Mexican Domination Among Off Road Elite – Class 11 Champion Eric Solorzano Endures Twice the Time of Trophy Truck Winners in 40 Hour Victory

Eric Solorzano Lone Class 11 Finisher Capturing 9th SCORE Baja 1000 Victory in front of 300,000 fans

Ensenada, Baja California – (November 19, 2006) NASCAR’s Robby Gordon teamed with the rising star of off road racing, Andy McMillin, to capture victory in the elite field of Trophy Truck stars in this year’s prestigious 39th SCORE Baja 1000.

The dynamic duo began deep in the field and weaved a web that was unstoppable, as Gordon won his third SCORE Baja 1000 and McMillin claimed the first of what could be many in his young career.

Captivating the crowds early in the morning was the American Honda A-Team led by reigning SCORE Baja 1000 Champion, Steve Hengeveld. Combining raw talent with raging speed on one of the newest motorcycles in the Honda motorcycle product line, Hengeveld teamed with his 2006 teammate, Mike Childress and another young talent, Quinn Cody, in their run for victory. The trio roared from the start line on a Honda CRF450X and scored a first victory on the new motorcycle and Hengeveld’s fifth SCORE Baja 1000 victory in a row.

The 39th SCORE Tecate Baja 1000 experienced a race-record 431 starters of which 234 racers officially finished what is being considered the most difficult SCORE Baja 1000 ever.

Many of these desert racing dynasties conquer the ultimate challenge in off road desert racing by simply finishing the SCORE Baja 1000 and others won’t claim victory until they are crowned the overall winner … an incredible task to achieve.

The combination of big wheel travel, massive horsepower and advanced shock technology have allowed off road racers to push the limits of speeding through the most difficult terrain in off road racing history, the Baja Peninsula.

Teams spend over a half a million dollars on new truck technology and race budgets often dwarf the cost of a new truck, depending on how many races per year they race.

The elite group of Trophy Truck and Class 1 racers are often referred to as the heroes in the sport of off road desert racing and they are highlighted by media and promoters as such, and might we add, deservedly so.

However, racing the rigors of the Baja Peninsula in this year’s race were the warriors of Class 11. Eight teams in all who arrived to downtown Ensenada, Baja California with a single goal in mind, to finish the SCORE Baja 1000. Experience levels ranged from the multiple time winner, Eric Solorzano, to the Gerry O’Hagan, a Los Angeles County Fireman with little Baja experience.

Those warriors included the teams of 1100 Eric Solorzano and Miguel Hovo, 1101 Robert C. Johnson and Matthew Watson, 1102 Mike Urbano and Gerry O’Hagan, 1103 Brian Calliari and David Hendrickson, 1104 Marcus Best and Mike Odom, 1105 Jake Mueller and Christine Thomas, 1146 Gary Helming and Mark Murrell and 1148 Eric Palacios and Jonathan Robertson.

While the so-called superstars of the SCORE Baja 1000 were toasting champagne and celebrating their 20-hour victory run from Ensenada to La Paz, the field of Class 11 racers were scattered throughout the peninsula. The leader at that time, Eric Solorzano, was just arriving to the 650-mile mark near the beaches of Scorpion Bay in San Juanico.

The 1102 car driven by first time racers, Mike Urbano and Gerry O’Hagan, were facing gremlins in their newly built car that was inspired by Eric Solorzano’s story depicted in Dana Brown’s featured film, Dust to Glory. With the car up on the jack near race mile 190, they were literally over 800 dirt miles away from the finish line.

Although by that time, several cars had succumbed to the terror of the Baja Peninsula. Driving the #1146 Class 11, Gary Hemling bumped along at a whopping pace of 18 miles per hour for over 13 hours, before pulling the plug on their attempt to beat Baja.

Brian Calliari and Dave Hendrickson battled for nearly twenty hours before they stopped their personal quest for the checkered flag. With over twenty years of desert racing experience, Hendrickson is a formidable competitor with knowledge second to none.

The SCORE Baja 1000 does not discriminate.

Behind the wheel of the #1105 car was Jake Mueller and team who pushed through the day and night reaching the halfway point of the race in over 20 hours. They too surrendered to the rigors that faced the stock VW Bug racers.

As the rising sun began to illuminate the Baja Peninsula, the Tecate sponsored Class 11 Champion led this wily group of off road racing warriors in an attempt to overcome the challenge of racing in such a difficult race. Beginning his second shift of racing during daylight hours, the dedicated Mexican racer roared south along the peninsula in search of history.

Enduring yet another adventure of a lifetime, Eric Solorzano led his Tecate-sponsored team to their ninth SCORE Baja 1000 victory crossing the finish line in La Paz in 40 hours, 25 minutes and 27 seconds averaging 25.921 miles per hour over the entire length of the 39th SCORE Tecate Baja 1000.

Congratulations to the #1100 Class 11 Tecate Team! Viva Baja!

Sponsors include: TECATE, BFGoodrich, Bilstein, Vision X and DIRTnewz.com