Lauren Ford is a 27-year-old electric unicycle racer from Sacramento, California who has started two sanctioned races and finished first on the podium in both. She took EUC Women at Shred Fest 6 in Wilseyville, California in May, and Womens Pro at Northwest Electric Fest in Veneta, Oregon in July with a combined time of 15:35.800. She races an InMotion V14 Pro and competes under USA EUC, the national sanctioning body for electric unicycle racing.
Where She Started
Ford came to the sport sideways, from a machine with no motor in it at all.
"I actually come from the acoustic unicycle," she said in February at King of the Hammers.
She was never especially devoted to it, and by her own account she got worse at it once the electric version took over her time.
What changed was meeting Zac Darnell, one of the most consistent podium finishers on the circuit. He invited her out to a race in Oregon (NW Electric Fest). She had never heard of an electric unicycle, the PEV community, or racing of any kind within the sport. She came anyway, camped with the Darnell family, and learned to ride in the field behind the event with a rider named Mia Burlik.
She picked it up over that weekend.
She learned in what she calls the harder of the two environments. "I learned on dirt initially, which I think is pretty challenging," she said. She had it inside a day, riding trails while holding onto Zac's hand, and "within a week I felt confident and comfortable with it." She learned to ride an electric unicycle at Northwest Electric Fest, twelve months before she won it.
"I pretty much immediately fell in love when I realized how much you can experience thanks to them," she said. "I love the outdoors, I love hiking, and now I get to see all of these beautiful things 10 times faster."
Over the following year she trained with both Zac and his father, James Darnell.
"I got a really great training regimen thanks to Mr. James Darnell. He was my EUC coach for my first couple races."
Lauren Ford riding slickrock with James Darnell, one of her two coaches.
Two Races and No Off-Road
In February, standing in the dust at King of the Hammers in Johnson Valley, California, Ford's racing record was two events long, both run the previous year and both on pavement. She had won one and finished second in the other.
"I've done just two EUC races before this," she said then. "I have not been in any sports, no competition of any kind, but my first race was Apple Valley Speedway down here in SoCal."
The event she is describing is Coffee Run at Apple Valley Speedway, where she took second in the women's class.
"And that was quite the experience."
From left: James Darnell, Lauren Ford, Zac Darnell and Kim Darnell at Coffee Run @ AVS, where Ford took second in the Womens division.
Off-road she had not raced at all. She wanted to.
"Off-road is, I think, way more fun than street," she said. "You get a lot of elevation changes. There's a lot more complexity."
Two Starts, Two Wins
Her first off-road race came in May at Shred Fest 6, the Seek n Shred event in Wilseyville, California, on the trail system Zac Darnell spent five years building. The format was a four-stage Enduro with a single timed run per stage, through single-track, deep ruts, a hill climb the field named as the hardest part of the course, and a fast technical downhill.
Ford won EUC Women with a 7:22.30, ahead of Stephanie Lamb in second and Nicole Friel in third.
From left (Stephanie Lamb, Lauren Ford, Nicole Friel) on course at Seek n' Shred 2026, where she won Womens Pro. Photo by Seth Johnson.
Lauren Ford's Race Record
Event | Date | Division | Result | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Coffee Run @ AVS | 2025 | Womens | 2nd | Not recorded |
Shred Fest 6 (Seek n Shred) | May 2026 | EUC Women | 1st | 7:22.30 |
Northwest Electric Fest | July 2026 | Womens Pro | 1st | 15:35.800 |
Two sanctioned starts, two podiums, three wins. Her Coffee Run 2025 results predate USA EUC sanctioning of those events, so no official times were recorded.
The Wheel She Is Outgrowing
Current setup: an InMotion V14 Pro.
Ford on the InMotion V14 Pro, the wheel she says is now holding her back.
"Quite frankly, I really love this wheel," Ford said. "There are a lot of great wheels out there, but I have really enjoyed this one. Just for the well-roundedness."
She is also finished with it, and she is specific about why.
"I felt like I was having to hold back in certain sections because I didn't trust that the wheel could handle it. I know it can, but I want those safety margins a little higher for me to feel fully comfortable."
On the uphill heat at Northwest Electric Fest, she went and asked a group of the pros what their strategy was. Justin Davis gave her the technique she ended up using, which she relayed in her own words: "It looks a little silly, but kind of crouching down and just leaning yourself up the hill, tapping the ground if you need."
