SCORE Journal - The Official Publication of SCORE Off-Road Racing
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Out In Front Rob MacCachren Starts And Finishes The 50th BFGoodrich Tires SCORE Baja 500 In First Place By Dan Sanchez Photography By Get Some Photo By now, SCORE fans are used to seeing Rob MacCachren and the Rockstar Energy team at the podium drenched in champagne. At this year’s 50th BFGoodrich Tires SCORE Baja 500, it was no different, as Rob MacCachren made it look easy to navigate the 512.14 miles to win the race. MacCachren’s dominance in the desert comes from years of experience and superior team preparation. At this year’s race, he had 50 to 60 people on the course and knows how to approach a race like the SCORE Baja 500 strategically. In previous interviews, MacCachren says he likes to start in fourth or fifth place, but because he won the SCORE San Felipe 250 back in April, he was the first SCORE Trophy Truck off the line in Ensenada. “It’s kind of bittersweet to start off first,” said MacCachren. “If I had my choice I wouldn’t start first. You have the open road and there’s still a bunch of spectators who don’t know the race has started and that you’re coming down the course at full speed.” Even for an experienced veteran of the sport like MacCachren, It’s an intimidating and worrisome state of mind to be first on the course, come around a corner, and see spectators or other vehicles in the way. Fortunately, SCORE Trophy Truck racers pool together to rent a helicopter that follows the leaders down the course, alerting everyone that the SCORE Trophy Trucks are a few seconds away. “The Trophy Truck teams and owners get together and pool their money to rent the helicopter, but it usually leaves right away to render aid,” said MacCachren. “Over the years, it’s definitely saved some lives by alerting spectators that someone is coming. For me, it gave me a little piece of mind knowing the helicopter was ahead of me. This time it worked out well as it stayed with me longer and we got out into the desert.” With the helicopter giving MacCachren a bit more confidence heading out of Ensenada, he was able to concentrate and run the race according to the team’s plan. “We picked up the pace around the San Felipe loop,” said MacCachren. “By that time, Cameron Steel, Ryan Arcerio, and Luke McMillin were still hanging on behind me.” Holding off the competition was tough but eventually, MacCachren pulled away and gained a substantial lead. “We lost Cameron in the beach area,” said MacCachren. “By that time we weren’t in the lead, based on time, so we decided to go for it and ran real hard at the beach area. By San Tomas, the crew told me we had a 3.5-minute lead but we ended up slicing a tire and lost about a minute changing it.” “It was all just about racing my own race. We got 400 miles into it and went for the win. The strategy worked.” – Rob MacCachren Aside from the tire change, MacCachren had a smooth race and managed to maintain his lead all the way to the finish line, winning the race overall. “It was all just about racing my own race,” said MacCachren. “We got 400 miles into it and went for the win. The strategy worked. Although I would not have preferred to start in front, it all worked out well.” While it may have looked like an easy drive for the Rockstar Energy Team, MacCachren knew there would be difficult portions of the course that would slow everyone down. “It was a tough course that had all the elements of Baja,” said MacCachren. “There were some very tight technical areas where we were traveling only 10-12 miles per hour. These were some new roads and trails that were cut, but after 11 hours and 21 minutes, it was a long day!” After winning the overall at the 50th BFGoodrich Tires SCORE Baja 500, MacCachren is well ahead in points for a possible championship. “We typically don’t run all SCORE races during the season, but this win had me thinking about a championship,” said MacCachren. “We haven’t been able to talk to our sponsors about the next race, but right now, there’s a schedule conflict. If things change, however, we’ll definitely want to push for the title. Either way, we’ll be at the SCORE Baja 1000 in November and see how that goes.” While MacCachren is enjoying his historical win, fans are hoping to see him at the next SCORE race and again at the SCORE Baja 1000. If he manages to at the very least win the SCORE Baja 1000 in November, he could very well achieve a 2018 Championship, adding to the man’s legendary status as one of the sport’s top racers in history. SJ Quick Cash Rob MacCachren Wins BFGoodrich Tire’s $25K Payout BFGoodrich Tires offered to celebrate the overall winner of the 50th BFGoodrich Tires SCORE Baja 500, Rob MacCachren, with a special prize of $25,000 which was presented to the Rockstar Energy Team at the finish line. BFGoodrich Tires will also offer another special contingency bonus prize of $25,000 for the winner of the 51st SCORE Baja 1000 in November 2018.