Houston Roller Derby (HRD) is a women's flat track
roller derby league based in
Houston
Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 i ...
,
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...
. HRD was founded in early 2004,
and is a founding member league of the
Women's Flat Track Derby Association
The Women's Flat Track Derby Association (WFTDA) is the international governing body for the sport of women's flat track roller derby, and association of leagues around the world. The organization was founded in April 2004 as the United Leagues Co ...
(WFTDA).
History
Originally formed in early 2004 as the Space City Rollergirls, Houston Roller Derby split from their founding group in the pursuit of an all-skater owned league, after the founding members of Space City attempted to fire the league's coed training team.
The new league focused on democratic leadership, with decisions made by committees with elected leaders.
HRD's first bout took place in October 2005 at the Pasadena Convention Center,
and by this time the league had about 60 members and consisted of four teams: The Bayou City Bosses, The Burlesque Brawlers, The Machete Betties and The Psych Ward Sirens.
2006 bouts took place at the Arabia Shrine Temple. The 2007 and 2008 season bouts took place at the
Verizon Wireless Theater
The Bayou Music Center (originally known as the Aerial Theater) is an indoor theater owned by Live Nation and located in Houston, Texas, United States. The theater is located at the Bayou Place entertainment complex in Downtown Houston.
Naming ...
, with additional games held at Jopa Sports in
Shenandoah. The 2009 and 2010 bouts took place at Kick's Indoor, and the 2011 bouts took place at Houston Indoor Sports.
Houston Roller Derby filed as a public charity (Houston Rollergirls Inc. dba Houston Roller Derby) and received its tax-deductible
501(c)(3) non-profit status effective March 11, 2011. HRD's season bouts from the 2012 season forward take place in downtown Houston at
Bayou Music Center
The Bayou Music Center (originally known as the Aerial Theater) is an indoor theater owned by Live Nation and located in Houston, Texas, United States. The theater is located at the Bayou Place entertainment complex in Downtown Houston.
Namin ...
(formerly the Verizon Wireless Theater).
Teams
Houston Roller Derby consists of four home teams
that play within the league as well as against visiting teams from other WFTDA leagues. Houston Roller Derby also has an all-star travel team, formerly called HaRD Knocks but now referred to as the all-stars, which was formed in 2006 to play against other WFTDA leagues across the U.S. and in WFTDA tournaments and competitions.
The HRD all-stars were one of twelve WFTDA teams who qualified to compete in the
WFTDA Championships
The International Women's Flat Track Derby Association Championships ("WFTDA Championships" or "Champs" for short) are the leading competition for roller derby leagues.
The Championships are organised by the Women's Flat Track Derby Association ...
in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 2009. League skater Windigo played for
Team Canada at the
2011 Roller Derby World Cup
The 2011 Roller Derby World Cup was an international women's roller derby tournament organized by ''Blood & Thunder'' magazine. Teams of amateur skaters from around the world were fielded to compete for their respective nations.
The inaugural 2 ...
.
Houston Roller Derby formed the travel team in 2006 to play against other WFTDA leagues across the country and in tournaments and competitions.
The team's first interleague competition was the Dust Devil National Flat Track Derby Tournament held in February 2006. The
Texas Rollergirls from Austin won the 20-team tournament held in Tucson, Arizona; HRD placed 13th.
WFTDA competition
Houston Roller Derby competed at the first
WFTDA Championships
The International Women's Flat Track Derby Association Championships ("WFTDA Championships" or "Champs" for short) are the leading competition for roller derby leagues.
The Championships are organised by the Women's Flat Track Derby Association ...
, the "Dust Devil" tournament, in 2006, where they finished in 13th place.
Houston next competed at WFTDA Playoffs in 2008 as the 11th seed at that year's
WFTDA Western Regional Tournament
The WFTDA Western Regional Tournament or WFTDA West Region Playoffs was one of four roller derby qualifying tournaments for the WFTDA Championships.
The Tournament was organised by the Women's Flat Track Derby Association (WFTDA). Full WFTDA memb ...
and finished in ninth place.
Ahead of the 2009 season, the WFTDA adjusted its structure, and Houston was placed in the
South Central Region. At that year's
WFTDA South Central Regional Tournament
The WFTDA South Central Regional Tournament or WFTDA South Central Region Playoffs was one of four annual roller derby regional qualifying tournaments for the WFTDA Championships.
