Athletes

MEET THE SHIFT UP NOW ATHLETES AND GRANTEES

Pippa Mann

  • Grew up racing in the UK and Europe
  • First female racer to score points in World Series by Renault
  • 7 time Indy 500 Competitor, Indy Lights Race Winner
  • One of two women with a 230+ mph lap at Indianapolis Motor Speedway
  • 2021 class winner at ADAC Total 24 hour race at the Nordschleife, 2022 podium finisher
  • Returning to the ADAC Total 24 hour race in 2023 for the third year running
  • Competing with clients in International GT, and the FARA series in 2023
  • CEO of Shift Up Now, Inc
  • President of the Shift Up Now Foundation

Erin Vogel

  • President of Shift Up Now, Inc.
  • Board Member of the Shift Up Now Foundation
  • Led all-female team to a class win and overall top-5 at the 25 Hours of Thunderhill 2018
  • Bronze Class Champion, Porsche Sprint Challenge 2019
  • Driver for Rebelle Rally Rookie Team of the Year 2020
  • First female to win a race in the Pro-Am Class of SRO GT World Challenge globally with teammate Michael Cooper 2021
  • 2x Race Winner in World Racing League GP1 class with Loni Unser and Sabre Cook 2022
  • Founder and Team Principal of AE Victory Racing 2023
  • AEVR will field an all-female WRL GTO Team with Shift Up Now in 2024
  • Life Goal: to field a female team at the 24 hours of Daytona

Tatiana Calderon

  • Born in Bogota, Colombia
  • National Karting Champion in Colombia
  • First woman to stand on the podium on British F3
  • First woman to stand on the podium in World Series by Renault
  • Only woman to ever race in FIA F2 Championship
  • Test driver for Alfa Romeo F1 team, first Latina American woman to drive an F1 car
  • Raced 2x in 24H LeMans as part of an all female driver line-up in and LMP2 car
  • Raced in IndyCar in 2022
  • Currently Competing in IMSA Endurance Championship with Gradient Racing in a Ford Mustang
  • Learn more about Tatiana by visiting her website

Ashley Freiberg

  • Lives in Las Vegas, NV
  • 5 time karting champion 
  • 2 time Skip Barber Series Champion
  • First woman to win a professional race at the Daytona International Speedway 
  • First woman to win an overall North American Porsche GT3 Cup race
  • 2nd place finish in first attempt at the 12 Hours of Sebring 
  • First woman to win an overall race in the Continental Tire Sportscar Championship 
  • First woman globally to podium in the Lamborghini Super Trofeo Series
  • 2023 Porsche Sprint Challenge NA 991 Class Champion
  • 3rd place in 2024 Porsche Sprint Challenge 992 class
  • Competing for Kellymoss in Porsche Carrera Cup in 2025

Sabré Cook

  • 6x Karting Champion in the USA, first female to qualify for KZ2 World Cup.
  • First Female Team USA Scholarship Finalist
  • B.S. Mechanical Engineering from Colorado School of Mines
  • 2019 W Series Competitor - Winner of the Striving Forward Award for most passes made
  • Only American to compete in the W Series in 2021
  • Winner of the combined Kellymoss female driver shoot-out in fall of 2022, Porsche Deluxe Female Driver Scholarship for 2023
  • First female racer to compete in Porsche Deluxe Carrera Cup North America in 2023
  • Competing in Porsche Carrera Cup North America in 2025
  • Learn more about Sabré via her website: https://sabrecookracing.com/

Hannah Grisham

  • 2019 NASA So-Cal Spec Miata and TMC Championship Winner
  • First ever female test driver for Pirelli North America
  • One of the Finalists for the 2020 Mazda Motorsports Scholarship Shoot-out
  • Competed in select Mazda Mx5 Cup races in 2021 with Hixon Motor Sports and Hagerty, and with Round 3 Racing in their World Racing League program
  • 2022 National and Eastern Champion in the World Racing League GP3 class
  • Winner of the 2022 Heart of Racing Diversity Scholarship
  • Double Race Winner in GT4 America in 2023 with Heart of Racing
  • 5 Podiums with Heart of Racing and Hannah Greenemeier in GT4 America in 2024
  • Returns to partner Hannah Greenemeier at Heart of Racing in GT4 America in 2025

