The Yukon Roller Girls received a bit of unsettling news regarding their upcoming bout with Fairbanks at the Klondike Klash on Saturday. As it turns out, the Fairbanks Rollergirls squad coming to Whitehorse consists of players from the organization’s All-Star team.
“This will be a big step up calibre-wise,” said Yukon Roller Girls president Shannon Pearson. “We’ll do our best to face a team that has a lot more experience.”
While pulling off a win will be challenging, selling tickets to the Klash, which is the first time the Yukon Roller Girls are hosting a team, hasn’t been.
As of Wednesday evening, the block of tickets allocated for presale are almost sold out. Once gone, spectators will need to get tickets at the door on a first-come, first-serve basis.
“There are very few of the advanced tickets left now,” said Pearson. “And we have a limited number available at the door.”
If the event sells out, there will be more than twice the roughly 200 spectators that came out to their first public scrimmage in May, which was, admittedly, a glorified practice open to the public, with two Yukon squads competing against each other.
In what was both their first Outside bout and first club sanction bout, the Yukon Roller Girls defeated the Oil City Derby Girls’ rookie team 187-127 in Edmonton last month. Eighteen Yukon Roller Girls made the trip, including two coaches, two referees and 14 skaters.
The Klondike Klash will also provide one of the public’s first looks at the Yukon Junior Roller Derby team, which will put on a demonstration before the 7 p.m. bout and a scrimmage during half time.
Saturday’s Klash, which will take place at the Takhini Broomball Arena, will include a beer garden, food stands and Yukon Roller Girl merchandise for sale. Doors open at 6 p.m.
There will also be an after party at Coasters Bar and Grill on Jarvis Street.
For more information, or to track down some tickets, visit yukonrollergirls.ca or find them on Facebook.
Contact Tom Patrick at
tomp@yukon-news.com