18 in Rome, New York is the final remaining major men’s tournament of the 2013 regular season. The Mohawk Valley Cup features eight MRDA member leagues and could shake things up ahead of the final 2013 rankings set for release in mid-September.

The top eight teams in the end-of-year rankings will attend the 2013 MRDA Championships in Sioux City, Iowa, October 19-20.

 

2013 MRDA Mid-Season Rankings

#1 Your Mom Men’s Derby – Des Moines, IA

#2 St. Louis GateKeepers – St. Louis, MO

#3 New York Shock Exchange – New York City, NY

#4 Magic City Misfits – Jacksonville, FL

#5 Puget Sound Outcast Derby – Tacoma, WA

#6 Portland Men’s Roller Derby’s Bridgetown Menace – Portland, OR

#7 Mass Maelstrom – Lancaster, MA

#8 Deep Valley Belligerents – Ukiah, CA

#9 Race City Rebels – Indianapolis, IN

#10 Southern Discomfort Roller Derby – London, England

#11 Twin City Terrors – Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN

#12 Capital District Trauma Authority – Albany, NY

#13 Connecticut Death Quads – Waterbury, CT

#14 Dallas Deception – Dallas, TX

#15 Arizona Men’s Derby – Phoenix, AZ

#16 Mont Royals Montreal Men’s Roller Derby – Montreal, Canada

#17 Rock City Riot – Fargo, ND

#18 Harm City Homicide – Baltimore, MD

#19 Drive-By City Rollers – Los Angeles, CA

#20 Carolina Wreckingballs – Columbia, SC

#21 Boise Men’s Roller Derby – Boise, ID

#22 Pioneer Valley Roller Derby – Northampton, MA

#23 Sioux City Korn Stalkers – Sioux City, IA

#24 Tampa Bay Men’s Roller Derby – Tampa Bay, FL

#25 Cowtown Butchers – Kansas City, MO

#26 Lane County Concussion – Eugene, OR

#27 Mean Mountain Boys – Burlington, VT

#28 Milwaukee Blitzdkrieg – Milwaukee, WI

#29 The Quadfathers – Utica, NY

#30 Green Bay Smackers – Green Bay, WI

#31 Manchester Roller Derby – Manchester, England

MRDA Representative to Serve on WFTDA Rules Theory Panel

For Immediate Release

June 11, 2013 – The Women’s Flat Track Derby Association has announced the creation of a Theory Panel as part of an expansion of their Rules Committee. Per WFTDA’s press release, “The Theory Panel is charged with managing the Rules of Flat Track Roller Derby from a big picture, theoretical perspective. The panel’s duties include gathering information from the sport’s stakeholders, observing game play and officiating, and conducting formal testing of proposed rules changes.”

MRDA is very happy to announce that the WFTDA has invited the MRDA to have a representative on this Theory Panel. MRDA’s Board of Directors voted unanimously to have MRDA’s Director of Officiating, Miss Trial, serve for MRDA in the inaugural filling of this position on the WFTDA Rules Theory Panel.

While this will not initially be a voting position on the panel, MRDA’s representative on the Theory Panel will have the ability to present directly to WFTDA any concerns of MRDA’s membership, in addition to giving MRDA a voice in the evolution of the Rules of Flat Track Roller Derby. This inclusion of an MRDA representative on the WFTDA Theory Panel marks another step in the strengthening of the relationship between these two organizations seeking to grow and improve roller derby.

MRDA Announces Officiating Clinic

For Immediate Release

May 31, 2013 – Continuing its goal of building a strong and influential organization, MRDA is offering its first officiating clinic. The clinic will take place August 15^th and 16^th at the JFK Arena in Rome, New York.

The clinics will cover a variety of topics including safety training and conflict resolution. The clinic will be taught by members of MRDA’s Training and Development Committee.

The event will take place the Thursday and Friday prior to the Mohawk Valley Cup (MVC), with which it shares a venue, but it is a separate event from the MVC and participation in the clinic does not mean an official will be officiating in the MVC.

The clinic will cost $75 and registration is available at  http://tinyurl.com/MRDAOfficiatingClinic2013.

For more information, visit the Facebook event, the MRDA website, or contact clinic coordinator Anne Persand at [email protected].

MRDA Creates Sponsorship Committee and Events Coordinator Position

For Immediate Release

April 9, 2013-The Men’s Roller Derby Association announced the development of the Event Coordinator position. The purpose of this position is to coordinate MRDA events such as tournaments, meetings, invitationals, and clinics. The coordinator will confirm MRDA events and prepare a calendar of MRDA events. For each event, the coordinator will assist with communications regarding sponsorship, finances, sanctioning, and officiating and share general information with the entire membership.

Emily “EmPower” Anderson of Minnesota Men’s Roller Derby was approved by the MRDA Board of Directors to serve as Event Coordinator. EmPower began officiating in September 2008 and became Head Referee for Minnesota Men’s Roller derby in 2012. Outside of roller derby, EmPower works in advertising, managing interactive media releases. Prior to roller derby, her event planning skills were sharpened in theater and music production where she served as a stage and venue manager. EmPower brings a lot of knowledge and experience to the Event Coordinator position. Please help MRDA in welcoming her to this new role.

MRDA also announced the creation of the Sponsorship Committee. The main objective of the committee will be to seek, attract, and secure new sponsors for MRDA. They will achieve this goal by creating sponsorship packages based on what MRDA has to offer. The committee will also help to advise PR and Marketing on ways to maximize their offerings to attract more sponsors. The committee will be headed by Screecharound of the St. Louis GateKeepers. Screecharound was instrumental in the successful organization and running of the 2012 MRDA Championships. The Sponsorship Committee will report to the Executive Director of Public Relations. For more information, contact [email protected].

 

MRDA Welcomes Eric “Biff Quick” Harris to the Board of Directors

For Immediate Release

April 3, 2013- The MRDA is proud to welcome Eric “Biff Quick” Harris of the Rock City Riot as the new MRDA Secretary.  He brings great energy and years of experience to the MRDA.

Biff is a founding board member of Rock City.  He has served as treasurer for the league since April 2010 and was instrumental in setting up the league and its development to its current structure. Since February 2012, he has filled the position of Rock City’s MRDA voting representative.

Outside of roller derby, Biff is an IT Network Manager with 15 years of experience, working mostly with web technologies.  He is married and helps out with his wife’s cupcake shop, Angel Cups, in Fargo, ND.  He has also been involved with promotions and sound production for local DJs.

Join us in welcoming Biff Quick to the MRDA Board of Directors.