FEATURE
P56
RACING IN THE BAJA 1000
Colin Edwards
went straight
from the MotoGP
season finale
in Spain to
compete in Baja.
The Texan took
part in one of
the most brutal
portions of the
1000 and took
the team to the
finish line.
ever raced off-road before?
Sure, each of us – Edwards,
Myers, Joe Prussiano, Steven
Bodak, Merle Scherb, and myself have all raced as professionals in one discipline or the other.
Even though the majority of us
six Boot Camp instructors are
road racers, every one of us had
our start in the dirt. I told myself,
"Yeah, we can handle it."
Fast forward – forget about the
countless hours, days, weeks,
and time invested into sponsorship inquiries, bike building,
and preparation. "We have three
months until we're racing Baja.
We've got this," said Myers.
As we were crossing the border into Mexico, we were committed. Welcome to the danger
zone. We'd arrived, prepared as
we'd ever be. Prior to the start
of the 46th annual Baja 1000,
the team had a week to pre-run
and get familiar with the course
terrain. Our friends, Race for the
Wounded, invited us to join them
and stay at their beach house just
south of San Felipe prior to the
race.
Race for the Wounded is a
grass-roots non-profit organization with the mission of aiding wounded U.S. combat vets
through extreme off-road competition. It is to them that we
owe a great deal of gratitude
and thanks. The R.F.T.W. crew
housed us, fed us, and guided
us throughout Baja for the next
five days.
Daily, until Colin's arrival, each
team member split-up and preran their sections - each section
with their own unique set of challenges. For example, some of the
stints consisted of single-track
trail through the mountains while
others had water crossings, rock
gardens, sand whoops, more
whoops, and an infinite number
of rain ruts. Not to mention that
powdery sand mix we all encountered. I think we can all say
we would have much rather had
four-wheels when it came to riding through the silt. Hold on and
keep it pinned, otherwise it's feet
off the pegs and ass over teakettle. Baja had it all.
It came time for the team to
make our way north towards
