Rugged Baja race course
Official course released, ‘Live’ Draw for start slots Saturday
At Lake Elsinore Casino for 38th Tecate SCORE Baja 1000
Nearly 300 entries expected for legendary granddaddy of all desert races-
To be held Nov. 17-20 in Ensenada, Mexico

LOS ANGELES, CA (October 12, 2005) -- Promising to provide an ultimate test of man and machine like it has for nearly four decades, the official course map for next month’s 38th Annual Tecate SCORE Baja 1000 has been released by SCORE International, sanctioning body and producer of the legendary event. This year’s granddaddy of all desert races will be held Nov. 17-20, starting and finishing in Ensenada, Mexico.

Available for downloading on-line on the Tecate SCORE Baja 1000 page on the www.score-international.com website, this year’s odyssey will cover 709 miles of the rugged and tortuous Baja California peninsula, starting on the Pacific Ocean side and stretching across and down the Sea of Cortez side of the majestic peninsula past San Felipe before winding its way back up to Ensenada.

Nearly 300 entries from over 30 U.S. States and 10 countries, competing in 27 Pro and 5 Sportsman classes for cars, trucks, motorcycles and ATVs will be part of this year’s tribute to the sport of desert racing.

It’s the oldest and most well known of all desert races, and it remains as the single most appealing accomplishment to a driver. Since 1967, the mother of all desert races has been run over the mysterious Baja California peninsula every year except 1974 when the international fuel crisis forced a cancellation.

This year’s Tecate SCORE Baja 1000 desert race will be televised on a delayed basis as a one-hour NBC Sports special for the second consecutive year on Dec. 10 on the NBC Network.

With massive crowds reaching nearly 300,000 anticipated to again be spread out along the single loop course, the race will start in front of the Riviera del Pacific Convention Center in Ensenada and will finish for just the second time inside the the Deportivo Antonio Palacio baseball stadium in Ensenada.

“This course will be reflective of the rugged beauty of the Baja peninsula and will have the widest variety of terrain possible, assuring that every survivor will know that they, their crew and their racing machines have overcome an incredibly difficult challenge,” commented Sal Fish, SCORE President and CEO since 1974. “This race is what legends are made of and this year’s course will carve many of them into granite. It will be an amazing experience for everyone involved and yet another memorable chapter will be added into the legacy of the legendary SCORE Baja 1000.”

“Racers will quickly see the challenge before them as this year’s Tecate SCORE Baja 1000 race course has a complete taste of Baja—from sand washes, to narrow, rocky mountain passes, to volcanic rock trails, a dry lake bed, and a blast up the beach,” said Fish, who will lead a small group of SCORE officials on a 10-day expedition starting Thursday to mark this year’s race course. “It will be an incredibly technical course, racers will be tested to the limit their abilities as well as the durability of their unbelievable racing machines.”

The first 60 miles of this year’s course from Ensenada, through Ojos Negros and to Tres Hermanos will be run in both directions and the balance will be a long and winding route covered in a clockwise direction. Among the challenges racers will face include an old route over the historic ‘summit’ in the Sierra De Juarez Mountains, a Technical, mogul-infested route south through San Felipe, a stretch of running up part of the infamous Matomi Wash, up through racer-friendly Mike’s Sky Rancho, back around behind Meling Ranch, and the high-energy run down ‘the hill’ at Simpson’s Ranch.

Official pre-running, or practice on the official race course, will begin for all registered entries, on Saturday, Oct. 22.

In preparation for the Tecate SCORE Baja 1000 desert race, a ‘live’ drawing for starting positions for the nearly 300 expected entries will be held this Saturday, during a special SCORE Fiesta at the Lake Elsinore Casino in Lake Elsinore, CA.

In addition to the 5:30 p.m. Lucas Oil-sponsored ‘live’ drawing, other activities scheduled for the event include the $5,000 Fabtech Pit Challenge, and the $10,000 Lake Elsinore Casino Texas Hold ‘Em Poker Tournament.

In addition to appearances by several of SCORE’s top drivers and riders and their incredible desert-racing machines, festivities will start at 3 p.m. with a SCORE pool party hosted by the ‘McGraw Insurance Girls’. The race Drawing will be at 5:30 p.m. followed by the Fabtech Pit Challenge event at 6 p.m. The $10,000 Lake Elsinore Casino Poker Tournament will start at 7 p.m.

The entire event is being produced by the colorful Desert Assassins race team, led by co-owners Cameron Steele and Clyde Stout.

All racers entered in the Race Drawing will be entered into a raffle, sponsored by Lucas Oil Products, for another free entry into this year’s race.

The Lake Elsinore Casino Poker tournament, with a guaranteed $10,000 minimum purse is open to the first 300 SCORE participants (drivers and/or crew members) with a $50 buy-in. It will pay back 18 spots and the winner will receive a free entry into this year’s race in addition to the top purse.

Besides the Lake Elsinore Casino, Fabtech, SCORE International, McGraw Insurance Services, Lucas Oil Products and the Desert Assassins, associate sponsors of the SCORE Fiesta are: DIRTsports Magazine.

SCORE official sponsors for 2005 are: BFGoodrich Tires-official tire, C.L. Bryant-VP Racing Fuels-official fuel supplier, Bilstein-official shock. Associate sponsors are: Tecate Beer, Coca-Cola of Mexico, Instant Mexico Auto Insurance, Las Vegas Events, Terrible Herbst Inc., Kartek Off-Road, Centrix Financial, Fram, Autolite, Prestone, Suzuki, SignPros, Cotuco, Fideicomiso Publico para la Promocion Turistica de Ensenada, McGraw Insurance Services, Lucas Oil Products, P.C.I. Race Radios, McKenzie’s Performance Products, and Advanced Color Graphics.

For more information on entry the Fabtech Pit Challenge and/or the Lake Elsinore Casino Poker tournament, please contact Cameron Steele at c-steele@cox.net. To reserve rooms in the SCORE room block, contact the Lake Elsinore Casino at 951.674.3101.

For information contact:
SCORE International at its Los Angeles headquarters
(818) 225-8402 or visit
the official 2005 SCORE Desert Series website at:
www.score-international.com