Lilia Rosa Salmon, the league's first recruit, attempts to pass Becky Hamling and Joslene Morgan on a straight away during practice.(Photo by Jonathan Rejent)

Story by Jonathan Rejent

For the first time in the town’s history, Las Cruces has a women’s roller derby league.

Thanks to the help of Becky Hamling, Charlene Bencomo, Joslene Morgan and a handful of dedicated skaters, the Crossroad City Derby was created.

The appeal

Bencomo was the first to be introduced to the world surrounding roller derby.  She spent some time living in Austin, Texas, and while there frequented a bar where, apart from mingling with her friends, she would watch roller derby.

Bencomo said initially when her friends asked her to come check out the sport, she questioned why she should be excited to watch a bunch of girls skate around in fishnets.  After witnessing her first bout, Bencomo’s opinion changed.

“These women are smart, strong, sexy…everything a woman can be…,and I loved it,” Bencomo recalls.

Hamling’s interest was sparked while attending a roller derby bout in El Paso one Sunday in August of 2009.  The following morning, she asked her good friend Charlene Bencomo if she knew what roller derby was.

Bencomo responded, asking, “Flat track or banked track?”  At the time, Hamling was unaware what her friend was referring to, but told her they needed to talk.

From there, things started to snowball.  Joslene Morgan, another friend of the young women, joined in on the action, and before long, the three were finding girls all around Las Cruces with similar interests in roller derby.  They weeded out potential participants everywhere from High Desert Brewery to Toucan Market, and before long, the league began to form.

The league gets rolling

Since that initial conversation between Hamling and Bencomo, the league has come a long way.  In January, these women were able to find a legitimate place to host their practice sessions.  The venue:  A cleared-out warehouse on the fairgrounds west of Las Cruces.  The owners are letting them use the building for a total of $20 per hour.

Prior to discovering the warehouse, the team members were limited to conditioning at various parks during the weekends and, when the chance presented itself, practicing at Dickerson’s Event Center, located on west Picacho.

Before being added to the league’s line-up, the competitors must complete a set of skills in accordance with the Women’s Flat Track Derby Association.  These skills range from correct skating posture and one foot glides all the way to hip checking one another and being able to recover from falls in less than three seconds.

According to the WFTDA, these various techniques are necessary for safety on the track.

While on skates, each personality is highlighted.  From sticker-plastered helmets and tie-dyed shirts to pink polka-dotted tights and banana yellow shoe laces, nearly every skater’s outfit doubles as an abstract art piece.  Some even have clever aliases, such as Hamling’s “Hippie Check.”

Receiving support

“Derby sisterhood is strong,” says Hamling as she talks about the overwhelming support the girls have received from the Sun City Roller Girls of El Paso.

For more than a month, the team from Las Cruces made the drive into Texas to join practice sessions with the Sun City skaters.  Since February, girls from the Sun City league have been showing further support by heading up to Las Cruces to help run occasional practice sessions for the new league.

Michelle Lovejoy, or “Shady Shamrock” as she’s known throughout the Sun City league, said she can tell the competitors in Las Cruces are very motivated, and her husband, who also helped run practice, agrees.

The Crossroad City Derby has acquired a surprising number of sponsors, considering the short period of time the league has been in existence.   Remington-Davis General Contractors donated funds to purchase spare sets of elbow pads, kneepads and wrist guards.  Outdoor Adventures helped out by giving a 50 percent discount on helmets.

Considering the price of a good pair of roller skates is upwards of $200, the Las Cruces league says it appreciates the help.  The New Mexico Pecan Growers Association is covering half the cost of every practice session.  John Villescas of a local skate shop, The Beach, printed the league’s first T-shirts for free.  The league is also receiving support from Gardening by Monty Salvo.

Becky "Hippie Check" Hamling and her daughter Addy "Trouble" Hamling skate together after a practice session. (Photo by Jonathan Rejent)

Members of the Crossroad City league are not the only ones attending practice consistently.  Josh Hamling, Becky’s husband, is just one of the many familiar faces seen at practices.

When asked what life is like being married to a derby girl, he smiled, saying roller derby accounts for “75 percent of our conversations.”

Addy Hamling, their daughter, seems to be following in her mother’s footsteps and is not only skating around comfortably at age 3, but also has her own derby name, “Trouble.”

Even after sustaining both a sprained ankle and an injured back, league member Miranda McAllister still shows up to practices to show her support. McAllister attempted to start a similar league in Las Cruces almost two years ago, but was unable to find girls with enough commitment.

Off the track

When the Crossroad City Derby team isn’t out on the track, members are off living fairly normal lives.  Jessica O’Leary is a biology professor at New Mexico State University.  According to O’Leary, most of her students are unaware of her life as a derby girl.  Caiti Steele also teaches at NMSU, while both Hamling and Bencomo teach at Columbia Elementary School.  One participant coaches cheerleading in her off time, while a few others have experience in medical fields.  Even with the variety of backgrounds among league members, they all share dedication to the derby.

In recent weeks, derby has exploded in Las Cruces.  With 25 girls fully geared up, and another handful waiting for their skates to arrive in the mail, the league continues to expand.  Roz Mitchell and Jason Frederich, professional photographers for Screaming Light Studios, recently completed a shoot with Crossroad City.  Hamling says the shoot gained a lot of publicity and was a huge success.  The girls have also been selling tickets for a derby bout in El Paso on Sunday, March 21.

With the rising commitment and dedication shown throughout the Crossroad City league, Hamling believes that within the next six months, the women will be more than prepared to compete against teams from the Sun City league in El Paso.