Former overall winners Menzies, MacCachren, Gordon, A. McMillin, Troy Herbst, Lopez among early entries for 49th SCORE Baja 500

SCORE MEDIA CONTACT: Dominic Clark, dominiccnv@aol.com
 
May 11, 2017
 
Race to air on El Rey Network
Former overall winners Menzies, MacCachren, Gordon, A. McMillin,
Troy Herbst, Lopez among early entries for 49th SCORE Baja 500
 
Early entries from 25 U.S. States, 10 countries; Start Draw on May 18;
internationally-televised race May 31-June 4 in Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico;
start draw May 18; technical, challenging race course to cover 515.77 miles;
 
Qualifying on June 1 for Round 2 of four-race 2017 SCORE World Desert Championship;
racer registration, more info at http://score-international.com/raceinfo/2017-baja-500/
 
ENSENADA, Baja California, Mexico— Former overall race winners Bryce Menzies, Rob MacCachren, Robby Gordon, Andy McMillin, Troy Herbst and Carlos ‘Apdaly’ Lopez, are among the early entries from 25 U.S. States and 10 countries for upcoming internationally-televised 49th annual SCORE Baja 500.
Teams from all across the United States and around the world continue to register online for the Round 2 of the four-race 2017 SCORE World Desert Championship. The massive international racing extravaganza will be held May 31-June 4 in Mexico’s Baja California Norte, starting and finishing in Ensenada, the seaside port on the Pacific Ocean, 80 miles south of San Diego.
Most the world’s best desert racers will be in action at this year’s 49th anniversary of the SCORE Baja 500, the original desert race produced by SCORE on July 26, 1974.
It is an elapsed-time race with staggered starts as the green flag will drop first on Saturday (June 3) for the motorcycles and quads at 5:30 a.m. (PDT) and approximately 10 a.m. (PDT) for the cars, trucks and UTVs.
In addition to 25 U.S. States, racers from Australia, Austria, Canada, Denmark, Germany, Great Britain, Japan, Mexico and the Netherlands are already part of the field that is expected to grow to nearly 300 vehicles at the start line.
ONLINE RACER REGISTRATION
Online registration, by class, for Pro and Sportsman cars, trucks, UTVs, motorcycles and quads, is ongoing through the SCORE website.  For more info, visit
http://score-international.com/raceinfo/2017-baja-500/.
Online entries will be accepted until 10 p.m. (PDT) on Thursday, May 25. Late entries after that date and all on-site late entries will be assessed a $100 late fee to enter the race.
START DRAW DEADLINE
The deadline to enter the race in order to be included in the drawing for starting positions is 10 p.m. (PDT) on Wednesday, May 17.  The drawing, to determine the start order within each class, will be held on Thursday, May 18. Official entries received after the drawing will be given the next available starting position within their respective classes.
EARLY BIRDS
Robby Gordon, a former NASCAR Cup team owner/driver leads the group of former overall winners among the early entries in this year’s SCORE Baja 500 with four wins. All of the returning winners race in the marquee SCORE Trophy Truck division for high-tech, 850-horsepower, unlimited production trucks.
With his four overall victories spread out over 24 years Gordon, the Orange County, Calif. native who lives now in Charlotte, N.C., has earned the overall win in this race previously in 1989, 1990, 2005 and 2013. He also had a class win in 1988.
Menzies and Troy Herbst, both of Las Vegas, have three-time overall wins in this race. Menzies’ won the overall in three out of four years (2l011, 2012 and 2014) while Troy Herbst won three times in Class 1 racing in the legendary Smith-Built ‘Land Shark’ in the unlimited Class 1 (1996, 2002 and 2003) and the youngest of the three racing Herbst brothers had additional class wins in 1998, 2000, 2004 and 2006.
With one overall win each are Las Vegas’ MacCachren (1996), San Diego’s Andy McMillin (2010) and Mexico’s Lopez (2015). MacCachren won the season-opening SCORE San Felipe on April 1 and he has won the last three straight SCORE Baja 1000 races. McMillin is a third-generation desert racer who earned his overall racing with his father Scott McMillin and Lopez, a second-generation desert racer who is part of the five-vehicle RPM Racing team of Bristol, Tenn., is the reigning two-time SCORE Trophy Truck season point champion.
GOLDEN SCORE 2017
The 2017 season also marks the golden 50th anniversary celebration of the legendary season-ending SCORE Baja 1000, the iconic Granddaddy of all Desert Races to be held November 14-18. The SCORE Baja 1000 is the oldest and longest continuously held desert race in the world.
MORE EARLY BIRDS
Among the other early entries in this year’s SCORE Baja 500 are SCORE Trophy Truck racers Cameron Steele, San Clemente, Calif., Justin Lofton, Brawley, Calif., Jesse Jones, Phoenix and class rookie Mike Lawrence, Murrieta, Calif.
Besides ‘Apdaly’ Lopez, RPM Racing’s five-vehicle team includes Justin Matney, Bristol, Tenn. and Germany’s Armin Schwarz in SCORE Trophy Truck, Clyde Stacy, Bristol, Va., in SCORE TT Legend and Derek Fletcher, Abingdon, Va. in the unlimited Class 1.
