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Roller Girls to take on Edmonton

The Yukon Roller Girls are going on the road and it's a big deal for the derby team. The local crew will be travelling to Edmonton to take on the Oil City Derby Girls rookie team on August 13.
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The Yukon Roller Girls are going on the road and it’s a big deal for the derby team.

The local crew will be travelling to Edmonton to take on the Oil City Derby Girls rookie team on August 13.

A significant leap forward, the trip marks both the Yukon Roller Girls’ first Outside bout and their first competition against another derby organization.

“It’s the first full-club sanctioned bout that we’re going to have,” said Yukon Roller Girls president Shannon Pearson. “The reason why we’re going there is to see how they put it all together and bring some (knowhow) back, because we’re going to have one here in September.”

As of press time, 11 Yukon skaters and two referees are scheduled to make the trip, leaving a few vacant spots that, if necessary, will be filled by the Red Deer Belladonnas, the sixth-place team in Canadian roller derby rankings.

“The Red Deer team will supplement, which is really nice that we’ll get to play with those girls as our teammates,” said Pearson.

Though the exact date has not been pinned down, the Yukon girls will be hosting their first bout against an Outside team, the Juneau Roller Girls, in Whitehorse either September 10 or 17 at the Takhini Broomball Rink (with a beer garden).

Roughly a year after the team was established, the Yukon Roller Girls gave their first public performance in May, with visiting BC veterans captaining two teams of Yukon skaters. The event was attended by about 200 spectators and was deemed a success by organizers.

Since their first public scrimmage, the Yukon crew has now spawned a junior team of ladies 18-and-under, which will have their debut scrimmage at half time during the Juneau bout in Whitehorse.

“We have a good core group - not full 14-man team, but we have about 12 that come out consistently,” said Pearson of the juniors. “They are a really keen bunch, and they bounce instead of staying on the floor when they fall. And there’s a couple that will be playing with us in the senior league next year or in a couple years.”

Just two weeks ago, 14 Yukon skaters attended a training camp hosted by the Rage City Rollergirls in Anchorage. They were looking sharp, said Pearson.

“Our skating skills were definitely not lacking,” she said. “We showed ourselves pretty darn good.”

To help pay for their Edmonton trip, the Yukon Roller Girls will be holding a couple fundraisers in the coming weeks.

To find out more about the non-profit organization, visit yukonrollergirls.ca or find them on Facebook.

Contact Tom Patrick at

tomp@yukon-news.com