Despite its relatively short run, the Wagga Rollerdome had become a hub for all ages fun in Wagga, hosting plenty of kids’ birthday parties, weekly rollerskating discos, and even roller-workout sessions.

Wagga Rollerdome owner Pam Jones said the decision to cease trading came after months of struggling to make rollerskating mainstream in Wagga.

“I don’t think Wagga’s really ready for that kind of activity, and I think there was a bit of a lack of understanding around what it’s about,” Ms Jones said.

“It’s been great, and I’m really going to miss it – it was so good to see people learning new things, kids having fun, and families spending time together.” 

Rollerskating fanatics and fun-loving community members took to social media on Monday to express their sadness upon finding out their favourite skating venue would soon be no more. 

Ms Jones she wanted to thank everyone who had supported the Rollerdome, particularly a group of dedicated skating regulars who frequented the venue. 

“We had a lot of regulars who kept coming, and unfortunately they’re going to miss out a bit now,” she said.

“There’s a local skaters club that comes down every Thursday night to rollerskate and learn extra skills, but hopefully other groups like the PCYC can help them keep it going.” 

One of those groups was was Wagga’s very own all-female roller derby team, The Derby Dolls. 

Derby Dolls president Erin Cattell said the Rollerdome opened their doors for her team and generously offered them somewhere to train. 

“We were pretty stoked to hear there was a rink we could actually skate at opening up that was designed and geared for rollerskating,” Ms Cattell said.

“The other thing the rink did was put rollerskating back in the spotlight in Wagga again, because it had been about 20 years since Wagga had a rollerskating rink before that.

“I think it’s hard to get people interested in trying something different, especially when there's a prevalence of mainstream sports in Wagga like netball and football.”

Ms Jones and the Wagga Rollderdome team will continue to open as normal this week until they host their very last rollerskating disco this Saturday night from 6pm.

The rink will also be open on Sunday from 10am til 2pm for a closing down garage sale, where people will be able to land some bargain skating equipment. 

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