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Childress/McCoy top Motorcycle
NASCAR’s R. Gordon takes Overall 4-Wheel win Saturday
As 345 vehicles attempt 37th Tecate SCORE Baja 500
McMillins win unlimited Class 1 again as over 150,000
watch desert duel in Baja California, Mexico
ENSENADA,
Mexico (June 5, 2005) -- Returning to his racing roots, NASCAR Team Owner/Driver Robby
Gordon began his double-duty
weekend with a stunning overall 4-wheel and
SCORE Trophy-Truck victory in the 37th Tecate SCORE Baja 500 desert race in
Ensenada, Mexico. Leaving shortly after finishing the race to return to Dover,
Del., to
drive in Sunday’s NASCAR Nextel Cup race, Gordon charged to the front
early in his No. 83 Red Bull Chevy CK1500 and stayed there, covering the brutally-tough
419-mile course in 9 hours, 10 minutes, 32 seconds, averaging 45.66 miles per
hour.
Gordon, 36, who
lives in Mooresville, N.C. and races out of his Robby Gordon desert race
team shop in Anaheim, CA, captured the 4-wheel vehicle win
with a flawless, flat-free race over a boulder-strewn, silt-grabbing desert
course
in front of a massive crowd estimated at over 150,000 spread out along the
course by Mexican tourism officials.
The race featured
a near-record 345 starters, from 20 U.S. States, Mexico, Canada and Japan,
for round 3 of the six-race
2005 SCORE Desert Series, the
World’s
Foremost Desert Racing Series. The large field, competing in 24 Pro and 5 Sportsman
classes for cars, trucks, motorcycles and ATVs, was the fourth-largest in the
storied history of the summer desert classic and the most since the event record
was set and then tied in 1976 and 1977.
Because the already-rough
course deteriorated so much causing several massive traffic jams behind stuck
vehicles, SCORE officials
extended the time limit
by two hours to 19 to become an official finisher in the elapsed-time race.
A total
of 180 survivors out of 345 starters made it to finish line within the new
time limit.
Beating an impressive
race-record field of 29 SCORE Trophy-Trucks for his first Tecate SCORE Baja
500 win in the marquee SCORE racing division
for 800-horsepower,
high-tech, unlimited production trucks, Gordon claimed his third overall
4-Wheel crown in the event and his fourth class win. His previous class wins
were in
1988, 1989 and 1990 and his other two overall crowns were the last two years
of that string. Spending most of the last nine years as a part-time SCORE
desert racer, Gordon won his first SCORE race since winning four races on
the way
to the 1996 SCORE Trophy-Truck season point champion. Gordon became the eighth
different
winner in the 12 years since the marquee SCORE Trophy-Trucks made their Tecate
SCORE Baja 500 debut.
Looking much like
an inverted deflating balloon on a string, the 419-mile race course started
in downtown Ensenada adjacent to the Riviera
del Pacifico Cultural
Center and finished inside the Deportivo Antonio Palacios baseball stadium
in the heart of Ensenada.
“We earned this one,” said Gordon. “The race was tough, it
was a pretty slow average and a lot of rocks. It’s nice to win one – we’ve
come so close so many times. It was a good run for us. I just drove and easy
pace. I am sick so my ears kept popping. We were tight was Jason (Baldwin,
No. 1) but then he had a problem – I think he got a flat. We had a great
race today. We race in Dover, Delaware tomorrow. The only bad news today was
the private
plane we were going to use is broken. I’ve got some good friends, so
I have to see what I can do.”
Running second
to Gordon all day in SCORE Trophy-Truck was defending season point champion
Jason Baldwin, Laguna Beach,
CA, who started 30-seconds
after Gordon
in the elapsed-time race. Baldwin, who placed third overall, finished in
9:17:07 in his No. 1 Baldwin Racing Ford F-150.
Third in SCORE
Trophy-Truck and fourth overall in a truck originally built and driven by
Gordon was the team of Mark
Post, San Juan Capistrano, CA/Curt
LeDuc, Cherry Valley, CA, in 9:24:44 in the No. 3 Riviera Racing Ford F-150.
