why aren't more women in sbk or such?

[sbrguy]

ok i was watching some racing and realized one thing.

that most of the motogp guys are not what you would call very physically imposing figures. they are all around 5'4'-5'8' that is it there are exceptions but most of them are around that height and only around 130-150lbs.. meaning its not like in the nba where if you aren't 6'4' and 240lbs you are all but guaranteed never to make it.

getting back to this question, since so much of motorcycle racing is more about knowing how to race and the strategy of racing and such, its not so much about physicallity as with football or something but more about the technique of riding and such.. why haven't more women made it to the upper levels of the sport?

[darylbowden]

I think mostly because not many women choose to race at an amateur level (especially at the young age most pros do). However, I think we'll see some change with girls like Elena Myers rising through the WERA ranks.

There are a couple though. Josh Hayes wife Melissa is a fast racer and so is Jessica Zalusky (both at the club level). Jessica had Kawasaki support, but never did much better than to barely qualify during the seasons she competed the SS and FX classes.

[sbrguy]

i think it interesting only bc with motorsports in general, yes you need a good car/bike and without that you are basically not in the hunt, but assuming you have the car that is up to the task then its up to driving or riding ability... the facts of endurance and physical strength are there but they are not a dominant part of the racing to be successful as shown by male drivers/riders that are by no means super specimens of athletes but may have the innate ability to drive/ride or have fast reaction times, etc all things that are tough but htey are not dependent on how much you can bench press or your vertical leap or how fast you can run a marathon.

i think it will be interesting if it takes off or not.

[NoMods]

sbrguy, your dream has been realized. The European Women's Championships have been running for several years now. They race on MotoGP circuits in both 600 and 1000 engine classes. Ducati has been instrumental in bringing on board women through their women's race development program and Aprilia has also been providing fast women for awhile now. All the big manufacturers are represented and the EWC is run just like regular MotoGP. Women really want to race other women. If you go to EWC website, you can read all about it.

Eileen

[derby]

just be patient:

http://elenamyers.com/

[sbrguy]

Originally Posted by NoMods

sbrguy, your dream has been realized. The European Women's Championships have been running for several years now. They race on MotoGP circuits in both 600 and 1000 engine classes. Ducati has been instrumental in bringing on board women through their women's race development program and Aprilia has also been providing fast women for awhile now. All the big manufacturers are represented and the EWC is run just like regular MotoGP. Women really want to race other women. If you go to EWC website, you can read all about it.

Eileen

though it is great that women have their own league, and its great place to start no doubt.

i truly believe that motorcycle racing is possibly one of the only sports it makes perfect sense to not have differentiation between mens/womens devisions.. i see the logic for sports such as tennis/golf/gymnastics etc, where it has been scientifically proven that physically men and women have different theoretical limits, ie the best woman sprinter ever is not as fast as the best male sprinter ever.

but when it comes to motorcycle racing, i don't see the same limits being put on women, afterall what makes a great racer? being able to hit turn points, sense bike speed, sense how the bike is handling, applying braking pressure correctly, quick reaction times and eyesight.. all of those things i don't think are limited to men having a higher ability. for motorsports it seems sort of archaic that you would separate men and women afterall these sports are so dependent on equipment as the main thing, so whether the driver/rider is a man or woman should not make a difference.

basically i want to see the situation where the best driver/rider is in the competition regardless of their sex or where they were born. that would be freakishly cool.

motorcycle racing is a great sport where rider technique and skill take preceidence over physical talen (ie, 40 yard times/bench press/height, etc all the things that are limiting in other sports) this is the sport that can really show that the sex of a person makes no difference.

[kopfjager]

They may race, but it will be in the back of the field.

[22931]

I think a riders physique is important, but not so much muscle, more so their overall weight. Like a jockey for a race horse lighter is better. Male/ female doesn't matter, except they will have an umbrella dude.

Originally Posted by NoMods

[snip]
Ducati has been instrumental in bringing on board women through their women's race development program
Eileen

So does this mean the monster is a girls bike? [cheeky]

[gm2]

...overall weight is key of course but muscle is a lot more important than you just made it sound. physics 'n all..

[sbrguy]

yeah musle may be important but none of these moto gp guys appear to be what you would call bodybuilders or freaks of athletic ability, meaning insane bench presses/40 sprint times, etc. when these guys are shown in normal clothes its not the same as when you see a pro football player/basketball player, etc in normal street clothes where you can say "ok this guy is way more fit than a normal person"