Question 1

ACR's Code of Conduct

Accepted Answer

All members of the league are bound by the Code of Conduct. This should be reviewed yearly, at least, but all members of ACR.

Question 2

Board of Directors

Accepted Answer

The 2026 Anchor City Rollers Board:
President: "Smashlee Simpson" 
acrc.president@gmail.com 
VP External: "Wrenegade"
acrc.vicepresident@gmail.com 
VP Finance: "Pinky Swear"
	acrc.exec.treasurer@gmail.com 
VP Internal: "Roadkill"     
	acrc.humanresources@gmail.com 
VP Admin: "Ankle Biter"       
	acrc.exec.secretary@gmail.com 
Director of Training: "Daph Punk" 
	acrc.training@gmail.com 
Director of Merch and Bouts: "Jerksica" 
	acrc.funding.merch@gmail.com 
Director of Officials: "Magic the Smashening" 
	acrc.officials@gmail.com 
Director of Public Relations: "Punnett Scare" 
	acrc.media@gmail.com

Question 3

Renewing Insurance

Accepted Answer

Our league is a member of the Women’s Flat Track Derby Association (WFTDA), which requires all skaters to have appropriate
insurance. In order to skate with the league, you must sign up for and purchase a WFTDI Canada membership, which includes accident insurance for you and general liability coverage for the league. Membership is $50 plus tax for 365 days from the day you sign up.

Sign up here: https://www.wftdicanada.ca/join

Once you have purchased a membership, please add the league you belong to (i.e. Anchor City Rollers) on the WFTDI Canada website, so that we can verify your membership. You can do this by logging onto the website (https://www.wftdicanada.ca) at the top right corner using the same email and password you used to purchase a
membership. Once logged in, your name should be displayed in the top right of the screen. It is a dropdown menu where skaters can edit their profile, including which league they belong to.

Question 4

Paying Dues

Accepted Answer

Dues are essential to keeping our league running! They go towards paying rent on our training space and game space, providing travel reimbursements, and many other things.
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How to Pay Dues
Dues are paid by e-transfer to acrc.exec.treasurer@gmail.com. You can do this through online banking. Dues should be paid at the beginning of each month. Reminders will be posted on various groups, but you are responsible for making sure you pay them in a timely manner.
 
How Much to Pay
Learn to Skate: Your registration fee covers the first 12 weeks of practice. Once the 12 weeks are over, you will begin paying monthly dues of $50. Your trainers will let you know in practice and via Discord when you need to begin paying monthly dues.
​
LoCo & Seasoned Skaters: $50 a month.
​
Still unsure? If you aren't sure about your dues amount because you are a board member/in a supporting role/a referee/or for any other reason, contact the league Treasurer (acrc.exec.treasurer@gmail.com) and they will help you figure it out.

Question 5

Leave of Absence

Accepted Answer

Leaves of Absence (LOAs) accommodate league members dealing with injuries or who are otherwise unable to attend practices for a period of 4 consecutive weeks or longer. During an LOA, league members are exempt from paying dues.

League members requesting an LOA must contact the Treasurer, VP Internal and Director of Training via email to explain the nature of the situation, prior to the intended date of their LOA. The Board will respond in a timely manner to indicate whether the LOA request has been approved. A request from a league member and a subsequent approval from the Board are the prerequisites for any dues waiver to be effective; in other words, you cannot fail to pay dues and later indicate that you were on an (unapproved) LOA.

Members returning from an LOA must inform the Treasurer, VP Internal and Director of Training of their desire and intended date of return. Members are expected to pay full dues for the month in which they return from their LOA.
 
The Director of Training may require that league members returning from an LOA be reassessed or attend low contact/ intro practices until they are deemed ready to resume at their previous level.

Injured skaters may attend practices off-skate while on an LOA without being required to pay dues.

Question 6

Visiting Skaters

Accepted Answer

We are always happy to have visiting skaters at our practices! To help us welcome you, please fill out this google form. 
​
Visiting skaters will be charged a drop in fee amounting to $15 (by e-transfer) per practice. E-transfers should be directed to acrc.exec.treasurer@gmail.com. Use the security question "what is the best sport?" and the answer rollerderby (all lower case). Use the memo area to provide your name and indicate that you are paying a drop-in fee. 
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If you have any questions, contact us at acrc.training@gmail.com or get in touch via social media.

