Menzies, Sutherland three-peat as tragedy overshadows Mexican 1000 – The Checkered Flag

The 2024 edition of NORRA’s Mexican 1000 was marred by the deaths of competitors Brent Yeadon and Johnny Kaiser, casting a shadow over Steve Menzies and Matt Sutherland‘s overall victories.

Yeadon, the co-driver for Larry Trim‘s 1993 Jeep Grand Cherokee (Vintage Short Wheelbase 4×4, driven by Curt Leduc to a Stock Mini class win at the 1993 Baja 1000), suffered a fatal heart attack during the opening stage; although he pulled over to receive medical attention, he died shortly after. The creative director for Visual Metals outside of Racing, Yeadon was 61 years old. Trim immediately withdrew from the race.

Kaiser lost his life during the penultimate day when the #507 Jake’s 5U Vintage Class 5 buggy (with Rick Paquette) rolled over. Due to the dust kicked up, the #86 Raceco Vintage Open Buggy led by Jay Culbertson was unable to avoid impact. The accident, along with a nearby teacher’s strike, caused a lengthy delay for cars in the area such that NORRA removed the timed section from the final results.

One of the top fabricators in off-road Racing, Kaiser built trucks and buggies and even those in between—known as truggies—for a litany of customers including Robbie Pierce and Robby Gordon. He was responsible for many of Gordon’s vehicles including his Trophy Truck, Dakar Rally Hummer, and Stadium Super Truck. After finishing the race twenty-fourth in the Evolution Pro Turbo UTV class, Gordon said he had “very, very mixed feelings” in the wake of Kaiser’s passing.

“That took a lot out of the success we’ve had with SPEED UTV,” he continued. “It’s a major setback. That’s one of my best friends. I have no idea how many all-nighters he did in the shop to make the cars faster. Very good guy, very creative, and definitely going to be missed by us.”

The tragedies cast a damper over an otherwise dramatic race. Menzies and his son, reigning Baja 1000 and SCORE International champion Bryce Menzies, battled with the latter’s SCORE rival Larry Roeseler for the overall win in the Pro Cars category. Both teams, Racing Trophy Trucks, were separated by less than ten minutes entering the sixth and final day before Menzies pulled away for the victory. The Menzies family has won the 1000 overall every year since 2022.

“To do this three times in a row is unreal,” said Bryce. “This is all about just having fun with my dad, coming down here, enjoying it. It was cool to bring Oren (Anderson, co-driver) down this time. What a day. My dad started out, did awesome, and he hates the tight, twisty stuff. Coming into Cabo, I was like, ‘Come on, dude, you got to finish,’ but he wanted me to finish. Had an awesome run. The guys did an awesome job on prepping the truck. We stayed over 1,300 miles to get down here to Cabo so what a day, what a run.

“It’s pretty special. Being able to switch roles and watch him have a smile on his face and just really enjoy it, it’s what it’s all about. We’ve been doing this for seventeen years as a profession of Racing full time. This race has got to be one of my favourite races all year. Come down, just enjoy it, have fun, get to see every part of Baja that’s so beautiful. We love it and can’t wait for next year.”

On the bike side, Sutherland also enjoyed his third win in a row on a KTM 450 Rally; the bike is one of the premier models in rally raid, which NORRA events are loosely styled after. The bike course was designed by Dakar Rally veteran and motorcycle race director Jimmy Lewis, and the fourth day even featured a marathon stage that forbade riders from outside assistance like what is seen in rallies. While Sutherland has never raced the Dakar, he is an Africa Eco Race alumnus and won both the Sonora Rally’s Malle Moto class and the 1000 in consecutive weeks in 2023.

Sutherland beat Alexander Smith by forty-eight minutes. Smith was riding on Ducati’s new DesertX Rally bike, which is partly inspired by their Dakar-tribute DesertX albeit with more enduro and motocross flavours. His Ducati team-mate Steve Kamrad was disqualified for going in the wrong direction during the second day and crashing with Matthew Glade.

Rob MacCachren, another SCORE legend, finished runner-up in Evolution Heavy Metal in his NORRA début. He raced a Jimco pre-runner truck from his SCORE team Fastball Racing, led by boss Bobby Patton. Ford’s Brad Lovell won the class to mark the second straight week a Bronco claimed a North American desert victory of some kind after Racing-debut/”>Vaughn Gittin Jr. in Best In The Desert.

“This was my first NORRA race and I’d have to say I’m impressed,” wrote MacCachren. “The course was challenging at times and the days were long. I saw parts of Baja I hadn’t seen in my 30+ years of Racing down here. We broke on day 3 and to know we could catch up and continue Racing was such an interesting factor. Let alone being able to race in a truck with a windshield and A/C. Thank you to Bobby for the invite and opportunity. This has been something I have wanted to check off my list for a very long time.”

Desert great Larry Ragland topped the Historic Truck side in “Arnold”, a four-time Baja 1000 winner built by the late Jon Nelson. His main rival in the class, Mark Post‘s iconic Riviera Racing “Black Diamond” truck, was destroyed after crashing into the trailer of a chase truck that went on course and triggered a fire.

Gordon’s SPEED UTV was well represented as a NORRA partner, with fifteen Bandits and El Diablos entered including his son and 2023 NORRA 500 UTV winner Max Gordon. Max, who beat his father for the SST season-opening win at Long Beach a fortnight prior, topped UTV qualifying then placed twenty-seventh in class, reaching the finish without a left-front wheel. Brad Halco led the SPEED UTVs with a seventh.

Wayne Matlock was the top UTV overall, finishing seventh outright in his Polaris.

Raceco buggies enjoyed a 1–2 Vintage Car finish led by Randy Wilson with Jim Greenway three hours back. Greenway previously drove his buggy to the 1984 SCORE 2/1600 overall championship. Other unique faces among these vehicles included Bruno and Sergio Pinillos‘ 1977 Datsun 280Z, which they plan to restore for the Dakar Classic, Sean Barber‘s Scout Race Terra that rolled down a ravine in the final day but managed to reach the finish, Warfighter Made‘s Chenowth Light Strike Vehicle used by the United States military, and Alex Earle‘s 1967 Jeepster Commando that has since become a Hot Wheels diecast. Sonora Rally director Darren Skilton was a team member on Boyd Jaynes‘ Pioneer 4×4-winning Bronco.

Two classes, JeepSpeed 3700 and Recreational Vehicles, failed to see any finishers after the lone entrants in both were forced to retire. Tom Allen led the former in a 2020 Jeep Wrangler that bowed out after two days, while Segismundo Lucas Valdes‘ 1987 Volkswagen Vanagon exited with a mechanical the leg prior.

The Mexican 1000 marked the first race under NORRA’s new era categorisation, with Challenger vehicles now being those built between 1983 and 1992 (previously 1983 to 1988) whereas Vintage eligibility begins in 1993. The second and final race of 2024, the NORRA 500, is scheduled for 24–27.

Class winners

Bikes

Pro Cars

Classic Cars