Herbert is comfortable battling the boys
The sole woman in the New Zealand Touring Cars starting grid for Manfeild this weekend is proving she is up to the task of battling much more experienced opposition.
Chelsea Herbert, a class two rookie, has her eyes on second place in the standings at the penultimate stop in the six-event series.
In her debut season, the V8 newcomer is fourth and has starred on a number of occasions, claiming podiums finishes and a pole position at round two in Taupo.
The 18-year old has her eyes set on a silver-medal finish in the championship.
‘‘I am hoping that I can string together some consistent top results at these final two rounds to help my quest of finishing my rookie season in second place,’’ she said. ’’I am very pleased with the way the season has gone so far - minus some of the unavoidable circumstances which have cost me a few points.’’
Liam Macdonald leads the class two championship with a healthy lead of 864 points from Brad Lathrope on 702, Jamie Conroy (542) and Herbert (529).
Herbert said her first season in the competition has been a huge learning experience.
‘‘It’s been a great challenge to learn the car and try achieve top results at such a fast pace. I see my rookie season as a chance to learn as much as possible and when mistakes are made, I make sure that they are turned into a lesson learnt.
‘‘Qualifying on pole at my second ever meeting is definitely an achievement I am very proud of. Both the team and I are still working at trying to string together a top qualifying position with some good race results, but that comes with experience and a bit of luck, which we have been slightly lacking this season.’’
As the championship heads to Manfeild this weekend, Herbert said she has had limited running at the circuit in the past so more learning will be required.
‘‘I’ve managed to squeeze in a few laps around Manfeild driving the V8 before. We had a DNF an hour into a three-hour endurance race. So I know when to turn left and when to turn right but everything will still be quite new to me.’’