The saying goes “Dynamite comes in small packages,” and the same could be said of Eldorado Park’s Stacey Lee-May. Her petite stature and bashful demeanour belie the charismatic daredevil behind the wheel of a BMW M325i Gusheshe.
Known in Eldos as The Queen of Smoke, the soft-spoken 23-year-old has rapidly grown into one of South Africa’s most recognized car spinners. She’s made appearances on So You Think You Can Spin, Top Gear SA and The Grand Tour to name a few. Her long list of achievements includes receiving the Gauteng’s Woman of Honour award and jetting off to New York to star alongside South African actress, Charlize Theron on Netflix’s Motorsport show, Hyperdrive.
However, the Big Apple’s bright lights are a far cry from May’s ill-treated beginnings. Born and raised in Eldorado Park, south of Soweto, She finished high school at 16, one of the youngest in her grade. This, combined with her small frame, made her an easy target for bullies.
“I always hear people say they miss high school, I don’t. It was a terrible time for me. I was bullied quite often, I was tucked into a trash bin at some point, and it was really bad. I think bullying in schools is a social issue that is overlooked and needs to be addressed. The negative effect it can have on your confidence as well,” Lee-May said speaking to Soweto Urban at her family home in Soweto. In an attempt to boost her confidence, Stacey’s father introduced the then-teenager to spinning. She was a natural, and with her nail-biting stunts, quickly became a crowd favourite in the sport of spinning. She got her big international breakthrough when she was invited as a contestant on Netflix’s Hyperdrive. A move that saw her work with the show’s host and a South African icon, Charlize Theron.
“It was a lot of back and forth calling for about a year. They told me about the show and that I would have to come to shoot in New York. At first, I didn’t take much into it, but then it got serious, it was just a great journey,” she said.
Not long after, Stacey was off to New York. Unfortunately, her run on Hyperdrive was a brief one. “I was heartbroken. My engine just failed. I was very disappointed because my family did so much to get me there; my dad sold his tow truck. But nevertheless, it was a great experience. I learnt a lot and taught them a lot too. They don’t have spinning there, they have drifting. It’s similar, but not like ours (South Africa), so I’d like to think I brought that different style.”
Despite her premature elimination, Stacey had won over the hearts of viewers across the world. Many felt she could have done better with an upgraded vehicle and have since campaigned for her return in season 2. It remains to be seen whether that move materializes, in the meantime, Stacey is competing in Pakistan in the Mountain Dew Moto Extreme stunt show.
