Charm City Roller Girls see record crowds, contemplate move
The Charm City Roller Girls need a bigger place to play.
For the past few years, Baltimore's all-female roller derby league has performed at Du Burns Arena in Canton. These days, Du Burns is starting to feel a little snug for the Roller Girls.
Approximately 1,800 people have turned out for the past few bouts this season, according to roller girl Hilary "Rosie the Riveter Rioter" Rosensteel. They've had to turn away people from at least one event.
"The crowds keep topping off," she said. "We're going to have to look somewhere else." ...
"We'd have to work on our marketing," she said. "I bet we could bring in more people, but I don't know."
Such a move wouldn't be out of the ordinary. Roller derby leagues in Seattle and Chicago are consistently bringing in crowds of around 5,000, Rosensteel said. But the girls would be sad to say goodbye to Du Burns.
"Du Burns has been unbelievably welcoming and friendly."
At least Mayor Stephanie C. Rawlings-Blake is on their side. Not only has Rawlings-Blake been to at least one bout, she wanted to join the team at one point, according to spokesman Ryan O'Doherty.
"She expressed sincere interest, but being a mother and a mayor makes for a packed schedule," he wrote in an e-mail.
Ms. Mayor, please let me know if you change your mind. I'd love to see you get in the rink and cause a ruckus.
(Photo by Seth Sawyers)
Erik Maza is a features reporter at the Baltimore Sun. He writes for several sections of the Sun paper and contributes weekly columns on music and nightlife. He also writes and edits the Midnight Sun blog. He often covers entertainment, business, and the business of entertainment. Occasionally, he writes about Four Loko, The Block, the liquor board, and those who practice "
Comments
FYI, the picture above is not from DuBurns, but from the Baltimore Armory, where CCRG bouted for a short time a few seasons ago.
Posted by: JZ | April 7, 2010 12:57 PM
Also, that's my photo, not the league's.
Posted by: Sidewalk flying | April 7, 2010 2:33 PM
@JZ, I never said it was a photo of Du Burns. I just like the photo.
@Sidewalk Flying, Hilary said it was fine to copy a photo from the Flikr page. I'm more than happy to give you a photo credit. Email me your name, and I'll update the caption. My address is sam.sessa@baltsun.com
Posted by: Sam Sessa | April 7, 2010 2:35 PM
Hilary's derby alias is actually Rosie the Rioter. :)
Posted by: DayGlo! | April 7, 2010 3:26 PM
Good for Charm City. They're a very talented league and deserve the growth in audience.
Also, the mayor sounds like a cool chick! Sadly, we in Los Angeles are stuck with a greaseball like Villairaigosa. Wish DC's mayor would come west.
Posted by: Carlos | April 7, 2010 7:59 PM
I'm sure the Towson Center would be the right size
Posted by: Rockem | April 8, 2010 8:30 AM