The Off-Road Motorsports Hall of Fame (ORMHOF) has announced the inductees for 2017, with some big names in the off-road community being celebrated. 

An independent panel made up of twenty individuals also part of the off-road community review nomination packets for each contender and then cast votes to come up with the inductees. To make the ORMHOF, at least two-thirds of the judges must have cast a vote for any one nominee.

This year’s class, which includes Dave Ekins, Cliff Flannery, Bob Gordon and Bill Savage will be honored in Las Vegas on October 30, 2017 during an event at the South Point. The ORMHOF exists to honor those individuals and organizations that have made lifelong contributions to the world of off-road motorsports and also set an example for others to follow.

Read more about the Class of 2017 below.

Dave Ekins

Dave Ekins set the first established time riding from Tijuana to La Paz, doing the deed in 39 hours and 56 minutes. That was back in March of 1962 and was the precursor to the race we know as the Baja 1000. Ekins had a long career racing motorcycles and become the first-ever motorcycle rider sponsored by American Honda. Besides being great on the bike, Ekins had a 10-year career as a motorcycle magazine editor and went on to launch a motorcycle parts aftermarket company.

Cliff Flannery

Cliff Flannery is the founder and current President of the Crandon International Off-Road Raceway, 400-acres of off-road heaven located in Crandon, Wisconsin. Some of the largest televised short course events in the world take place at Crandon, which was born back in 1968 when a group decided to hold an off-road race around the small Wisconsin town. Cliff Flannery led the team towards purchasing the land from the town in the mid-70’s, and set into building the renowned track.

Besides his development of Crandon, Flannery is also a philanthropist, donating nearly $70,000 each year to support local youth and charities. Over its life span, the Crandon Raceway has had a massive economic impact on the community of just 1,300 residents, donating more than $2 million. A $30,000 college scholarship is also offered for local students.

Bob Gordon A.K.A. Baja Bob

Bob Gordon won so many races down in Mexico that the name Baja Bob quickly stuck, racing to those victories as part of the BFGoodrich team in the beginning and later with Chenowth. In 1987 Bob won the Baja 1000 with Malcolm Smith, while in 1990 he also won, this time teaming up with his daughters. Bob retired and worked to further his son’s (racer Robby Gordon) racing career, though in 2010 he came out of retirement and won the NORRA Mexican 1000, going on to win it in 2011 and 2015.

Sadly, Baja Bob passed away in 2016 and will be inducted as a legacy member.

“The Gordon Family would like to thank everyone for making this possible for our father, ‘Baja Bob’ Gordon to be inducted into the Off-Road Hall of Fame,” reads a statement from the Gordon family. “He would be humbled and honored to be recognized alongside racing legends and friends; Scoop Vessels, Malcolm Smith, Parnelli Jones, Mickey Thompson, Walker Evans and Ivan Stewart. Desert racing and Baja have become an integral part of our lives. Baja will never be the same without him, but his legacy and spirit will race on. We know he will be with us at every race mile marker along the way.”

Bill Savage

Finally, we have off-road innovator Bill Savage. Bill was a spectator at the Baja 1000 in 1974 and was hooked, entering the race for the first time in 1979 and winning his class. Even before he was racing, Bill had started TMAG welding, and went on to become the producer of off-road shocks, steering systems and was one of the very first to build an all tube space frame truck for off-road racing.

Bill also opened Wide Open Baja, a tour company that offers anyone the chance to experience off-roading in Mexico. Eventually, TMAG would become SPD Products, which built off-road trucks that won many races including the Baja 500 and 1000.

NASA then came calling to enlist Bill for help with building a Lunar Rover and then eventually a Mars Rover.

One of the most important aspects of Bill’s careers is his focus on driver safety. Bill still acts as the Technical Director for the Lucas Oil Off-Road Racing Series and has written the rule book for every major off-road racing association for the last 37 years.