Why is Jessica Zalusky racing AMA?

[JBraun]

blah blah blah

Wow. I don't even know where to start. How may AMA events have you qualified for?

Do you have any clue how hard it is to get on that grid? Jessica did a 2:30.7 to qualify at RA. That's pretty damn fast.

[Jeff]

Do you have any clue how hard it is to get on that grid? Jessica did a 2:30.7 to qualify at RA. That's pretty damn fast.

I dunno man...  2:30.7 will barely get you a top 10 in CCS.

[mdr14]

I dunno man...  2:30.7 will barely get you a top 10 in CCS.

So, there are a lot of fast guys in the midwest that did not show up to race the AMA National. Locals rule for sure.

[JBraun]

I dunno man...  2:30.7 will barely get you a top 10 in CCS.

Right, but that's still pretty respectable.

This guy is saying that she'd get smoked on an amateur grid, or by other girls in nesba ::)

[Jeff]

A 2:30 is a respectable time as a mid-pack club-level expert, and is generally capable of making the grid in an AMA race, but in my personal opinion, it's no barn-burner...  Sub 2:28's are getting there at the club level.  And for clarification, I'm NOT saying I'm fast.  I can run 2:29's - 2:30's pretty consistently and think I have a high 28 as a fastest lap (but would have to check my records).  I'm sure Jessica would give me a run for my money and in all likelihood beat me.  But again, I'm a top-10 guy at the club-expert level, I'm not a podium contender on most days.

Smoked by amateurs?  No.  Not in my estimation.  A 2:30 would likely put you on the box at Road A as an AM.

Regardless, as I said and did most of us, if you have the license and the money, you're entitled to qualify.  If you qualify, you're entitled to race.  That simple...

[mike_rbm]

Right, but that's still pretty respectable.

This guy is saying that she'd get smoked on an amateur grid, or by other girls in nesba ::)

blah blah blah kiddo.  ::)   Not what I said. I said alot of others are faster in both CCS and even NESBA. Two years ago there was a small group (3?) girls that were advanced and were absolutely killing out at Blackhawk. All 1:17 and 1:18 second laps and the one slightly older woman dipped into the 15s a few times. Not record setting but impressive.

It's obvious Jessica's well liked and has the finances to back her racing career. Didn't start off to be a rip fest on her. I didn't understand why that level (man or woman - local or not) racer would still be out there. I got some valid, intelligent answers that got their point across. I also got the stupid answers telling me I'm jealous, asking me how many AMAs I qualified for and telling me I'm not a supporter of racing.   

So now I kind of get it. I may not agree with certain reasons why people can or can not compete but I see the bigger picture. 

[Ducmarc]

o'h no we're petering out at 53 i'm going back to the road america practice issue

[Johnny B]

Kathleen's partner in crime was Canadian Toni Sharpless. I remember her coming down to Loudon a few times and crushing more than just a handful of male egos on the track.  They had a T-shirt with their pictures on it and underneath it said, "Not Just A Couple Of Pit Tootsies". The guy who set up the mobile welding shop in the paddock at Daytona wore that shirt until it rotted right off of his back.
Kathleen and Toni joined up with a French woman and entered the endurance race at LeMans (Don't remember if LeMans or Bol d'Or race)  They finished in the top ten overall.
=========================
Dale Quarterley had some good teammates. He refered to himself and Randy Renfrow as "Mutt and Jeff". When he teamed up with Sadowski, he got biblical and called the team "David and Goliath". When Formula USA came up with their team concept a few years back, he got together with Scott Gray to form "The Farm Team", explaining that they were "Two pigs on a Duc and a Kaw"! 

[Court Jester]

i get a kick and a half out of seeing chicks at races and track days. egos do get soooo torn up when a pony tail goes zipping past a dude. a lap later the dudes laid out in the grass from trying to keep up.

[APP_Racing]

I hope that everyone remembers that at this last RA event we are referring to, it rained, it rained, it rained....  Group 1 was completely wet and Group 2 got about 2 minutes for a quick lap if you had a crew to get your tires changes quickly.  This made the grid qualifying time look really weird, so much so that the AMA swapped the positions and put a lot of privateers behind factory riders even though they out qualified them.

[funsizeracing]

i get a kick and a half out of seeing chicks at races and track days. egos do get soooo torn up when a pony tail goes zipping past a dude. a lap later the dudes laid out in the grass from trying to keep up.

I don't mind, not even by pink bikes

[gkotlin]

I chatted with here briefly a few times at the Nesba event prior to the AMA races.  She was very polite and spoke with me when she had time.  She qualifies, she rides, she loves the sport.

I wouldn't mind being on the back of an AMA grid someday.