The sound of airplanes is typical at Freedom Park next to Camarillo Airport, along with the noise of clashing helmets, roller skates and fans cheering.

Freedom Park Arena is home to roller hockey and even roller derby.

The full-size outdoor roller rink hosts several adult league roller hockey teams and the Ventura County Derby Darlins, a women's roller derby team formerly based in Thousand Oaks.

The arena was the brainchild of Stephan DesJardines, a Montreal native who came to the U.S. in the 1990s, when Wayne Gretzky came to the L.A. Kings and hockey was all the rage.

The arena, which became a reality in 2004, is owned by the Pleasant Valley Recreation and Park District, while DesJardines owns and operates the business.

"Stephan's been great and very supportive," said Chris LaPointe of the Derby Darlins. "We really needed to find a place that could work with our schedule and give us the room we needed to practice. Both Stephan and the Park District have been really wonderful for us."

The Derby Darlins' matches are held on Saturdays at the arena. The next one will be at 6 p.m. Saturday.

"I'd gotten a tip that they weren't happy with their arrangement in Thousand Oaks, so I approached them and now they're here," said DesJardines, who added that he is in talks with another roller derby team that wants to use the facility as well.

The location has become a haven for roller hockey and other roller sports. Adult roller hockey leagues for beginners meet on Sundays, with four teams of 10 players each. The advanced adult players are similarly organized.

"The adult roller hockey league is a lot of fun. I have an advanced group that plays on Wednesdays, and they're very competitive," said DesJardines. "The beginner's league is growing, too."

The arena is expanding its offerings for children and youths.

"I haven't had too many kids' leagues since roller hockey isn't as popular as it used to be," said DesJardines, noting that there are currently four youth teams that use the arena. "But part of that is the cost of equipment. Parents don't want to shell out five or six hundred bucks just to see if their 6-year-old likes hockey or not."

In an attempt to nurture growth of the youth leagues, DesJardines recently purchased roller hockey equipment for children.

"This fall, I want to start getting more kids involved. I'll have the equipment, and then parents don't have to shell out small fortunes to see if their kids like it. They can use the equipment here."

DesJardines formerly played for several minor league teams in California and Florida, making a name for himself as both an ice and roller hockey player. Intermittently doing some acting jobs and commercials, DesJardines was able to follow in Gretzky's footsteps and make a life for himself in America.

"In the early '90s, roller hockey really took off and was popular," said DesJardines. "There were teams everywhere, and I was able to play and get involved."

He also played Pro-Beach Hockey, which enjoyed some success on ESPN in the early '90s, and created a professional roller hockey instructional video. At the invitation of the Recreation and Park District, he taught a summer course in Camarillo for kids "when roller hockey was really hot," he recalled.

He started advocating for development of a roller rink in Camarillo but ran into obstacles with various locations, including one on the west end of Freedom Park and another in the Mission Oaks area. Eventually, the district decided to finance the rink.

A top official of the Park District voiced approval of DesJardines' latest efforts to increase participation.

"He's really been throwing it out there," said Dan LaBrado, the district's general manager.

"He's got a lot of good plans, and it's a unique place. The bleachers are three-quarters full during (roller derby) games, and there are people allowed to sit inside the rink, away from where the teams roll around — and then there's people on the perimeter of the fence, too," LaBrado said.

"It's a lot of fun and it's really fast paced."