Question 7

Transferring Skaters

Accepted Answer

Joining us from another league? We can't wait to meet you! Whether you're a veteran skater, a graduating junior, a transfer from another intro program, or a ref or NSO, we have a spot for you with ACR!

Please get in contact with us at anchorcityrollers@gmail.com and tell us a bit about yourself and your experience with roller derby. We'll be able to decide together what practice is right for you. Rusty? No problem, we'll get you started again (don't forget to get insurance!) and a trainer can help assess your skills and gameplay knowledge.

Question 8

ACR Travel Team Policy

Accepted Answer

October 2025

ACR aspires to create an accountable, respectful, transparent and reciprocal relationship between the league as a whole and our Travel Teams (TTs). ACR recognizes the immense amount of work that goes into funding, planning, organizing, and playing a successful season of roller derby for both the players and the league as a whole.
Only Seasoned Skaters (SS) can participate in TTs.

I. Draft timing
Each year the travel teams are dismantled at the end of the season, which is generally in early fall. If a skater is interested in being drafted to a team, they should reach out to the captains of that team to express their interest and receive specific feedback on what to work on. The captains of the current team will select the initial roster for the next year. The teams will then vote for at least 2 but no more than 3 co-captains.
Harbour Grudges: the captains of the current team will select the initial roster for the next year by October 15. New co-captains will be selected by the new roster of players by November 1.
Before the end of the year, the new co-captains are expected to hold 1) a team meeting to assess the team’s goals and capacity for the following season 2) a meeting with the President to discuss the upcoming season, including appetite for travel, ideal number of home and away games, and the range of ranked teams the team is interested to play.
Should the Grudges accept an invitation before October 15 to play games that take place after October 15 (but before the end of the year), the previous roster may participate in those games.
Dead Ringers: the co-captains of the current team will select the initial roster for the next year as early as December 1. The co-captains can hold a team meeting to discuss the team’s goals and capacities for the upcoming season, and are expected to meet with the President by the end of January to discuss these goals, including appetite for travel and ideal number of home and away games.

II. Drafting for New or Returning Skaters
New or returning skaters who wish to skate with either of the TTs may express their interest to the respective team’s co-captains.
To be eligible for draft considerations, skaters must be in good standing and up-to-date on their dues. Once they have attended 75% of practices in a month, the skater is eligible for drafting to a TT. This may be done at any point in the year.
Grudges get priority to draft new or returning skaters over the Ringers.

III. Skater levels within teams
Grudges and Dead Ringers may have skaters with “full” and “developmental” status.
Rostering for individual games and play time are at the discretion of team co-captains, with input from trainers.

IV. Borrowing Skaters
ACR does not borrow skaters from other leagues for TTs or for individual games and tournaments. Skaters from other leagues can play for ACR TTs as long as they also become dues-paying ACR members with appropriate attendance as per Section II.
ACR lending out skaters:
Grudges are generally expected to prioritize Grudges games over other games. 
Borrowing Skaters within ACR:
Grudges can borrow skaters from the Ringers.
Generally, only developmental Grudges can play on the Ringers. Grudges who wish to play in a position they do not normally play in may also roster with the Ringers if the Ringers are short players.

V. Mixed games and scrimmages
A mixed game/ scrimmage is a game open to all SS. With respect to such opportunities, the President and Director of Training will work together to communicate the level of play and rostering decisions to ACR members.

