Rockford Rage

Rockford Rage is a women's flat track roller derby league based in Rockford, Illinois. Founded in 2006, the league consists of a single team which competes against teams from other leagues. Rockford is a member of the Women's Flat Track Derby Association (WFTDA).^[1]

Rockford Rage

Metro area	Rockford, IL
Country	United States
Founded	2006
Teams	All Stars
Track type(s)	Flat
Venue	Indoor Sports Center 2007-2016 UW Sports Factory 2018-Present
Affiliations	WFTDA
Website	rockfordrage.com[dead link‍]

History

The league was founded in mid-2006 by Rebecca Engebretson and others,^[2][3] with its first practices held in the parking lot of a Borders bookstore.^[4] Its first bout was played in December, 2006, an interleague contest between the Demolition Dolls and the Screw City Slammers, part of a four team inter-league squad that also included the Midwest Maulers and the Rollitas. The bout attracted 650 fans.^[5] In 2009, the league attracted attention for its abandonment of smoking breaks.^[6] This was the same year that the Rockford Rage converted into a traveling team format, forming an All Star team and a B team called the Rockford Rag Dolls. The B team and the inter-league teams have since been disbanded, leaving the current All Star roster.

Rockford was accepted into the Women's Flat Track Derby Association Apprentice Program in September 2009,^[7] and became a full member of the WFTDA in June 2010.^[8]

In 2016, the Indoor Sports Center was renovated to accommodate Soccer, so the Rockford Rage was forced to seek a new venue. While activity picked up as a travel team, local venues were few and far between, and the Boone County Fairgrounds was used as a temporary home in 2017. An agreement with the UW Sports Factory in downtown Rockford was struck in late 2017, and the announcement was made that the downtown Rockford venue would become their new home. March 24, 2018 will be the first time the Rockford Rage skates a home bout within the city limits of Rockford, IL.^{[needs update]}

WFTDA rankings

Season	Final ranking[9]	Playoffs	Championship
2011	27 NC[10]	DNQ	DNQ
2012	33 NC[11]	DNQ	DNQ
2013	NR[12]	DNQ	DNQ
2014	NR[13]	DNQ	DNQ
2015	NR[14]	DNQ	DNQ
2016	238 WFTDA[15]	DNQ	DNQ

• NR = no final ranking assigned this year

References

1. "Rockford Rage Women's Roller Derby – WFTDA". wftda.com. WFTDA. Retrieved 28 December 2017.
2. Westphal, Melissa (9 August 2006). "Cruisin' for a bruisin'". Rockford Register Star. Rockford Register Star. Retrieved 28 December 2017.
3. "Rockford Rage Roller Derby team takes on Aurora April 26 | | The Rock River Times". rockrivertimes.com. 23 April 2014. Retrieved 28 December 2017.
4. James, Mandy (June 2016). "10 Things You Didn't Know About the Rockford Rage". 97ZOK Online. WZOK. Retrieved 28 December 2017.
5. Gurman, Sadie (4 December 2006). "A sport of fantasy, savage grace". Rockford Register Star. Rockford Register Star. Retrieved 28 December 2017.
6. "Roller derby team ditches smoke breaks for fitness", Bloomington Pantagraph, July 31, 2009
7. "Apprentice Leagues", WFTDA [version of 16 November 2009]
8. "WFTDA welcomes 11 new members, adds new regions Archived 2011-09-07 at the Wayback Machine", WFTDA, 17 June 2010
9. "Current Rankings", WFTDA
10. "Current Rankings". WFTDA. Archived from the original on 25 January 2012. Retrieved 28 December 2017.
11. "Current Rankings". WFTDA. Archived from the original on 20 March 2013. Retrieved 28 December 2017.
12. "Rankings: December 31, 2013". WFTDA. January 2014. Retrieved 28 December 2017.
13. "Rankings: December 31, 2014 – WFTDA". wftda.com. WFTDA. January 2015. Retrieved 28 December 2017.
14. "Rankings: December 31, 2015 – WFTDA". wftda.com. WFTDA. January 2016. Retrieved 28 December 2017.
15. "Rankings: December 31, 2016 – WFTDA". wftda.com. WFTDA. 6 January 2017. Retrieved 28 December 2017.