Zach LarkinsGREAT RACES - BAJA 1000
The off-road race that most of us here in North America know about has to be The Baja 1000. While perhaps being the thing dreams are made of, it certainly isn't for the faint of heart.
Baja 1000 is an off-road race that takes place on Mexico's Baja California Peninsula in the fall. The course has remained relatively the same over the years, but depending on prevailing conditions, can be either a point to point race from Ensenada to La Paz or a loop race starting and finishing in Ensenada. The name of the event is misleading, however, as the mileage varies for the type of event (loop or point to point) and has even represented kilometers in the past. In the year 2000, the race, some 1726 miles in duration, was named the Baja 2000 to commemorate the year. The event includes various types of vehicle classes such as small and large bore motorcycles, stock VW production vehicles, buggies, trucks and custom fabricated race vehicles.
The first official race started in Tijuana Baja California on October 31, 1967. It was 849 miles long and ended after 27 hours 38 minutes (27:38) in La Paz Baja California Sur when Vic Wilson and Ted Mangels crossed the finish line driving a Meyers Manx . From 1967 to 1972 the race was organized by the National Off Road Racing Association (NORRA) and in 1973 Baja California governor Milton Castellanos handed over sanctioning of the event to a non-profit Mexican corporation called Baja Sports Committee (BSC). They renamed the event Baja Mil (Baja 1000). BSC found promoting Baja races more difficult than anticipated, but instead of giving up, the Mexican government requested help from Short Course Off-Road Enterprises (SCORE) in hosting and promoting future Baja races. Negotiations with Mickey Thompson and his SCORE organization led the Mexican Government to agree to give exclusive rights to SCORE to hold Baja races and also reluctantly allow SCORE to cancel the event for 1974. SCORE hired Sal Fish as president and took control of the Baja 1000 from that year on with the Baja 1000 race resuming under new control in 1975.
The first timed run of the Baja was actually held some years prior to the first official race. Jack McCormack and Walt Fulton of American Honda decided to hold a long distance run to prove the reliability of Honda's new CL72 Scrambler so they approached well known off-road dirt biker and local Honda dealer Bud Ekins for suggestions. He proposed Mexican Highway 1, which was 950 miles of rocks, sand washes, dry lake beds, cattle crossing, mountain passes, and paved road between Tijuana and La Paz. While Bud couldn't perform the run because of his ties to Triumph Motorcycles, his brother, Dave and Billy Robertson Jr. agreed to make the trip for American Honda. They started their journey from Tijuana just after midnight on March 22, 1962 and finished some 952.7 miles later in La Paz with the first official recorded time of 39 hours 56 minutes (39:56). Articles chronicling the event appeared in the Globe, Argosy and Cycle World magazines touting adventure, awe and respect for Honda and the Baja run and included close encounters with death and other dangers which Ekins, typically, claimed were "colorful additions".
The fact that a two-wheeled vehicle earned the prestige of having the first timed record of the Baja did not sit well with Bruce Meyers. Maybe he wouldn't be the first, but he thought he could be faster. He wanted to beat the existing motorcycle record and to help boost sales of his Meyers Manx. So he got into his original prototype buggy called "Old Red" for an attempt at breaking the record set by Ekins. Meyers and his partner, Ted Mangels, started the record breaking attempt back to Tijuana from La Paz at 10:00 PM on April 19, 1967. The Meyers Manx is what most people think of when they think ‘Dune Buggy' and its final official time was 34:45 beating Ekins by more than 5 hours. Following this event, Bruce Meyers and his Meyers Manx became an overnight sensation and the competition between four wheels and motorcycles for the fastest Baja run began. One of the attempts included a multiple vehicle run organized by Ed Pearlman that ended in an official four-wheel drive record being recorded but with the overall time falling short of the record set by Meyers. On July 4th, 1967, an American Motors Rambler sedan would leave Tijuana at 9:00 AM to successfully break the record set by Meyers with an overall time of 31 hours. As the timed runs recorded via telegraph became popular, a need for an organized event to compete for the quickest Baja run was starting to grab the attention of other competitors. During the summer of 1967, NORRA named the event the "Mexican 1000 Rally" and announced the first official race from Tijuana to La Paz, to be held November 1, 1967.
Motorcyclists participate and are often the overall winners, but many competitors drive modified or stock 4-wheel vehicles such as cars, trucks, ATVs and dune buggies. Stock Volkswagen Type One Beetles are modified for use in off road terrain and are known as Baja Bugs. Erik Carlsson drove a basically stock front wheel drive Saab 96 V4, finishing third in 1969 and fifth in 1970. So, the Baja can virtually be a run-what-you-brung affair. Although you'd be pretty foolhardy to actually do it.
A point to point race is one that starts and ends in two different locations. The start is traditionally held in Ensenada but has been held in Tijuana and Mexicali as well. The course length varies for a point to point but is often over a 1000 miles and ends in La Paz, whereas a loop race is one that starts and finishes in the same location. Traditionally the race starts and ends in Ensenada but has started/finished in Mexicalli as well. The course length averages 830 miles.
Each year there are reports of spectators sabotaging or booby-trapping the course by digging holes, blocking river flow, or burying obstacles. This is, of course, frowned upon but racers are warned to beware of large crowds of spectators in remote parts of the course since it may indicate hidden traps or obstacle changes. Many of the booby traps are not created to intentionally injure the contestants, but are created by the local spectators as jumps or obstacles for spectator entertainment. The haphazardly-designed jumps, created by the spectators, are very dangerous as the contestants are not aware of the course changes and may negotiate the modified terrain at a much higher speed than the competing machine can handle. Awareness of booby traps and course changes are often part of race day strategy but competitors quickly communicate course hazards to other competitors through on-board radio communications and radio relay.
Some notable competitors of the Baja 1000 are:
James Garner - remember Maverick and the Rockford Files?
Robby Gordon - current NASCAR driver
Jesse G. James - no, not the bank robber, but I thought his name was cool
Steve McQueen - the Bullitt and one of the Magnificent Seven
Mickey Thompson - he of racing slick fame
The Baja is a race worth following, even if you can't really watch it. It is a toned down version of the Paris-Dakar rally, but that's okay. It's open to anyone with the guts to try it.
That makes it one of The Great Races.
Baja 1000 is an off-road race that takes place on Mexico's Baja California Peninsula in the fall. The course has remained relatively the same over the years, but depending on prevailing conditions, can be either a point to point race from Ensenada to La Paz or a loop race starting and finishing in Ensenada. The name of the event is misleading, however, as the mileage varies for the type of event (loop or point to point) and has even represented kilometers in the past. In the year 2000, the race, some 1726 miles in duration, was named the Baja 2000 to commemorate the year. The event includes various types of vehicle classes such as small and large bore motorcycles, stock VW production vehicles, buggies, trucks and custom fabricated race vehicles.
The first official race started in Tijuana Baja California on October 31, 1967. It was 849 miles long and ended after 27 hours 38 minutes (27:38) in La Paz Baja California Sur when Vic Wilson and Ted Mangels crossed the finish line driving a Meyers Manx . From 1967 to 1972 the race was organized by the National Off Road Racing Association (NORRA) and in 1973 Baja California governor Milton Castellanos handed over sanctioning of the event to a non-profit Mexican corporation called Baja Sports Committee (BSC). They renamed the event Baja Mil (Baja 1000). BSC found promoting Baja races more difficult than anticipated, but instead of giving up, the Mexican government requested help from Short Course Off-Road Enterprises (SCORE) in hosting and promoting future Baja races. Negotiations with Mickey Thompson and his SCORE organization led the Mexican Government to agree to give exclusive rights to SCORE to hold Baja races and also reluctantly allow SCORE to cancel the event for 1974. SCORE hired Sal Fish as president and took control of the Baja 1000 from that year on with the Baja 1000 race resuming under new control in 1975.
