SCORE Journal - The Official Publication of SCORE Off-Road Racing
Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/618747
No one exemplifies this determination like Eric Solorzano. He's a fan favorite for Class 11 racers and is considered one of the elites in this class, who has won the legendary race in these stock VW Bugs. Touted as the unofficial godfather of Class 11, Solorzano is a man that knows how to win the toughest desert race in the world in a car that's almost older than the race itself. He was one of the competitors at this year's SCORE Baja 1000 and participated in telling the story of how the people in this class have the will and determination to keep on going. The first question that comes to mind is why a group of racers wants to take on the Baja 1000 in a classic VW? The attraction of Class 11 is that it is a throwback to the earliest days of Baja racing. Ask any of these racers, and they'll tell you it's for those individuals who love the traditional aspect to the sport, and the challenges that come along with it. Like Solorzano, these are racers who embrace a code of ethics so endearing in today's competitive world of "win or go home trying" attitudes that they also gain lots of support and camaraderie for their grit and determination. ON THE PODIUM By the time Class 11 teams idled up to the starting grid at the 48th Bud Light SCORE Baja 1000 in Ensenada, Mexico, the fastest classes were already racing, carving up the course and making the ruts bigger and the silt even deeper. As the crowds looked on, Class 11 vehicles were launched one by one into the dusty void of the Baja Peninsula, tempting fate. This year's race took teams from Ensenada to the coast along Santa Rosalita and back again. In all, a total of 821.38-miles. To officially finish the race required averaging 25 miles-per-hour across a brutal desert that has already been torn up and abused by the other classes in front of them. The Class 11 teams of Dennis Hollenbeck in the number 1121 Real Life Ministries car, Rene Rodriquez-Cops of the number 1101 car, Eric Solorzano in the 1111 car, Paul Nauleau in the number 1116 California Baja California Friendship Society, 067 SCORE JOURNAL HOLLENBECK CONDUCTS AN IMPROMPTU CLASS 11 DRIVER'S MEETING AT HIS HACIENDA.