32 AUGUST 2019 By Mallory Gleich he average observer probably wouldn’t realize how uncommon it is to view Paradise Valley resident Valerie Thompson at her home office, getting ready to wade through paperwork and do other mundane office tasks. It isn’t that managing her businesses affairs is rare, it’s that seeing her at all while she’s working is quite the challenge. But when you consider she’s typically moving at over 300 mph, it’s understandable. Thompson’s “day job” is that of a professional motorcycle racer, and she’s one of the best. She holds eight land-speed records, is the first female member of the Bonneville 200 MPH Club Board of Directors and is a member of the Sturgis Motorcycle Hall of Fame. To say she likes to go fast is an understatement. In 2018, Thompson piloted a highly customized, specially-built motorcycle called the BUB 7 Streamliner to a record speed of 328.467 mph, earning her the title of World’s Fastest Female Motorcycle Racer. Long before setting her world record, Thompson was a frequent visitor to Arizona during Bike Week. During that time, the native of Tacoma, Washington decided that the only place she would be willing to leave the northwest for was Scottsdale. In 2004, she decided to make her move and her motorcycle racing career began the following year. “I had never left Tacoma. Vacations were to my garden, or to shop at the mall or to visit my parents and grandparents,” Thompson said. “I was not a traveler until I started riding motorcycles.” Since then, Thompson’s racing career has taken her all over the world, to places including London, Ireland, Germany, Slovenia and Australia. Shortly after moving to Arizona, Thompson recalls that a fellow rider told her that her racing and riding was “out of control” and that her fast-riding ambitions should be taken to an actual race track. “After learning how to drag race on my Harley Davidson Fat Boy, I learned that I had the need for speed,” Thompson said. “I felt like I was born with the need to go fast in my DNA.” Thompson started out her career in drag racing, but discovered that her real passion was in pursuing land speed records, so she started competing at the heart of land speed record chasing: the Bonneville Salt Flats. “When you’re a racer, you always want to go faster. You always want to be the fastest,” Thompson said. Thompson competes for top speeds at the Bonneville Salt Flats, which is a vast, extremely flat, 20-square-mile expanse of salt and mineral- covered land in northwestern Utah. Motorcar racing has taken place at salt flats since 1914, including tracks in Australia and Bolivia. Land speed racing is performed one vehicle at time, starting when the driver crosses the “safe zone.” At the start, the streamliner bike is towed by a truck until it reaches a speed of 50 mph. The truck then releases the bike and it zooms down the 10- to 12-mile track. “In a matter of ten seconds, when I go through the timing light…I’m going 320 mph,” Thompson said. “I have to finesse my foot, and quickly.” Thompson has been racing the streamliner AMERICA’S QUEEN OF SPEED Valerie Thompson PHOTOS COURTESY OF VALERIE THOMPSON

33 AUGUST 2019 for Denis Manning (owner of BUB Enterprises and builder of the streamliner) and Team 7 Racing or “BUB 7,” since 2016. The name “BUB” came to be after a friend of Manning lovingly called him “Big Ugly Bastard.” Manning looked at his friend and said, “That’s the name I’m going to give the streamliner.” Racing motorcycles at 300+ mph also comes with its share of risks. At last year’s World Speed Trials, Thompson survived a crash possibly caused by a gust of wind blowing her bike sideways. The motorcycle flipped multiple times and she slid for a mile before the bike stopped. She was going 363 mph. “I don’t remember doing any of the ‘Evil Knievel’ flips,” Thompson said of the crash. Luckily, because of the frame of the bike and the many safety precautions, Thompson escaped unscathed. There is also a bailout procedure in case of emergencies, which Thompson and her team go over during tech inspections before each race. When the team is racing at the salt flats, Thompson says they truly enjoy spectators coming to watch the races. “When people drive by on the highway, they can see us race,” Thompson said. “Once you pay an entry fee, you can come in, walk the pits, talk to the racers. ‘ The best protection any woman can have…is courage ’ is my inspirational quote. I mean, I need protection, I need courage. What guy and what female wouldn’t need courage to go and do what I do? ” The BUB 7 is 21-feet in length and runs on two wheels, which puts it in a unique racing category. Valerie’s collection includes the helmet (bottom right) she was wearing during her crash. It has since been retired.