California (12/4/2008)- The
41st running of the SCORE Baja 1000 has concluded.
347 teams startedthe race making up"an armada
of Trucks, Buggies, Motorcycles and ATV's. Afteralmost
17 hours of non-stop action, Christy took their
101A race machine to a decisivevictory in the
hotly contested PRO ATV Class 24. The 5 rider
team was propelled tofirst place aboard a purpose-built
Duncan Racing / Honda TRX-450R.
So many desert races are lonely marathons
against the clock, that was not the case at
this event. Within the first 100 miles it was
clear that Christy's only competition
would be the 103A bike of Tom Wright II, Andy
"YMA" Lagzdins and Jim Stack. They
brought their "A-Game" from the"east
coast of America to the northern chunk of
Baja,California. "
The two teams held the top positions well
into the night. Disaster almost aterialized
in the form of a loose electrical connector
on the Christy bike. As fate would have it,
lead mechanic Leonard Duncan was on scene and
together with the help of riders Dave Scott
and Jeremy Sanchez they diagnosed and repaired
the issue. The unexpected downtime had dropped
the Christy effort to 3rd place. The riders
job
was clear: Put the team back in first place.
Two things stood in the way of a victory, the
seemingly endless San Felipe "whoops"
and the waning daylight. Steve Abrego made quick
work recapturing the penultimate position from
sneaky 102A and Dave Scott rocketed back to
the top spot through!the aforementioned "whoops".
Enough of a gap had been created by race mile
400 that the chase team, fueled by Rockstar
Energy Drink, took a moment to install new tires.
The tire change got rid of a nasty vibration
that had plagued the riders since Abrego's rocky
section earlier in the day. Jeremy Sanchez took
over and used the fresh rubber and his night
riding expertise to further the lead to 17 minutes.
Speed-Demon Jason Wade hopped on the bike at
Valle De Trinidad and gave the bike's 5th gear
a real work out. Jason had focused!his prerunning
in this section at night and was very much at
home passing bikes at a breakneck pace. His
confidence was briefly rattled when he tagged
a significant Booby Trap at race mile 524.
 |
| 101a
Craig Christy's Team Wins the BAJA 1000
Class 24 Championship |
With 103A still hot on his heels, Jason handed
the bike off to Team Principal, Craig Christy
for the final 70 miles. Moments after leaving
Santo Tomas, Craig was alerted via radio that
the lead trophy truck was 15 minutes behind
and closing fast. Craig was now riding to not
only keep 1st place but also to stay ahead of
the truck and it's pace slowing dust. "With
at least three 800 horsepower / 4 ton trophy
tucks breathing down his neck, Craig kept the
hammer down! The first two trucks passed 101A
on a paved section, and the 3rd truck was not
able to reel the quad in through the final more
technical"section before the finish line.
16 hours and 57 minutes after the start, Christy
had crossed the checkered flag in 1st place!
Craig's final push had broken 103A's resolve
and an hour would pass before they reached the
podium in 2nd place. "
Special Thanks to the Following Sponsors:
Duncan Racing International Fat Boy 4, Instinct
Charter Boats, Cycle Gear
Rockstar Energy Drink, PWR Performance Products
