Cheerleader, 12, finds success off-road racing

BY Amanda Martilla

Canyon Lake Middle School cheerleader Hailey Berry stands on her off-road truck she just drove to earn a first place trophy at the Lucas Oil Short Course Regionals in Glen Helen. Photo by Jack McClellan.

Twelve-year-old Hailey Berry is breaking all of the typical, albeit inaccurate, cheerleader stereotypes as she straps on a helmet and climbs into her off-road vehicle to compete at the highest levels in the sport.

Wiping the mud off her face, the young cheerleader at Canyon Lake Middle School headed to the awards podium at the Lucas Oil Short Course Regionals in Glen Helen recently to receive a 1st Place trophy.

She raced eight .75 mile laps in each round at the race. Hailey earned first place in the third round and second place in the fourth round in the J1 Trophy Kart category for drivers 16 years old and younger.

In addition to racing off-road trucks, Hailey, after 11 seasons of cheerleading, is on a senior level five team at All-Star Cheer. And if all that isn’t keeping the 12-year-old busy enough, she has been selected to be featured on Mod Kids USA, a television series that features elite racers who are aged 12-15.

Hailey will be part of the fifth film in the series: Mod Kids 5. Mod Kids 2 will be available on Amazon Prime this month.

Hailey has been racing off-road trucks since she was 8 years old. It all started when her family was at a race in Lake Elsinore. The family had gone to see friends compete in the Lucas Oil Racing Circuit and Hailey expressed interest in the sport, Tami Berry, her mother, said. That very day, Rich Berry, her father, ordered a pink Trophy Kart for her to begin driving.

Photo by Kaitlyn Berry

Rich and Tami are proud to support their daughter’s racing, Tami said. Hailey also has 9-year-old twin brothers, Chase and Luke, who have begun racing with her.

After four seasons of racing, Hailey is now planning to move onto the next level: J2 Trophy Kart, a different type of racing truck. Perhaps she’ll let her brothers use her pink J1 Trophy Cart.