Also among early entries are three family entries. Andrew Myers and his brothers Steve and Dan of Escondido, Calif., will split time driving in the Trophy Truck Spec class while racing in Class 10 will be the father and son team of Todd and Matt Winslow of Clovis, Calif. Both former class champions, Shelby Reid will race in Class 1 while her son Cody Reid, both of Apple Valley, Calif., will be driving in Class 10.
Also entered in Class 10 is another former class point champion in Justin Davis, Chino Hills, Calif.
Among a large field of nearly  20 entries so far in Pro UTV FI (Forced Induction), Marc Burnett, Lakeside Calif., is also among the early entries.
Attempting a feat never accomplished before in the long history of SCORE, one racer is entered as rider of record in three different motorcycle classes hoping for at least to finish in each class. Coming from Mexico City is internal motorcycle rally racer Santiago Creel who will be rider of record on different KTM motorcycles in the Pro Moto Unlimited, Pro Moto 30 and Pro Moto Limited classes.
A HAPPENING…
Colorful race week festivities will start Thursday (June 1) with qualifying for SCORE Trophy Truck, SCORE TT Legend, Class 1 and Trophy Truck Spec. SCORE sponsor partner Monster Energy will present the Monster Energy SCORE Kick-off Party from 7 p.m. to 11 p.m. in the VIP area at the start/finish line in front of the Riviera del Pacifico Cultural Center.
Friday, June 2 will see the day-long, pre-race Manufacturer’s Midway and contingency festival in the start finish line area in Ensenada.
During the race on Saturday, June 3 the start/finish line compound will include the massive double-sided SCOREvision LED screen broadcasting race festivities and start and finish line interviews.
All of the week’s festivities will be aired both live and same-day including the race, airing via the internet on the SCORE website.
AT THE RIVIERA…
The Riviera del Pacifico Cultural Center, in the heart of Ensenada, will again be the site of many of the activities surrounding the SCORE Baja 500. Racer registration will be held in the Red Room on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday (May 31, June 1-2). Media registration will be also held in the Red Room at the Riviera on Thursday and Friday (June 1-2) and the SCORE Media Center will be in the Red Room during the race (June 3-4) with internet access and live race updates, vehicle tracking displays including unofficial elapsed times.
In the Cathedral Room at the Riviera will be pre-race media conference as well as the mandatory pre-race racer’s meeting on Friday (June 2). The post-race awards celebration will also be in the Cathedral Room at noon on Sunday (June 4).
The start/finish line for the race will once again be adjacent to the Riviera del Pacifico Cultural Center on Blvd. Costero.
PRE-RUNNING
Official practice, or pre-running, on the official race course for this year’s SCORE Baja 500 will begin on Saturday, May 20. Pre-running will start at race-mile 38 outbound only and will end at rm476.
QUALIFYING
On Thursday, June 1 qualifying for starting positions will be held for the marquee SCORE Trophy Truck division, SCORE TT Legend, the unlimited Class 1 and Trophy Truck Spec. Qualifying will be held over a special course near Ensenada and is not open to the public. The start drawing for these classes will determine their respective qualifying order.
While the majority of the entries in these top classes are expected to qualify, those who elect not to will be given the remaining start positions in the elapsed-time race based on the original drawing or entry into the race within their respective classes.
Qualifying is closed to the public because of safety concerns, but taped highlights of qualifying will be shown starting Thursday evening (June 1) on the SCORE website.
MAIN COURSE
The race will feature a course, being finalized by SCORE CEO/President Roger Norman along with Race Director Jose A. Grijalva, of approximately 515.77 miles. It will run in a counter clockwise direction. The first and last 19.5 miles will be shared course outbound and inbound.
Starting and finishing once again in the heart of Ensenada in front of the Riviera del Pacifico Cultural Center, it will quickly leave the pavement and head up the spectator-friendly Ensenada Arroyo for two miles as it heads out of town.
The historic race course is another memorable example of all that Mexico’s Baja California has to offer, including high-speed dirt trails, sandy, rocky and silty natural terrain, majestic Baja washes and canyons, stretches along the seashore with elevations from sea level to over 3,000 feet. The course will be another jewel reflecting the stark beauty of Baja California.
This year’s course will have five physical checkpoints—North of Johnson’s Ranch, Morellia Junction, North of San Felipe on Highway 5, Nuevo Junction and El Mezcal before Ojos Negros.
This course is different than last year’s course. Last year it had much more desert, it went up the Summit and this year it goes to the coast.
