Exciting things are happening at Burning River!

First, if you hadn’t already noticed, we’ve officially changed our name from Burning River Roller Girls to Burning River Roller Derby. Subtle? Maybe, but it means a great deal to our skaters.

The league made this change to better highlight the sport of roller derby and the athleticism of the skaters, as well as more accurately reflect who we are as an organization.

“I hope our new name draws attention back to the sport of roller derby and to the athleticism of the skaters.” ~ Midnight Smack.

“Burning River is made up of a diverse group of skaters, officials, and volunteers, many of whom do not identify as ‘girls,’ ” according to Midnight Smack, the league’s president. She noted that the word “girl” denotes a child and also that many integral contributors to our league are men. In addition to being more representative of our members, the new name is more welcoming to trans and non-binary skaters, which is in keeping with policies recently put in place by BRRD.

“I hope our new name draws attention back to the sport of roller derby and to the athleticism of the skaters,” Midnight Smack said.

To go with the new name, we also have a new venue and schedule for 2015! In the spring and summer, the league will face teams from other cities at our new home at CE Orr Arena in Euclid.

Come to our home opener on April 25 to check out the new location!  Tickets on sale soon.

In the fall, we’ll be back on the west side at Ohio Nets Sports Complex in Parma for our home team games. These bouts feature all the skaters in the league broken into four intraleague teams, the Cleveland Steamers, the Hard Knockers, the Rolling Pin-Ups, and the Hellbombers. Home team bouts are fan favorites you definitely won’t want to miss!

Stay tuned for more updates, and don’t forget to check www.burningriverderby.com for our full season schedule and more! See you on the track!