VI. ACR TT Accountability Policy
ACR TT members are expected to:
Fundraise to supplement travel reimbursement. Teams will contact VP External with a tentative fundraising plan to ensure their plans do not conflict with League fundraising plans. Team members who are unable or unwilling to participate in fundraising for team travel will not be reimbursed for their travel.
Volunteer for the league in an impactful and/or significant capacity. Examples of acceptable volunteer duties include but are not limited to: reffing, NSOing, various bout duties, captaining, training, bench staffing, league fundraising, being a part of a committee, being a member of the Board of Directors, etc. ACR recognizes that our members have diverse capacities for extra duties, but stresses the necessity of whole-league involvement to run a successful season of roller derby. Failure to contribute to the league may affect rostering eligibility.
Strive for 75% attendance. Poor attendance does not just impact TTs, but can negatively impact the training environment and league morale and culture as a whole.
Manage and pay their own upfront travel arrangements as required, as there are no league travel credit cards.
Refrain from signing contracts or making other verbal or written promises on behalf of ACR with other organizations.
Inform the President of any conflict that arises with other leagues, teams or organizations.
Organize themselves to travel and participate in scheduled games. If the team is unable to maintain their commitment and forfeits the registration fee, the Board may require the team to recoup the cost of lost registration fee. Exceptional circumstances will be assessed on a case by case basis (ie: multiple injuries, etc).
In turn, ACR is expected to:
Pay tournament registration fees.
Ensure that the President or designated board member responsible for booking games and tournaments will communicate in a timely manner to the team captains to ensure teams have adequate time to make necessary travel arrangements.
Offer the assistance of the VP Finance, the use of the league finance email, and the use of the league bank account in organizing and disseminating fundraised funds and travel reimbursement funds.
Ensure that volunteer records are kept up to date by the VP Internal
Consider travel reimbursement for Travel Teams as a priority for fundraising and sponsorship opportunities.
Provide upfront funding for approved purchases which will be reimbursed by the travel teams (e.g. jerseys, patches, etc).

Question 9

ACR Dues Policy June 2025

Accepted Answer

Dues are used to pay for league expenses, including, but not limited to, practice space, operational expenses, bout production and tournament fees, among others. Members of Anchor City Rollers are required to pay dues as follows:

A. Standard league membership

Standard league dues are $50 per month.

B. Intro program

Skaters in the Intro to Roller Derby program pay $150 for the 12 week program prior to the first week of the program. Skaters using ACR’s loaner gear will provide a $100 deposit which will be returned to them within 5 days upon the return of the gear.

When, upon the completion of the 12-week Intro program, Intro skaters do not move up to Intermediate Skater status, they will pay standard league membership dues to continue to attend Intro practices.

C. Drop in skaters

Skaters dropping in to ACR practices pay $15 per practice.

D. ACR Board

*** NOTE: the 2025 Board engaged in significant discussion regarding the existing dues exemptions for the Board. The specific amount of exemptions is a legacy carried forward from the previous Board(s). The 2025 Board believes that the Board structure, including job descriptions and workloads, should be reviewed to arrive at a more consistent and equitable exemptions for Board members. For the sake of transparency, cumulatively, the existing Board exemptions amount to $300. We decided that it is not appropriate to substantially alter the exemptions halfway through the Board’s term. As such, for the remainder of their term, all Board members are committed to monitoring their workload, revisiting the exemptions conversations in the fall, and making recommendations for amendment of bylaws and dues exemptions as needed for the fall 2025 AGM.

In recognition of their work, members of ACR's Executive Board are fully exempt from paying dues. Directors of the ACR Board receive a %25 exemption in monthly dues.

Following an election and turnover in positions, the outgoing and incoming ACR Board will ensure that transitions are completed in such a timeline that would not provide dues exemption to both the incoming and outgoing Board members in the same month (i.e. both incoming and outgoing executives receiving dues exemption). Should transition by a fixed date not be feasible, outgoing and incoming Board members can share dues exemption for one month (i.e. incoming and outgoing VP Internal pay $25 of dues each).

E. Officials

100% exempt – ACR members who solely participate in practices and bouts as an official are fully exempt from paying dues. These are individuals who do not play in any bouts, and although they may skate in warm-ups or footwork drills at practices, their main role at practices and ACR bouts is supporting derby drills as an official.

Such individuals have the option to pay ACR’s annual $20 membership fee should they wish to be a voting ACR member at the AGM or for other decisions that require the vote of dues-paying members.

50% exempt – ACR members who use a considerable portion of their own potential practice time (based on their skating level) to support practices as an official receive a %50 dues exemption. These are individuals who participate in parts of practice as both a skater and official, or alternate practices as a skater and official. These individuals support practices as an official role above and beyond the average skater. These individuals may play in some ACR bouts, but support others as an official.

