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Founded in 2005 and now in their 4th season, the Arch Rival Roller Girls have become a St. Louis local must see, drawing up to 1000 fans to their bouts (games) at All American Sports Mall. Their ever-growing fan base includes tastemakers, movers and shakers, kids, grandmas, punk rockers, and even Mayor Francis Slay has been spotted at an ARRG event or two.

ARRG is skater owned and operated. The ladies you see on the track also do everything from haul ice to write contracts. They lead committees, serve on the Board of Directors, and all skaters have a democratic voice in the direction of the league and of the sport.

The local league is comprised of 3 teams - the M-80s, Stunt Devils and Smashinistas, who compete about once a month at All American Sports Mall in South St. Louis County. These homegrown teams often pit best friends, neighbors or co-workers against each in exciting rivalries on the track and end with the ladies of ARRG getting down at their often equally as exciting after parties.

As a member of the Women's Flat Track Derby Association, ARRG is also proud to have a WFTDA chartered all-star travel team, currently one of the fasted rising teams in the country. After a series of late 2008 wins including taking first place at the Fall Brawl Tournament, ARRG jumped from 44th to 20th in the national rankings, the biggest single quarter jump in WFTDA rankings history. Newly drawn WFTDA regions for 2009 will put ARRG head-to-head with cities like Detroit and Chicago's Windy City Rollers. ARRG will play their 2009 interleague season looking ahead to North Central Regionals in September, with the goal of getting to the 2009 WFTDA National Championship in Philadelphia within their reach.

The next generation of ARRG all-stars has also begun to compete from time to time against other cities. Playing as The St. Lunachix, ARRG's "B-Team" of skaters from all 3 local teams defeated Northwest Arkansas' Backwoods Betties last September and are scheduled to play against Columbia at the Boone County Fair Grounds April 4th.

The Arch Rival Roller Girls continue to recruit dedicated ladies 18+, many of whom have not been on skates in years. ARRG newbies train for an average of 6-9 months, working on skating and basic derby skills and strategy before being drafted to a local team. Many retired skaters are also still involved in the league, helping on committees, training newbies, or continuing to play in recreational games.

ARRG is also dedicated to giving back to the St. Louis community. In 2008, over $3,000 was raised for Safe Connections and over $500 for Mutts and Stuff, in addition to co-sponsoring blood drives, making appearances at cancer benefits, and other community service initiatives. This season fans are entered into a raffle for cool ARRG gear and other donated gifts by bringing canned goods with them to local games. In just 2 events hundreds of cans as well as over $300 has already been donated to Operation Food Search.

Local and national media have taken notice of all-female roller derby, recognizing that this group of women, their sport, and empowering culture are truly unique. Media coverage of the Arch Rival Roller Girls includes CW11's Fan Show, KSDK’s Sports Plus, Fox 2 in the Morning, KMOV's News 4 This Morning, KMOX Radio, My 103.3 KLOU, ESPN 1380, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Riverfront Times, St. Louis Magazine, Alive Magazine’s “Buzz List”, lofistl.com, TLC, an upcoming appearance on the nationally syndicated TV show Awesome Adventures, and recently starred in a music video for the internationally popular alternative rock band, The Breeders.

Be sure to catch the awesome live and local action along with more home interleague bouts against neighboring cities in 2009. ARRG’s season schedule is as follows:

January 31 @ Detroit (All-Stars, away)
February 21 Smashinistas vs. M-80s (local, home)
March 7 vs. Kansas City (All-Stars, home)
March 21 @ Indianapolis (All-Stars, away)
April 4 @ Columbia, MO (St. Lunachix, away)
April 11 Stunt Devils vs. Smashinistas (local, home)
April 25 @ Chicago (All-Stars, away)
May 9 M-80s vs. Stunt Devils (local, home)
May 31 @ Milwaukee (All-Stars, away)
June 13 M-80s vs. Smashinistas (local, home)
June 20 @ Albuquerque (All-Stars, away)
June 27 vs. Lincoln (All-Stars, home)
July 11 Smashinistas vs. Stunt Devils (local, home)
August 1 vs. Ft. Wayne (All-Stars + St. Lunachix, home)
August 29 ??? vs. ??? (Local Championship)
September 18-20 North Central Regionals @ Minneapolis
(teams TBA)
November 6-8 WFTDA National Championships @ Philadelphia (teams TBA)

Click here for tickets!

League Contacts:
Recruitment: Peppy Longlegs
Interleague Relations: Mayor Francis Slayer
Publicity: Hot to Trotsky & Smarty McFly
Events: Nyx E. Nox
Bout Production: Lipstick Lezgo & Polka Dot Ye Eyeout
Sponsorship: Trixie Gnosis & Miss Chetty Boop
Art Design/Graphics: South City Shiner
Merchandise: Keligula
Charity Involvement: Starry Starry Fight
Coaching Committee: Joanie Rollmoan, Artemischief, The Educator, Eli Wallop, Eva Lasting Jawbreaker, Red Dawn, and Magnum P.I.M.P.
Jeerleaders: Banana Split Lip and Hedda Crusher
Referees & Non-Skating Officials: Magnum P.I.M.P. and Lipstick Lezgo

Other leagues with derby name inquiries: Shanghai Lily. Thanks!

Other questions? ARRG Board of Directors: Grave Danger, Suri O'Killer, Danikka Doom, Bertha Venus, D'Wicked Pirate, Punches Pileup, Dee Rinkin,

KEEP UP WITH WHAT WE'RE UP TO BY JOINING OUR STREET TEAM EMAIL LIST! Street Team

MERCHANDISE
Available at our bouts as well as many of our events.

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If you are a female 18+ with health insurance, serious dedication and a desire to kick ass, email recruit@archrivalrollergirls.com to let us know you are interested in joining ARRG. Recruitment will let you know when the next newbie start date comes around. Current requirements to start training with us are that you can skate continuously for 5 minutes (even if not that speedy) and that you can skate on one foot down the length of the straightaway on a WFTDA track. These are skills you can easily gain by strapping on skates a few times at an area rink skate session, so be sure to get a few of those under your belt if you haven't been on skates or participated in sports in a while. While dedication is more important that experience, and we are committed to keeping roller derby accessible to as many women as possible, there is no substitution for time on skates!

Being a rollergirl is a lot of hard work, but it can be one of the most rewarding and empowering experiences of your life! We take our training VERY seriously. Many skaters are on the rink at least 3 times a week, and practice attendance records are kept (competitive skaters must make a minumum of 7 practices per month).

We also stay busy on committees, working events and appearances, and of course letting off steam at a local bar or house party (that part is optional, of course, but many feel the best part of derby).