FEATURE: Herbert ready to begin title defence
Today we talk to reigning British Womens champion, Charlie-Jane Herbert about her Worlds experience and what it meant to win her first British title last year in Bury.
How did you feel your recent World Championship campaign went? Both in team and individual events?
During the Worlds I felt that my fitness and racing was the best it had felt all year. During the team events I thought the team and I were strong on all abilities. We all got on great as a team and rode together really well. Personally, I felt that it was the best I had ridden in a team match all year and that I was able to put the team riding training that I had been doing this season to use. I was able to block riders off and also race away when I needed to. In the individual, it was a different story. I felt I hadn’t rode the best. Whether it was down to too much racing or whether I was having a bad day, I don’t know. I felt I gave it my best shot and I was glad I was able to ride in the world final.
You won your first British title in a run off with Sheffield’s Vicky Brown last year. What was going through your mind as your rolled up to the tapes?
When I rolled up to the tapes in the run off all that was going through my head was ‘keep calm and just hold your gate’. Vicky had been riding well all day, and was the only person to beat me during the meeting, so I knew it would be a challenging race off, which made it a good race for the spectators.
What did it mean to you to capture your first British title?
It was such an amazing feeling, one that it’s so hard to put into words. I had once only ever come close to a British title, and that was in the under 10s event. It’s a completely speechless feeling, still to this day I don’t know how to describe it, words fail me. However, if I did have to describe it, it would be ‘dreams really do come true if you put your mind to it’.
Charlie-Jane on the top spot in Bury last year, with Vicky Brown second and Michelle Whitehead third.
Vicky recently powered to victory in the World Championships, so she obviously goes into the weekend as one of the favourites. Which other girls are you expecting to be challenging for the title?
Vicky had been riding so well all year, so she starts as one of the favourites, she has the gating ability and the speed on the track to win the title. Lauren Hookway has also been riding well this season, finishing second in the world shows how much she wants the title. Michelle Whitehead and Lucy Whitehead are names you can never leave out, they been in the sport so long and both being former British Champions, they know what it takes to win a British Title. On her home track Lauren Jacobs could also been a contender for the title. Laura Watson could also spring a surprise, she she is capable of beating any girl on the day and has been riding really well throughout the worlds and before.
How are you feeling going into the defence of your British title?
I’m actually really nervous. So many girls are wanting to win the title, and have been training hard to make sure that happens. There are also so many girls such as Vicky, Michelle, the two Laurens and Laura Watson, along with myself, are at the same level of racing and ability. It is going to come down to what happens on the day.
Finally, Womens racing has really gathered pace over the last 4 or 5 years. What are your hopes and expectations for the future of Womens Cycle Speedway? Do you think we may ever see a female competitor in the Open final?
Personally I hope that Womens racing grows so that we can have our own World Cup and Pairs event during the World Championship racing when it takes place. Also to have our own home international event, to show people within Cycle Speedway that we are just as big as the men and just as good. Eventually one day you might just see a Women racer in a Open final. With how the Women’s racing has progressed over the last few years, and how they train just as much if not more than the men, one day they might just become a threat to them.
Thanks for your time Charlie-Jane, all the best for the defence of your title this weekend in Ipswich.
Tomorrow we speak to two of Great Britain’s World Championship heroes, Womens World Champion, Vicky Brown and World number two, Chris Timms and how they hope to fair this weekend in the British Individual championships.