League members who believe they meet these criteria may send an email to the Treasurer, VP Internal and Director of Officials with the following information:
Their officiating and practice participation in the past 6 months;
Their plans for officiating and practice participation in the next 6 months;
Their participation in bouts as a skater in the past 12 months; and
Their plans for participation in bouts as a skater in the 12 months.

Should such league members’ practice participation change in such a way that the Board believes those league members no longer fit the exemption criteria for at least 3 consecutive months, a designated Board member will first have a discussion with such league members. With 1 month of notice, the Board has the right to change or revoke any approved officials exemption.

F. Trainers

Seasoned/ Intermediate Skater practice trainers will receive a %25 dues for every month in which they run at least 1 practice session.

Intro trainers will receive a %25 dues exemption for every month in which they participate in at least 2 practice sessions as a trainer.

G. Reduced dues

ACR is committed to the accessibility of roller derby to all current and potential league members. As such, ACR recognizes that dues may be so prohibitive to prevent skaters from being a member of the league. Such skaters are encouraged to take up a position within the league (such as joining the Board or becoming a trainer) that would provide them with a level of dues exemption.

Such skaters may send an email to the Treasurer and VP Internal to explain their circumstances, including the following information:
whether they can take up a position with ACR that provides them with dues exemption under this policy;
whether they can significantly contribute to ACR in other ways (i.e. organizing fundraisers, contributing artistic labour such as merch design, etc);
the level of dues reduction they require; and
whether they expect to be able to pay full dues in the future, and, if so, when.
The Treasurer will respond to such requests in a timely manner.

H. MVP Membership

To enable ACR to welcome skaters with financial hardship, members who are financially able to may become MVP Members. MVP Members pay an additional monthly minimum of $10 in dues. These funds are then pooled to better financially position ACR to support skaters of all financial backgrounds.

MVP Members can email the Treasurer and VP Internal to indicate their level of contribution. They are expected to maintain their MVP level of contribution for at least 6 months to allow for some level of financial planning for the league.

Members who receive dues exemptions of any level can also become MVP members by paying an additional monthly amount of at least $10 (i.e. an official receiving %50 exemption is considered an MVP member by paying $35 in dues).

I. No cumulation of exemptions

League members who are eligible for multiple dues exemption will only receive the highest level of exemption they are eligible for (i.e. an individual eligible for %50 officials exemption as well as %25 trainer exemption will only receive %50 exemption).

J. Leave of Absence

Leaves of Absence (LOAs) accommodate league members dealing with injuries or who are otherwise unable to attend practices for a period of 4 consecutive weeks or longer. During an LOA, league members are exempt from paying dues.

League members requesting an LOA must contact the Treasurer, VP Internal and Director of Training via email to explain the nature of the situation, prior to the intended date of their LOA. The Board will respond in a timely manner to indicate whether the LOA request has been approved. A request from a league member and a subsequent approval from the Board are the prerequisites for any dues waiver to be effective; in other words, you cannot fail to pay dues and later indicate that you were on an (unapproved) LOA.

Members returning from an LOA must inform the Treasurer, VP Internal and Director of Training of their desire and intended date of return. Members are expected to pay full dues for the month in which they return from their LOA.
 
The Director of Training may require that league members returning from an LOA be reassessed or attend low contact/ intro practices until they are deemed ready to resume at their previous level.

Injured skaters may attend practices off-skate while on an LOA without being required to pay dues.

K. Practice Cancellations

Sometimes, ACR practices are cancelled for reasons such as holidays, venue cancellations, or low attendance. Unless otherwise advised, league members are expected to pay their regular amount of dues in such months. Any possible dues reduction in those months is at the discretion of the ACR Board.

L. Payment of dues

All dues must be received no later than the 14th of every month via acrc.exec.treasurer@gmail.com  via e-transfer.

Repeated failure to pay dues in a timely manner negatively affects ACR’s finances and places an unnecessary burden on the Treasurer to follow up with such league members. League members who fail to pay their dues by this deadline 3 months in a row are required to sign up for autopayment on the ACR website. The autopayment option deducts $52 per month, with $2 for Wix administrative fees.

FAQ & Skater Resources

Frequently Asked Questions