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For over 50 years, drivers have raced 1000 miles through grueling terrain in Mexico. Let’s look at the importance and history of the Baja 1000.
The Off-Roading Proving Ground
Every year some of the greatest drivers from all around the world gather in the Baja California Peninsula of Mexico for one of the most intimidating races of all time. The Baja 1000 has been going on for over 50 years and has given itself the title of the most dangerous race in North America. This off-road race is composed of around 1000 miles of different difficult terrains, including rock, sand, dirt, and even city streets.
A majority of the racing field for the Baja 1000 never actually see the finish line. Drivers and their teams must be prepared for anything while racing through the unforgiving and desolate terrain of Baja California. Popped tires, busted suspensions, accidents, and even fan interference are just a few examples of what entrants may encounter throughout this race.
The Baja 1000 is a test of engineering, performance, know-how, and will power. With the Baja 1000 coming up in November, we thought it’d be a good chance to look back at how this race came about, its historical significance, and how much the Baja 1000 has influenced automotive technology.
Honda and Meyers Manx Started the Baja 1000
The story of the Baja 1000 starts well before the sanctioned race itself in 1967. Five years prior in 1962, Honda approached famous stuntman and accomplished off-road motocross racer Bud Ekins about marketing the reliability and long-distance performance of their new CL77 Scrambler motorcycle. He suggested a 950 mile stretch of off-road terrain that ran from Tijuana to La Paz, Mexico. Honda agreed with the route and employed Bud’s brother Dave Ekins and another rider known as Billy Robertson Jr. to take on the challenge.
The duo started in La Paz and ended up in Tijuana 39 hours and 56 minutes later. The entire event was recorded by journalists in an airplane and generated waves throughout the automotive world. Some took the event as an example of Honda’s workmanship which increased their sales, while others took the recorded time as a challenge.
Enter Bruce Meyers, the creator of the Meyers Manx kit car. Bruce saw the media attention that surrounded Honda when they performed their run on a motorcycle, so he felt that enduring the same grueling terrain in a four wheeled vehicle would prove to be equally as impressive. Bruce took his own prototype Meyers Manx along with some automotive journalists down to Mexico and set off on the same La Paz to Tijuana route Honda had set its time on.
Bruce completed the route in 34 hours and 45 minutes, over 5 hours quicker than the Honda motorcycle attempt. This once again sent shockwaves through news and automotive media outlets. It also panned out pretty well for the Volkswagen Beetle kit car buggy, as Meyers Manx spiked in popularity following the record-breaking coverage.
Other companies and racing groups soon jumped on the bandwagon, eventually leading to the creation of a sanctioned race known as the Mexico 1000. This series was organized by the National Off-Road Racing Association (NORRA) in the latter half of 1967. They gathered truck, buggy, and motorcycle racers from all over and sent them one at a time from Tijuana to La Paz. The group incorporated 5 checkpoints along the Baja California journey that racers had to meet at, with the path between them being left up to the driver.
The Mexico 1000 eventually gained major sponsorships as well-known racers gradually started to show up to take on this ultimate off-road racing challenge. Following the 1973 Oil Crisis, NORRA decided to cancel the 1974 event to the dismay of the Baja California population. The Southern California Off Road Enthusiasts (SCORE) International committee eventually came in and started organizing the event in NORRA’s absence. SCORE renamed the event the Baja 1000 and it’s been going strong ever since.
Baja 1000 Car Icons and Breakthroughs
With over 50 years of racing history, there have been quite a few Baja 1000 champions. Most of the early Baja 1000 overall winners were predominantly Volkswagen and Porsche based kit cars like the aforementioned Meyers Manx. But there was also the Ford Bronco’s number of successes in the infancy of the event.
The Bronco was known so widely as a Baja 1000 legend in fact, Ford decided that they need to instill their recent rebirth of the nameplate with some of that heritage. So, prior to the new Ford Bronco’s official release, they sent out a decked-out Bronco R Prototype into the 2020 Baja 1000 and it finished in just 32 hours. It didn’t win overall, but like I had said before, just finishing is a success in the Baja 1000. Besides kit cars and the Bronco, it’s essentially been Ford, Chevrolet, and Toyota based trophy trucks winning the overall event since 1989.
So, what do manufacturers gain from having their brand represented in the Baja 1000? Notoriety is one thing obviously. Marketing a win in the Baja 1000 definitely adds to their off-roading credibility, especially if they can remark on their streak (I’m looking at you Ford). But there’s more than just marketability, there is also the development and testing of off-roading components that eventually make their way into consumer vehicles.
Take the Ford F-150 Raptor for instance. It was specially designed by Ford’s Special Vehicle Team (SVT) back in 2010 as a street legal version of the Ford trophy trucks that compete in the Baja 1000. Like the trophy trucks the Raptor takes its inspiration from, it had a wider track, taller ride height, more powerful engines, and even utilized some proven Baja 1000 parts from aftermarket companies. Fox Racing provided their off-road capable shocks and BFGoodrich provided sets of the KO all-terrain tire. Both of those companies have a huge presence at the Baja 1000 both as parts installed on most of the race vehicles and as major sponsors.
Ford isn’t the only manufacturer testing their performance parts and vehicles at the Baja 1000 though. The Toyota Racing Development (TRD) team has sent out their TRD Pro series Tundra and Tacoma models out there to prove their stuff. Even RAM has taken some inspiration from Baja 1000 racers when it comes to the development of the new RAM 1500 TRX with its trophy truck appearance, Bilstein Black Hawk e2 shocks, and that massive V8 engine.
The Baja 1000 is Coming Soon
The Baja 1000, North America’s ultimate off-road proving ground, is back again for 2021 on November 15th. Ford, Chevrolet, Toyota, RAM, and even Volkswagen will be there at the starting line this year, so it should pan out to be just as enthralling of a race as previous years. Maybe we’ll get to see more advancements and new car designs first hand, but only time will tell.
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