Reflecting on the course, Grijalva commented, “This course is tough and very technical, more rain damage than other years and it's long with over 465 miles on the dirt, leaving less than 48 miles on pavement. The course from Jaramillo to San Telmo Road and up to Rancho Coyote has not been raced for many years and will be new to many racers. There is also a new trail we will race on after the Goat Trail that has never been raced on before.”
Other towns and landmarks the course goes through or near are Ensenada Arroyo, Piedras Gordas, Ojos Negros, Uruapan, Santo Tomás, Erendira, Johnson's Ranch, Colonet, Jaramillo, Hacienda Sinaloa on San Telmo Rd., Rancho El Coyote, Mike's Sky Rancho, San Matias, the Diablo Dry Lake bed, San Felipe, Valle de Trinidad, The Goat Trail, Nuevo Junction and Santa Catarina.
GRAN HISTORIA
The SCORE Baja 500 is one of the top motorsports events in the world. It was started originally in 1969 by the NORRA organization. Mickey Thompson and his SCORE International organization were asked by Mexican government to take over the event in 1974. Sal Fish ran and later owned and produced the SCORE Baja 500 for 39 years until he sold SCORE to Roger and Elise Norman in December of 2012.
Ensenada is the heart and soul of the SCORE Baja 500 as the popular summertime race will start for the 44th time and finish for the 40th time in Ensenada.
In addition to starting 43 times in Ensenada, this popular early summer race has also started three times in Ojos Negros (1991, 1992, 1993), once in San Felipe (1989) and in 1984 it was moved for one year to Barstow, Calif. in the United States.
In addition to finishing 39 times previously in Ensenada, the SCORE Baja 500 has also finished five times in Santo Tomas, twice in Ojos Negros (1991, 1992), once in Barstow, Calif. and once in San Felipe.
SCOREscope
The four-race 2017 SCORE World Desert Championship and for the second time all four are being held in Baja California, Mexico. Here is the 2017 SCORE World Desert Championship schedule:
31st SCORE San Felipe 250, March 29-April 2, San Felipe, Mexico
49th SCORE Baja 500, June 1-4, Ensenada Mexico
Rosarito Beach 21st SCORE Desert Challenge, Sept. 14-17, Rosarito Beach, Mexico
50th SCORE Baja 1000, Nov.14-18, Ensenada, Mexico to La Paz, Mexico
EL REY NETWORK
The four-race 2017 SCORE World Desert Championship in Baja California, Mexico along with the SEMA SCORE Baja 1000 Experience/SCORE Baja 1000 Qualifying in Las Vegas will all air on El Rey Network in the United States. International distribution is by way of syndication. The season-ending 50th SCORE Baja 1000 will have a two-hour show produced while the other race shows will each be one-hour telecasts.
El Rey Network is a 24-hour, English-language lifestyle network targeting "Strivers," viewers who hold strong core beliefs about the importance of family, independence, hard work, craftsmanship, and legacy.
Founded by maverick filmmaker Robert Rodriguez, and curated by Rodriguez and his artistic collective, the network features action-packed programming, relatable heroes and aspirational stories that embrace today's America. El Rey's slate is anchored by signature series including the original drama "From Dusk Till Dawn: The Series," the one-on-one interview program "El Rey Network Presents: The Director's Chair," and "Lucha Underground," a lucha libre wrestling series produced by Mark Burnett.
El Rey Network's lineup also showcases a wide range of iconic feature films and television series including genre, action, and sci-fi/ horror. El Rey Network LLC is jointly owned by Robert Rodriguez and FactoryMade Ventures, with a minority stake held by Univision Networks & Studios, Inc.
El Rey Network is available in 45 million homes across the country through cable and OTT providers and via satellite on DirecTV Channel 341 and Dish Network Channel 253. For more information on how to watch El Rey visit http://elreynetwork.com.
SCORE SPONSORS…
Official SCORE Sponsors: BFGoodrich Tires-Official Tire, Monster Energy-Official Energy Drink, King Shocks-Official Shock Absorber, Raceline Wheels-Official Wheel, Axial R/C-Official R/C Vehicle, El Rey Network-Official Television Partner, Wide Open Excursions-Official Arrive and Drive Company, Crystal Bay Casino-Official Casino.
SCORE Official Partners: PCI Race Radios, 4 Wheel Parts, Coca Cola, The Satellite Phone Store, Satellite Del Norte, Instant Mexico Auto Insurance, CETTO Vineyards.
Additional SCORE Associate Partners: Proturismo Ensenada, Baja California Secretary of Tourism, Baja California Sur State Government, Baja California Sur Secretary of Tourism, Mexicali Ayuntamiento, COTUCO Mexicali/San Felipe, Cruz Roja Mexicana, Corporate Helicopters, McKenzie’s Performance Products, Advanced Color Graphics.
Rosarito Beach SCORE Desert Challenge Special Partners: Ayuntamiento de Playas de Rosarito, Cotuco de Playas de Rosarito, Comite de Mercadatecnia Playas de Rosarito.
For more information regarding SCORE, visit the official website of the SCORE World Desert Championship atwww.SCOREInternational.com.