In Play Magazine
The Border City Brawlers, Windsor's first roller derby league, will be attending he City of Windsor's public consultation meeting in which the future of two existing community centres: Adie Knox Herman Recreation Complex and College Avenue Community Centre will be discussed. The Brawlers would like to see the city allow Adie Knox to be used as a roller rink.
The public meeting will be held tonight (May 4, 2011) at Mackenzie Hall (3277 Sandwich Street) in the Main Gallery from 7 to 9pm.The consultation will be chaired by Ronna Warsh, Community Development & Health Commissioner for the City of Windsor, with support from neighbourhood groups and Parks and Recreation.
Many members of the Border City Brawlers have decided to roller skate to this evening's public meeting to show their support for the idea of turning Adie Knox into a roller rink. The Brawlers, who still need a permanent home, would like to see a roller rink back in the city and Adie Knox would be a perfect fit. When the rink isn’t being utilized by the league for practice and bouts it could be open for public skating.
While the Border City Brawlers and the sport of roller derby are relatively new to the city the league is already 40 members strong and come from across the city and from various walks of life. Recently, the Brawlers have been gaining attention for not only bringing the sport to the area, but holding well-attended community events to raise awareness of the league and introduce families to the sport and re-intrpduce them to roller skating.
Roller derby is an exciting and fast paced sport which is popular in many cities throughout North America. The Border City Brawlers have created a league which will not only offer Windsorites the opportunity to see this exciting sport grow but will also provide numerous business and tourism opportunities within the area. Travel teams from other cities will come to Windsor for bouts (games), the city will make money from concessions and with a permanent home the league can host tournaments and bring in teams from both sides of the border
Additionally, a roller rink would not only create several jobs but would also include the opportunity for an entrepreneur to open a pro shop as currently league members have to travel to London or Michigan for skates and to buy equipment. The league would like to see monies spent on skates and equipment in the community and would support the idea of a pro shop in Windsor.
The Border City Brawlers are Windsor's first women's flat track roller derby league. Flat track roller derby is an exciting and fast-paced sport which has exploded in popularity over the past few years. The Brawlers, like most other leagues, are run by the skaters, for the skaters meaning the skaters are the owners of the league. The Brawlers recently recruited many new members and are looking forward to a tournament in July.