Hannah Greenemeier

  • 4 Regional and Club Karting Championships, 1 National Karting Championship
  • First female to win a Superkarts!USA Pro Tour Championship in a premier class
  • First female to win a Superkarts!USA Pro Tour main event
  • 3 time Rotax World Finals driver for Team USA
  • Mazda Motorsports Shootout finalist in 2021 and 2022
  • F4 Championship with Kiwi/Crosslink Motorsports in 2023
  • Professional driving instructor for the Utah Motorsports Campus Lotus Driving Experience
  • Young driver development coach for Msquared Racing, Speed Concepts Racing and Trackside Karting Services
  • Stood on podium 5 times in debut GT4 America season with Heart of Racing and Hannah Grisham in 2024
  • Heart of Racing SRO GT4 America driver for 2025 alongside Hannah Grisham

Laura Hayes

  • Began racing at 8 years old in karts and quarter midgets
  • Professional BMW Performance Driving Instructor
  • Resident Coach and pro-driver with Thunder Bunny Racing in AER and WRL since 2015
  • Winner of the Mazda Motorsport Women In Motorsport Scholarship in fall of 2021
  • Rookie Pikes Peak Hill Climb Competitor with Thunder Bunny Racing in 2021
  • Raced in MX5 Cup with Thunder Bunny Racing in 2022
  • 2023 WRL Eastern and National GTO Champion with Thunder Bunny Racing
  • Won Inaugural Pikes Peak GT4 Trophy by Yokohama in 2024, set record for the fastest woman ever up the Mountain.

Loni Unser

  • Raised in Idaho, calls California home
  • Winner of the 2020 World Racing League Eastern Championship in GP2 with Round 3 Racing / Shell / Team Cooper Tire
  • Winner of the 2023 World Racing League Eastern and National Championship in GP1 with Round 3 Racing / Hagerty / Pep Boys / Team Cooper Tire.
  • Second place finisher her rookie year in the Porsche Trophy by Yokohama class at the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb
  • Professional driving instructor with BMW and Mercedes AMG
  • Gave the Acura Integra Type S it's successful competition debut in the 2023 Pikes Peak International Hill Climb
  • 3rd place in Porsche Sprint Challenge in the Porsche Cayman GT4 RS ProAm Class in 2024

Amber Balcaen

  • Grew up in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
  • Started racing in dirt oval karts at 10 years old
  • 1st Canadian female to win a NASCAR sanctioned race in the USA, 13 feature wins total in cars
  • Top ten finished overall in her debut season in the ARCA Menards Championship with Rette Jones Racing
  • Returning to ARCA in 2024 with Venturi Motorsports
  • Goal to graduate to top 3 series of NASCAR

Michele Abbate

  • West Coast racer from Las Vegas
  • Youngest female racer to earn a GT1 SCCA National Championship Podium
  • First ever female racer to stand on the podium in Trans Am TA 2 (West Coast Championship, 2020)
  • Runner up in West Coast Trans Am TA 2 Championship in 2020, returned in 2021 with support from Lucas Oil and Hagerty
  • Winner of PMH Diversity Scholarship for 2023 season in TranAm TA2
  • Competed in TransAm TA2 with Showtime Motorsports in 2023, and a partial schedule with Race Nitro in 2024.

Sarah Montgomery

  • Lafayette Louisiana native, who started racing in dirt oval karts at the age of 12 years old
  • Graduated from University of Louisiana at Lafayette with a marketing degree, Geaux Cajuns
  • First female to stand on Global MX-5 Cup Series (2019, 4 podiums)
  • 3 overall wins, 5 podiums in World Racing League in 2022
  • Member of the all female GTO team in World Racing League in 2023
  • High performance driving instructor for Porsche and a licensed real estate agent in Georgia
  • Racing for AE Victory Racing in World Racing League in 2024 and 2025
  • Goal to graduate to IMSA racing

Nicole Havrda

  • Grew up as a swimmer
  • Rookie of the year of West Coast Kart Club, 2019
  • Vice champion at the Western Canadian Rotax Finals
  • Youngest driver at the Heart of Racing test, 2022
  • Youngest driver in the Indian Racing League, 2022
  • First Female ever to become the Formula Pro USA Winter Series Champion, 2023
  • First Female ever to become the Formula Pro USA Champion, 2023
  • Top five finishes in Formula Regional Americas, 2023
  • Four podium finishes in FR Americas for in 2024
  • Competing in F1 Academy in 2025

Taylor Ferns

  • From Shelby Twp., MI; currently residing in Indianapolis, IN
  • First female to podium in a USAC Silver Crown race (2x)
  • First female to win a 500 Sprint Car Tour race
  • Most USAC wins in a single-season by a female racer
  • Over 15 career Sprint Car wins between pavement non-wing and dirt wing cars
  • Over 20 Midget wins between pavement and dirt
  • 2011 USAC Regional Midget Champion
  • Recipient of the 2010 Kara Kendrick Spirit Award for Outstanding Achievements from USAC and Lyn St. James
  • Graduated cum laude from Grand Valley State University with a B.B.A. in Finance and Economics, M.B.A. in Finance & Management from Wayne State University, and a J.D. (Law) from Wayne State University
  • Founder and CEO of The Safety Bank

