I started off at Herne Hill Velodrome. My Mum was looking for some cheap childcare and sent me and my brothers to the holiday club! From there it all developed. I really enjoyed myself and so started going along to the weekly Friday night sessions. I spent the winter not really being able to keep up with the chain gang and so I would ride around in circles on my own, behind one of the coaches. As you can imagine, it wasn’t always the most fun. For them. Or me.
However, by the summer I joined VCL. I rode Wednesday night track league and not only kept up but also won the odd race here and there. I quickly went on to race regionally and then eventually, by 2017, I took part in national races.
At the end of that year, I was selected for the British Cycling (BC) development programme, and have been an apprentice for the last two years. BC really helped to develop me as a rider. I received lots of input and help, ranging from a tonne of track time to a coach and a training plan. I learnt a lot. And there was lots to learn in my case, as I really hadn’t ridden for that long and I knew next to nothing about cycling when I started. Anyone who knows me will probably agree that I still have a slightly limited knowledge of cycling.
I am now looking forward to what next year brings me and am intrigued to find out what the step up to junior is going to look like.
