Desert Racer vs. Rock Racer @ KOH

[Rock Donkey]

why would anyone that races BAJA want to "crossover"??? it doesnt make any sense.....we race the biggest, fastest desert racing vehicles there is....WHY would any top desert racer spend big money to race something slower??? yes, i think KOH is a cool event but for you guys to think we aspire to win the koh instead of BAJA you are mistaken......im sure robbys reason is that it will be much cheaper and easier to be successful at koh and its a additional outlet for his drink biz where the offroad world is no longer catering to his every whim (i.e. latest lucas debacle)...

Why build a truck with an ecotech motor for desert racing? It's all about bang for the buck. KOH is getting good exposure for the money invested compared to the top desert racing teams spending 10x the amount to race for a little more exposure. The SPEED channel even showed KOH the last couple years, and I'm sure RG and others like the exposure to 40k+ fans on the lakebed.

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[Nessy]

I dont think that most people that are racing Baja are doing it for the money, more for the challenge and respect of their peers.Very few drivers can make a living at Desert racing and I assume it is the same with rock racers.I personally dont see alot of desert racers switching over to rock racing.Some might try it for fun but I bet Robby isnt going to make it his priority.Most desert racers would probably not consider it an upgrade.My .02

[hotdogwater]

I dont think that most people that are racing Baja are doing it for the money, more for the challenge and respect of their peers.Very few drivers can make a living at Desert racing and I assume it is the same with rock racers.I personally dont see alot of desert racers switching over to rock racing.Some might try it for fun but I bet Robby isnt going to make it his priority.Most desert racers would probably not consider it an upgrade.My .02

Yea how is a ski rope handle an upgrade again?

[Dirty Harry]

why would anyone that races BAJA want to "crossover"??? it doesnt make any sense.....we race the biggest, fastest desert racing vehicles there is....WHY would any top desert racer spend big money to race something slower??? yes, i think KOH is a cool event but for you guys to think we aspire to win the koh instead of BAJA you are mistaken.....

Why not take Highway 1 from Ensenada to La Paz? I am sure that it is FASTER and easier than going through the desert. Oh wait, maybe racing isn't always about taking the easiest way...

[NCwilbur]

why would anyone that races BAJA want to "crossover"??? it doesnt make any sense.....we race the biggest, fastest desert racing vehicles there is....WHY would any top desert racer spend big money to race something slower??? yes, i think KOH is a cool event but for you guys to think we aspire to win the koh instead of BAJA you are mistaken......im sure robbys reason is that it will be much cheaper and easier to be successful at koh and its a additional outlet for his drink biz where the offroad world is no longer catering to his every whim (i.e. latest lucas debacle)...

I don't think anyone is saying they won't still race Baja, or will only race KOH. There are few guys who like anything desert/offroad related and would be willing to take it on to see how well they can do. I wouldn't compare B1k to KOH either, but in their section of the community they are the biggest race to win. Let's say for the sake of throwing out things you win the B1k, then turn around and win KOH, I would put money on more desert racers looking at trying Ultra4 out. We already know most people in this community want to race (and win too) a Baja race.

My opinion on Robby is yea it's a business move, but also maybe since he is getting older a different path to go down since it is easier to prepare.

[pwerwagn]

I think a top desert guy will be inclined to blow up the best rock racer. Not because they are junk but because they take a different stye of driving. We overalled the BRT 250 in our rock racer, Ellett overalled Cinco de Baja in a rock racer, Scherer out qualified Rick Geiser and Jesse James plus other TT's to take the poll last fall in Texas (a feat Pistol Pete witnessed). All solid axle purpose built KOH rigs...

Each vehicle is at home in its respective environment, but they are plenty advanced these days.

I keep hearing that that all sorts of rock racers overalled the cinco de baja...here are the moto tally results. Carl Beal in his TT overalled it. And I doubt he was pushing it at all.
1 57 Carl Beal TT 47:54 (8) 1:34:19 (4) 2:17:23 (4) 2:59:46 (1) 3:39:22 (1)
2 4417 Matt Messer 4400 46:37 (4) 1:32:34 (3) 2:17:21 (3) 3:04:14 (3) 3:52:15 (2)

I think both sports are way cool. Ive done rockcrawling in the past, but desert has always been my passion. I think rocks are cool to a point...but they get boring quick. HOWEVER...the stuff the ultra 4's are doing doesnt seem boring at all to me. Im a "want to be prepared for everything" person, and while Ive finally got a vehicle to race desert races in, Im way intrigued in the ultra 4 arena!! I have an absolute blast in our Class 7, thats for sure. But I think I would like to try something like KOH as well.

I guess for an actual competitor, I dont think much can match the thrill of 150mph wide open in the desert. For a spectator, watching that is an intense few seconds. However, I think the general public can relate much more to rock's. Not many people have ever been over 30mph on dirt (aside from a bladed road), but a bunch have TRIED to climb rocks with no sucess. I think that relationship amongst the general public will cause the rock racing scene to just continue to grow. It always seems as though sports that people can relate to tend to fare well at becoming a spectator sport. Anyone can try to climb rocks, and likely drive their nissan pathfinder back home for work the next day. Yet if they pretend to own a trophy truck instead, their pathfinder will probably go home on a flatbed.

I think both sports are cool, period. I think baja is higher on the rockstar scale, and I think KOH is higher on the "practicality" (if you can call it that) scale. Just my .02.

--Jeff

[Rock Donkey]

I keep hearing that that all sorts of rock racers overalled the cinco de baja...here are the moto tally results. Carl Beal in his TT overalled it. And I doubt he was pushing it at all.
1 57 Carl Beal TT 47:54 (8) 1:34:19 (4) 2:17:23 (4) 2:59:46 (1) 3:39:22 (1)
2 4417 Matt Messer 4400 46:37 (4) 1:32:34 (3) 2:17:21 (3) 3:04:14 (3) 3:52:15 (2)

Looks to me like the rock racer kept up with the Trophy Truck! Not bad considering the TT probably had more motor, suspension, and wheelbase.

I guess for an actual competitor, I dont think much can match the thrill of 150mph wide open in the desert.

That is fast bro!

[hotdogwater]

Looks to me like the rock racer kept up with the Trophy Truck! Not bad considering the TT probably had more motor, suspension, and wheelbase.

They had a different loop for the U4 trucks and the desert racers. Apples and oranges.

[Faulk9]

They had a different loop for the U4 trucks and the desert racers. Apples and oranges.

That is correct hotdogwater. The first lap their was a bottle neck at the begining of the rock section where the baja section split off which held up alot of ultra 4's and hurt their times. I had a change to ride with Jason and Team Scrap'n for a few laps and have a new respect for the Ultra 4 class....they haul the mail!!!!!!


Also who OA'd the 2011 Blackwell 250???? I belive it was an Ultra 4....their was TT's and C1's in the field.

[lxh0318]

I keep hearing that that all sorts of rock racers overalled the cinco de baja...here are the moto tally results. Carl Beal in his TT overalled it. And I doubt he was pushing it at all.
1 57 Carl Beal TT 47:54 (8) 1:34:19 (4) 2:17:23 (4) 2:59:46 (1) 3:39:22 (1)
2 4417 Matt Messer 4400 46:37 (4) 1:32:34 (3) 2:17:21 (3) 3:04:14 (3) 3:52:15 (2)


--Jeff

They are talking about last year where Clint Ellet won the Cinco de Baja, I promise that if the Ultra 4s didn't cut off for the rock course there would have been 5 Ultra 4's infront of the TT but.... I don't think that is a top tier TT either.