Are they serious? These guys are busting their asses, risking their lives for crap money. Not to mention the pitiful purse makes it impossible for true privateers to even attend, or put forward a half-a$$ effort. Tires alone average $420.+tax a set and they really only last 1 race. Privateers make their dollar stretch by either buying a new set and using the same set for all practices sessions, and then usually have new rubber for qualifying if they can afford it [or at least conserving and then laying down some all or nothing hot laps for quals], and new rubber for the race. Although I have seen riders use old rubber from their practice sessions for the quals, or qual tires for the actual race. And hope they don’t lose traction and wad. If they do the absolute bare minimum that’s an average of $1,200 per race for ONE class, ONE race. And as we know The AMA loves doubleheaders so that’s almost double the tire cost. If you don’t have good rubber, you can’t qualify well, which means you’re back on the grid, which means you have to ride your ass off to the point of backing it every race and severely risking your life to even finish in the money. In reality you need between $2,500. – $5,000 in tire money alone to put forth your best effort, depending upon the amount of classes you are running, the track surface characteristics, time of year, and set-up issues you are trying to work out. Now tack on fuel, parts, travel, food, crew, testing time, transport, A.K.A. cubic-dollars! . The costs (and this year’s lack, or lowered contigency money) really only make it possible for factory teams or major corporate sponsored teams to be competitive. Now don’t get me wrong, I am not whining like some little brat, I am just saying the AMA does NOT give a flying #### at a rolling doughnut if the riders they make their profit off of femur in or not over a measily $500. This isn’t club racing for God’s sake. But even that’s expensive.
The only thing good about the purse change is that they are actually paying the below per race regardless of finish of the second race. 
Last year you had to average well in both races to get the purse. In other words if you finished 7th in the 1st race but you finished 21st in the second race, you got paid one time for a lesser purse average. Just as you could get a high position in the first race and not even finish the second race and you could still get paid more than someone who finished 15th consistently in both races. Honestly it was confusing as shit and you really didn’t know if you were getting gas money for the ride home until it was too late.
I honestly thought the 200 was a hopeful hint of what was to come. But I was disillusioned. This is FAR worse than last year.
1 2,500 2,500 2,500 2,500
2 1,500 1,500 1,500 1,500
3 1,000 1,000 1,000 1,000
4 750 750 750 750
5 750 750 750 750
6 750 750 750 750
7 750 750 750 750
8 750 750 750 750
9 750 750 750 750
10 750 750 750 750
11 750 750 750 750
12 750 750 750 750
13 750 750 750 750
14 750 750 750 750
15 750 750 750 750
16 500 500
17 500 500
18 500 500
19 500 500
20 500 500
Ms XX FAST - Life in the Not-So-Fast Lane 
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