Sara Price shares her thoughts on completing Dakar Rally Stages 1 – 6 currently standing 2nd in SSV General classification. As the American driver recants on how the opportunity came into reality, the results have been carefully determined with patience, deliverance of performance, and fine-tuned with exceptional crew focusing on their respective roles within the Team.
Breaking down the specifics of producing results in Stage 1: 3rd, 2: 7th, 3: 4th, 4: 10th, 5: 9th, 6: 4th – the consistency of Sara’s determination to achieve goals in the face of challenges racing and navigating extreme terrain shine brightly, matching her winning personality.
In fact, Sara’s strength of character and innate sense on how to mobilize the best of her abilities, along with her Team’s personal to deliver results, are by far her best attributes, as confirmed in current SSV General standings.
Who would of thought, on debut, Sara would gain 3rd podium in Stage 1, followed by spearheading the charge to not only conquer the massive sand dunes of the Empty Quarter, but also post the 4th best time of 8H 31′ 47” – just 6 minutes shy of the winner of SS6.
Sara explains: ‘To make everything go as smoothly as possible it is definitely preparation and being able to work together as a team. I have an incredible team here and I think that’s key. You have to be able to focus on specific goals and so everyone has a kind of role.
Me as a driver, and Jeremy as my navigator. Cynthia as everything basically and Mitchell as a mechanic. So, that’s all important because there’s so much that goes into this – so much exhaustion and so much endurance – in order to be fully focused in the car and go as fast as you can to have a good outcome and also no mistakes’.
Such careful planning on the specifics of racing Dakar for the first time, has also allowed for windows of maneuver given Sara, Jeremy, and Team only had their first taste of competing in Rally du Maroc in October 2023. For sure, taking 2 Stage wins in Morocco was real boost to confidence levels, yet Sara knew that completing Dakar Stages 1 -12 including management of rules and regulations outside America was going to be a different beast to master.
Sara: ‘I think racing here in Dakar is definitely different from racing back home – more so for the rules and the way the cars have to be built – a lot heavier which makes them a little bit slower. We’re a lot more loose back home – we’re kind of the wild Wild West where here everything is documented – is by the book. You really have to know the rules I think that’s just super important. But when it comes to the terrain – it’s all familiar to us which has been really awesome because it is very similar to being back home’.
So far, all Stage terrains considered, Sara has steered the Team’s Can-Am Maverick TRS Turbo through tricky rocky sections, dunes which peak at 250m, plains, accompanied with eye-watering vistas with the expertise of co-driver Jeremy Gray. Still, there are another 2,384kms of Special Stages to go, traversing back to the final finish in Yanbu on January 19.
Sara: ‘Making it to the Daker Rally, I think in general, being here and racing – seeing that we can compete with the best in the world – really goes to show that absolutely anything is possible if you set your mind to something. And that is something that I’d love to portray to others – that it wasn’t easy to get here – but we’re here and we’re doing it’.
All feel good vibes are being sent Sara’s way, watch, wait and see what happens in the up-coming Stages 7 – 12.
Dakar Rally Stage 7 Riyadh to Al Duwadimi total of 873kms with 483kms timed.
Header photo: Sara Price Image: Team.
Words: Sharon Cox.
Comments are closed.