Team Desert Assault Takes the Podium in the 39th
Annual Tecate Score Baja 1000
LA PAZ, MEXICO – On November 16th,
2006, three Stock Full© race trucks flying the KORE
logo left the starting line to take on the notorious
SCORE Baja 1000. KORE’s 2006 Team DESERT ASSAULT®
consisted of #865, RPM Off-Road, from
Bristol, Tennessee, #866,Worthington Racing
from Los Angeles, and #867, Team Canada Racing,
from Alberta. Each team drove
similarly-equipped Cummins diesel-powered Dodge Ram
2500 4x4 pickups.
“We’ve been doing this for so long
now, we’ve got the whole thing down to a science.
Prerunning and racing are standard Baja – you
prepare the best you can but anything can happen.
But by using proven,
off-the-shelf parts we eliminate
a lot of variables and increase our chances
of success,” said Kent Kroeker, President and CEO of
Kroeker Off Road Engineering [KORE]. “We use Toyo
tires, Weld Wheels, Fox Racing Shocks, Baja Designs
Lighting Systems, FASS fuel pumps and AEM filter
systems. This not only makes the build easier, but
facilitates logistical support, since each truck
uses common parts.”
1047.8 miles of whoops, silt beds,
exposed rocks and standing water from recent
hurricanes made this year’s Baja 1000 particularly
challenging, claiming 146 of the 283 Four Wheel
class starters – a 51% attrition rate. Team DESERT
ASSAULT®
didn’t have it easy.
“We had passed everyone within the
first 50 miles, but then we broke a sector shaft,”
said Loren Worthington, owner of #866. “We were
right in the middle of the race course which made
changing out the steering box dangerous, awkward and
time-consuming. We barely made check point two
without timing out.”
Meanwhile the rookie drivers Kevin
Ostlund and Richard Thomas made no errors and drove
#867 consistently, maintaining a solid second place
behind Team Hummer’s Josh Hall. The
team members of KORE pit 4 in San Ignacio
changed out a broken half shaft in record time then
John Zambie and Mike Sedway took over driving
duties. But luck was not on their side. By Race
Mile 650 it was all over for the Canadians.
“When the turbo came apart it sounded
like a 35,000 RPM Calliope thrown down a sewer
pipe. I’ve never heard anything like it,” said
former Marine Harrier pilot John Zambie.
RPM Off Road’s
#865 was plagued with mysterious electrical
problems, causing a DNF early in the game.
“It was very disappointing to come
all the way across the country only to DNF. It
wasn’t what we were expecting after a near flawless
prerun,” said RPM’s Justin Matney. “But racing the
Baja 1000 was one of the greatest things I’ve ever
done. Baja is in our blood now, so we’ll be back
next year for sure - with two race trucks and more
people. ”
Kent Kroeker and Robin Stover took
the bruised but not beaten #866 at Race Mile 340,
prior to Bay of LA. Barely making check closures
and inching up the speed average was the name of the
game for the next 22 hours.
“The frame cracked twice and twice we
welded it up. This slowed us a bit, but pulling
multiple stuck vehicles out of the mud, water and
silt took a lot of time. I couldn’t believe the
silt beds south of Loreto. They were so deep that
twice they swallowed the entire passenger side of
the truck. I couldn’t see anything. That was
definitely the gnarliest wheeling I’ve ever done,”
said Stover.
2AM, Ciudad Insurgentes, Landon
Worthington took over in the left seat while Kroeker
co-drove.
“It was like a graveyard out there.
Cars were everywhere stuck in the silt. Drivers
stood near by with long faces and tow-straps in
hand. We just couldn’t help everyone. There were
so many. So close to the finish too. It was
heartbreaking,” said Landon.
Conservative, precise driving by
Landon Worthington brought #866 down the Steps to
the finish line in the city of La Paz. As the sun
rose over the Sea of Cortez forty hours and
seventeen minutes after the start in Ensenada the
race was over. KORE/Worthington Racing had made it
to the podium for third place.
It was Landon’s first desert race
ever.
“This was a great Baja 1000,” Kent
Kroeker said later, “KORE sponsored three unproven
race trucks that were piloted by people totally new
to the sport. The Canadians and the team from
Tennessee had never even seen a desert before. And
they chose to race the Mount Everest of motorsports
in a professional class! Their dedication and
commitment to the mission was unbelievable. Our
chase and pit crews performed admirably and everyone
on the KORE team returned safely to the U.S. The
Fox shocks worked great, we had zero flats from the
Toyo M/T tires, and superior performance from the
Weld Commando P.R.O. beadlock wheels. The new LED
light technology from Baja Designs was absolutely
amazing – especially in heavy dust. We had some bad
luck, but overall it would be hard to ask more from
an adventure like this.”
KORE is currently building a new race
truck that uses never-before-seen navigation and
communication technology sourced from U.S.
military. The first race for this new vehicle
should be the 2007 SCORE Baja 500 in June.
Currently the number of race trucks on KORE’s 2007
DESERT ASSAULT®
team is six.
