SCORE Journal - The Official Publication of SCORE Off-Road Racing
Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/1502036
UNIFYING AN INDUSTRY One Set Of Rules And Gaining A Foothold In Nevada By Dan Sanchez As SCORE International was gaining in popularity with its Baja, Mexico races, Riverside, California races, and the Parker 400 in Arizona, other off-road racing organizations had emerged from the Nevada desert. The most prominent was the Mint 400, an idea of Norm Johnson, the promotions director for Dell Webb’s Mint Hotel & Casino. Johnson created the Mint 400 Off-Road Rally in 1968, as a way to attract more people to the casino, and it worked extremely well. At the same time SCORE was building up momentum from its start in 1974, the Las Vegas hotels and casinos were also busy promoting the Mint 400 which had a head start on SCORE. While there was room for multiple off-road races, what set them apart was the fact that off-road racers knew Baja presented the greatest challenge, and the Las Vegas races generated lots of sponsorship dollars and publicity from casino promotions. By the late 1970s, many SCORE Baja racers were also participating in both Mexico and Nevada races, but the Nevada races like the Mint 400, attracted celebrity racers such as Steve McQueen, James Garner, Larry Wilcox, and others, which attracted fans. “I saw what was happening in Nevada and was looking for a way to get SCORE there too,” said SCORE former owner Sal Fish. “By the time SCORE was better established, the Mint 400 was already an institution there. Furthermore, Nevada racers didn’t like who they considered outsiders, from coming into their state and trying to set up a race on what they considered their turf.” An opportunity came when the owner of the Silver Bird Hotel & Casino, Major Riddle, approached Fish to create a race for them. In 1978 the race was promoted as the Silverbird-SCORE Race of Champions and was limited to 125 cars from racers who were personally invited to participate. The winners of the various classes were awarded a large silver ring, automatic entry into the Second Annual Race of Champions (the entry fee was waived), a gallon of Smirnoff Silver Vodka, and Special Silverbird Casino Bonus Checks. Along with the race of champions, SCORE also created a Jeep Celebrity Challenge that included nine AMC Jeep CJ-7s that were outfitted for competition by Walker Evans. A total of eight celebrities were gathered for the challenge, the first to agree to participate was comedian/actor Redd Foxx, from the Sanford and Son TV show, who was already headlining at the Silverbird Hotel & Casino. “I had a good relationship with Jim Radar at AMC, who set us up with the Jeeps for this event,” said Fish. “Walker Evans prepped the vehicles and AMC was very enthusiastic to have an opportunity to meet and have celebrities driving their vehicles. The race itself went on as scheduled, but it wasn’t overly spectacular. It did, however, get us some great publicity for the time. Many of the celebrities were gathered by Mickey’s sister Colleen Campbell. She was also a good promoter like Mickey and she had connections with a lot of these celebrities in film and TV.” A NEED FOR ONE SET OF RULES One of the biggest issues between SCORE and other racing associations in Nevada was that there were different sets of rules. While some professional off-road racers could afford to have a vehicle set up for Baja and one for Nevada, Fish saw that in order for the sport of off-road racing to unify and grow, all racing organizations should follow the same set of rules and safety measures. “At the time Nevada race organizations like the High Desert Racing Association (HDRA) had loosely formulated classes,” said Fish. “The guys racing in that series didn’t want to be controlled, even if it meant for the benefit of their safety.” The HDRA was founded by Walt Lott in 1976 after he had served as president of Southern Nevada Off Road Enthusiasts (SNORE) in 1973 and again in 1975. He also helped in organizing the Mint 400 from 1971-1988. “I had previously gotten to know Walt and we would exchange phone calls every so often. But he was content to have Vegas races and the resources of the casinos,” said Fish. “He was one of those good-ole-boys who knew a lot about off-road racing and did a great job, but he didn’t want to run under SCORE rules, and neither did his racers. In comparison, Mexico didn’t have the same resources as the Vegas casinos did and while everyone knew that the Baja Peninsula was the best place for off-road racing, I knew I needed to get a