SCORE MEDIA press release 13.11.2008 - Campbell’s JCR team has three factory-supported Hondas as well as providing Honda PitSupport program; Racers from 39 States, 20 countries entered to date in internationally-televised Granddaddy of all desert races;Desert racing champions become legends in Baja and Southern California’s popular Johhny Campbell is hoping to enter a league of his own by winning a race-record 11th overall motorcycle title next week during the legendary 41st Tecate SCORE Baja 1000. The world’s most grueling and famous desert race will be held Nov. 19-23 in Ensenada.
A veteran American Honda factory rider and former longtime Honda employee, Campbell, 37, of San Clemente, Calif., is completing his first year as owner of Johnny Campbell Racing (JCR) with three factory-supported Honda CRF450X motorcycles entered in Class 22 for open motorcycles that will lead over 150 motorcycles and ATVs into the wilds of the northern part of the magnificent and mysterious Baja California peninsula.
Spending more time with logistics and team management this year, Campbell did pinch hit for then-injured 1x co-rider Kendall Norman, Santa Barbara, Calif., and won the Tecate SCORE San Felipe 250 with team rider of record Robby Bell, Sun City, Calif. Campbell is expected to ride about a third of this year’s race as part of the Bell/Norman team in his quest to capture an unprecedented 11th overall motorcycle win. The 1x team won both the SCORE San Felipe 250 and the SCORE Baja 500 this year and the team will be looking to win SCORE career season point titles No. 11 for Campbell, and third straight for Bell and Norman.
Hoping to break the 10-10 tie in overall motorcycles wins with legendary Larry Roeseler in this race, Campbell has also signed up on the JCR’s 10x Honda that will be ridden by Caleb Gasselaar, Juniper Hills, Calif./Timmy Weigand, Santa Clarita, Calif./Quinn Cody, Buellton, Calif./Tim Morton, Escondido, Calif. While Gasselaar and Weigand are new to the Honda team, Cody was part of the overall winning motorcycle team in 2006 and Morton is a veteran Baja racer with four career class wins in this race.
Riding the third JCR entry, the No. 16x Honda will be the ‘futures’ that features newcomers San Clemente, Calif./Justin Seeds, Phelan, Calif., and Bryce Stavron, San Clemente, Calif., with veteran Baja racer Ron Wilson, Encinitas, Calif.
With over 375 entries expected to compete in 28 Pro and 7 Sportsman classes for cars, trucks, motorcycles and ATVs, the granddaddy of all desert races. Completing its 35th year as the World’s foremost desert racing sanctioning body, the event is the finale of the five-race 2008 SCORE Desert Series. To date entries have come from 39 U.S. States and 20 countries.
“I have been incredibly blessed in my motorcycle racing career, not only with the opportunities I have received to ride for the Honda factory team, but even more importantly, to learn how to ride and
about the sport from a great teacher like Bruce Ogilvie,” said Campbell, who also has seven career overall wins in the Tecate SCORE San Felipe 250 and five in the Tecate SCORE Baja 500.
“Now that my position has changed to team owner, the demands are even greater and I am thoroughly enjoying the process of developing and maintaining the next generation of factory-supported Honda desert racers. We could likely sweep the podium at this year’s Tecate SCORE Baja 1000, but the important thing is we will be well-prepared, be riding on the best equipment available, and should be right in the thick of things throughout the challenging race. I’ve ridden just about every inch of Baja and I can’t remember an overall more difficult and demanding course than this year’s race.”
Campbell’s JCR team has also taken over operation this year of the prominent Honda pit program that will support more than 50 of the motorcycle teams entered in the race with 15 pits spread out along the race course.
In desert racing, riders don’t retire as early as other sports, they move onto the very competitive age-group classes that SCORE offers at its three Baja races.
Racers are so attracted to riding the magnificent Baja California peninsula that SCORE has Pro classes for engine size as well as age group classes for motorcycles and two Pro ATV classes for engine size. Additionally, SCORE offers competition for two Sportsman Motorcycle classes based on engine size and one Sportsman ATV Class.
And riders enjoy racing in Baja so much that many ride for multiple teams, hoping to pull of double class wins if possible.
Among the motorcycle and ATV classes, Class 22 for open motorcycles has the most entries to date with 16, followed by age group classes Class 30 (riders 30 and older) with 11 and Class 40 (riders 40 and older) with 10.
Leading the Sportsman classes in the race to date are Sportsman Motorcycle over 250cc (44), Sportsman ATV and Sportsman Motorcycle under 250cc (16 each).
Testimony to the lure of this great race, all seven Pro motorcycle and both Pro ATV class winners have returned to defend their titles this year.
Among the legends of Baja who will be riding in this year’s race are nine riders who have earned 64 class wins between them.
Besides Campbell’s 10 wins in Class 22, entered this year are Chris Haines, Dana Point, Calif. (13, Class 50), Craig Adams, San Clemente, Calif. (11, co-rider in both Class 50 and Class 40), Jim O’Neal, Chatsworth, Calif. (7, Class 50 and Class 30), Richard Jackson, Acton, Calif. (6, Class 60), Bill Nichols, Peoria, Ariz. (5, co-rider in Class 60), Scott Pfeiffer, Costa Mesa, Calif. (5, co-rider in Class 50), Tim Morton, Escondido, Calif. (4, co-rider in Class 22) and Gerardo Rojas, Vicente Guerrero, Mexico (3, co-rider in Class 30).