LACE ‘EM UP: Owensboro KY Hosting a Big Roller Derby Competition

If you were a child of the 70s, you must remember roller derby competitions on television. And even as a little kid, it seemed like the COMPETITION part of it was less important than the faux (and sometimes NOT faux) aggression involved.

But one thing was standard...it was always fun. And, boy, was it ever popular. If it didn't have the high profile it had, we never would have had this cult classic starring the late Raquel Welch:

Much more recently, I attended a roller derby competition in Evansville. I think it was at Roberts Stadium, so it wasn't, like, SUPER recent. But it was a blast. And now Owensboro gets a shot at the fun when our fair city welcomes the Vette City Roller Derby to the Owensboro Convention Center Saturday, September 28th.

Hosted by the Women's Flat Track Roller Derby League which is based in Bowling Green, the "Almost Home" derby will play host for this massive event for the first time since 2020.

Roller Derby History

You might be as surprised as I was to learn that roller derby actually dates all the way back to the late 1800s. The term "roller derby," however, wasn't adapted until 1922. Since that time, it's become a contact sport--that became a thing in the 1930s--and a popular attraction on television, beginning as early as the late 1940s.

And it was still airing by the time was a kid in the 70s, making my one and only visit to a derby very nostalgic. If you've never seen a competition in person, you'll have your chance on September 28th.

Junior roller derby events will begin at 12:30 and 2:30 PM while the adult events will begin at 5:30 and 7 PM.