Roller derby and lacrosse double-header a resounding success

The Minnesota RollerGirls (MNRG) All-Stars authored a definitive victory over Madison’s Dairyland Dolls all-star team in a two-sport doubleheader bout last Saturday night that shattered an all-time roller derby attendance record and solidified Minnesota’s #2 ranking in the Women’s Flat Track Derby Association (WFTDA) standings.
This chapter in the MNRG/Dairyland Dolls rivalry made history before the skaters even took the track. MNRG teamed with the National Lacrosse League’s Minnesota Swarm to put on the two-sport doubleheader in St. Paul, Minnesota’s Xcel Energy Center.
Anyone buying a ticket would gain admission to both the lacrosse match and the roller derby bout that immediately followed. One explicit goal for this pairing was to break the modern-day flat track attendance record of 6,015, held by Seattle’s Rat City Rollergirls. The paid attendance was announced as 8,911, topping the previous record by nearly 3,000 people. Since that attendance figure does not track how many fans stayed for the roller derby bout, and as the number was reached as part of a combination event unlike the derby-only Rat City record, the validity of the record may be questionable. Whether an asterisk is attached to the figure or not, Minnesota has laid claim to the record for highest paid attendance—a record that will not be easy to top.
To read the full story, go to http://www.dane101.com/sports/2011/02/01/dairyland_dolls_and_attendance_records_fall_by_large_margins_in_minnesota