2011 Edition

RollerCon started just like most of the new generation of DIY roller derby leagues. In the winter of 2004, a few friends started talking, came up with a crazy idea, and ran with it. At that point, there were just a handful of leagues, very spread out, and very few bouts (interleague bouting was still just a sparkle in our eyes) — and the WFTDA was still in its “United Leagues Coalition” infancy. So we all traveled when we could to see each other play — but we didn’t get enough opportunities! We were looking for a chance to hang out.

KC Bomber (LA Derby Dolls), Chola (Lonestar Rollergirls), and yours truly (Ivanna, San Diego Derby Dolls) figured we all needed a long weekend the following summer to have some fun, some drinks, some skating. It was that simple. I can’t remember exactly which of us thought of it first (probably KC), but once the seed was planted, RollerCon grew like it was on steroids. Who would’ve guessed that the second year, RC06, would draw several hundred attendees? In late 2004, there weren’t that many rollergirls in the world!

RollerCon is truly the bastard daughter of dozens of leagues across this country. Skaters from 3 states thought of it. A Texas Rollergirl named it. Skaters and refs from as far away as Carolina Roller Derby, Gotham Girls, Kansas City , Seattle, and all parts between came to the first one. The second went international with derby skaters from Canada and London… and in 2007, we went truly co-ed with the Zebra Challenges, and hosted skaters from as far away as New Zealand.

It’s hard to write the history because there’s no fitting way to acknowledge how many people have helped create, plan and maintain RollerCon. But that first year, with help from a lot of skaters from all parts of the US - banked and flat, men and women, rookies and veterans - we organized 3 nights worth of bands at the Double Down, some group rates down the street at Terrible’s Hotel, a scavenger hunt, a wedding, some pool parties, a raffle to benefit Planned Parenthood, a group photo, and the now infamous High Noon scrimmage.

That hour and half of 117 degree sun pounding down on our idiot heads while we had the first ever, that I know of, open-to-everyone, free-for-all casual scrimmage changed everything for RollerCon. The party was fun and the events were great. But in spite of the puking sunstroke most of us got and the lobster sunburns, the joy of that open scrimmage made all the work to make it happen worthwhile. So, of course, the second RollerCon had scrimmages every night! And Challenges on Fremont Street, under the blinking neon lights and the open-mouthed stares of tourists from every corner of the world. RC06 also featured workshops every day, a skatepark tour, another scavenger hunt, and lots more, over the course of 10 — TEN — days. It nearly killed us all!

2007 was a revelation: the year we learned how to plan a convention (and hired Nottie A. Saiwant, a Bellingham Betty who convinced me that I didn’t need to do everything myself). Instead of multiple trips in my van, we solved some of our transportation problems by hiring shuttles. We met in the middle with 5 fun days that were all well-attended, instead of the first year’s too-packed weekend or the second year’s 10 day Bataan Death March. So many new leagues started up in those years and those skaters were hungry for training, so we expanded the training and workshops to 3 locations and several tracks that covered everything from on-skates training, tearing skates apart and fixing them, business seminars, captains roundtables and everything we could think of in between, including happy hour sessions for the refs to argue rules minutia.

2007 wasn’t totally perfect, though - we had long lines for the skating events and sold out our capacity for the dance and dinner. So in 2008, we doubled and even tripled the venue space for each event. We had more seminar rooms and even more on and off skates training. And we tripled our capacity for the Opening Reception and Black n Blue Ball by moving them next door to the Flamingo, a much larger space. We also improved some of our internal processes, as well, like making volunteering more fun and planning better to raise a TON of money for charity in 2008.

But there is always room to get better. After 2008 we made a big step to move RollerCon skating mostly indoors to the Sport Center, but we kept the seminars at Imperial Palace. Still, we expanded the training a lot. 2009 was the year we battled way less heat exhaustion – but new problems popped up, mostly in getting everyone to and from our locations all over Vegas in the heat! And it was the year that we realized that the derby world was starving for training.

2010 was the year we maxed out.. We moved our hotel blocks to the Tropicana and Hooters Hotels, a lot closer to the Sport Center training venue, after three fun and horrible years at the unique and inimitable Imperial Palace. We missed the Dealertainers the most, I think. But we moved registration, vendor village and all our seminars and training to the Sport Center, and only had rooms and social events in the hotels. We solved many 2009 problems, but after an international skater spent 45 minutes attacking a planning manager about crowded training until the overworked manager was in tears, we also just had to come to terms with the fact that we needed more tracks - and thicker skin. And some horrifying strip-related safety issues convinced us it was time to find one gigantic venue for everything. Then the Riviera called us.

2011 is upon us. Riviera Hotel has thousands of guest sleeping rooms - which we will definitely sell out, and a massive amount of conference space. We’ve expanded to four concurrent tracks - in the hotel. We have space for everything - everything! - at the Riv, with the 24/7 pool party we’ve come to love, air-conditioned skating all day and night, restaurants, bars and even a tattoo shop… all under one roof. No more long lines for shuttles or dropping dead from heat and diesel fumes behind the IP (but then again, still no Dealertainers). We have lots of new challenges scaling up to four tracks - that’s just a lot of staff and expense. But its going to be worth it, and if we can pull it off, next year we have space for (and have already reserved) room for even more!

The sport of roller derby has a long and colorful history. From the sport’s genesis in the 30’s it’s been organized by, managed, skated and loved by iconoclasts. The new generation of roller derby is no different — and the truth is that iconoclasts don’t always appreciate each other. But what’s really great about RollerCon’s history is that it’s one of very few places where everyone drops the drama and just gets together to skate and have fun. Skaters on both sides of league splits will line up together in scrimmages and later at the bar, throwing back shots. It’s not all sisterhood, of course, but everyone lets the strife go and either makes peace or keeps their peace at RollerCon. Because RollerCon is for everyone, and everyone respects that.

And that’s all the history I got for you, because we’re making the history right now. Welcome to RollerCon.

Ivanna S. Pankin, Kingpin, RollerCon