Motor racing is traditionally a male-dominated sport but women are being given the chance to get behind the wheel. Women's Editor Christen Pears meets one aspiring driver.

MOST little girls like playing with dolls and dressing up but from being a small child, Johann Gibson has loved fast cars. Now 29, she's one of Britain's few female motorsport engineers and has ambitions to get out from under the bonnet and behind the wheel as a racing driver.

Formula Woman is Britain's first ever racing series for women and is currently recruiting drivers from across the country. Johann first became aware of it when she attended the launch at the Autosport International show in Birmingham in January.

"I go to the show every year but there was a stand explaining what Formula Woman was all about. I didn't have to think about it. It was a question of: 'Where do I sign?'," she says.

"I've always been interested in motorsport and I think it stems from having a brother and family friends who were boys. I was always at air shows and motor shows and even from school age, I've loved things that go fast."

Formula Woman is backed by Mazda, who will be supplying the new Mazda RX 8 for the championship, and Carlton Television. Celebrity supporters include ex-Formula One driver Mark Blundell and racing driver and TV presenter Vicki Butler-Henderson.

"There are people that will put it down because it's for women but there is definitely room out there for another racing formula," says Johann. "There have been so many applications, it speaks volumes for the amount of interest and it is gaining momentum all the time."

Johann, who lives in Darlington, is the perfect example of the key role women can play in motor racing. After completing a degree in aeronautical engineering, she worked at Ford Motorsport in Boreham with the rally design team and last year became the first woman to graduate from motorsport and engineering course at Cranfield University in Oxfordshire. She beat off competition from the 19 men on the MSc course to win the British Racing Drivers' Club trophy, which was presented to her by racing legend Jackie Stewart.

Her passion for the sport has taken her to Europe and North America with Ford and she worked as a race engineer for Eclipse Motorsport during the 2001 British GT Championship.

She says: "I guess I found out that I really liked it when I was working in the British GT race meetings. I would spend hours in the pit lane in the pouring rain and freezing cold and then my car would go off at the end of the first lap but I would still go home and say I'd had a great time."

But like most of her Cranfield contemporaries, Johann is still looking for an engineering or managerial post with Formula One.

"I may have been the only woman in my year but I don't think that's the reason I haven't found a job yet - none of the boys have either. Teams are going out of business and people are cutting back all the time. I have had Formula One teams say they're really interested in taking me on but there just isn't the work at the moment.

"Actually, sometimes being a woman works in my favour. People will come over and talk to me and find out why I'm there and what I'm doing. It means people get to know who I am pretty quickly."

Johann is currently temping and firing off dozens of job application letters but she's also focusing her attention on Formula Woman. She's driven single-seaters at Silverstone and was a test driver during her time with Ford but says actually racing is something she's only dreamed about.

There are always a lot of women spectators at races and plenty of female competitors at karting level but, according to Johann, they're just not breaking through.

"I don't know why it's like that. There are plenty of people like me who are interested but there just don't seem to have been any opportunities for them. I think Formula Woman will change that."

The championship will enable 16 complete novices to be trained and obtain their Motorsport Association licence.

After filling in an application form, 2,400 successful applicants will be invited to a racing circuit, where their driving skills will be put to the test, along with their stamina, physical fitness and presentation skills.

"They're looking for all-rounders. If you're going to set up a new championship, you need people who can communicate, especially if they're going to be on TV. It isn't just about driving. They need the whole package."

The 16 chosen candidates will undergo an intensive training course later this year, preparing them for the start of racing in 2004. Each car and driver will be sponsored and there will be what Formula Woman organisers describe as a "substantial prize fund".

Johann says: "It's a fantastic opportunity and I would absolutely love to get through but even if I don't, anything I learn on the way means it's never going to be a waste of time. I'm interested in the technology side and if this helps me appreciate that more from the drivers' point of view, it's going to be a really good thing."

* For more information about Formula Woman, visit the website at www.formulawoman.com