Last weekend there were two sporting events in Laramie - the University of Wyoming spring football game and the first-ever bout for the Naughty Pines roller derby team.
Guess which event attracted the most fans?
The roller derby sold 730 tickets at $10-$15 apiece. It was a sellout. Meanwhile, only about 400 fans turned out for the Cowboys game, which was free. As many as 1,000 fans may have attended the derby because a lot of comp tickets were given away.
I'm not going to predict that roller derby will always outdraw UW football, but I was amazed at the crowd for the debut event. People had to park as far away as the Rec Center and walk through drizzle and rain to the ice arena where the derby was held.
Many people probably didn't know the rules, but that didn't stop the crowd from getting loud and crazy, ringing cow bells and stomping feet on the steel bleachers. Even though the Pines got creamed by the more experienced Denver squad, they never lost the support of their fans. It should also be noted that Denver had a ringer - their best jammer previously was a competitive speed skater.
Beer sales helped fuel the crowd, no doubt. The Altitude had a table with kegs of wheat beer and IPA for the older crowd and the ever-popular Pabst's Blue Ribbon for the college set. In future bouts, the beer situation needs improvement. There were only two servers and people spent more than 20 minutes in line. Altitude needs at least twice as many servers next time.
The Naughty Pines originated in the COJO Department with some graduate students and administrative assistant Sue Benson. Judging by their initial outing, the Pines were a rousing success.
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