Finding the Other Women
Asked what she would tell a woman thinking about starting, Ford does not lead with gear. She leads with who to ride alongside.
"Find other women that you can ride with. Find other women that you can feel comfortable with and really build that community of support."
She is careful not to frame this as a complaint about the men in the sport. Her argument is about a different kind of instruction.
"As much support as the men can offer a lot of the times, they are missing the pieces that they can't necessarily explain what it is that they are doing or why they are doing certain things," she said. "There is just a softer more feminine kind of approach to it all. I really appreciate that. I really appreciate the camaraderie."
She names Christina Clark as one of the riders she has most enjoyed learning alongside.
Ford, nearest the camera, Frances Davis, Christina Clark on the grid at a desert round in at Coffee Run @ AVS in 2025. Photo credit s_m_l_s_.
She is not selling it as easy, either. "You are going to fall. You are going to have a hard time at first, but as long as you have some good supports," she said in February.
Why She Joined
Ford signed up as a USA EUC member at Seek n' Shred 2025. Her reasoning was about the sport rather than about herself.
She had been making the argument for months before she joined. Asked at King of the Hammers what she thought of a unified leaderboard across the circuit, she said the value was in seeing where riders actually stood overall rather than race by race.
"I'm super excited to see it kind of going in that direction. It brings the community together more wholly, and I think that that is really going to support the growth of this sport.I think the biggest piece is seeing this sport grow," she said. "If we want to be legitimate, if we want to really make this sport into something, we need more people. We need people to join and participate. Show up."
She is aware of the cost barrier and answers it with what she has watched happen. She taught a woman to ride over that same race weekend. Someone in the community handed that rider a wheel to borrow for a couple of months so she could keep progressing.
"I recognize this isn't necessarily a cheap sport to get into, but the community is here to really help you grow and develop your skills and to hopefully grow this sport into something real."
What Is Next
Ford is pointed at Best of the West, the finals for the circuit, and at the Amped Electric Games season finale in Bentonville, Arkansas on October 1 through 4.
She called her shots early. Back in February, asked which events she was looking forward to, she named Shred Fest first: "Shredfest, that one's really close to me." Then the rest of the list.
"Northwest, that was my first event that I got to experience. I didn't race it, but I'm excited for that one as well. And then AMP'd, I have heard some very, very positive things about Amped, and I'm pretty stoked for that."
She won the first two. The third is Bentonville.
She has no social media and says so plainly when asked for handles. The people she credits are her coaches Zac and James Darnell, the riders who taught and encouraged her, and the organizers who put the events on.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who won Womens Pro at Northwest Electric Fest 2026?
Lauren Ford won Womens Pro at Northwest Electric Fest 2026 in Veneta, Oregon, with a combined time of 15:35.800 across the event's two heats. She was the only entrant in the class. Her time was quicker than the winning times in both Mens Novice and Womens Novice.
How many EUC races has Lauren Ford won?
Lauren Ford has won two of two of her sanctioned starts: Shred Fest 6 in May 2026, and Northwest Electric Fest in July 2026.
What wheel does Lauren Ford ride?
Lauren Ford races an InMotion V14 Pro. She has said she values its all-round capability but plans to upgrade, because she found herself holding back in sections where she did not trust the wheel to handle the terrain. She expects to move to something with more power next season.
Where is Lauren Ford from?
Lauren Ford is from Sacramento, California, and is 27 years old. She competes under USA EUC, the national sanctioning body for electric unicycle racing in the United States, and races in the Womens Pro division. Her athlete profile, including her full result history, is at usaeuc.com/athletes/laurenford444.
How did Lauren Ford get into electric unicycle racing?
Lauren Ford had never heard of an electric unicycle before meeting racer Zac Darnell, who invited her to Northwest Electric Fest. She learned to ride there over a single weekend, taught by rider Mia Berlich, and went on to train with both Zac Darnell and his father James. She won that same event a year later.
Full standings and the 2026 schedule are at usaeuc.com/standings. Results are from official event reported times recorded at Shred Fest 6 (Seek n Shred), Wilseyville, California, May 2026, and Northwest Electric Fest 2026, Veneta, Oregon, July 2026.
