SCORE Journal

SCORE-Journal-December-2021

SCORE Journal - The Official Publication of SCORE Off-Road Racing

Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/1438167

Contents of this Issue

Navigation

Page 75 of 117

SIX MEN CONQUER THE PENINSULA A Total Of 13 Riders Come To Ironman The SCORE BaJa 1000 By Dan Sanchez, Gabriel Guerra, Paul Hanson, Guilherme Torres, and Jose Vazquez Photos by Get Some Photo Only the toughest riders dare even consider taking on 1226.35-miles of the 54th BFGoodrich Tires SCORE Baja 1000 Presented by 4 Wheel Parts in the Pro Moto Ironman class. Yet, this race brought out 13-racers, half of which were not able to finish. Those that crossed the finish all said it was their toughest race yet. Of the 13 racers, SCORE fans were watching the riders who have finished in the top three all season. At the top were the Bolivian riders, Juan Carlos Salvatierra and Fabricio Fuentes riding for the KTM team. These riders have finished one and two in the last two races before the SCORE Baja 1000. Also in the top three of this class, was Edgar Cota, who won the SCORE San Felipe 250 and had a third-place finish at the SCORE Baja 500. A race like this for Ironman riders isn’t one of speed, but instead, maintaining a pace that can keep you healthy and alert riding for nearly 50-hours. While the six riders who finished made it in within 42 and 46 hours, Salvatierra managed to complete the course in 34:39:13 on the 725x KTM 450XC-F, showcasing his amazing riding skills, stamina, and mental fortitude. “This was easily the toughest race I’ve done in my life,” he said. “I did the SCORE Baja 1000 last year and it was obviously difficult, but I felt that I used my brakes more. I think I had a faster pace this time. The course was extremely long and the last 40 or 50 miles were insane. I had a little fall but I was fine and the bike too, so I could just keep going.” Salvatierra battled with Cota for the lead and ultimately managed to get ahead to win the class. “During the race, I didn’t know the positions of the other racers, except that Edgar Cota and I were about even on time, and we were both giving it our all on the course,” said Salvatierra. “He passed me when I was taking a rest, but then I caught up to him on the course and I didn’t see him afterward.” The challenges of being an Ironman racer, especially in a long race such as this, require a certain kind of personality and dedication that Salvatierriera and all the Ironman competitors demonstrated in this race. “All the racers in ironman have to have a screw loose,” Salvatierra said jokingly. “But I think the way to win is to have perseverance and to not make any mistakes. It’s a dream come true to be a champion in Baja, but it wasn’t easy. We started this year with that as our goal, ran race after race, and thank God it happened. I think this is my last year as an ironman racer, but we will see what next year brings.” Justin Moore on the 741x KTM 450 XC finished the course in 42:02:24 to take second place in class. “I want to thank my wife for giving me the strength and confidence to get this done,” said Moore. “I also want to thank my badass friends and chase crew, Mark and Cindy, and Dan and Wade. They did a killer job. We have been at this for a long time. Baja threw everything at us. I would definitely like to thank all the people from Ensenada all the way down. They come out and cheer us on. It makes a difference. Their enthusiasm goes a long way.” In third place was Mike Frick on the 719x Honda CRF450X. “It was crazy,” said Frick. “We lost electrical for a little bit. But we made it. This was the hardest race I’ve ever done down here. I was worried I wouldn’t make it. I had some heat exhaustion and they packed me in ice. My son helped me, Andrew, Amanda, Shane, Brady. They did an amazing job. I couldn’t thank them enough.” Cota, who started the race and was challenging for the win, had electrical issues with the 723x bike and could not finish the race. “Very bummed not being able to finish what we started,” Cota said in his Instagram post. “After 18 hours on the bike, I started to have some electrical issues which led to problems with my lights. We weren’t able to fix the issue out on the track and I had to end my race there.” All of this year’s SCORE Pro Moto Ironman finishers and racers did an amazing job tackling the second-longest SCORE Baja 1000 ever. The effort they brought out to race is a perfect example of the determination and personal challenge it takes to compete in the biggest race in all off-road motorsports. See more stats on the SCORE Fan Page SJ

Articles in this issue

Links on this page

Archives of this issue

view archives of SCORE Journal - SCORE-Journal-December-2021