Melissa Paris, a trailblazer for women in motorcycle road racing, has dedicated her life after road bike racing to mentoring young athletes in a sport that depends on teamwork for success.
How Melissa Paris got into road bike racing
Growing up in Northern California, Melissa Paris was always trailing after her older brothers on a BMX bike. However, it wasn’t until college at San Diego State University that she started riding motorcycles. Paris met a fellow student with motorcycle and discovered the bike, not the man, was he true love.
“There’s no way of describing it,” Melissa Paris told an interviewer. “It’s like in The Wizard of Oz, when all of a sudden everything turns to color.”
She saved up to buy her own bike and soon began ditching classes to cruise down freeways and ride through California’s scenic canyons.
Her aptitude for riding didn’t go unnoticed. A group of older riders recognized her potential and encouraged her to get on the race track.
Paris was instantly hooked as soon as she opened the throttle on a flat track. The broke college student even struck a deal with track owners to fix crashed bikes in exchange for riding time on the race track.
Melissa Paris starts road racing
Despite being a full-time student schedule, Paris took on a full-time job to fund her racing endeavors. She started club racing on 125cc and 250cc bikes nearly every weekend, despite how expensive her newfound passion was. The cost didn’t matter to Paris, who recalled knowing from the first flag drop that racing was her life’s calling.
Melissa Paris’s career was off to the races in 2008 when she became the Lightweight National Champion.
“I don’t think I ever looked at it as a big grand goal, I just want to keep doing this. I don’t want to do anything else,” she said to YEDH. “There’s nothing out there that makes me feel this way.”
She made her professional debut in Daytona on a Yamaha R6 in 2009, where she finished in 21st place. The same year, she broke barriers by becoming the first woman to qualify for and race in for a World Supersport Race.
In 2010, Paris competed in the American Motorcycle Association (AMA) Daytona Sportbike series and finished her personal best at 15th.
The year after, she raced in the British Supersport at Brands Hatch, then became the first female rider invited to test a Yamaha MotoGP prototype bike.
Testing a Yamaha MotoGP prototype bike
Her husband is fellow professional road racer Josh Hayes and in 2011 he won AMA Pro Superbike Championship for Yamaha.
The company invited Hayes to test drive the MotoGP prototype in Spain, but while on the trip, another rider was involved in a crash at the 2011 Malaysia Motorcycle Grand Prix, and Hayes stepped in to take his place at the Tech 3 Yamaha MotoGP.
Yamaha then asked Paris to test out the prototype bike, which she called “the coolest motorcycle you could possibly ride.”
She called said experience, “terrifying but amazing,” and wasn’t sure why Yamaha let her test drive the bike, but is “glad that they did.”
Melissa Paris went on to compete in numerous AMA Pro Flat Track and MotoAmerica Supersport races in subsequent years. She came in fourth place at the 2014 FIM CEV Repsol International Roadrace Championship in Spain.
Then went on to become part of the first all-female team to qualify and complete the 2016 Bol d’Or 24 Hour World Endurance Championship Race.
In 2017, she was a member of the first all-female team to qualify and complete the LeMans 24 Hour World Endurance Championship Race. That same year, she founded MP13 Racing.
Melissa Paris gives back to her sport
With the creation of MP13 Racing, Paris has been driven to provide a safe space for young girls and boys in racing coming up in road racing. Her goal was to pay forward the opportunities she was given to the next generation of young motorcycle racers.
“I wanted to help young kids, in a lot of cases other girls, and help create those opportunities to help move them along and go racing at the highest level they could,” she remarked.
Melissa Paris also took part in Royal Enfield’s Build. Train. Race. Program, where she mentored girls and women who had very little experience flat track motorcycle racing.
More than teaching them to race, Paris was thrilled to impart her knowledge about building supersport bikes.
“I love the opportunity to show them that it’s not rocket science and that you can figure it out, and that if you can’t there’s someone out there who wants to help you and will be happy to help you,” she pointed out.
Melissa Paris Wants Everyone To Get Into Road Racing
Paris believes that there is room for everyone in professional motorcycle racing, and is committed to making sure everyone feels welcome to participate in the sport.
“I want to make sure that everyone knows that there’s space at the table for them, and if I can pull out the chair, I’m happy to do that,” she told YEDH.
Melissa Paris wants everyone to go after their dreams and work hard. “Stop thinking of all the reasons you can’t do something and just take that jump,” she stated.
Work ethic is the cornerstone of Paris’ ethos, which includes always trying to make improvements, refusing to settle for “good enough.”
The importance of having work ethic
When Melissa Paris gets a bike ready for a race, she makes sure it’s the best and safest bike on the track. “I pride myself on my work ethic. I’m never worried that someone will call me lazy,” she remarked.
The professional road bike racer said her parents modeled this behavior for her entire life, despite having careers that were far from their dream jobs.
“When I find myself with an opportunity to work in something I love and I enjoy, [working hard] is like a no-brainer,” she stated.
Anytime that Melissa Paris completes a bike build, she only sees what could have been done better and what she can improve on for the the next time.
“If you think you did enough, then you didn’t,” she noted. “I’ve never walked away from a bike and said ‘that thing’s perfect.’”
Road Racing Star Melissa Paris’ Resources:
Help support MP13’s flat track motorcycle racing team on Patreon.
Check out the latest about the World Supersport rider on Instagram.
Get the latest news about the former professional road racer on Facebook.
Learn more about her career racing SuperSport motorcycles on LinkedIn.
Follow the former AMA Pro Flat Track racer on X.
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