October 2014 Featured League: Chemical Valley Rollergirls

Don't let the name fool you: you won't need your HAZMAT suit to get close to this month's featured league! Learn more about WFTDA Playoff Hosts and October featured league, Chemical Valley Rollergirls.

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Where are you located?
CVRG is located in Charleston, WV.

How does your season run?
Our season ran February through October this year with a bouting break in July for family life.

What are the closest WFTDA leagues to you?
A few of the closest WFTDA leagues are Roller Girls of Central Kentucky in Lexington, KY, New River Valley (NRV) Roller Girls in Blacksburg, VA, and Rocktown Rollers in Harrisonburg, VA.

How many skaters/teams do you have?
We are a single team with about 20 skaters. But we hope for that to change before the beginning of next season.

How is your league structured (home teams, travel team, management)?
Our team structure is a pretty standard set up, with a board of directors and operating committees. We are a 501(c)3 non-profit corporation. Our standard roster plays both at home and away.

Who is your biggest rival? And have you had any outstanding, memorable moments when you've played them?
We don’t really have any rivals, we want to win every bout. We try to have some fun on the track and respect every team.

Do you have any sister leagues you’d like to give a shout out to?
Yes! Hey-oh Jewel City Rollergirls!

What are the individual challenges of your city?
Charleston is still in the early stages of recognizing derby and understanding its place as a legitimate sport. Fortunately though, there are quite a few teams throughout West Virginia, so we’ve been able to host double headers with all WV teams and bring some noise to Charleston.

What are your biggest training challenges?
Training skaters at all different levels is sometimes difficult. Having limited rink time to do all that we want to do is also aggravating.

What kind of training/bouting facilities do you have?
Our training facility is really nice. It is in the back of a family fun center with go-karts and an arcade. The track is big and allows us to hit to the outside which we couldn’t do at our former practice space. Yay hitting! Our bouting venue is the Charleston Civic Center. We’ve played in the smaller convention halls and also in the Coliseum. The Charleston Civic Center Coliseum is where the D1 playoffs will be held this October. WFTDA, Chemical Valley, and Bon Jovi can all call the Civic Center home, so it’s a big deal.

How many days a week do you practice? How are your practices divided/organized among your teams/skaters?
We currently practice two days a week at three hours per practice. We hope to soon add on a third day. Our training committee is made up of three skaters, but anyone who attends a boot camp gets to lead a practice, and everyone is always welcome to teach a new drill or work out some new strategies.

Who are some “behind the scenes” skaters/members who really help your league run?
By far, our biggest behind the scenes man is our Uncle Walty. You need something done yesterday? He’s on it. You need a design for that? Done. Merch? Got it. He’s our Head NSO, has learned to skate and started reffing, drives skaters to and from practice, on and on. He’s also our main provider of internet cat links. Amber Alert also spends loads of time on the computer working on stuff for the team in between working and going to school. One recent quote, "I was really bored last night so I put together this Power Point presentation."

Who are some of your star skaters on the track, and why?
We are ALL stars! Everyone is just as important as the lady skating next to her.

Do you have any big bouts coming up that you're really looking forward to? Why?
Our season is just about over but we do have a bout scheduled with another WV team, the Morgantown Roller Vixens, whom we’ve somehow never played, so we are looking forward to that. And our last bout will be at River City who we love so much and helped us in obtaining our apprentice and full WFTDA membership.

How does your league give back to the community?
Just about everything we do gives back to the community or people in our area. A portion of the door at all our bouts goes to charity. We volunteer for the Charleston CVB, we’ve held raffles for seriously ill children, played Christmas fundraising scrimmages, and we planned and ran our first poker run this year. If we CAN do it, we will.

Do you have any big fundraisers coming up?
Our next mission will be a Christmas clothes and toy drive for local kids.

This has been an incredible year for Chemical Valley! Not only did your league receive 501(c)3 non-profit status, but you graduated to full WFTDA members in July and are already hosting a WFTDA D1 Playoff tournament in October. How were you able to accomplish so much this year, and what's next for Chemical Valley?
We have an awesome team full of talented people. We set these goals last year and were determined to see them through. We spent lots of time together off the track having meetings and getting it done. We want to continually push the team forward in the derby community in every way. What’s next? Building our team, stronger training, and more winning.

We love your "Shut Down for What?!" stickers that are cropping up online and will no doubt be all over the place during the D1 Playoffs! What is the story behind the fun slogan/sticker campaign?
Shut Down for What?! came one night while planning for RollerCon. We put stickers everywhere a couple years ago in Vegas and we wanted to again establish our presence. The announcement had just been made that we had gotten D1 Playoffs so we decided to shamelessly promote ourselves. Our long standing motto Shut It Down! just morphed after Lil Jon’s song came out. Its funny because we wear both slogans together and its confusing. Shut It Down! Shut Down for What?!....exactly.

What can you share about your relationship with Chemical Valley Junior Derby?
We couldn’t be more proud of the junior team! They are so incredible. They play at our halftimes and have their first scheduled bout against the Pittsburgh Derby Brats in March. The team is a year and a half strong and ready to rumble. If you’re coming to Charleston for playoffs, you’ll see them in action. Get ready to die.

Who are some of your favorite sponsors?
Stewart & Thaxton, PLLC, Komax Business Systems, Shawn Romano & Associates, Mountaineer Printing Peerless Block, Montgomery Eagles Club, And Sin City Skates who is sponsoring the tunes at our Sunday night playoff after-party.

Do you have a special message for your fans?
Thank you, thank you, thank you! We love our fans, our Hazmat Crew, and all our family who continually support us. FYC!

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