The Tournament was organised by the Women's Flat Track Derby Assoc ...
, Houston was the third seed and finished in third place with a 113–101 victory over the
Dallas Derby Devils
The Dallas Derby Devils (DDD) is a flat track roller derby league in Dallas, Texas and surrounding area of Ft. Worth, Texas. Founded in November 2004, the Dallas Derby Devils is the original North Texas roller derby league with a current roster o ...
to qualify for Championships.
At Championships, Houston was eliminated by a 239–46 loss to
Rocky Mountain Rollergirls
Rocky Mountain Roller Derby (RMRD) is a flat-track roller derby league based in Denver, Colorado. Founded in 2004, Rocky Mountain is a founding member of the Women's Flat Track Derby Association (WFTDA), and has qualified for WFTDA Playoffs every ...
in the opening round.
In 2010, Houston was the seventh seed at the South Central Regional, and finished in seventh place by defeating Dallas 150–69.
As the fifth seed at the 2011 South Central Playoff, Houston again finished in the seeded position at fifth, with a 173–157 victory over
No Coast Derby Girls
The No Coast Roller Derby is a co-ed flat track roller derby league based in Lincoln, Nebraska. Founded in 2005, the league currently consists of two mixed teams which compete against teams from other leagues. No Coast is a member of the Women's ...
.
At the final South Central Regional in 2012, Houston was the third seed but went 1-2 and finished in ninth place by beating
Jacksonville RollerGirls 255–155.
In 2013 the WFTDA restructured playoffs again, and under the new divisional model Houston qualified as a
Division 1 team as the seventh seed for the tournament in
Asheville, North Carolina, and finished in sixth place after a 202–185 loss to
Steel City Derby Demons.
Houston was the ninth seed at the 2014 Evansville Division 1 tournament, but lost their three games to finish in tenth.
In 2015, Houston competed as the third seed at the
Division 2 Playoff in Cleveland, and finished in fourth place, losing their final game to
Santa Cruz Derby Girls
Santa Cruz Roller Derby (SCRD) is a women's flat track roller derby league in Santa Cruz, California. The first female, amateur flat-track roller derby league in Santa Cruz, SCRD is a member of the Women's Flat Track Derby Association (WFTDA).
Th ...
154–141.
Houston returned to Division 2 in 2016 at Wichita as the second seed, but ultimately finished in sixth place, ending their weekend with a 184–181 loss to the
Boulder County Bombers
Boulder County Roller Derby (BCRD) is a women's flat track roller derby league based in Longmont, Colorado. Founded in 2011 as the Boulder County Bombers, Boulder County is a member of the Women's Flat Track Derby Association (WFTDA).
League His ...
.
In 2017 Houston returned to Division 1 Playoffs as the eleventh seed in
Dallas
Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...
, but lost to
Queen City Roller Girls
Queen City Roller Derby or QCRD, is the flat-track roller derby league based in Buffalo, New York. Founded as Queen City Roller Derby in 2006, the league is scheduled to play its fourteenth season in 2020. QCRD is a member of the Women's Flat ...
195-104 and to
Atlanta Rollergirls
Atlanta Roller Derby (ARD) is a women's flat-track roller derby league based in Atlanta, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. Founded in 2004, as Atlanta Rollergirls, the league finished their fourteenth season in November 2018. Atlanta Roller Derby is ...
323–143 to finish out of the medal round.
In 2018 Houston received an invitation to a WFTDA
Continental Cup, but declined their invitation.
Rankings
* ''CR = consolation round''
* ''DNP = did not play''
Partial WFTDA sanctioned results
In media
In 2009, members of Houston Roller Derby were featured in ''Hard Knocks: Rolling with the Derby Girls'', a photo collection book by Houston photographer Shelley Canton.
References
External links
Houston Roller Derby Official WebsiteWomen's Flat Track Derby Association Official Website
{{WFTDA Division 1
Non-profit organizations based in Texas
Roller derby leagues in Texas
Roller derby leagues established in 2005
Sports in Houston
Women's Flat Track Derby Association Division 1
2005 establishments in Texas