Sara was a 2016 Off Road Hall of Fame Inductee in the UTV, MX, and ATV Category | It had been a long road to get this far. But out of hundreds of entrants it was Sara Price who was strapped tightly into the racing seat of a 400 horsepower Fiat 124 Spider Abarth rally car for the Hoonigans Wanted Challenge. She was chosen from among the hundreds women through an arduous process to be selected “next Female Hoonigan” and pilot the snarling Fiat up the treacherous, narrow Mt. Washington Hillclimb.Her selection probably surprised no one more than herself. Sara had grown up on dirt bikes, her parents buying her a Honda XR50 as a child to distract her while her older brother practiced on the MX track. “I had too much energy,” Sara adds. By eight years old, she’d started and won her first race. At age 12 she was a national rider, accumulating a record 17 National wins. By 16 she’d turned pro, becoming the first-ever factory-supported female Monster Energy Kawasaki rider. And by 20, even though she’d medaled in the 2010 X-Games Women’s Super-X, she’d retired from Motocross. But not by choice. X-Games dropped Women’s Super-X. According to Sara “it limited the ability of women riders to secure sponsorships, as that was the big event of the year.” With bikes out of the picture for the foreseeable future but still riding motorcycles for the sake of passion, she looked around at what other challenges she might conquer. Her father, a long-time Class 10 Baja racer suggested she consider off-road racing as a means of furthering her career. 
Erica Sacks, Sara Price, and their K&N-equipped Teryx before the King of Hammers | Side x Side seemed like a good place to transition. "My first ever Side x Side race was in 2007. It was a one-time one-off race for me in my downtime of motocross and also my first time driving a Side x Side," Sara recalled.The transition was gradual, according to Sara "in 2013, alongside IMG Motorsports I raced Monster Jam intermission shows, WORCS event where I was also racing my dirt bike, and random motocross events where they let Side x Sides join. Then late 2013 early 2014 I believe is when I started racing short course after buying a 900 RZR." Needing a spotter and a co-driver, Sara turned to Erica Sacks, whom she'd met at a charity event. According to Erica "I had been co-driving for a while with other drivers. As far as going from spotter to in-car with Sara was fairly easy. I basically studied her when I spotted for her, so jumping in the car with her was just a different view and a little more bumpy." Kawasaki supported the pair in the 2016 and 2017 King of Hammers event, being both the only all-female team and one of a few Teryx models entered in the unique event that combines rock crawling with off-road racing, known as the toughest one day off-road event in the U.S. In 2015 Sara and co-driver Erica set out to compete in the Rallye Aïcha des Gazelles, an event billed as one of the toughest all-female sporting events, in a factory-supported Kawasaki Teryx Side X Side. 
Sara taking a fun run on the beach in her K&N-equipped Kawasaki Teryx | The Rallye Aïcha des Gazelles is a nine-day challenge to navigate around Morocco over the shortest possible distance, even if that means climbing a mountain instead of driving around it. “The teams that arrive back first aren’t usually the winners," according to Sara, “as they drove around obstacles rather than taking the shortest possible route.” And by the way, no GPS or modern navigation tools are allowed – only ancient maps and a compass.The pair, who’d been nicknamed the TeryxGirls, had been driving through the desert when night fell. Shortly after they ran out of gas, with nothing on the horizon but sand dunes. They settled in for the night in their race seats. Around 3:00 am they were awoken by two locals approaching them. For a few moments, they were unsure of the intentions of these two men but then realized they had ridden out on a motorcycle to bring sticks to start a fire for them while they wait for rally mechanics with gas. Relieved they continued on their way. Back at Mt. Washington, Sara was strapped into a genuine Fiat Abarth factory-built rally car, one of several constructed for the FIA R-GT WRC class. Modifications include a full roll cage, four-way adjustable dampers, a six-speed sequential transmission, a limited slip differential, and lightweight panels. The car that inspired this snarky little beast was the FIA European Rally Champion back in its day. 
