Photo Credit: Bill Ruhsam/Flickr

It has been a busy off-season for the Classic City Rollergirls. The team has elected a new captain (Louis Strongarm) and once again endured attrition, losing important members of the 2014 squad to retirement (Amy T. Ville) and the Division I league in Atlanta (Human Missile Crisis and High Jinxx). Those are tough skates to fill. 

CCRG, the #155 team in the country according to the most recent WFTDA (Women’s Flat Track Derby Association) rankings, will be hard-pressed to build on the success of 2014—unless several skaters make significant strides.

Last Saturday, Team USA member Baller Shot Caller, from Florida’s Gold Coast Derby Girls, hosted an early morning clinic at Fun Galaxy Skating Center on the Eastside. Classic City skaters ran drills, practiced techniques and got immediate feedback from one of the sport's premier talents. What some skaters lack in skill, they make up for in enthusiasm, but it’ll take heavy doses of both to win bouts in 2015 with what promises to be a relatively inexperienced roster.  

The derby clinic demonstrated how important it is for this team to have strong leadership. An experienced and dedicated coaching staff—to scout the opposition, develop sound bout game-plans and help skaters of all skill levels grow—would be invaluable to the organization.

Thankfully, you don’t have to wait until 2015 to enjoy roller derby in Athens (phew). Max hosts the 2014 Sponsor Appreciation Bash Saturday, Dec. 6, with live music from local rockers Shade and Waitress, and the inaugural QuadWheel Cup, a Harry Potter-themed derby invitational, takes place Sunday Dec. 14 at Fun Galaxy. Four teams—ScufflePuff, SlitherWin, RavenBrawl and GriffenScore—will battle for supremacy beginning at 10 a.m. Fans are encouraged to dress like their favorite character from the wildly successful book and movie franchise. There will be a trivia contest at halftime. Seriously.