The serious nature of racing gets somewhat diluted during stage four of NORRA’s Baja Mexican 1000 due to the incredible sights that exist in San Ignacio. After an overnight stay in the quaint little oasis that surrounds the incredible Mission San Ignacio Kadakaaman that was founded in 1728, the course heads in separate directions. The bikes head out towards their final destination for the day, the town of San Juanico on the Pacific Ocean. Four wheeled competitors make their way to Loreto on the Gulf side of the Peninsula. Both courses are filled with spectacular scenery and challenging terrain. They are in Baja Sur now and the mood changes. While many were nursing their wounded vehicles, others started to contemplate their great success and dream about winning. Those thoughts are dangerous because there are still hundreds of miles of Baja terrain to navigate and serious competitors that also have the same goal.
Kevin Archer, racing a Honda CRF450 in the Pro Rally class put in another solid ride to take the stage win over Justin Moore, also in the Pro Rally class, but on a KTM Rally RFR. Finishing third was overall leader and Pro Rally class leader Alex Ritz on his Honda CRF450X. The Pro Rally class riders were out front, but the 60+ guys were right on their tails. Robert Creemers was fourth and Yvan Perroud was fifth across the line. Michael Frederick was the top Amateur Rally class rider to finish, in the sixth position. He was only 47 seconds behind Perroud at the line. He was followed by a pair of Amateurs Jeremy Latrasse and Abbott Cowan who were seventh and eighth. Pro Rally class rider Scott Purcell was ninth and William St. Laurent took the tenth spot.
Archer is putting in great rides, but is not having much luck chipping away at the early overall lead established by Alex Ritz. Ritz leads the two 60+ riders Larry Engwall and Robert Creemers for the overall win. Scott Purcell is fourth and Amateur Rally class rider Abbott Cowan rounds out the top five. Steve Montana leads the Vintage Motos class and sits in eighth place overall. Stage four is the first leg of the marathon stage. The riders stay overnight in San Juanico and then set out for Loreto in the morning without outside assistance from their crews. Stage four was epic, but stage five will be an even greater challenge.
The four wheeled vehicle course had similarly incredible views and a splash of water thrown in for a special treat. This is the point in the rally when the bonds really form within the teams and with others in the field. You chew on the same dirt for days and mutual respect flows to all. Speaking of respect, we have to give a mention to the race that the number 282 1Nine Industries Spec TT of Brent Fox, Kevin Miller and Cody Johnson are putting in. They have been flawless while running out front. Not only are they battling against a talented pack of fellow 6100 truck racers, but they have held off the Black Diamond truck that has been piloted by three hall of famers; Larry Ragland, Rob Mac and Robby Gordon. Mark Post, Dave Mason and Bob Briggs are tough to beat as well. Congratulations to the team’s success so far.
The race out front for the overall win has been spectacular, but there are battles going on for class victories that are just as heated. Let’s point out some of the class leaders going into the second half of the race. Let’s start with the Evolution Era. In Evolution 4-set UTV, Blake Conley leads in his Can Am X3. In Evolution class 11 Oliver Flemate leads Hector Sarabia and Juan Avila. Buddy Crisp is the first place Evolution Class 5 open. Rodrigo Martinez leads Scott Phipps and Roberto Ojeda in Evolution Class 7100. In Evolution Heavy Metal, Bobby Patton is leading Trevor Glidden and Shelby Hall. Evolution Jeepspeed leader is Tom Allen and the Grand Marshal himself, Mike Pearlman, is first in Evolution Meyers Manx.
Evolution Prerun Buggies is a class to watch. Randy Minnier has taken the lead over the Duran Family Juggernaut. Eric Duran is second, followed by Hiram and Evan. Dave Taylor leads the Evolution Prerun Trucks class over Brandon Hearn and Sam Steinman. In Evolution Pro UTV/Class 10 Travis Clarke is showing the other racers on his Polaris team how to get the job done leading Cesar Cuevas and Thomas Purcell. He’s in 11th place overall. Evolution Production N/A UTV is led by Christopher Boyle. Evolution Production Turbo is an ongoing battle between leader PJ Jones and Max Gordon with Kyle Vestermark in third.
Brad Lovell leads the Bronco battle in Evolution Showroom stock over Seth Goslawski. Dave Mason leads the Evolution Unlimited Buggy class over Butch Jensen and Greg Distefano. Mason is second overall and Distefano has been charging. Mark Post leads Bob Briggs in Historic Truck; Tim Kunch is third. Sean Barber is hoping he can beat the course in his Legend 4×4 class Scout Terra after his rival Robert Figlioli suffered mechanical issues in his Jeep J10 Honcho. Jim Greenway has his Raceco out front in Legend buggies class as Mack Johnson and Gordon Lewis attempt to track him down.
Boyd Jaynes is working on extending his incredible winning record in the Ford Bronco. He’s leading the Jeep Commando of Alex Earle and the Bronco of Eric Olsen in the Pioneer 4×4’s class. The Pioneer Buggies class is especially competitive this year. The legendary Ramon Castro in a Funco SS1 is leading the Smith family’s Sandmaster Panzer and Jon Steinhilber’s Meyers Manx. The Funco Wampuskitty of Tim Martin suffered some damage in stage three, but they are still going. Kaycee Smith is taking turns driving with her dad and sisters Lindey and Leah in the Sandmaster that belonged to her grandfather. “Everything is going great with the car!’ she says “We’ve had a few minor issues each day, but nothing that has prevented us from finishing race miles. We are all loving the experience! Each of us has swapped driving and navigating so we got to experience both roles in the car!”
Other leaders are Bob Howle in Vintage 4-cyl buggies, Mark McMillin in Vintage 6-cyl buggies. Mark is sharing the driving with son Luke. We’re not sure if they reinforced the floor under the gas pedal on the famous Chenowth “Macadu” to accommodate Luke’s driving style. Julie Boyer leads Vintage class 1600. Louis Chamberland is out front in Vintage class 12. Dave Sykes has his custom Bronco in front of Eli Yee and Don Hatch in Vintage Open Truck 4×4 class. Larry Trim leads Vintage Short Wheelbase 4×4 ahead of Randy Ludwig and Jesus Arriaga. Pamir Kiraner has a comfortable lead over his fellow Porsche racer Serifan Ozcan in the Vintage Stock Production Cars class. Other leaders include Jay Bills and Ned Bacon plus many more.
No matter what they are racing, they are all taking part in the greatest Baja racing experience. While not competing, the Meyers Manx Safari participants are soaking up the same vibes and seeing the same incredible sights. Whatever your favorite brand of race vehicle is, you can find it at NORRA’s Baja. Stay tuned for all the action to come. You can be a part of Baja racing history too. After experiencing NORRA’s Baja Mexican 1000 just once, you too will be hooked. Everything you need to know about NORRA’s Baja Mexican 1000 and NORRA 500 can be found at www.norra.com. Go to the site and find out for yourself why NORRA has exploded in popularity. You can experience the same competition and adventure those pioneering thrill seekers sought in 1967 when you join NORRA in Baja. NORRA events honor the past, while forging the future. Don’t miss out on the fun and thrills.
