Raider Project BAJA 1000

Race Coverage (Thursday/Friday/Saturday AM)

So after all the preparations, Team Mitsubishi/DXR Racing is ready to put the race-prepped Mitsubishi Raider to the test that is the Baja 1000. Team Mitsubishi/DXR Racing will be competing against factory efforts from Toyota (FJ Crusier with off-road/rally legend Rod Millen as lead driver), Hummer (H3 with Baja legend Rod Hall as lead driver) and Honda (Ridgeline).

While other teams will rotate multiple drivers during the competition, Team Mitsubishi/DXR Racing´s Dan Fresh will drive nearly the entire race solo. His only break will be a 25 minute section where the race goes onto asphalt for a speed controlled section (60 KM per hour maximum).

Here´s the action that unfolded during more than 34 hours of continous Baja 1000 competition:

THE START - ENSENADA (Race mile 0)

S.C.O.R.E CEO, Sal Fish, wishing Team Mitsubishi/DXR Racing good luck and a safe race before taking the start of the 2006 Baja 1000

Raider leaving the stage and readies to take the start

The Team Mitsubishi/DXR Racing Raider takes the flag and will have a 2 minute time advantage over the Factory Toyota FJ that lead the Stock Mini class into the competition. This time advantage would later play a significant role that nobody imagined as the Raider set out on course

Team Mitsubishi/DXR Racing Raider is now on course and on the race clock

Team Mitsubishi/DXR Racing Raider leaves the start and heads out into
the sand wash towards Checkpoint 1 in San Felipe, 180 race miles away

PIT 5 - Outside Bahia de Los Angeles (race mile 307)
The first part of the Baja 1000 gets too remote for our camer crew to cover and keep up so we're forced to skip ahead to meet the Team Mitsubishi/DXR Racing Raider at the later stages of the race.

At this stage of the race, The Team Mitsubishi/DXR Racing is on race strategy and has a comfortable third overall in the class position behind Rod Millen's factory Toyota FJ and Rod Hall's factory Hummer H3.

It's now close to midnight on Thursday as he crew awaits the Raider for servicing.

Team Mitsubishi/DXR Racing crew staying warm while waiting for the Raider to come in.

A beautiful but cold Baja desert night...temps were in the high 30's Celsius

Routine gas and suspension check by the Team Mitsubishi/DXR Racing crew

Team Mitsubishi/DXR Racing driver Dan Fresh gets a quick bite and talks to
the crew about the Raider's front end. Everything looks great at this stage

Back on course and the Raider goes back into the night towards San Ignacio

PIT 6 - Outside San Ignacio (race mile 555)
The Team Mitsubishi/DXR Racing Raider stayed out of trouble in the night and is maintaing a second overall in class position with more than half of the race run. Driver Dan Fresh let his co-driver, Sean Douglass, take the wheel for a short asphalt stretch so he could get about 15 minutes of sleep on a portion of the course that is all asphalt.

Overall, the team is on race strategy and the Raider is performing beyond expectations in it's first Baja 1000 competition.

After driving through the night, our crew caught back up to the Team Mitsubishi/DXR Racing Raider outside the mission town of San Ignacio, a spot normally known for it's easy access to Laguna San Ignacio for some of Baja's best whale watching.

Here's more action:

Early Friday AM sun on the mountains

The Team Monster Energy Drink Trophy Truck roaring by our pit.
These 800 horsepower beasts shake the ground as they go by!!!

Team Mitsubishi/DXR Racing Raider heading into our pit for a quick gas and service check

After more than 19 hours into the race, Team Mitsubishi/DXR Racing driver Dan Fresh shares a laugh with the crew...so far, the truck is nearly flawless with only one puncture and no mechanical issues

Gassed up and heading out back on course

Our crew took our Mitsubishi Monteros off-road to catch one of the many water crossings along this stretch of the course. Why should the Raider have all the fun?

Race Coverage - Day 2 (Thursday/Friday/Saturday AM) Part 2

Between Loreto (Pit 7) and Ciudad Insurgentes (Pit 8), the Team Mitsuhishi/DXR Racing Raider assumes the lead from the factory Toyota FJ which went down with a faulty Engine Control Unit (ECU) causing unexpected repairs. So far, the Mitsubishi Raider has only experienced one puncture and a minor issue with a suspension limiting strap that keeps breaking.

After Raider's first run in the Baja 1000 so far has been flawless which is a testament to the trucks design, the team's race strategy and truck preparation.

Here's the action with a little less than 200 miles to the finish line in La Paz and the Toyota FJ looking to whittle down the Team Mitsubishi/DXR Racing Raider's lead.

PIT 8 - Outside Ciudad Insurgentes (race mile 855)

Team Mitsubishi/DXR Racing Raider preps for service stop. Routine service and a precautionary ball joint change scheduled but things got complicated here...

Co-driver #2, Dale Godges, indicates that the shock limiting strap has broken...

and works to figure out how to reuse the torn limiting strap on the truck. This limit strap keeps the suspension from overextending as it unloads while getting air born. Fortunately, the Raider's front suspension/steering system feel great to Dan and the team will focus on fixing the strap to keep their lead intact for the last 200 miles of the race.

Friday's sun begins to set as the Baja 1000 heads back into night...

The fine Baja silt claims the A/C compressor which seizes up. Team tries to blow as much of it out of the engine compartment since the throttle could stick if it works it's way into the throttle cable.

