VOLUME ISSUE JANUARY , P93
spread that this wasn't just a strong
ride—it was history. When Jack
Johnson crossed the finish line,
he didn't just win the motorcycle
division. He took the overall win—
beating motorcycles, cars, trucks,
buggies—everyone.
A solo rider.
In Baja.
constant threats. Teams existed
for a reason.
Jack had his reasons too. He
remembered the chaos of the pre
-
vious year, scrambling to replace
an injured partner. He knew that
without a world-class teammate
he'd be at a disadvantage anyway.
And deep inside, something else
burned—a belief that victory didn't
need to be shared. That Baja
could be conquered alone.
Race morning dawned cool
under a marine layer in Ensenada.
With an early starting position,
only the factory Yamaha team
of Ogilvie and Miller left ahead
of Jack. Despite clipping a fence
near El Rodeo and taking a hard
soil sample, Jack was charging.
Coming out of Mike's Sky Rancho,
he took the overall lead when the
Yamaha ran out of fuel.
Brent and I started farther
back and fought dust most of the
morning, not breaking free until
well after the Mike's loop—nearly
180 miles in. By then Jack had
built nearly a 13-minute lead on
corrected time. We weren't wor-
ried. Nobody could maintain that
pace alone in that heat.
At least, that's what we
believed.
Down in the desert, Jack
didn't fade. Mile after mile, he
kept hammering. Even after stop-
ping to replace a damaged front
wheel at El Chinero, he still held
more than a 10-minute advan-
tage. When he climbed back into
the cooler air near Valle de Trini-
dad, we expected him to crack.
There were still more than 100
miles to go.
He never did.
By the time Jack hit the final
stretch into Ensenada, word had
Johnson moments
after winning the
Baja 500 in 1979.
One of those who
witnessed Johnson's
historic ride that day
was Colombian drug
lord Pablo Escobar
(standing behind
Johnson).