The first timed run of the Baja was actually held some years prior to the first official race. Jack McCormack and Walt Fulton of American Honda decided to hold a long distance run to prove the reliability of Honda's new CL72 Scrambler so they approached well known off-road dirt biker and local Honda dealer Bud Ekins for suggestions. He proposed Mexican Highway 1, which was 950 miles of rocks, sand washes, dry lake beds, cattle crossing, mountain passes, and paved road between Tijuana and La Paz. While Bud couldn't perform the run because of his ties to Triumph Motorcycles, his brother, Dave and Billy Robertson Jr. agreed to make the trip for American Honda. They started their journey from Tijuana just after midnight on March 22, 1962 and finished some 952.7 miles later in La Paz with the first official recorded time of 39 hours 56 minutes (39:56). Articles chronicling the event appeared in the Globe, Argosy and Cycle World magazines touting adventure, awe and respect for Honda and the Baja run and included close encounters with death and other dangers which Ekins, typically, claimed were "colorful additions".
The fact that a two-wheeled vehicle earned the prestige of having the first timed record of the Baja did not sit well with Bruce Meyers. Maybe he wouldn't be the first, but he thought he could be faster. He wanted to beat the existing motorcycle record and to help boost sales of his Meyers Manx. So he got into his original prototype buggy called "Old Red" for an attempt at breaking the record set by Ekins. Meyers and his partner, Ted Mangels, started the record breaking attempt back to Tijuana from La Paz at 10:00 PM on April 19, 1967. The Meyers Manx is what most people think of when they think ‘Dune Buggy' and its final official time was 34:45 beating Ekins by more than 5 hours. Following this event, Bruce Meyers and his Meyers Manx became an overnight sensation and the competition between four wheels and motorcycles for the fastest Baja run began. One of the attempts included a multiple vehicle run organized by Ed Pearlman that ended in an official four-wheel drive record being recorded but with the overall time falling short of the record set by Meyers. On July 4th, 1967, an American Motors Rambler sedan would leave Tijuana at 9:00 AM to successfully break the record set by Meyers with an overall time of 31 hours. As the timed runs recorded via telegraph became popular, a need for an organized event to compete for the quickest Baja run was starting to grab the attention of other competitors. During the summer of 1967, NORRA named the event the "Mexican 1000 Rally" and announced the first official race from Tijuana to La Paz, to be held November 1, 1967.
Motorcyclists participate and are often the overall winners, but many competitors drive modified or stock 4-wheel vehicles such as cars, trucks, ATVs and dune buggies. Stock Volkswagen Type One Beetles are modified for use in off road terrain and are known as Baja Bugs. Erik Carlsson drove a basically stock front wheel drive Saab 96 V4, finishing third in 1969 and fifth in 1970. So, the Baja can virtually be a run-what-you-brung affair. Although you'd be pretty foolhardy to actually do it.
A point to point race is one that starts and ends in two different locations. The start is traditionally held in Ensenada but has been held in Tijuana and Mexicali as well. The course length varies for a point to point but is often over a 1000 miles and ends in La Paz, whereas a loop race is one that starts and finishes in the same location. Traditionally the race starts and ends in Ensenada but has started/finished in Mexicalli as well. The course length averages 830 miles.
Each year there are reports of spectators sabotaging or booby-trapping the course by digging holes, blocking river flow, or burying obstacles. This is, of course, frowned upon but racers are warned to beware of large crowds of spectators in remote parts of the course since it may indicate hidden traps or obstacle changes. Many of the booby traps are not created to intentionally injure the contestants, but are created by the local spectators as jumps or obstacles for spectator entertainment. The haphazardly-designed jumps, created by the spectators, are very dangerous as the contestants are not aware of the course changes and may negotiate the modified terrain at a much higher speed than the competing machine can handle. Awareness of booby traps and course changes are often part of race day strategy but competitors quickly communicate course hazards to other competitors through on-board radio communications and radio relay.
Some notable competitors of the Baja 1000 are:
James Garner - remember Maverick and the Rockford Files?
Robby Gordon - current NASCAR driver
Jesse G. James - no, not the bank robber, but I thought his name was cool
Steve McQueen - the Bullitt and one of the Magnificent Seven
Mickey Thompson - he of racing slick fame
The Baja is a race worth following, even if you can't really watch it. It is a toned down version of the Paris-Dakar rally, but that's okay. It's open to anyone with the guts to try it.
That makes it one of The Great Races.