THE FINISH - La Paz (race mile 1047)
As the Millen Toyota FJ pulled into the finish, things got tense since the Raider was now into the starting time advantage of 2 minutes over the FJ. The clock didn't have to click long however since the Team Mitsubishi/DXR Raider came in about twenty seconds later for an insanely close finish after more than 34 hours of competition.

The race was ultimately decided in the last 20 miles of the Baja 1000.

Team Mitsubishi/DXR Racing takes the flag in La Paz around 12:30 AM Saturday morning...it's been a battle to the very last mile

In a great act of sportsmanship, Toyota FJ co-driver Ryan Millen congratulates Dan Fresh on an incredible duel to the finish between the factory Mitsubishi Raider and the factory Toyota FJ

Dan Fresh decides to test out the Raider's hood strength in celebrating an unofficial Stock Mini class win

The finish stretch duel was so intense over the last 20 miles that the Toyota FJ landed on the Raider in a dropout section trying to pass for the lead that crushed the right corner of the bed, bent the rear bumper as the truck bottomed out and nicked up the rear spare tire guard.

Dan and Sean giving post-race comments to the video crew

Dan works to shake off the fatigue of 34 hours of the Baja 1000...

then Dan takes a moment for the fans

Team Mitsubishi/DXR Racing poses for one last picture before loading up, getting a few hours of well-deserved rest and waiting for the official results to confirm the Mitsubishi Raider and the team as the 2006 Baja 1000 Stock Mini class champion.

CONTINUED on next post

Race Coverage - Day 2 (Saturday Afternoon) Part 3

IT'S OFFICIAL - Team Mitsubishi/DXR Racing Raider delivers Baja 1000 Pro Stock Mini Class win!!

Team Mitsubishi/DXR Racing's first Baja 1000 was a very special win that added another chapter to the brand's international motorsport heritage, one that includes eleven Dakar Rally victories, four consecutive World Rally Championships and SCCA ProRally Championships.

For the race prepped Mitsubishi Raider to win in it's first competition over factory entries from Toyota, Hummer and Honda was very special. And to win it in an exciting shoot out by only 33 seconds over the factory Toyota FJ made it that much more special.

So after a grueling, hard fought Stock Mini class win, it was time for the team to pick up their well deserved trophy. Co-driver, Sean Douglass, represented Team Mitsubishi/DXR Racing since driver, Dan Fresh, was too exhausted to attend after driving solo for more than 34 hours during the race.

Crowds began gathering for the SCORE Baja 1000 awards presentation around 1:30 PM, more than two hours before the start.

Pre-ceremony entertainment was colorful and beautiful. You get a strong sense of what the race means to the citizens of Baja from their enthusiasm.

An amazing display of traditional Mexican folk dancing

A trumpeter waits to signal the awards ceremony start

S.C.O.R.E's CEO, Sal Fish, congratulates Team Mitsubishi/DXR Racing's co-driver,
Sean Douglass, on their hard earned win

Sean made sure to thank the people of Baja Mexico for allowing this

special event to be ran in their country and the supporting sponsors of

Team Mitsubishi/DXR Racing

Team Mitsubishi/DXR Racing looking sharp on the podium

Showing the hardware off

After four amazing days in Mexico, the 2006 S.C.O.R.E Baja 1000 ended in dramatic and rewarding fashion for Team Mitsubishi/DXR Racing. And the Mitsubishi Raider more than proved it's tough truck credentials in dramatic fashion over a field of very experienced competitors. Team Mitsubishi/DXR Racing will wind things down Saturday evening over a nice, "quiet" victory dinner in Las Barilles.

After returning to the U.S. next week, Team Mitsubishi/DXR Racing will hand over the race-prepped Mitsubishi Raider for display at the Los Angeles International Auto Show. We invite you to come by and see the Baja 1000 winning Raider up close along with the full line of other 2007 Mitsubishi vehicles, including the all-new 2007 Mitsubishi Outlander.

So while this year's S.C.O.R.E. Baja 1000 comes to a close, we hope you'll joins us again next year as we follow Team Mitsubishi/DXR Racing's Raider in their next Baja adventure.

Adios!!

The Colors of Baja Mexico

The Baja 1000 crosses the entire peninsula during the race. Along the way, the crew was fortunate enough to experience the amazing beauty and color of Baja Mexico.

Here are some of the sights and places the crew was fortunate enough to experience during our time here in Baja Mexico.

ENSENADA

Huge Mexican flag that flies over Ensenada from the Plaza Ventana del Mar

You'll find many smiles in Ensenada and throughout Baja Mexico...

Some of the many colorful artisan crafts you'll encounter

in Ensenada; Silver jewelery from Tasco is very popular

Spanish colonial architecture at it's finest

These Dia de Los Muertos figurines are nearly as famous...

as this (Tequila selection at Hussong's Cantina desde 1892); Hussong's was a famous "speakeasy" for Hollywood to sneak away to during Prohibition.

The shock and awe of seeing the power of an 800 horsepower Class 1

Unlimited Trophy Truck for the first time

Fresh Honey for sale at a roadside stand

Ensenada locals...

Views from Mercado Central

SCENES FROM THE ROAD

Most shots here were taken from a Mitsubishi Montero while following the race-prepped Team Mitsubishi/DXR Racing Baja Raider to various pit stops along the race course: