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Electronic documents are available in the Reading Room of the Albert and Shirley Small Special Collections Library of the University of Virginia.
Electronic documents may not be shared online without prior consent of the copyright holder.
Charlottesville Derby Dames Records, Accession #15490, Special Collections, University of Virginia Library, Charlottesville, Va.
The Charlottesville Derby Dames are Charlottesville’s first and only skater-run, flat track roller derby league. The Dames’ mission is to promote sportsmanship and community by providing an alternative form of fitness and entertainment to the women and men of Charlottesville and surrounding counties.
The idea to form a derby team in Charlottesville began back in 2007 with founding members Jessika Daver and Phenol Barbie Doll. By October of that year the Dames had recruited more team members and began to practice. The Dames made their public debut in 2008 when three CDD members (Little Miss Pissed, MatilDa Molish, Dark and Stormy) played in Commotion by the Ocean, a roller derby event in Virginia Beach. In 2009 the Dames hosted their first home bout, Daylight Slayings, featuring Charlottesville Derby Dames v. Northside Stranglers at Expoland.
The league has steadily grown to around 60 members. As of January 2011, the league grew to two bouting teams drafted for skill equality at the start of the season, generally referred to as "split teams" (the Downtown Maulers and the Blue Ridge Bombshells), plus a travel team comprised of reliable, devoted, and skilled skaters (the All-Stars). By the end of 2012, the team added a second travel team (now known as the Belmont Bruisers) and elected to keep the split teams primarily for intraleague scrimmages. In addition, the league comprises many trainers, coaches, refs, NSOs, and non-skating members. The Dames became members of the Women's Flat Track Derby Association (WFTDA) in December 2012.
The Dames are active in the local community and donate portions of the proceeds from their bouts and events to local charities and engage in other community events.
Timeline January 25, 2007: First interest meeting for a roller derby team held at Atomic Burrito.
November 14, 2007: First practice at the National Guard Armory
June 8, 2008: Three members of the Dames play in their first bout: Commotion by the Ocean
October 31, 2008: Dames host their first event: Masquerade Brawl
November 1, 2009: Dames host their first home bout: Daylight Slayings held at Augusta Expo in Fishersville, Va.
April 30, 2011: Dames host their first bout at the Main Street Arena, on Charlottesville's Downtown Mall: Brawl on the Mall
November 11, 2010:Dames featured on season premiere of Charlottesville Inside Out August 5, 2011: Dames host the first annual Virginia is for Shovers Tournament
December 13, 2012: Dames become members of the Women's Flat Track Derby Association after a year-long apprenticeship with the organization
The Charlottesville Derby Dames records include approximately 1,100 electronic documents, primarily in Word, Excel, PDF, and JPEG formats, outlining the formation of the team and its operation. An additional 12,750 digital photographs and videos are also included, as well as captures of the Dames’ website and facebook circa December 2012.
The collection covers the earliest organizational efforts of this non-profit athletic organization in 2007 and include items like meeting minutes and event planning records, rosters, flyers, programs and other promotional materials, bylaws and policies. All Dames use pseudonyms when referring to each other ("derby names"), therefore supplementary documentation of actual names as well as a history of events are included.
In addition, the team has donated a small collection of physical flyers, programs, and any other media appearances (primarily newspaper or magazines with articles) from the years 2011 and 2012.
The electronic documents contained in this collection were transferred through multiple electronic systems before arriving in the custody of the University of Virginia. Transfers prior to arriving at the archive have resulted in modifying the date of creation or last modification. In particular, many documents were copied from a Yahoo! message board in January of 2011 to a shared GoogleDocs drive, resulting in a date of creation of January 27, 2011. In some cases the date of the electronic document will appear to be out of the scope of the collection because of a file system characteristic (such as having been created in 1979) and should not be trusted. When the approximate dates of the materials are known, these are indicated in the finding aid.
This series contains the organizational documents of the team. The Bylaws exist in the original 2008 document, as well as revisions from 2012. Other documents describe proposed changes to the structure of the league into separate teams, changes required to join the WFTDA, and articles of incorporation required to achieve non-profit status. Forms include those required by third-party insurers as well as those required by the league. Other documents pertain to the Dames' Code of Conduct and Member's Handbook.
Copies of the approved Bylaws of the Dames from both 2008 and 2012, as well as documents drafting changes to the Bylaws and outlining membership tiers and criteria.
Policies primarily include the Code of Conduct and the member handbook.
The Dames have multiple sub-committees as well as monthly overall team meetings. This series contains meeting minutes and other documentation produced by these committees. The original committees in 2008 were Membership, Public Relations (PR), Coaching, Fundraising, Community Service, and Bout Production/Space. The committees were simplified into three major committees in 2010: Community Relations (including the former PR, Fundraising and Community Services committees), Team Building (including the former Coaching and Membership Committees) and Productions. In addition, the Dames vote in a Management Team every year consisting of a President, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer, Two Skater Representatives, and the Heads of the three committees.
2011 is the only for which general Team Building meeting minutes exist. Minutes from general Team Building meetings were not saved as documents in 2012, instead they were posted to the group's online message board which is not included in this collection. A large sub-committee of Team Building is Coaching and minutes exist for this group going back to 2008 before it became a sub-committee of Team Building.
Documents related to the membership of the team including team members' names, taglines, profiles, and directions on registering "derby names." The sub-series “Fresh Meat and Recruitment” contains documents used for recruiting new skaters into the introductory program known as "Fresh Meat." During Fresh Meat, new members learn how to skate and the basic rules of roller derby. Documents in this series include promotional flyers as well as Fresh Meat membership packets.
Documents related to the planning, promotion, and execution of home bouts.
Contains bout contracts for 2012 bouts
Documents guidelining bout activities such as selling ads, task lists, and schedules.
Documents included in the creation of and selling of merchandise featuring the Dames, usually sold at bouts. Includes a merchandise price list, artwork for buttons and trading cards, and ordering and inventory documentation
Documents related to the planing of the annual, state-wide roller derby tournament "Virginia is for Shovers" hosted by the Dames.
Documents pertaining to the planning and promotion of non-bout Events including fundraisers, promotional events, and charity events. The Dames first major public event was the "Masquerade Brawl" a party and derby demo event held in Charlottesville's IX building. Other events include the Belle of the Brawl fundraiser, car wash fundraisers, and participation in Charlottesville events such as parades, festivals, and charitable events.
Team logo in various formats
Audio captures from promotional spots on WCNR, 106.1 The Corner during the 2012 season.
Photos from the 2010, 2011, and 2012 season including posed photo shoots, events, practices, and bouts.
Captures of the Dames' website and facebook pages from September 2012. Includes a screenshot of the page, as well as html and supporting files for each.