Erika Hoffmann

  • From Ottawa, Canada
  • Placed 1st out of 1000 competitors in the 21 / 22 Formula Woman International Driver search
  • Raced in British GT4 in 2022
  • Competed in FIA Rallystar competition in 2023
  • Co-founded Slate Racing in 2024, a female led race team focused on providing opportunities for female drivers and crew
  • Competing in Porsche Sprint Challenge with Kellymoss in 2025
  • Learn more about Erika by visiting her website

Alana Carter

  • Grew up in Fort Saskatchewan, Alberta, Canada
  • Her racing career started with asphalt stock cars, moving to dirt late models, and eventually to sportscars
  • Was the first female and youngest to win the Western Cup Memorial Championship 
  • First female driver to compete in the Emzone Radical Cup Canada Championship
  • Winner of the Formula Woman shootout 2022
  • Was the development driver for the worlds first fully electric amateur touring car - the Scalar Performance SCR1 
  • Certified Jaguar Track Specialist
  • Winner of the AE Victory Shootout 2025
  • Racing with AE Victory alongside Erin Vogel and Sarah Montgomery in World Racing League for 2025

Sally Mott

  • Born in Los Angeles, raised in Texas
  • Started driving go karts at age 8 and racing at age 15
  • Winner of 2022 Greater Houston Karting Championship, GCKI Karting Championship
  • Transitioned from karts to Spec Miata at age 17.
  • Winner of 2023 Mazda MX-5 Cup Women's Initiative Scholarship
  • One top 6, seven top 15's, and P12 in the MX-5 Cup championship
  • Racing for JTR in MX-5 Cup for 2025

Heather Hadley

  • Originally from Northern California, currently living in Mooresville, North Carolina
  • Started racing go-karts at age 9 at Driven Raceway indoor karting facility
  • 503 total races at Driven Raceway with a 100% winning average and ranked 2nd of 355,842 people
  • First female to ever win the U.S. Legend Cars Silver State Winter Series Championship, winning the championship for a 2nd time in 2022
  • Set the current track record at Hallett Motor Racing Circuit for INEX U.S. Legend Cars
  • 5x U.S. Legend Cars Points Champion
  • Winner of the Mazda's Women's Initiative Scholarship at the 2022 MX-5 Cup Shootout
  • Two Top-10's and five top-15's in the MX-5 Cup Series in 2023
  • Racing for BSI Racing in MX-5 Cup in 2024

Ashlyn Speed

  • Started karting at 7 years old, winner several regional Championships
  • Moved to SCCA Spec Miata at 14 years old
  • 2022 SCCA Texas Region Driver of the Year
  • Won the 2023 SCCA Southern Conference Championship in a Formula Mazda
  • Winner Mazda Women's Initiative Scholarship for 2025
  • Selected as Whelen Motorsports Ambassador for Mazda MX5 Cup
  • Finalist in the IMSA Diversity Scholarship program for 2025
  • Competing in Mazda MX5 Cup in 2025 with Hendricks Motorsports

Emy Kissick

  • Started driving and racing in 2023 at the age of 15
  • Pacific Northwest native, home track is Pacific Raceways
  • Winner of the 2024 Mazda Spec Mx-5 Shootout
  • First female winner of the Spec Mx-5 Shootout
  • Racing in Spec Miata and Spec Mx-5 for the 2025 season

Paityn Feyen

  • Originally from Colorado, moved to NC to pursue a career in racing
  • Started karting at 13 years old
  • First Championship win in 2024
  • Young Driver development coach for Neliton Race Concepts
  • Will race approx. 20 Legends Car races in 2025
  • Full season of Toyota GR Cup with Nitro Motorsports
  • Ultimate goal is to race in NASCAR

Megan Meyer

  • Megan began her drag racing career in 2004 in a Junior Dragster
  • Rookie of the year in her first season driving NHRA nitro-injected Dragster
  • 2019 and 2020 NHRA Champion in her class
  • First woman to win a Nitro Chaos event, placed second in inaugural 2023 Season
  • Has a degree in marketing and graphic design, and alongside her driving duties, has also worked for the family team as a marketer, photographer and mechanic.
  • Founder of the "Driven by Social" Academy and "Fueled and Funded" online classes for racers, helping them learn how to grow their brand, better use social media, and increase their sponsorship value.
  • Shift Up Now Foundation board member
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