Back to the Future

Casey Folks is on a mission - to make BITD "The" premier off-road motorsport promotion. He's doesn't use gimmicks, or the latest fads to come down the pike, he uses the tried and true ways of old, that once made desert racing great. And ya' know what?, they work every bit as well today as they did in the glory days of the 80's. Big Casinos, big sponsors, glitz, glamour, and brutally rugged desert racing action. Welcome to Las Vegas.

The longest off-road race in the USA kicked off on Oct. 8th in Las Vegas NV, as the Best In The Desert (BITD) Racing Association presented the 1998 running of the "Vegas to Reno" classic. With over 90 trucks and buggies, 200+ bikes, and a broad variety of contingency vendors, the racers, crews, and fans alike knew they were in for a weekend of intense competition, good times, and great friends.

On Thursday, one of the landmarks of Las Vegas, the Sahara Hotel & Casino played host to Contingency Row and the mandatory pre-race tech inspection. With so many vehicles in need of attention, the BITD Tech crew, along with the guys from Foutz Motorsports, put in a full day, ensuring fair and safe competition.

Back on Contingency, vendors showed, demonstrated, and sold their wares. Goodyear, VP, F&L, Protruck Racing Org., BF Goodrich, Honda, Kawasaki, King, Sign Tech, Sign Pros....it was a virtual FAO Shwartz for the off-road enthusiast. Need a shock? Tire? Hell, want to buy a whole Truck?

As Contingency wound down, the action shifted indoors, where over 500 people, racers, their crews, and the media, converged inside the Sahara Casino for the mandatory drivers meeting. It was a standing room only crowd that lined the conference room walls to hear the rules of the "off" road, and with over 500 grueling miles ahead, the assembled masses paid careful heed to Casey's instructions. When the meeting ended, racers and crews fanned out through the casino. Some to felt tables and one arm bandits, some to their hotel rooms for the last sleep they were likely to get for some time.

The Delicate Sound of Thunder

Friday morning dark and early, the 2 wheeled warriors left the line at the Terrible Town Casino in Pahrump NV, 60 miles away from the not quite sleepy cityof Vegas. The sheer number of bikes on hand took several hours to get underway, and as the sun rose and the dust cleared, the time drew near for the boys in the big toys to take center stage.

When the flag went down, the silence of the cool October air was shattered by the sound of raw horsepower unleashed. Enduro Racing and the Duralast Trophy Truck were Reno bound, with Curt LeDuc & Ed Herbst hot on their heels. Shortly behind the thunderous trio came 2 more crowd favorites, Troy Herbst & "Truggy", and The MacPherson Class 7 truck, piloted by Jerry McDonald. Although the red white and blue Chevy S-10 looked awful familiar, this was an all new truck, featuring a coilover rear suspension, and a screaming 4.5L V6.

Several Protrucks pulled to the line, including Steve Barlow, Scott Steinberger, and 97 SCORE champ, Chuck Harris. With 5 of the 7 races in the Protruck series to take place under BITD sanction, several competitors took advantage of the V2R, feeling out soon to be familiar territory.

In the Buggy ranks, The dynamic duo of Danny Anderson and Rob MacCachren teamed up in the VW powered Mirage to make their bid for the top slot. Other buggies of note included the long distance entry of Dick Weyhrich, who made the long jaunt from Troutdale OR, and Sam Berry of Murphys CA. Kory Scheeler even managed to put some serious mileage in, making the drive all the way from.....Las Vegas. It was a long drive. Weyhrich no doubt, felt his pain.

Trucks outnumbered buggies by a good margin at the 98 V2R. While the Unlimited VW's (Class 5) were non existent, and the smaller Class 5-1600's turned out a single entrant, the same could not be said for their bodied brethren. Class 7, 7s, 8, Stock Full, and Stock Mini were well represented. Craig Turner, Rob Rinerton, Tom Scahill, and the ever popular LASD "Sherrif's Truck" were all geared up and ready to go head to head with the likes of the BITD veteran Rod Hall Hummers.

