The word “harsh” alone might suffice—but it would be too easy. The Baja 1000, held on Mexico’s Baja California Peninsula, is such that even drivers who have experienced multiple off‑road races utter a sigh: “Are we really going to drive here?” It is only because there is no off‑road region on Earth tougher than Baja California that an American motorsports organisation holds a race here.

The Baja California Peninsula — one of the world’s great tourist destinations

Spanning Mexico’s north‑western region, the Baja California Peninsula is one of the world’s foremost tourist spots, surrounded by exquisite seas and deserts. Of Mexico’s three natural World Heritage Sites, two are in this peninsula. Sandwiched between the Gulf of California and the Pacific Ocean, the peninsula stretches about 1,250 km north–south—roughly comparable in length to Japan’s Honshu. Inland lies the Sierra de la Giganta (Sierra de Fan Badiio in your text) mountain range rising to over 3,000 metres. The terrain, from Tijuana at latitude ~32° N to Cabo San Lucas at ~23° N, corresponds roughly to the latitudes of northern Kyushu through the Okinawa and Southwest islands in Japan.

Along the coast especially, the climate resembles Southern California: even in winter average temperatures hover between 10 °C and 15 °C; summers remain comparatively comfortable. For this reason, numerous resort zones line the coast, and cruise ships call at ports where travellers can enjoy elegant sea‑voyages. Transparent seas allow snorkelling and diving, and in winter one can observe migrating grey whales. In the north’s Valle de Guadalupe one can savour local wine and Mexican cuisine; at Cabo San Lucas one can join a boat tour around scenic rock formations. This is truly a place that tourists around the world consider “once in a lifetime” to visit. And onto this stunning peninsula every year in November comes the epic off‑road race: the Baja 1000.

Honda’s promotion strategy as the starting point

The Baja 1000 is known as a colossal off‑road race held on the Baja California Peninsula. Though the peninsula is replete with mild climate and culinary richness, the race itself is an extremely brutal battle—but strangely enough, competitors covered in mud and dust come from all over the world to race towards the goal 1,000 miles ahead.

The origin of this race lies in a promotional strategy by Japanese automobile manufacturer Honda. In post‑war Japan, motorcycle manufacturers fiercely competed to catch up with Western companies on the technical front. Honda was quick to expand into the U.S., establishing its wholly‑owned sales subsidiary American Honda Motor in 1959 and entering the U.S. market, where Harley‑Davidson held an overwhelming share. At that time in the U.S., even motorcycles with large displacement were popular, but Honda countered this with the modest 50 cc Super Cub—and achieved remarkable success. The image of “big and heavy” motorcycles in America was overturned, and by 1962 Honda had captured the number one spot in the U.S. motorcycle market. Behind this success was a carefully‑planned promotional strategy: placing ads in newspapers and magazines, offering models in “hunter specification,” “fishing specification,” and tailored to various lifestyles.

After the Super Cub’s success, Honda placed greater emphasis on promotional strategy. Before launching its first off‑road model, the CL72 Scrambler, it conceived a long‑distance challenge under harsh natural conditions in order to showcase the vehicle’s high reliability. That was the inspiring journey across the Baja California Peninsula from Tijuana to La Paz—950 miles (1,530 km) of unpaved roads. The extreme dryness and untouched nature made the task extremely difficult for a small‑displacement motorcycle; Honda even used aeroplanes to support refuelling, and succeeded in covering the distance in 39 hours 56 minutes. This endeavour stimulated not only the motorcycle industry but the automobile industry as well—and it fed into the later staging of the Baja 1000.

Air‑cooled flat‑4 buggy sets record!

In April 1967, inspired by Honda’s effort, Californian engineer Bruce Meyers decided to beat the time of the two wheelers, and with the Meyers Manx buggy based on the Volkswagen Type 1 “Beetle” he followed the same route. Nicknamed “Old Red”, this vehicle completed the route in 34 hrs 45 min—over five hours faster than Honda’s earlier bikes. The headline “Buggy beats bike!” ran in the media, and the name Meyers Manx was etched into history.