SCORE race in Nevada to attract auto manufacturers who could support us.” While the Silverbird race did well for SCORE’s image in Nevada, Fish had hoped it would be enough to allow it to have a presence there. “It did not have the immediate impact I was hoping for, but it did allow opportunities to talk with casino owners like Michael Gaughan, who was also a great off-road racer,” said Fish. “He helped me to eventually get in with the chamber of commerce and other casino owners to talk, but it wasn’t until the mid-1980s that we were able to have some serious discussions with Walt at HDRA.” FRANK DEANGELO OFFERS A PLAN OF UNITY Beginning his career hauling BFGoodrich Tries to SCORE Baja races, Frank DeAngelo heard from first-hand experience what racers wanted from the off-road race organizations. After several years managing the BFG Pits, he learned that many of the Baja and Nevada racers were challenged with meeting race schedules, and how the off-road racing industry had turned into a competition for racers. “At the end of 1984, I called all of the vehicle manufacturers I could think of, Chrysler, Toyota, Ford, Chevrolet, Dodge, etc. and personally had a meeting with them,” said DeAngelo. “I also included tire companies and other aftermarket manufacturers who were involved in off-road racing with some kind of seriousness to get their perspective.” What DeAngelo discovered was that these companies also had a difficult time trying to participate in two race series and supporting racers who were trying to deal with competing race schedules between SCORE and HDRA. “I asked about approaching Sal and Walt and having them work together,” said De Angelo. “We also discussed funding and agreed on what each manufacturer was bringing to the table. We also wanted to come up with some basic guidelines and how we could all work together to bring everyone in full agreement before we brought it up to SCORE and HDRA.” At the end of 1984, DeAngelo and the manufacturers scheduled to meet with Sal Fish and Walt Lott to present a proposal. After discussions, both men agreed to many of the suggestions. As a result, the 1985 SCORE/HDRA season had a combined schedule of events with rules that not only unified the off-road racing industry but also brought more legitimacy and safety to the sport. “It also increased entries and sponsorships for both SCORE and HDRA, and it helped the sport to move forward,” said Fish. The agreement had four HDRA events combined with four SCORE International events that were not scheduled so close to each other and had all eight events as one major points series. “My fear was that Sal would be a tough nut to crack,” said DeAngelo. “Walt was a good ole boy and wasn’t opposed, he just wanted to understand it. Sal had nothing to lose and didn’t have to give up anything, but I didn’t want him to think I was trying to take over off-road racing. After the merger, Sal and I became closer friends and we spent a lot of time together after that.” During the 1986 SCORE Awards for the 1985 season, Frank DeAngelo received a Resolution from California State Assemblyman Richard Katz for his contributions and for enhancing the sport. Walt Lott had a special silver belt buckle made for DeAngelo for his efforts, and In 1986 SCORE awarded DeAngelo as Person of the Year. In 2013 DeAngelo was inducted into the Off-Road Motorsports Hall of Fame for his efforts with SCORE and HDRA, but also for his many contributions to the sport of off-road racing. A DECADE OF SUCCESS IN THE WEST The merger worked well to grow the sport, and it continued even after Lott’s untimely death in 1988 during the HDRA Fireworks 250 in Barstow, California. He was eventually inducted into the Off-Road Motorsports Hall Of Fame in 2007. The combined SCORE/HDRA series which launched back in 1985, lasted seven years through 1991 until then HDRA President Danny Cau and Fish decided to separate the race series due to a variety of reasons. The following year, 1992, HDRA ran the HDRA USA Cup while SCORE returned to its SCORE Desert Series of races in California and Mexico. At the end of this race season, SCORE was able to purchase HDRA outright and a new series began in 1993 with Fish as CEO and Cau as President. Over the next two decades of SCORE, from the 1990s-2000s, the company saw expanded growth in Nevada from the purchase. This included a relationship with Pat Christenson of Las Vegas Events, Tom Jenkin and the Laughlin Tourism Commission, Gary Primm and the Primm Valley Resorts, and Jerry Herbst with his sons Ed, Tim, and Troy, of Terrible Herbst companies.