At work and on the track, female skaters have dual images
By Elsa Butler

Once Tracey DeBenedictis, 32, is off-the-clock, she jumps into her silver Volkswagen bug and drives to a converted cigar factory in Astoria, Queens, leaving behind her calm, quiet life as a decorative painter.

__Photo: Yian Huang/NYC24 _ Ariel Assault gets ready for practice.

There, at the only dedicated indoor roller skating rink in New York, she transforms into a fast and fearless roller derby competitor who goes by the name “Ariel Assault.” This is where she practices the hip checks, blocks and takedowns that are fundamental to the game.

DeBenedictis is one of more than 100 women who dedicate the majority of their free time to New York’s Gotham Girls Roller Derby league.

The women who compete in roller derby have split images: They dress up in saucy costumes and bright makeup, and engage with the close community of skaters who champion female empowerment. They also project a fierce, flamboyant, larger-than-life image that often contrasts dramatically with the personas they present in their day jobs.

“We’re like the anti-Junior League,” said 29-year-old Megan “Megahurtz” Collum, who works in marketing for a commercial real estate company.

At the roller derby league’s recent 2008 season opener, held in the basketball gym at Brooklyn’s Long Island University, Michelle “Go Go Bai Bai” Nguyen, 28, skated a slow loop around the track in her miniskirt as the announcer introduced her to the roaring 700-plus crowd.

Bright red blood-like paint dripped down her cheeks, and she brandished a plastic mace. The rest of the players followed her onto the track to be announced. The crowd cheered, excited about the impending match.

“I’m channeling GogoYubari,” she said while stretching before the bout, referring to the costume she modeled on the merciless schoolgirl-killer character from the movie Kill Bill.  “This is my scary face. I’m planning to take some girls out tonight.”

Photo: Yian Huang/NYC24 Erica "Roxy Balboa" Fair fits Meghan "Bluebonnet Plague" Goldmann for a new uniform.

Nguyen, who has a degree in computer science and has worked as an information technology management consultant with Accenture, a management consultant company, said her dramatic roller derby costume never translates over to her real life. However, she said the strong mentality and self-image she has cultivated allows her to be more assertive in her work environment.

Participating in the roller derby league has taught her practical lessons. “It’s applicable in terms of working in a team, going against an opponent or dealing with someone who is giving me a hard time. But in roller derby, it is a little bit rougher,” she said. And it’s a thrill she doesn’t get anywhere else.

“Working with clients or government officials, I definitely have to present a professional and responsible type of image. I just have to be formal and it’s kind of boring,” she said. “It’s fun to be my roller derby self because I can dress up in a different way, be more casual and let loose.”

The image of roller derby is quirky and unusual, but, like its participants, it has crossover appeal.

“I love the kitsch, the names and the spirit of it,” said Mark Schnepf, 48, a regular derby attendee who was watching the season opener.

The flamboyant outfits allow skaters to embrace their body image, regardless of size or shape, and control what image they want to present. But public perception still tends to misinterpret roller derby as solely an opportunity to watch women in skimpy outfits.

___Photo: Elsa Butler/NYC24 __The Wall Street Traitors' motto is emblazoned across __ their uniform shorts.

“I hope that they see that it’s totally bad ass. It’s sexy, yeah, but it’s the whole third wave feminism thing where we’re in control of it,” said Emily Langmade, 24, a Gotham Girls skater who goes by the name "Fisti Cuffs."

“Women who come to roller derby, they can take their sexuality into their own hands and say, ‘I can wear short shorts, short skirts, tight pants and I’m in control of it and it’s me that’s doing it.’"

That’s what’s important.

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