STORY AND PHOTO BY KAREN BOSSICK

Sun Valley Tour de Force raised more than three times what it gave The Hunger Coalition last year with this year’s three-day car event.

The fifth annual Sun Valley Tour de Force raised $600,000 for the nonprofit organization with its fifth annual car event—a sizable increase from the $175,000 donation made in 2021.

Hunger Coalition officials said it’s one of the single biggest donations to The Hunger Coalition outside of its capital campaign. It comes shortly after the healthy food pantry saw its second busiest month of all time in March, said Jeanne Liston, The Hunger Coalition’s executive director.

Hunger Coalition’s director of Philanthropy Krista Felton called the donation transformational: “It’s about one fifth of our annual budget and enough to cover the cost of all of our children's programs, plus our farm, for a year! Knowing that we don't need to worry about these important programs is a huge relief.”

The funds were raised from sponsorships, a live auction and paddle up, drivers’ fees, raffle ticket sales and the sale of merchandise.

“It’s truly hard to believe it’s been just five years since we presented $16,000 to our first beneficiary, Idaho BaseCamp. It is through the support of our sponsors, partners, drivers and the community that we can deliver over half a million dollars today.” said Whitney Werth Slade, who co-founded Sun Valley Tour de Force with Maya Blix.

The three days included a car show, a Cars & Comedy dinner and auction and the chance for drivers to see how fast they could push their cars on Highway 75 north of Ketchum.

This year for the first time 24 of the 48 high-speed drivers hit speeds over 200 miles per hour, said  Slade. A 2020 Ferrari Tributo hit the top speed with 221.67 miles per hour.