By: Megan Gallagher
Michelle Marquis is a motorsport athlete. She got her love for motorsports in seventh grade, when her dad took her to the Indianapolis 500. Marquis says that, “racing is always in your blood,” and for her, that is accurate.
Marquis got her start with Formula one racing. “It’s a more detailed kind of racing,” she stated. Plus, it’s what got her, her start in racing, because after her Formula one racing career was over, she got hooked onto BMX racing.
Michelle was in Florida, visiting her grandparents, when she and a friend visited a bike shop. When she saw the BMX bike, she instantly fell in love. She then learned to ride it, and attended many clinics to improve her skills. Michelle says that she, “just kind of fell in love with it.” She especially loved BMX racing, because she could let go of the world and whatever had happened that day, when she hit the track. “When the helmet goes on, the rest of the world goes away.”
Even though Michelle doesn’t race currently, her role in the racing career is still there. She was the first certified coach for BMX in the United States. “My experience,” was her response when asked why she wanted to become a coach in the first place. She also helped create the Lyn St. James Driver Development Program which would prepare future female drivers. Currently she is helping run the BMX track in Warsaw, Indiana.
Even if Michelle doesn’t do it presently, she was right when saying, “once you’re a racer, your kind of always a racer.”