Model, singer and motorbike stunt rider

Performing tricks on a motorbike isn't typical behaviour for an aspiring model but Chesca Miles is in a different gear from most.

The 20-year-old has become the first woman in the country to turn professional as a stunt rider - only seven months after starting to learn how to do the tricks alone. She makes her solo debut at Santa Pod Raceway in Northamptonshire on Sunday after building an internet fan base.

Chesca, originally from Richmond and now living in Staines, combines her career as a "streetbike freestyle rider", on an adapted 600cc Honda machine, with modelling and singing. She began riding bikes at 14 and was an experienced rider by the time she was old enough to hold a licence.

Until August she had only performed tricks on a bike with someone else, and admits she still has to win over some male colleagues. She said: "It's been tough. The boys resent the fact that I am woman who can ride a bike as well as or better than them. I love being on the catwalk and in front of the camera but not as much as being on a bike. Stunt work is not just about high-speed chases, it's also about control, balance and mastery of the machine."

Chesca practises three days a week and hopes to do film stunt work this year. She is also working on her first album. She says she feels safer on two wheels, performing stunts including the "flamingo wheelie" (standing on the seat and sticking one leg out behind the bike to imitate the bird) than in a car. Her worst injury has been a broken toe when she was hit by a runaway go-kart at a show.

She said: "Being a stunt girl means that you are a much safer rider on the roads - but then it's all the other motorists you have to worry about."