Carolynn Sells (born 6 May 1973 in Preston, Lancashire) is an English former road racer. She grew up around motorcycle racing, a sport her father Dave Sells took up when she was five years old. He began racing in the

Manx Grand Prix The Manx Grand Prix motorcycle races are held on the Isle of Man TT Course (or 'Snaefell Mountain Course, Mountain Circuit') every year for a two-week period, usually spanning the end of August and early September. New for 2022 is a period re ...

when she was 12. She has stated that her sole purpose, when she began short circuit racing herself at the age of 27, was to obtain a National Race licence so she could race on the

Isle of Man TT Mountain Course The Isle of Man TT Mountain Course or ''TT Course'' is a street and public rural road circuit located in the Isle of Man, used for motorcycle racing. The motorcycle ''TT Course'' is used principally for the Isle of Man TT Races and also the sep ...

. The highlight of her racing career was winning the 2009 Ultralightweight Manx Grand Prix, making her the first and as of 2022, the only woman to win a solo race on the

, an achievement that earned her a Guinness World Record, and made her the Isle of Man Sportswoman of the Year 2009.

Racing

Sells raced numerous times on the roads of the

Isle of Man ) , anthem = "O Land of Our Birth" , image = Isle of Man by Sentinel-2.jpg , image_map = Europe-Isle_of_Man.svg , mapsize = , map_alt = Location of the Isle of Man in Europe , map_caption = Location of the Isle of Man (green) in Europe ...

, including 13 Manx Grand Prix starts between 2003 and 2009. She also raced on the roads mostly in Ireland (between 2004 & 2008). However, she started her racing career by participating in short circuit club racing, mostly in mainland Britain (between 2000 & 2009); her first race was at Jurby Airfield on the Isle of Man on her father's TZ250 race bike.

Awards

Short Circuits: *Andreas Racing Association (Isle of Man) Champion of Champions 00cc class 2002

Southern 100 The Southern 100 is a motorcycle road racing event held on the Isle of Man in July of each year. The event was first held in 1955, with three races for different classes of solo motorcycles; the 2015 calendar included twelve races for various cla ...

: *First woman to have an overall win of a solo race at this event, during the 50th Anniversary meeting in 2005.

References

1973 births English motorcycle racers British motorcycle racers Living people Manx Grand Prix racers Female motorcycle racers {{England-motorcycle-racing-bio-stub