Students who attend Roosevelt Senior High School have always been known as the “Rough Riders.” But now, they’re going by a slightly different name.
The school ordered new uniforms for its varsity basketball team this year, according to the Washington Post. But there was one problem: When they arrived, they had “Ryders” written on the front.
Athletic Director Daryl Tilghman told the Post that he called the vendor to complain. Instead of an apology, Tilghman told the Post the vendor tried to play it off and said “Ryders” was the “cool” way to spell it.
Umm, yeah. That's it.
Well, there is the “Ruff Ryders” music label that gave us DMX and others, but still...
Odd spellings of jersey names are usually left to rec league teams -- and the Washington Natinals.
Tilghman told the Post that the school could get new jerseys with the correct spelling, but they’d have to turn the old ones back in. Unfortunately, it’s the middle of the season, so that won't do. Plus, the team is actually doing well in its misspelled unis, going 14-2 so far this season. So the "Ryders" may be in no hurry to change.
Sports
The school nickname “Rough Riders” came from President Theodore Roosevelt, who led the First U.S. Volunteer Cavalry bearing the same name.
Until now, perhaps the most famous use of the "Rough Riders" name came from the Canadian Football League, which was widely ridiculed for having two teams of the same name (although spelled differently): the Ottawa Rough Riders and the Saskatchewan Roughriders. The Ottawa franchise has since folded.
