Dan Fresh and crew being the smart people that they are planned out my section of the race so that I would get to experience a little of everything that Baja has to offer and get to see how well the Raider race truck worked in all the conditions. The first portion of my section of the race was spent on the road. Dan iron-manned the entire race, with the exception of two of the long road sections, this was one of them. With about 60 miles of highway Dan handed the truck over to normal co-driver Sean Douglas. The road section provided me with plenty of time to get used to the truck, the placement of the gauges, and the functions of the GPS and gave Sean and I plenty of time to go over what would be expected of me once I was out in the desert with Dan. This section also gave me plenty of time to practice calling out turns, watching our speed (60mph on the highway), watching the mirrors, and just generally getting comfortable with my position as co-driver for this leg of the race (most of the time media, like me, are relegated to the third seat and just along for the ride, the Raider being a two seater meant that I was now the co-driver, not just ridding along).
We hit the pits at Coco's Corner at the end of the road section where we noticed one of our competitors in the pits also down for repairs. This is a valuable piece of information to have since the last time we saw them they were more then 30minutes ahead. Unfortunately for us, this pit stop was going to be a long one as the crew found a ball joint going bad, no worries we had spares and they set right into swapping it out. Forty minutes later with the ball joint fixed, air filter changed, trans strapped back into place (don't ask), fueled up, wiped down, and ready to go we were back underway. This time Dan Fresh had jumped back in the driver seat and I was still navigating. The next three hours were a blur.
We started down a relatively flat wash board road, passed through the check point at Coco's Corner, passed a rolled buggy being helped by a Pro-Truck, then headed into the twisty steep rocky goat trails. When we came down out of the hills we hit a swamp, got passed by a Pro-Truck, passed the Pro-Truck, got passed again by the Pro-Truck, mobbed through the stinky mud with ease thanks to the Raider working four-wheel drive, we exited the swamp only the find the truck making a weird noise. A quick visual check found nothing wrong and we were back underway. By this time the sun was coming up and we had hit whoops. Miles and miles of whoops. If they is one thing a Stock Mini doesn't like, it's whoops. The sunrise was amazing, blinding, but amazing. We arrived at the Bay of LA (Bahia De Los Angeles) around 7:30am; this was the end of the adventure for me, but just the beginning for Dan and the Raider, because by this time, 20hours into the race, we were just short of half way.
Once again the race truck got a once over, splash of gas, new co-driver, and blasted off into a cloud of dust. We did the same, making a bee line for Cabo and the finish line stopping at various pits along the way.
The DXR Racing Mitsubishi Raider finished the race and came in third place in class behind the Hummer H3 of Rod Hall and the Toyota FJ Cruiser. At several points along the way the Raider held the lead, but as always happens in racing things happen, pit strategy plays a role, and positions get swapped. The guys from DXR and Mitsubishi tell us that they will be back next year, gunning for the win.
Be sure to tune back in for Part 3: After the Race.
On one of the walls inside...
On one of the walls inside Mama Espinoza's is lined with photos and autographs from legendary racers of the past, present, and future.
The Baja Cactus in El Rosario,...
The Baja Cactus in El Rosario, I highly recommend staying there if you ever get the chance.
Mitsubishi, along with bringing...
Mitsubishi, along with bringing myself and the other two journalists, brought down a full video crew, here you see them interviewing one of the DXR crew at the El Rosario pit while waiting for the truck to arrive.
We started getting anxious...
We started getting anxious as the truck approached...
With the race truck coming...
With the race truck coming in both the pit crew and photos crew got into position.
The crew had to work fast...
The crew had to work fast to minimize down time since after all this is a race.
Here I am in the race Raider...
Here I am in the race Raider for the first time with normal co-driver Sean Douglas getting ready to set off on my wild adventure.
I got into the race truck...
I got into the race truck at about 1:30 in the morning on Wednesday morning. When looking at the photos and easy way to spot me, your favorite Online Editor, is by the white helmet. I wear a full face helmet for racing in all sorts of cars while the normal DXR crew wear open face helmets since the Raider has a windshield and power windows.
What can I say... I was having...
What can I say... I was having a blast!
Part way through my adventure...
Part way through my adventure the crew found a ball joint going bad and replaced it at the pit stop at Coco's Corner. I also ran into Feature Editor Stover here, small world huh.
Now I'm just going to pester...
Now I'm just going to pester you with photos of me in the race truck...
I rode a great section and...
I rode a great section and had a blast doing it, but man I want more!
The DXR Mitsubishi Raider...
The DXR Mitsubishi Raider crossed the finish line, third in class and only an hour behind the leader. A very respectable finish.