Kalamazoo Roller Derby (KRD) is a women's flat track roller derby league based in Kalamazoo, Michigan. Founded in 2006, the league consists of two teams which compete against teams from other leagues, and is a member of the Women's Flat Track Derby Association (WFTDA).[1]
History and organization
Former KDD logo
The league was founded in early 2006 as the Kalamazoo Kamikazes, and played its first bout the following year.[2]
By 2008 they had rebranded as the Killmazoo Derby Darlins and moved from the RollerWorld roller rink to Wings Stadium where they sold out all 800 advance tickets for a June game.[3] It doubled its membership in 2009, following the release of the movie Whip It!.[4]
The league plays its bouts at the Wings Stadium, and aims in particular to attract families to watch.[7]
In January 2018 the league announced a rebrand as Kalamazoo Derby Darlins.[8]
In December 2020, the league announced a rebrand as Kalamazoo Roller Derby in a move to embrace diversity and inclusion.
WFTDA competition
In 2013, Killamazoo qualified for WFTDA Playoffs for the first time, participating at the Division 2 tournament they hosted at Wings Stadium.[9] Killamazoo was the third seed and finished the tournament in third place with a 250-219 victory over NEO Roller Derby (Akron, Ohio).[10] In 2014, KDD again qualified for Division 2 Playoffs, and were the fourth seed at Kitchener-Waterloo, Ontario, and won the third place game 180-162 over Gold Coast Derby Grrls of Fort Lauderdale.[11]
^Cleary, Shawano (12 July 2007). "Local roller derby team is ready to ride in debut". MLive.com. Michigan Live. Retrieved 3 January 2017.
^Wedel, Mark (29 June 2008). "Roller Derby at Kalamazoo's Wings Stadium: Hockey meets NASCAR". MLive.com. Michigan Live. Retrieved 3 January 2017.
^"Graham Couch column: Skilled and sometimes brutal, Killamazoo roller derby club is worthy of Kalamazoo's attention", Kalamazoo Gazette, July 15, 2011
^"Apprentice Leagues", WFTDA [version of 16 November 2009]
^"9 Leagues Join WFTDA for Full Membership Archived 2012-10-30 at the Wayback Machine", WFTDA, 1 September 2010
^Andy Fitzpatrick, "Get ready to roll", Battle Creek Gazette, April 8, 2010
^"New Year, Big Changes, Same Derby". Kalamazoo Derby Darlins. 30 January 2018. Retrieved 4 March 2018.