Alisha Abdullah is all set to take on the boys in their own sport, writes Lata Srinivasan, who met the go-karting wonder

Spunky is what comes to mind when you meet Alisha Abdullah. She's the only girl to take the boys on in the go-karting circuit in India. At 14, she has already proved her mettle with the latest victories, winning the coveted Danny's Karting Cup Novice Intermediate trophy and the Overall Championship for 2003.

The racing bug bites
Racing is in Alisha's genes. Her dad used to be a part of the bike racing circuit in his younger days. ‘’Ever since I can remember, I was keen to get into motor-sports. I preferred go-karting to bikes, because they're definitely more fun and cool.’’

Alisha started racing two years ago. In the early stages itself, she figured out she could easily secure the fastest race time. Encouraged, she became a regular and started practising diligently giving her best. Her first race in 2002, at Chennai's Danny's Karting, saw her qualify on pole position among the girls. She, later, took the championship too.