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Melissa Paris

Joined Feb 2008
3K Posts | 470+
Outback Steakhouse
AMA Daytona Sportbike star Melissa Paris will travel to Britain at the end of the season to compete in the Fuchs Silkolene British Supersport Cup Championship at the Brands Hatch season finale on a Motodex-backed Yamaha R6 with a view to competing in the series full time in 2012.



Paris, who rides an R6 in the Stateside series and has been a front-runner at the Daytona 200, is using the weekend as a taster to see how BSB works and just how competitive she is in the Cup championship. Two good race results could see the California resident up sticks and move to Britain for the whole of next year. The team have secured a bike from SMR Performance for the event but hopes to continue into the 2012 season.



Paris said: "I am so excited to ride the Motodex Performance First Yamaha R6! I know that learning a new circuit on the fly will be a challenge but I look forward to it. I owe a huge thanks to HT Moto and Yamaha and all of my sponsors here in the US for being so supportive as well as Tony Dexter for putting together this incredible opportunity for me."



Tony Dexter of Motodex Performance First concluded: "MotoDex Performance First UGmbH is absolutely delighted to be taking Melissa Paris to the grid for the first time in the last round of the prestigious British Supersport series at Brands Hatch, in our own livery and in our first year of business. We are not just coming to play. We have a totally professional setup, a simply awesome Yamaha R6 and Melissa has proven herself time and again that she can run with the 'big boys'. Be in no doubt, she is a tough cookie and an out-and-out racer and we've put together a stunningly competitive package and support crew for her."
 
I think that girl is pretty bad ....



In case you've never read this, here is an exerpt from her blog from a few years ago





TUESDAY, MAY 26, 2009

What's in a Number?

I’ll never forget what it felt like to crawl over that railing. I was 11 years old and the 15 foot drop to the river below looked much bigger. My knuckles were white and my toes curled over the ledge as I tried to summon up the courage to jump.

I grew up with four older brothers. To say I worshipped each one of them would be an understatement. I wanted to be as smart as they were, as funny as they were, and most of all… I wanted to be as brave as they were. Bret was six years older than I… and in my opinion, pretty much as cool as it gets. He had a big truck that he drove recklessly, tons of friends, and always seemed to be getting into trouble for the most fun stuff ever. He taught me how to put the mouth numbing stuff on my other brothers’ toothbrushes, how to make even the worst chores into a game, and how to connive my parents into all sorts of things. I’ll never forget him showing up at our parents’ wedding with a broken arm and stitches in his lip after a mishap rollerblading behind a pickup truck.



So there I was… Poised on the edge of a bridge in Yosemite, trying to will myself to jump. OK… So maybe it wasn’t exactly the craziest thing ever, but it was right up Bret’s alley and exactly the sort of thing I would generally chicken out of. When I finally let go and plunged into the water it felt like I was flying. I couldn’t wait to get home and tell my big brother about my adventure.



That night my brother Bret was killed in a car accident. He was only 17 years old. At 11 years old, you’re just on the edge of being able to comprehend loss like that. I was overcome with confusion. To me, it redefined “unfair”. There was so much life left for him. Through all the tears and anger I made a promise to Bret that I was going to get his money’s worth out this life for him.

Now that I’m older I’m still learning from Bret. He was just a kid but he understood what it meant to take risks and live life to the fullest. Sometimes he did things he shouldn’t… sometimes it turned out bad and sometimes it turned out spectacular. But the only way to know what you are capable of, is to try things you might not be. I think that’s something we can all learn from. Some would say that I have no business rolling out on track with the World Supersport field. It’s only my second pro race… and I’ve still got a lot to learn.

But I don’t care. Next week, in honor of my brother Bret, I am going to rock the number 29 (his birthday is September 29) and crawl over the railing and jump in…

POSTED BY MELISSA PARIS AT 8:36 AM
 
Great post Johnny. Yeah, I had read that before, and I just did now, both times with the same reaction.......... A.



Good Luck Melissa!
 

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