Kicking up the dirt at Upper Beaconsfield, BMX rider Phoebe Wallen hopes to hit the tracks overseas as she moves up through the Victorian and Australian riding ranks.
PUMPING the pedals is starting to drive Phoebe Wallen to bigger and better achievements as she makes a name for herself in the world of BMX racing.
Wallen, 13, from Upper Beaconsfield, has been leaping up the ranks throughout Australian BMX cycling and hopes to carry on her recent success through to the international ranks.
Number #174 – her registered race digits – has been on fire in recent months with wins flying around as much as the dust she kicks up on the dirt tracks throughout Australia.
Her story begins as a lot of emerging sporting tales do – her family set the gears in motion to get Phoebe on the bike and she’s never taken a backwards step … or pedal.
“My dad and my aunty and uncle all used to race and I wanted it for a while … dad hung back for a bit … then we started and I’ve been doing it for a year,” Wallen said.
Already with years of racing under her belt, Wallen has made this summer season particularly bountiful as the Berwick College student picked up a pair of stellar state title victories.
Heading up to Bendigo in October, after winning her heat of the Victorian State Cycling Championships earlier in 2014, Wallen defended her state title as she won all three motos (races) to knock off Tahlia Lacy and Micahele Meharry to take gold.
“First I had the VSCC – Victorian State Cycling Championships – I won the first round and you had to do one to qualify,” Wallen said.
“For the final in Bendigo I also won that, which was great as I backed up my title.”
Following on from her first state championship, she made it two in a row as she won the BMX Victoria state title on her home course at Knox BMX Club in November.
“Probably winning the states was my favourite this year,” Wallen said. “That was pretty good and for the second year in a row I won number one in my age group.
“I had pretty hard competition; the girl who finished second at nationals was there.
“It’s always good to beat her – she’s number two in Australia and it’s a good battle.”
Rapid-fire racing was the next adrenalin-filled challenge for Wallen as she knocked off six races in nine days in the Track Attack Series before heading to Nerang in Queensland for another series of races where she tested her talents against all comers … whether it’s other girls or taking the challenge up to the boys.
A superb work ethic had unchained her training efforts for the last few weeks before Nerang, after recovering from a knee injury.
That break is probably well deserved in retrospect as she has smashed out race after race throughout the last two months.
“I’ve had a break for a little bit – before I went up to Nerang I had a bit of a break, not by choice because I stacked at the BMX track and hurt my knee a bit,” Wallen said.
Moving into eighth overall in Australia for her age group, the highly-ranked BMX champion hopes to push towards a top-three ranking in Australia and continue to knock off her best competition one by one.
She can boost her rankings in upcoming months as the dust turns to mud around the country as she has been selected for the Dynamites Team – comprising the three top racers in each age group.
Wallen will take to the Sleeman BMX Track course in Queensland to test her mettle on the national stage in April.
“There were girls but I chose to race against the boys for more competition as there aren’t as many girls in those events,” Wallen said.“That’s where I want to get a podium finish – I want to try to get number one in Victoria again as well – I won it for the 12 girls last year, won 11s and I can win three in a row and get the 13 girls.
“I also hope to get (National) podium this year – finish top three – ‘cos I know I can get there if I train a bit more.”
After that? She wants to take on the world.
There are two competing options for the young BMX prodigy – either head to Belgium for the BMX World Championships or America to The Grand National – “The Grands” – where up to 5000 riders per year take to the massive indoor circuit in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
“It would be really good (heading overseas to race) – if it does happen it would be great,” Wallen said.
“The Worlds in America are in two years, I’d really like to go there as it would be really big.”
In the meantime she will be a perennial fixture at the Upper Beaconsfield BMX track, pumping the jumps and speeding around the narrow turns, after it was resurfaced recently by the Cardinia Shire Council.
“They also fixed the local BMX track – it’s good that they’ve done that and it’s more rideable – you can ride all the jumps and stuff,” she said.
Wallen wanted to thank her sponsor – Yes BMX Victoria – and most importantly, her mum and dad for taking me everywhere and supporting her BMX dreams.
If anyone would like to sponsor Phoebe and her international BMX pursuits, more information is available by email atcharmi@tpg.com.au or via her Facebook page “Phoebe Wallen #174”.
