The Baja 1000 2023

Have you heard about the Baja 1000?



Where they race through the desert from one end of the Baja California peninsula to the other (1000 miles) for a prize?



From Motorcycles to VW Bugs to Quads and Trucks they face a grueling time limit of 50 hours.

Best over all winning time was 27 hours!

Imagine that, 1000 miles with booby traps, sand pits and crowds seeking a thrill out there in the midst of nowhere as you race at the fastest you can to get there on time, without breaking down, blowing a tire or running out of gas. The challenges are awesome!

 

Each year there are reports of spectators sabotaging or booby-trapping the course by digging holes, blocking a river to create a makeshift watersplash, or burying and hiding obstacles. Racers are warned to beware of large crowds of spectators in remote parts of the course since it may indicate hidden traps or obstacle changes. Many of the booby traps are not created to intentionally injure the contestants but are created by the local spectators as jumps or obstacles for their own entertainment and to create intriguing moments to be caught on videotape. The haphazardly designed obstacles, created by the spectators, are often very dangerous as the contestants may inadvertently enter the booby-trap at unsafe speeds, resulting in damage to the vehicles or injuries to competitors or spectators. Awareness of booby traps and course alterations are often part of race-day strategy and convey an advantage to the best prepared teams – nonetheless given the danger the traps pose, it is customary for competitors to quickly communicate course hazards to other competitors through on-board radio communications and radio relay.
From Wikipedia

 

Here is the schedule for this year's Baja 1000, starting in the south at La Paz, and winding thru the desert all the way to Ensenada, 1000 miles away!

 

You can join the estimated 5,000 people expected at El Molinito for the start...or watch along the hiway with about 20-30,000 others (Just in La Paz...)

 

The Race is ON!!!

Live stream it now on Youtube!

https://www.youtube.com/live/mq71TlZcuHo?si=eF6IrMH05ipBwV04

 

This morning I had to drive into town as the race was getting underway.

Literally thousands of cheering fans were lining both sides of the highway, which was restricted to two lanes for regular traffic from four. The other two were for the race.

I also saw a bunch of quads and trucks racing past LOUDLY at top speeds with many helicopters overhead, no doubt many drones as well.