Finishing
fourth in SCORE Trophy-Truck and sixth overall was Las Vegas brothers Tim
and Ed Herbst, recording a time of 9:35:17 in their No. 19 Terrible Herbst
Motorsports Ford F-150.
Second overall
among 4-wheel vehicles and winning the unlimited Class 1 for the second straight
race was Andy McMillin and his father
Scott McMillin, Poway,
CA, in a time of 9:15:12, four minutes, 40 seconds behind the winning Gordon.
Second
in Class 1 and fifth overall was Damen Jefferies, Oak Hills, CA, with a time
of 9:32:11 in a Porter-Chevy, 16 minutes, 59 seconds behind the
dominating
McMillins.
Third in Class
1, seventh overall in a Jimco-Chevy was the team of Brian Ickler, Poway,
CA/Steve Sourapas, Rancho Santa Fe, CA, reaching the finish
line in 9:36:04.
Finishing fourth
in Class 1, eighth overall, was venerable Corky McMillin, 76, the oldest
racer in the event in 9:40:53 in a Chenowth-Chevy.
McMillin,
who shared
driving duties with Gary Arnold, El Cajon, CA, is the family patriarch
of the three-generation McMillin Racing team.
Completing the
top 10 overall among cars and trucks, just two seconds separated SCORE Trophy-Truck
racers
Brian Collins, Las Vegas/Larry Ragland, Cave Creek,
Ariz., in a Chevy Silverado, who was 9th overall and fifth in class. Finishing
10th overall and sixth in class was Josh Baldwin, Newport Beach, CA, in
a Ford F-150.
The three vehicles
that covered the course the fastest Saturday were motorcycles. The privateer
team of Mike Childress, Wrightwood, CA/Mike ‘Mouse’ McCoy,
Santa Monica, CA, beat three factory teams, riding a Honda XR650R to a time
of 8:40:25, averaging 48.31mph. All four top finishing motorcycle teams were
in Class 22.
Second among the
motorcycles was the American Honda A team of Steve Hengeveld, Oak Hills,
CA/Johnny Campbell, San Clemente, CA, with a 8:49:45
time
on a Honda XR650R while third was the Honda B team of Robby Bell, Murrieta,
CA/Kendall Norman, Santa Barbara, CA, completing the course in 9:08:16
on another Honda
XR650R.
The fourth motorcycle
finisher was the Factory KTM team of Chris Blais, Apple Valley, CA/Andy Grider,
Los Olivos, CA, running the route in 9:10:48
on a KTM 660 Rally motorcycle.
“It was amazing – I loved it”, said the 21-year-old Childress. “It’s
my first time ever to win a SCORE race. I’ve been doing this since I
was 14 and it was a dream to win a race and now I did it. We were in fourth
early
on. Mike’s Sky Loop was the hardest part. I passed Johnny (Campbell,
1x) at Santa Tomas and never looked back. Mouse McCoy ran the 1000 all by himself
and I thought what better guy to get than him to ride with.”
The Childress/McCoy
victory snapped the five-year winning streak in this race by Hengeveld, who
won with Campbell three of those years.
Josh Frederick,
Moapa, Nev., and teammates Cycle Chislock, Murrieta, CA, and Levi Marana,
Hemet, CA, were the fastest
Overall ATV this year, winning
Class 25 in 10:16:14, averaging 40.80mph on their Honda TRX450R. They staying
unbeaten in SCORE this season with the winning, matching their triumph
in San Felipe in February.
Jim O’Neal, Chatsworth, CA, led a team to victory
in Class 40 (motorcycle riders over 40 years old) for the five consecutive
year, but many other racers
had their streaks broken in the Baja desert. O’Neal has won his class
in both SCORE races this year.
The popular race
also featured a SCORE-record four primary female drivers and all of them
were finishers in the grueling
test. Three of the women who were
drivers of record, and all finished. In addition, Bekki Wik, Las Vegas, drove
half the race in Class 1 with Ronny Wilson, Long Beach, Calif.