After a fast start an electronics fault ended her run in the Fiat Abarth 124 R GT at Mt. Washington | As Sara awaits the start command to go, she’s running through her mind as much of the 7.4 mile course as possible. “It’s just too long to remember all the turns on your first attempt” she commented later. The green flag waves and she tears out onto the course. For the first timing segment, she’s just one mph under the previous year's record -- a great start. Then disaster strikes. Something goes wrong with the car’s electronics and she’s forced to limp to the top of the 6,100-foot mountain. Not the result anyone was hoping for.While having won the “Next Female Hoonigan” title and the chance to race up Mt. Washington may lead to some further activities with Fiat, Sara has plenty on her plate right now. For one, she’s raced in the Hooligan event at the Costa Mesa Speedway, in what best be described as a stripped-down Harley-Davidson. Not stripped down like a Speedway bike, really more like a Harley that’s had all its accessories and road gear removed. “It’s still a heavy bike, not even close to a Speedway bike,” Sara explained but loves every minute of it. 
Sara races a stripped-down Harley-Davidson Hooligan at the short 185 yard Costa Mesa Speedway | Anyone who has ever raced knows that it an enormously time-consuming activity. Even when someone else is preparing, transporting, and serving the racer, there are still countless hours required on the driver’s or rider’s to prepare and participate.Sara’s solution was to go entrepreneurial. She owns a company called SP Enterprises that does minor touch-ups on used cars at automobile dealers. It’s flexible, easy to reassign responsibilities around her racing schedule, and keeps the bills paid while she’s off racing. Or making money in her other job, as a motorcycle and car stunt rider/driver. She prefers working on commercials as the shoots are typically just a day or two, versus a motion picture that can tie you down for weeks or even months, but she is grateful for any work in the stunt industry and loves it. “I’ve worked on commercials for Kia and Microsoft, and doubled for Lady Gaga, and believe it or not, Danica Patrick,” Sara added. 
Erica, Sara and their Trophy Truck after their first truck experience at the Laughlin Desert Classic | In 2016, Sara was invited to compete in the Stadium Super Trucks event at Toronto. In the first race, after showing she belonged as a competitor, even leading laps, she finished eighth, but ahead of former IndyCar drivers Paul Tracy and Max Papis and right behind the highly-experienced PJ Jones. In the second race, she finished ninth, but still right behind Jones on the lead lap.She’s also had her first experience racing a Trophy Truck for RPM Offroad, as Sara and Erica raced the truck for the first time in the 2017 Laughlin Desert Classic in the 8100 class. "It was truly a dream come true," exclaimed Sara. As a driver, it was a big step for Sara. As a passenger, it was a leap of faith for Erica. Or was it? "Getting in the truck with Sara was a dream. I trust her as a driver, so getting comfortable communicating at a faster pace that works was my biggest reservation," Erica confirmed. Challenged about their ability to change a 150-pound wheel and tire in the middle of the event, Sara and Erica created a strategy that they practiced over and over again and got the time to change a tire from unbuckled to buckled down in the seat down to three minutes. The pair finished second overall in the results for eight combined classes that ran together. Sara's also been a long-time user of K&N Filters. "Since I started driving anything I always used K&N even before I was supported by them. I made sure to have their product on my Side X Sides, when we raced short course it was all about the most airflow to get the most horsepower and K&N has proven to be the best with maximum horsepower use on the track," Sara said. Right now, Sara is training for the upcoming Vegas to Reno off-road race, the longest off-road race in America, again in a Trophy Truck But now in the spec class, a trend that Sara hopes to continue. “Trophy Truck is what I’d love to do forever and nothing ever tops the opportunity of getting to drive one and I'm beyond grateful for the opportunity thanks to RPM Offroad,” the versatile driver added. Photo Credits: Alex Wong, Danny Curiel, Preston Burroughs |
