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8 Interesting Facts about the Baja 1000
Hello again my friends, this is the last part of our 3 part series on the world’s toughest races. I saved the best for the last as this week we talk about one of the most brutal off road motorsport races, the Baja 1000. A gruelling race across the Mexican desert packed with extreme weather and booby traps.
Baja 1000
The Baja 1000 is a point to point race held on the Baja Peninsula in Baja California, Mexico.
The race usually starts in the city of Ensenada, about 125 km south of San Diego and ends in La Paz, the capital city of Baja California.
The Vehicles
One of the unique features of this race is that it is open to many classes of vehicles. Some racers do it alone while some have teams of up to 5 drivers. Every year the race sees motorcycles, ATVs and stock production cars racing across the desert. One of the most visible classes of vehicles to compete in this race is the off road truck category with their looming presence and suspension coils bigger than a grown man. Stock and heavily modified, factory supported trucks go head to head with no mercy given. Perhaps the most special class would be class 11 where only pre 1982 stock Volkswagen Beetles are allowed. These Beetles are affectionately named ‘Baja Bugs’.
Booby Traps and Obstacles
Booby traps and makeshift jumps are commonly made by spectators who try to sabotage the racers. Holes, jumps and splash zones, you name it! The racers are warned to be extra vigilant when huge crowds of spectators are present, potentially signifying a booby trap. When the race hits public highways the roads aren’t closed either which means locals drive alongside the racers and sometimes try to race them. However, I think the toughest part of this race is the elements. Traversing such long distances can mean changing weather, presenting navigation challenges not to mention that the race carries on over the nights where visibility is at a minimum.
There you have it, three of the toughest races in the world, either by foot, bicycle or motorised vehicle. Which one do you think is the toughest and which one do you think you could potentially do?
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