LANSING, Mich. — The Lansing Derby Vixens and East Lansing Roller Derby's Mitten Mavens are merging to become one team. They'll be taking on the name Lansing Roller Derby starting in 2022.
“We are taking our existing structure that exists with East Lansing Roller Derby and integrating it the membership from Lansing Derby Vixens into East Lansing Roller Derby. So we’ve decided to rebrand and take a new name of Lansing Roller Derby,” said Ali Jahr, also known as Jahrmaggedon.
Jahr says the merger doesn’t mean that the Vixens and Mitten Mavens will completely fade away.
Instead, the teams are becoming part of a larger team that can now play “home games,” which in derby lingo means they can play each other, a common practice with larger organizations in other cities.
Over the years, critics of the teams have said it doesn’t make sense to have two teams a stone's throw away from each other.
“We both knew that there’s only so many resources in Lansing, and we should have been one team, but differences in culture and some pride maybe made it difficult for us to find common ground and come together,” said Wendi Johnson also known as Strega.
Johnson says the pandemic was the big catalyst for both groups coming to the table and agreeing to team up.
The agreement happened in October. The change takes effect in January.
The Lansing Roller Derby will have about 100 members because of the merger, but Jahr says there’s more in store for fans and people who play.
“Starting in the New Year you will see an opportunity for children ages 7 to 17 to participate all genders are welcome to come out and start what will be Lansing Junior Roller Derby," she said.
If you’d like to learn more about the Lansing Roller Derby, click here: Lansing Roller Derby
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