Official UTVUnderground 2014 Baja 1000 Photos / Story / Official Results

[Johnny]

Holy Shit Jim Glad you guys are all ok .. I passed a bus and 2 minutes later the dumb ass driver passed me and another truck back in a no passing zone and almost did a head on with a 18 wheeler then still following him the bus and another 18 wheeler side swiped each other and we could hear it in our truck and then we got blasted with glass and broken plastic .. they both hit the brakes for a second the keep on going .. crazy shit and I bet the people on the bus where shittin bricks

 

[NIKAL]

Holy Shit Jim Glad you guys are all ok .. I passed a bus and 2 minutes later the dumb ass driver passed me and another truck back in a no passing zone and almost did a head on with a 18 wheeler then still following him the bus and another 18 wheeler side swiped each other and we could hear it in our truck and then we got blasted with glass and broken plastic .. they both hit the brakes for a second the keep on going .. crazy shit and I bet the people on the bus where shittin bricks

And people think I'm making this stuff up when I tell them about missing mirrors, broken trailer axles and so on.

So how many tensed up when seeing a semi coming the opposite direction and your just holding your line just hoping he holds his? Then after you pass, you realize you were holding your breath. Then after that pass you know there are another 50 of those in your future.

 

[badassmav]

I hate going to Mexico. Even an upstanding citizen, with a stellar driving record (not saying I'm either), is just one more vulnerable target over there. Got singled out by this fat slob of a lying cop in Tecate, just 1/4 mile from the border x-ing (where there was not 1 car waiting in line to cross, at 10:55 Monday evening, I might add). F-er saw me driving the branded rig and towing The Monster Mav, and decided that I blew through a stop sign, and proceeded to lay the foundation for collecting a minimum weeks worth of salary in a couple of dirty minutes.
Fortunately, one of the guys in our caravan was an "Authentixican", and turned around to assist this victim of fraud. Before help arrived, the fat "no comprende"slob extortionist of a cop who probably spoke, or at least understood our dialect, managed to convey to me the shocking fact that I have just performed 2 felon-ic crimes. Running a stop sign, and driving w/out a license (I lost it somewhere along the path from La Paz to Tecate). Between Mearsman and myself, we only had 10 bucks on us, so the Mexican equivalent of Barney Fife is salivating at the fact that his station is about to receive a fully tooled and outfitted, top notch tow rig, with race car and trailer attached. You know it would be a ravaged shell upon picking it up from impound, and the bail fee's would have been through the roof.

Thanks to our Mexi-friend Johnny-cat, who was in the process of convincing Pancho Villa to accept 20 bucks and 200 pesos for our "crimes", as he waved to us to haul ass as he was still negotiating the pay-off, we, along with OUR property, high tailed our asses to the awaiting border crossing agent less than 1/2 mile away.
I hate Mexico, yet Marc always convinces me to go back. If it weren't for Johnny, Marc would be hating Mexico too about now. Mexico Schmexico.

Here's wishing that cop develops a watermelon-sized pallup on his asshole! I hate Mexico!

 

[facteryfmf]

And people think I'm making this stuff up when I tell them about missing mirrors, broken trailer axles and so on.

So how many tensed up when seeing a semi coming the opposite direction and your just holding your line just hoping he holds his? Then after you pass, you realize you were holding your breath. Then after that pass you know there are another 50 of those in your future.

Unfortunately we also had the mirror incident happened with the 1942 chase team of McFarland. Somehow, it shattered their window but it did not do ours. I would be willing to bet that our adventure was one of the most storied of the race.

 

[Bajaxp]

I respect everyone's opinion, but honestly I love Mexico. It is the wild west! With the 'pussi-fication' of the US it is a throw back to simpler times where a man had to rely on his wits, brains and creativity to get by. But in the end we have people on our team that love Mexico and people who hate Mexico. And I can respect that.

Driving down there is sketch, particularly at night. I convinced two of our three chase trucks coming back from La Paz to not drive at night, because night time multiplies the driving risks by a factor of three at least. We actually did carry an extra axle, springs and two spares on the trailer.

I too got pulled over coming into Ensenada. The cop was like the one that pulled Reid over. He actually spoke less English than I speak Spanish, which is hilarious. We went back and forth. He said I ran a red. I said 'no Rojo...VERDE.' He said that I must follow him to the police station. I played the Baja mil piloto card hard. I started following him, then he turned off and pulled up to my window and said 'go.' I hauled azz off in our 12000 lb, 25 year old chase truck to where? One last stop at Los Traileros for Adabada Tacos before we hit the border. Haha.

 

[facteryfmf]

Everybody missed a VCP except Johnny. What gives? I would assume that it was the VCP near MM840 or whatever the dry lake bed with the mud was ?

 

[Johnny]

lol I think that's the mud that's still in my car .. we spent a lot of time with our GPS flagging and mapping and told all drivers and co drivers that 57 and 27 where the target top speeds in the speed zones .. Its also really nice to know people that had teams pre running for weeks befor the Race ... Thanks Jeff, Wynn and Rick Gieser

 

[Johnny]

and we had to scrap a shit load of mud out of the wheels of the car it was so out of balance they thought it was going to shake apart

 

[Brian B]

The curb incident sucked but the repair was made fairly quicky, 2 new tires and rims, weld the axle into place on the spring and carry on. Launching the "family truckster" 100 yards into the desrt almost broke me....i was actually claiming im not returning to baja. IT took 6.5 hours to recover the truck and trailer from the desert.

