Drag racing star Ida Zetterström: ‘They told me I was the fastest woman … it bugged me’

Swedish driver made a name for herself in Europe but now she aims of winning championships in the United States

When drag racer Ida Zetterstrom discusses her craft, she describes her racing decisions as a series of thoughtful if/then statements. This is misleading. The time in which she can alter her actions is best measured in tenths of seconds. There's no time for thinking - it's all muscle memory perfected over decades in the cockpit. A slight miscalculation can leave her car spinning without traction at the starting line, or worse.

When it comes to the actual run, I should be 100% wide open [on the gas]," she says. I should never have to [re-adjust] the throttle or anything like that because, if you do that - first of all, the run is not going to be good. You will never, ever have a good run. Plus, the risk of blowing the engine up is super, super high."