SCORE Journal

SCORE-Journal-DEC-2022

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

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BUGGIES BATTLE THE COURSE Class 1 and Class 10 Racers Get A Nail-Biting Race By Dan Sanchez, Paul Hanson, Isaac Flores, Cindy Clark, and Ariana Medrano Some of the toughest and most competitive races during the 55th BFGoodrich Tires SCORE Baja 1000 were in the buggy classes. In Class 1 seven competitors who are equally matched not only had to out-race each other, but also had to contend with a brutal course that took out nearly half of the competitors. In Class 10, however, the competition was so tough, the race leaders changed hands more often than in any other class, and ultimately came down to the wire as to who would cross the finish line first. With a field of very experienced racers, the Class 1 field started with Brian Parkhouse (SCORE Baja 400 class winner), followed by Kyle Quinn (SCORE San Felipe 250 winner), and the rest of the field. By midway through the course Parkhouse in the No. 100 car, Brendan Gaughan in the No. 162 car, and Cody Reid in the No. 168 car, had dropped out due to mechanical failures. The Wilson team had their two cars in this race, the 138 car of Kyle Quinn and Brad Wilson’s No. 153 car. But early on, around race mile 90, the Wilson 153 car broke down and could not continue. The remaining competitors, Damon Jeffries in the No. 121 car, Mike Frye in the No. 113 car, Kevy Nott of the Australian team in the No. 178 car, and Quinn in the second Wilson Racing car were left to see who would finish first. At one point, it looked as though Quinn’s car was finished with a broken lower control arm, but the Wilson team had such a large lead that they were able to repair it and get it to the finish line first. This left Damon Jefferies to finish in second place after a good day of racing. “Our co-driver Steve Jangaard got one flat, but neither our co-driver Corey Goin or I had any issues,” said Jefferies. “I got caught behind SCORE TT Spec racer Chris Polvoorde for about ten minutes but it wasn’t all that bad. The Huatamote wash wasn’t bad either - it just looked intimidating. These buggies climb over that stuff really well.” Frye crossed the finish nine hours after Jefferies to finish in third place, while the Australian team finished approximately 45 minutes later in fourth place, but the team was ecstatic to finish the race. “I have never seen anything like this,” said Frye about his third place finish. “I have raced a lot, like over a hundred races. I lost power steering before race mile 200 but luckily the BFGoodrich pits helped us fix it and get going again. My son Jake got in around race mile 200 and he did his section perfectly but he almost couldn’t get out of the car, he was so beat up. Then I got back in and screwed the pooch because I tried to catch a VCP and ended up getting stuck down there. After a few hours I finally ‘MacGyvered’ it out. Then I handed it back to Jake and he finished the last 150 miles or so with no problems.” CLASS 10 FIGHT TO WIN If you were watching the SCORE live tracking system, you were witness to epic battles between several SCORE Class 10 teams. The lead changed hands several times along the course and the competitors were within minutes of each other throughout the race. For racers such as Ivan Tagle in the No. 1087 car, Justin Buckley in the 1064 car, Jose David Ruvalcaba in the 1009 car, and Bruce Yee in the 1014 car, a battle for the class championship was at stake in this race. As soon as the race began, the first team out was that of Bruce Yee who put a sizable lead on the rest of the pack. But it was apparent that the winner of this race would be the team with the least penalties and least problems on the course. With a broken CV Yee and the team lost their lead but they weren’t the only team with problems. Those teams that had flat tires, ran out of fuel and some mechanical issues that were repaired on the course, were the lucky ones who finished. The rest got beaten by Baja and the course. Of the 23 starters in this class, only 13 finished. The Tecate, Mexico team of Hiram Duran in the 1016 car had the least problems and with family members, Eric and Evan, they crossed the finish line first for the class win. “We were lucky and had no major problems other than running out of fuel at one point, which cost us some time,” said Hiram Duran. Finishing in second place was Justin Buckley from Long Beach, California, who also had a good day with few mishaps on the course. “We had a flawless day except when I got a flat,” said