The Long Hard Road

With over 520 miles of dirt, rock and brush ahead for the racers, and just over 400 for the chase crews, 11 pit stops along the way provided a welcome respite, and opportunity for repairs and driver changes. The point to point format and great distance of the V2R require careful planning, and a stratigec allocation of your rescources. This was a lesson many crews learned as we encountered several chase vehicles heading south east on Hwy. 50.

The north west bound race coursequickly took it's toll on bike and truck alike. Beginning with the first bike to drop out at less than 2 miles off the line, the Nevada desert proved to have an appetite for the taste of metal and race fuel. One by one the field thined out as bike, buggy, and truck alike succumed to flat tires, breakage, and accidents; some quite serious. One buggy driver was taken by ambulance after a high speed rollover left him with a broken back, and possibly further injuries. Off-Road.com will provide details as they come available.

One of the bikers to drop out has to either be commended for his courage and deternination, or branded an idiot, depending on your point of view. Our nameless hero (and for his sake, he will remain nameless) decided to "Ironman" the V2R. While such feats aren't uncommon, our hero took the "goin' it alone" thing a bit too literally. you see, he began the race with no pit crew, no spares, and figured he'd catch a ride back from Reno with a fellow racer. There was only one slight problem. He broke less than half way through the race. "Anybody goin' back to Vegas"?

As day turned to night, the field had narrowed considerably. Several notables were left by the wayside, including Jerry McDonald and the MacPherson Chevy. Transfer case troubles on the new S-10 left Larry Roseler waiting at midway, all dressed up with no where to go. Before bowing out however, a valuble lesson was learned. through the first several pits, the little Chevy was a mere 10 min behing the big boys.....right about the same place it left the starting line! Joe MacPherson's former mighty mite set the standard in Class 7. If the V2R is any indication, the new truck, once de-bugged, will move mini truck performance to an unheard of level.

And The Winner Is........

Bikes

The V2R finished up just over 10 miles outside Reno NV, and when the checkered flag came down, Russell & Nick Pearson, and their KTM emerged victorious, taking the open bike class, and the Overall title. Next up, David Ondas & Destry Abbott astride their Kawasaki combined for second, with Ty Davis & Donnie Book taking their Yamaha YZ in for 3rd. 4th was the realm of desert vetrans Paul Krause & Dave Hamel, and Baja champ Johnny Campbell teamed up with Jimmy Lewis for a solid 5th.

Quads

In the Quad classes,Steve Beilman & Doug Eichner took the big trophy home, despite a valliant effort by 2nd place Jan Prichard & Jared Huffman & Jay Gobel. Third place, and the long distance award went to William Yokley of Tompkinsville, KY & Kim Kuhnle Newberry, OH. In 4th, Warren Lark, Mark Baker & Curtis Hoskins teamed up on their Honda, besting AZ team of Lynn Prosser, Glen Steinman, & Josh Crawford

Trucks & Buggies

In the 4 wheel classes, Dan Smith & Dave Ashley in the Duralast / Rough Rider Ford F-150 were the big dogs on the porch, narrowly edging out the Don-A-Vee Jeep Grand Cherokee of Curt LeDuc. 3rd place saw Kory Scheeler & Larry Job finish their Jimco ahead of the open wheel field, slightly ahead of Steve Barlow & John Swift in the Red Bull Protruck.

Rounding out the top 5, Kevin McGillivray & Tom Ridings drove hard, and finished their 2/1600 buggy well ahead of many a "faster and more powerful" vehicle.

All in all, the Vegas to Reno continues to be counted among the finest off-road races in the USA. Every year, Casey and the men & women of BITD work hard to improve upon the previous years event, and their dedication to excellence has fueled a dramatic increase in the series entries. Will BITD usurp the SCORE throne? Time will tell, but with a rise in entries, big name series sponsorship, and broad industry support, all eyes will be looking to Las Vegas in 99 and beyond.