Thus the competitive question of “which is faster—two wheels or four?” on the Baja California Peninsula was born, and challengers began multiplying. On October 31, 1967, the NORRA (National Off‑Road Racing Association) in the U.S. organised the first official race under the name “Mexican 1000”. With 68 vehicles divided into four classes, covering 849 miles (1,366 km), the winners completed in 27 hrs 38 min. This marked the start of the legend.

Parnelli Jones & the Ford Bronco

Parnelli Jones is one of America’s legendary drivers. He won the 1963 Indianapolis 500 driving a front‑engine Offenhauser roadster—this victory being the last time a front‑engine car won the Indy 500. His bold driving style earned many fans, and after retiring he contributed to motorsport as a team owner. He also achieved outstanding results in off‑road racing, including two wins in the Baja 1000 in 1971 and 1972. He drove the “Big Oly” (a Ford Bronco designed by Dick Russell and built by Bill Stroppe) in those wins.

His first experience of the Baja Peninsula race was in 1967. In that first race he damaged the Bronco’s front end and proposed the construction of a dedicated racing vehicle to cope with the brutal environment; in 1970 the “Big Oly” was born: a tube‑frame with fibreglass body, built for competition. The vehicle featured a 351 ci Windsor V8, C4 (later C6) transmission, twin I‑beam front suspension and a 4‑link rear—these advanced features made it a benchmark for future Trophy trucks.

The birth of the Baja 1000 & Mickey Thompson

The NORRA‑organised Mexican 1000 was held through 1973, but the 1973 oil‑shock prompted a venue change and the event moved to Arizona, representing a turning point. The Mexican government wished to continue the event in Baja, and so the U.S.–based SCORE International (Southern California Off Road Enthusiasts) took over the event. In 1975 the race was relaunched under the name Baja 1000, with the legendary driver‑promoter Mickey Thompson among its founders.

Trophy trucks & the specialised class structure

Though the Baja 1000 started with fewer than 100 entries, by 2025 it features around 250 vehicles across both two‑ and four‑wheel divisions, making it one of the world’s most recognised off‑road races. In the four‑wheel division, the top category is the “Trophy Truck”, and in the two‑wheel division the “Pro Moto Unlimited” is the highlight. The finely divided class structure enables a variety of vehicles to compete together.

Because speed varies greatly among classes, the race uses staggered starts: the faster classes start first. In particular, two‑wheelers and four‑wheelers are separated—typically two‑wheelers start at midnight, and four‑wheelers at 9 a.m. the next day. Thus top professionals and amateurs from around the world converge on this brutal desert stage, testing machine and human alike.

A course so brutal that even four tyres failed at once!

One of the reasons why the Baja 1000 is called “the world’s most brutal off‑road race” is the route itself, which varies yearly and covers the diverse terrain of the Baja Peninsula. Routes have reached up to approx. 2,000 miles (~3,200 km). The layout falls into two major formats: a “single loop” (starting and finishing in Ensenada) and a “point‑to‑point” or “peninsula crossing” format (from one end of the peninsula to the other). The latter typically is longer and crosses desert, mountains, forest and coastline.

Among the many hazards are the “Three Sisters” south of Puerto Santiago (?) (likely Puerto Sát‑…). At one notorious spot near San Felipe, Walker Evans once suffered four tyre punctures simultaneously. Many racers were forced to retire due to such extreme sections.

Ultimately: two wheels or four wheels — which is faster?

Thanks to its history, the Baja 1000 welcomes both motorcycles and cars/trucks. Though distinguished by class, historically two‑wheel machines recorded 38 fastest times, while four‑wheels recorded 19. Thus looking back, two‑wheelers were overwhelmingly faster. Four‑wheels relied on VW Type 1‑based buggies until 1994, when the Trophy Truck class emerged with tube‑frame V8 machines, and records were dramatically updated. In recent years four‑wheels have won fastest times for 7 consecutive years. That is why every year the Baja 1000 continues—to answer once and for all whether two wheels or four wheels are faster.

TEXT｜Kazutoshi AKimoto 秋元一利
PUBLISHED｜2025
SOURCE｜Cal Vol.62
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