Buckley. “Just another day in Baja.” Finishing in third place was the hometown Ensenada, Mexico team of Jose David Ruvalcaba and co-drivers Esteban and Alberto Cruz. “We had fuel pump issues, we had brake issues, and we had some flat tires so our mentality switched from trying to win the race to trying to win the championship,” said Esteban Cruz. “We played it safe and want to thank BFGoodrich tires, Major Performance engines, and SCORE International for putting on a great race.” FINISH LINE QUOTES RAFAEL AGUIRRE | No. 1022 | FOURTH PLACE: I’m really happy with our results. It was a flawless race, no problems. The tires and wheels were excellent. I want to thank Raceline Wheels for sponsoring me. I’d also like to thank my family and my team. I’d also like to thank SCORE and all of their people. ROBERTO ROMO | No. 1062 | FIFTH PLACE: The Summit was rocky and I caught a lot of Spec Trucks. We had a clean race. We only lost about 30 minutes, but no flats. Thank you to Coast Aluminum.  MARCO DURAN | No. 1021 | SIXTH PLACE: We had some issues with the car in the first 250 miles and lost some positions. And then we got a flat trying to make us some time. It was a brutal day, a brutal course. I am super tired. I have been up for more than 24 hours. I am glad I am here at the finish. Overall a great day. I want to thank all the sponsors and everyone that comes out to help us. BRUCE YEE | No. 1014 | SEVENTH PLACE: We passed 15-20 TT Spec trucks and then during our driver change, we noticed our CV boot was leaking so we spent 20 minutes changing that out and lost track positions. The issue came back and we kept falling back but we made it to the finish. I think I enjoyed this SCORE Baja 1000 the most. We are coming for the SCORE Baja 1000 plate and the class champions next year. I want to thank BFGoodrich Tires, Method, STG, AlumaCraft, Danzio, Fortin, Baja Blue Eyes, our entire team and our parents that help support our crazy hobby. CLASS 1  (Unlimited open-wheel single or two-seaters) (7 Starters, 4 Finishers) 1. 138 Kyle Quinn, 35, Lakewood, CA/Ronny Wilson, 60, Long Beach, CA/Greg DiStefano, 52, San Clemente, CA, Jimco-Chevy, 20:09:57 (41.07 MPH) 2. 121 Damen Jefferies, 50, Poolville, Texas (Apple Valley, CA)/Stephen Jangaard, Torrance, CA/Corey Goin, Madera, CA, Jefferies-Chevy, 20:57:22 3. 113 Mike Frye, 51, Las Vegas/Jacob Frye, 28, Las Vegas/Steve Rains, 61, Las Vegas, Jimco-Chevy, 29:07:05 4. 178 Kevy Nott, 44, Australia, Element-Chevy, 29:51:48 CLASS 10  (Limited, sealed engine, single or two-seaters) (23 Starters, 13 Finishers) 1. 1016 Hiram Duran, 44, Tecate, Mexico/Evan Duran Jr, 20, San Diego/Eric Duran, 22, Tecate, Mexico, Alumi Craft-Chevy, 19:40:54, (42.08 MPH) 2. 1064 Justin Buckley, 31, Long Beach, CA/Chad Dohrman, 39, Menifee, CA/Justin Burleson/Mavrick Gaunt, Alumi Craft-Chevy, 20:00:47  3. 1009 J. David Ruvalcaba, 49, Ensenada, Mexico/Esteban Cruz, 50, Ensenada, Mexico/Alberto Cruz, 52, Ensenada, Mexico, Alumi Craft-Honda, 20:01:31 4. 1022 Rafael Aguirre, 43, Monterrey, Mexico/Rafael Aguirre Jr, 19, Monterrey, Mexico/Adrian Sauseda, 31, Monterrey, Mexico/Stephen M. Daus, 31, Las Barriles, Mexico, Alumi Craft-Chevy, 20:02:14 5. 1062 Roberto Romo, 41, Mexicali, Mexico/Roberto Romo Jr, 16, Mexicali, Mexico/Rodimiro Amaya, 32, La Paz, Mexico, Alumi Craft-Chevy, 20:11:02 6. 1021 Marco Duran, 19, Chula Vista, CA/Eric Duran, 51, Tecate, CA/Evan Duran, 50, Tecate, Mexico, Alumi Craft-Chevy, 20:48:54 7. 1014 Bruce Yee, 22, Chula Vista, CA/Agustin Moreno, 31, San Jose del Cabo, Mexico/Jose Robles, 43, Mexicali, Mexico, Alumi Craft-Chevy, 21:05:05 8. 1087 Ivan Tagle, 36, Chula Vista, CA/Dale Ebberts, Wilton, CA/Joaquin Ramirez, 29, Chula Vista, CA/Alberto Mendez, 35, Ensenada, Mexico, Alumi Craft-Chevy, 21:10:05 9. 1002 Matias Arjona IV, 23, Ensenada, Mexico/Matias Arjona III, 57, Ensenada, Mexico/Vic Bruckmann, 49, Lemon Grove, CA, Alumi Craft-Chevy, 21:28:53 10. 1079 Manlio F. Diaz, 43, La Paz, Mexico/Eduardo Laguna, 31, Mexicali, Mexico/Mario Diaz, 36, La Paz, Mexico/Juan Olave, 46, La Paz, Mexico, Alumi Craft-Chevy, 21:31:31 11. 1028 Armando Avila Jr, 19, Juarez, Mexico/Armando Avila Sr, 42, Juarez, Mexico/Luis Gutierrez, 36, Juarez, Mexico/Bruno Barraza, 30, Juarez, Mexico, Jimco-Chevy, 21:52:58 12. 1091 Alexis Vera, 26, El Rosario, Mexico/Francisco Vera, 31, El Rosario, Mexico/Adolfo Arellano, 39, Tijuana, Mexico Alumi Craft-Chevy, 23:10:50 13. 1049 Ty Godde, 52, Palmdale, CA/Kevin Goss, 35, Tehachapi, CA/Gabe Giuntoni, 43, Palmdale, CA, Everson-Chevy, 24:33:55

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