Wed, 23 Jun 2021, 15:26 PM Karen Stalba Keeping a Quick Pace

By Kelly Wade Photo copyright 2021 Auto Imagery, Inc.

Karen Stalba

The "Fastest Mom in South Jersey" is earning her nickname this year in NHRA's Top Alcohol Dragster category. Karen Stalba, of Hammonton, New Jersey, stepped away from the driver's seat to focus on the Jr. drag racing careers of her children, Paul and Emily, at the end of 2018 - but Stalba's return to action for the 2021 season is proving that mom hasn't lost her touch.

"We've been working hard to get here; we have a great car, a great team, and I've just been working to get myself comfortable again so that we can try to kick some butt," said the Stalba Motorsports matriarch earlier this season.

During the most recent off-season, Stalba and her husband - eight-time NHRA Division 1 champion Tom Stalba Jr. - purchased the entire Top Alcohol Dragster operation of Top Fuel-bound Josh Hart. In addition to the acquisition of the A/Fuel dragster and proven parts and pieces, the Stalbas also joined forces with Hart's crew, and the combination appears to be gold.

Karen Stalba at Gainesville

The new Stalba Motorsports A/Fuel team made their debut at the Baby Gators, the Southeast Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series event that precedes the esteemed Gatornationals at Gainesville Raceway. After a few shakedown runs, Stalba was seeing signs of speed and scored the No. 3 qualifying position out of 14 dragsters vying for position. What she chalked up to "driver error" in her post-race recap was the culprit for a stinging first-round loss, but the pain of an early exit was quickly assuaged.

At the Gatornationals the following weekend, Stalba qualified No. 1 on a then-career best 5.172-second journey down the quarter-mile at 280.43 mph and went on to reach the semifinals on Sunday.

The next race on their tour was the final NHRA national event at Atlanta Dragway, the Southern Nationals. The venue was one that was special to Stalba, as it was the site of her first two final round appearances. She was runner-up there in Top Alcohol Dragster to Rich McPhillips in 2005 and then to Ashley Force (now Hood) in 2006, and husband Tom won his first national event there in Super Gas in 2001.

Karen Stalba at Atlanta.

Stalba's Atlanta Dragway sendoff was memorable as she raced to the No. 1 position again on yet another 5.172-second pass with a speed of 280.19 mph that secured low elapsed time and top speed of the entire event. She reached the semifinals again on Sunday, this time succumbing to mechanical failure next to Rich McPhillips Jr., who would go on to win the event in his national event debut.

It was low-qualifier award No. 3 for Stalba at the next national event on their 2021 schedule, the NGK/NTK Performance NHRA Four-Wide Nationals in Charlotte, and for the first time in her career, the second-generation racer found herself racing four-across instead of the usual side-by-side of traditional drag racing. Stalba improved with each pass down the racetrack, and her quick comprehension of the unusual staging procedures generated efficient reaction times that proved critical during eliminations.

Karen Stalba second from the bottom.

Her A/Fueler was incredibly fast at the hands of tuner Mean Gene Gallant, and Stalba blasted to a career-best 5.147-second pass in qualifying to secure her third consecutive No. 1 and a massive 282.07 mph run in the semifinals that was her career best and top speed of the event.

In the four-wide final, Stalba's superior reaction time moved her into serious competition for the event title, but ultimately, this one went to Rachel Meyer.

Karen Stalba at Reading in 2011.

Still, 2011 Division 1 Top Alcohol Dragster champion Stalba is elevated and eager to take on the remainder of the season.

"Everything seems to be going smoothly," she said after the semifinals in Charlotte. "Three No. 1 qualifiers in my first three national events - I can't ask for more. This is one of the better years I've had."

Look for Momma Stalba to continue her charge and kick off a summer of racing with her family at the upcoming Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals at Norwalk, Ohio's Summit Motorsports Park, June 24-27, 2021.

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