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=tfmKwgrQzdE

Thats nothing to be proud of Russ........... 50 yards......

All joking aside, I'm glad you guys are OK. Scary effing drive home! We had a bus and a semi side swipe each other in front of us making it rain glass and parts on the trucks. I'm not the praying type, but I had a few words with anyone who might have listened after the sun went down...... Next time i run the peninsula, I'm shipping the truck home and taking a flight out!

 

[Brian B]

And people think I'm making this stuff up when I tell them about missing mirrors, broken trailer axles and so on.

So how many tensed up when seeing a semi coming the opposite direction and your just holding your line just hoping he holds his? Then after you pass, you realize you were holding your breath. Then after that pass you know there are another 50 of those in your future.

Every time man. Every time.

 

[goMRgo]

Bigg Jim so glad your guys made it back. We saw your truck and trailer coming down the backside of San Ignacio missing a right rear wheel on the axle. You probably saw us pass you shortly thereafter. We had BIG problems with 1917 around Las Purisma and I had the Chase Van parked at RM916 when we were trying to fix the "won't run" problem. Spark plug wires! While sitting in the dark there I saw you pass us on the road heading south towards Loreto and said a prayer you'd find another trailer tire soon. Later that evening is when I think we heard about you or someone taking the Rig "off road" and I nearly chit worrying about what happened to you guys. I'm the old guy and am always worrying about you "kids"! LOL!

This was my second rodeo, err, chase down the peninsula Baja 1000 so I warned everyone on the 1917 team to be careful about night driving. We carried two spares and fortunately didn't need one. When I did the 2010 Tip to Tip I learned about the horrors of this road and the truck drivers. Hwy 1 is actually much better than I remembered from 2010.

We left LaPaz Monday at 8:30 am and drove non-stop to the border or 24 hours straight. I stayed awake the whole way in the co-dawg seat coaching/rotating/ the drivers in the van and our other Chase Vehicle (FJ) on the route while the others were passed out in back. Soon as we crossed the border I passed out till we got back to Corona.

Glad you and everyone of the UTV familia got back safely! Some tattered.....but all safe!

 

[BiggJim]

Thanks All!! We had a rough trip, learned alot, and im honestly not looking forward to doing it again.

Bill the first ordeal scared the sh!t out of me....and i dont scare easy. Our mexico crew assured me " this is nothing" we will make repairs and carry on. After that deal i was a bit gun shy and got in the back seat. We found a tire in santa rosalita. At a premium of course. The next incident i was half asleep in the back seat. That deal was all bad and our trailer almost stayed in the desert. I was ready to make it a bon fire. We got alot of help from different racers. The wide open baja guys were a huge help!! I hope to meet those guys again and buy them some rounds.

thanks again guys!! We will see you all in henderson.

 

[PickupTrucker]

crazy stories thanks for sharing

 

[mearsman]

I hate going to Mexico. Even an upstanding citizen, with a stellar driving record (not saying I'm either), is just one more vulnerable target over there. Got singled out by this fat slob of a lying cop in Tecate, just 1/4 mile from the border x-ing (where there was not 1 car waiting in line to cross, at 10:55 Monday evening, I might add). F-er saw me driving the branded rig and towing The Monster Mav, and decided that I blew through a stop sign, and proceeded to lay the foundation for collecting a minimum weeks worth of salary in a couple of dirty minutes.
Fortunately, one of the guys in our caravan was an "Authentixican", and turned around to assist this victim of fraud. Before help arrived, the fat "no comprende"slob extortionist of a cop who probably spoke, or at least understood our dialect, managed to convey to me the shocking fact that I have just performed 2 felon-ic crimes. Running a stop sign, and driving w/out a license (I lost it somewhere along the path from La Paz to Tecate). Between Mearsman and myself, we only had 10 bucks on us, so the Mexican equivalent of Barney Fife is salivating at the fact that his station is about to receive a fully tooled and outfitted, top notch tow rig, with race car and trailer attached. You know it would be a ravaged shell upon picking it up from impound, and the bail fee's would have been through the roof.

Thanks to our Mexi-friend Johnny-cat, who was in the process of convincing Pancho Villa to accept 20 bucks and 200 pesos for our "crimes", as he waved to us to haul ass as he was still negotiating the pay-off, we, along with OUR property, high tailed our asses to the awaiting border crossing agent less than 1/2 mile away.
I hate Mexico, yet Marc always convinces me to go back. If it weren't for Johnny, Marc would be hating Mexico too about now. Mexico Schmexico.

Here's wishing that cop develops a watermelon-sized pallup on his asshole! I hate Mexico!

That was my worst Mexico fear that almost came true. Throw in the fact that is was 10:45 pm and the border closes at 11. I was scared shitless. Thank God for Johnny my buddy whom I'll forever be in debt. I told him Tuesday that I've never kissed a man but that was the closest time I'll ever get to it.

 

[JoeyD23]

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