If the unique and quirky sport of roller derby had any skeptics in Kitsap County, a recent national-caliber event has proved that this growing sport not only has a serious following — it’s serious business! The recent roller derby invitational, which attracted 19 teams from all over the country to the Kitsap County Fairgrounds and Pavilion, gave an estimated $725,000 boost to the local economy and brought an early start to the tourism season.

The three-day “Wild West Showdown,” hosted by Kitsap’s own Slaughter County Roller Vixens, brought so many raves from the participating teams and businesses, spectators and organizers that plans are in the works to roll it into an annual show.

“We had close to 2,000 spectators — for the first year, that’s a great number,” says Bruce Waterbury, recreation specialist with Kitsap County’s Parks and Recreation, who brought the idea of the roller derby forward after watching a bout at a different venue in Kitsap.

The event came together in just three months. “Roller derby is one of the fastest growing sports in the country. We’re pretty confident we’ll have it again in 2011 and with much more time to plan it and we’ll make it extra special,” he said.

After Waterbury sold the idea to the Vixens, the county partnered up with the team to organize the invitation, with the Kitsap Public Facilities District (KPFD) to bring improvements to the pavilion, and with the Kitsap Peninsula Visitors and Convention Bureau (KPVCB) to help market the event nationwide.

The KPFD, which has funded other capital projects at the fairgrounds, used residual funds from previous improvements to pay for a $25,000 upgrade to the floor that can be used for roller derby and similar activities.

“The KPFD’s charter is to work with partners in the county to operate, build and maintain specific facilities for sports and recreation to create economic benefits,” says Mike Walton, executive director of the KPFD, whose board of directors approved the project. “This investment definitely paid off. The stands were full, the fans were excited and hotels in Kitsap were booked.”

The team members and their traveling fans booked a total of nearly 700 room nights, spending additional money at area restaurants and businesses. Based on an average of $225 per person spent including accommodations, organizers are estimating the total impact to Kitsap County’s economy at $750,000.

“It was an excellent ‘heads in beds’ economic development event,” said Walton (who is a KPVCB board member), referring to the term of “heads in beds” used as a measure of tourism impact.

“Kitsap County was pleased to have this event in our community,” said county Commissioner Josh Brown. “It was a strong draw to the area, and we’re happy to be able to host such a national-caliber event at one of our county venues.”

Hanah Read, owner of The RockIt Roost shop that was one of the vendors at the fairgrounds, said that besides her own festival she organizes in May, the roller derby was the only local event where she made money. She had customers from Arizona, California and Oregon, among other places, and believes the event hit the right mark for attracting both locals and visitors.

“It’s important to be able to provide things that are of interest not just for local people, but visitors can attend. This gave people an opportunity to do something different with their families and friends,” she said.

Due to the county’s limited marketing budget, the KPVCB took the opportunity to not only market the event but also promote it to the entire Kitsap Peninsula. With the blessing of the KPVCB board, staff pursued several marketing avenues. Executive Director Patricia Graf-Hoke says Wild West Showdown was a test case on how partnerships can create a bigger positive impact for the entire area. The visitors bureau used its nationally distributed e-newsletter, Web site and social media to promote the derby to tens of thousands of people outside of Kitsap.

“This partnership proved that by working together, we can make the cash registers ring and also demonstrate that the Kitsap Peninsula is very attractive when we market the entire area, which is what our mission is at the VCB. This is a beautiful, accessible, affordable location, and many people say it’s one of Puget Sound’s best-kept secrets. We don’t want to be a secret, and the VCB is trying to change that by taking a proactive role in marketing the Peninsula.”

The roller derby organizers estimated to fill the main accommodations host, Oxford Inn & Suites in Silverdale, for the weekend. Instead, Oxford Inn was so full; visitors had to use a big number of rooms at Silverdale Beach Hotel and Comfort Inn & Suites in Bremerton.

Steven Gear, general manager for the Oxford Inn, said this event was somewhat unique because it brought high density per occupancy — the hotel hosted about 260 people in 104 rooms for two to three nights. “It’s good for the community and the local businesses,” he says. “It gets the word out about the area and that it’s a viable place for groups like that. Roller derby is hip right now, so any time your name can be synonymous with this type of thing, it gets press, and it brings awareness – and it also helps bring people back.”

The Kitsap Peninsula, indeed, has been in the press spotlight extensively in the past month. The area was featured in several newspapers outside of the county, including in Oregon. And now, there’ll be plenty more to talk about as the teams report back to their hometowns.

“This definitely helped to bring in tourism dollars, especially for coming off the slow season,” says Jack Edwards, director of sales and marketing for Comfort Inn. Edwards has watched the Vixens since they were just starting out a few years ago, and said the area should be proud of how far the team has come, and how successful it has become on the national stage. “It’s great for the community in general to have an alternative sport for youth and families to watch,” he added.

Word will get out even more after April, when the Kitsap Sun pavilion will host the 10th annual four-day national roller derby training camp called Blood & Thunder. Walton predicts that interest in the facility will continue to grow as word travels. “When you get teams from all over the country coming here and appreciating an excellent facility, word will certainly get back from the teams that it’s a great event, and a great facility, and convince other teams to come here,” he said.

When the Vixens are ready to host the next invitational in 2011, organizers are predicting a much bigger spectator turnout – due, in part, to a new online ticket system the county will be installing this spring.

With the remodeled fairgrounds pavilion getting the thumbs up and being hailed by the teams as one of the top three venues in the country, and with the new ticketing system coming online, the county is poised for making a big name for itself. “We need to think more outside the box and be a little more diverse,” says Frank Abbott with county Parks and Recreation, adding that because of the success of this event, the county plans to partner more with the VCB to attract even more people outside the area.

“This is a measurable demonstration of the vital role that tourism and marketing play in economic development.” Graf-Hoke said. “When we put heads in beds, we put people to work because they patronize local shops and restaurants. Tourism is a great industry for our environment and economy. It’s ‘clean and green,’ doesn’t require any pads, permits or infrastructure. All we have to do is invite people to come on over…or roll on in! Kitsap Peninsula is tourism-ready.”