They finished
sixth out of 31 starters in their class and 26th overall. Michelle Bruckmann,
Lemon Grove, CA, placed second in Class 5 with her talented husband Vic,
while Sigal Greenberg, Desert Hills, Ariz., was second in Class 9 while splitting
the driving with John Hallal. Heidi Steele, San Clemente, Calif.whose husband
Cameron finished 15th in SCORE Trophy-Truck, was the overall Sportsman Car
champion. Steele had driving assistance from Justin Smith, Capistrano Beach,
Calif.
In the car and
truck classes, remaining undefeated with three wins this year were John Holmes,
Olvenhain, Calif. (Class 7S, Ford Ranger), Todd Wyllie,
New
River, Ariz. (Class 8, Chevy C1500) and Mexico’s Eric Fisher (Class 9,
Garibay-VW).
Besides O’Neal, winning for the second time in two SCORE
races this year were Tim Morton, Escondido, Calif. (Class 21, Honda CRFX250R)
and Mexico’s
Gerardo Rojas (Class 30, Honda XR650R).
SCORE overall
point leaders Rob MacCachren and Bryan Freeman of Las Vegas extended their
lead with their second win in
three SCORE races in Class 1-2/1600. MacCachren
also finished ninth in SCORE Trophy-Truck as the other driver for Gus Vildosola,
Mexicali, Mexico, in the Vildosola Racing Ford F-150.
Other class winners
included: George Seeley, Glendale, Calif. (Class 5, VW Baja Bug), Danny Ledezma,
Chula
Vista, Calif. (Class 5/1600, VW Baja Bug),
Doug Siewert,
Fallbrook, Calif. (Class 7, Chevy S-10), Lobsam Yee, Tijuana, Mexico (Class
10, Jimco-Honda), Arturo Honold, Mexicali, Mexico (SCORE Lite, Curry-VW)
and Jim
Nuckles, Brawley, Calif. (Protruck, Ford F-150).
Seven motorcycle
riders attempted to run the brutally-tough course solo and five succeeded.
The fastest was Robert
Laughlin, Solvang, Calif. (Sportsman
M/C>250cc,
Honda XR650R) with a time of 10:24:21, good for 22nd overall among the 96 motorcycle
and ATV starters.
In addition to
nearly $400,000 in purse and contingency postings, the race was also part
of the annual Toyota Milestone Awards and $12,000 Toyota
True
Grit
programs. The prestigious Toyota Milestone Awards are presented to every
racer who completes every required mile of every race in the 2005 SCORE Desert
Series.
The $12,000 Toyota True Grit purse is split among the SCORE season point
champions who are also Toyota Milestone award winners in four non-factory-backed
classes.
This is the 20th consecutive year that Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A. has teamed
with SCORE to present these prestigious awards.
For the first
time in several years, the Tecate SCORE Baja 500 will be televised nationally
on a delayed basis. With multiple showings, The Outdoor Life Network
(OLN) will air the race as a one-hour primetime special. Aura 360, the Maine
production and marketing company that has this year’s SCORE television
rights, will produce the show.
SCORE official
sponsors for 2005 are: BFGoodrich Tires-official tire, C.L. Bryant-VP Racing
Fuels-official fuel supplier. Associate sponsors are: Tecate
Beer, Coca-Cola
of Mexico, Instant Mexico Auto Insurance, Las Vegas Events, Herbst Gaming,
Kartek Off-Road, Centrix Financial, Fram, Autolite, Prestone, Bilstein, Signpros,
Cotuco,
Fideicomiso Publico para la Promocion Turistica de Ensenada, Cotuco, P.C.I.
Race Radios, McKenzie’s Performance Products, and Advanced Color Graphics.
Next
on the 2005 SCORE Desert Series schedule is the SCORE Las Vegas Terrible’s
Cup I, a special non-points race July 28-30 on The Dirt Track at Las Vegas
Motor Speedway. The newest SCORE event will be held on a unique, man-made 1.5-mile ‘Chunk
of Baja’ course featuring the SCORE Trophy-Truck and the unlimited Class
1 racing divisions along with Class 1-2/1600 and combined groups for Class
10/SCORE Lite and Classes 7/7S/7SX.
For information contact:
SCORE International at its Los Angeles headquarters
(818) 225-8402 or visit
the official 2005 SCORE Desert Series website at:
www.score-international.com
For
Sponsorship Information, contact:
Mark Handley
(760) 750-1905
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