Driving R. Gordon's No. 31 Chevy
NASCAR's Jimmy Smith returning to desert in one of race-record
21 SCORE Trophy-Trucks entered in 36th Tecate SCORE Baja 500
Over 280 entries expected June 4-6 in Ensenada, Mexico
For Round 3 of five-race 2004 SCORE Desert Series

LOS ANGELES (May 17, 2004) -- NASCAR team owner and veteran desert racer Jimmy Smith is returning to his racing roots to drive NASCAR racer Robby Gordon's No. 31 Chevy CK1500 in the featured SCORE Trophy-Truck division in the upcoming 36th Tecate SCORE Baja 500 desert race. With R. Gordon racing in the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series race in Dover, Del., on June 5, Smith is one of a race-record 21 trucks entered to date in the marquee SCORE racing division for hi-tech, 750 horsepower, unlimited production trucks.

Round 3 of the five-race 2004 SCORE Desert Series, the world's foremost desert racing series, will be held June 4-6, in Ensenada, Mexico, 65 miles south of San Diego, on the Pacific Ocean side of the majestic Baja peninsula.

With over 280 entries expected from 15 U.S. States, Mexico, Canada and Japan, the green flag will drop at 6 a.m. on Saturday (June 5) for the motorcycle and ATV classes, followed by the car and truck classes two hours later at approximately 8:30 a.m.

The starting line area will once again be adjacent to the Riviera del Pacifico Convention Center in downtown Ensenada. The finish line for the first time will be inside the Deportivo Antonio Palacios baseball stadium at 9th Street and Guadalupe Avenue in Ensenada. It is located approximately 1.5 miles east of the start line area. The admission will be free to this special SCORE finish line celebration. Vehicles will start in 30-second intervals in the elapsed-time race and have 17 hours to complete the rugged 428.52-mile course.

For the first time in several years, the vehicles will travel in a counter-clockwise direction after the first 51.6 miles from the start to Tres Hermanos, which will be used both directions. The race route also includes a beautiful 90-mile sprint along the Pacific Ocean before winding up through the mountains near Mike's Sky Rancho, down to Valle de Trinidad and back to Tres Hermanos.

Smith, 57, owns the Ultra Wheel Company of Buena Park, CA, as well as Ultra Motorsports of Mooresville, N.C. As a team owner, the founding member of the NASCAR Truck Series has 30 wins in that series. As a driver, Smith, who most recently drove some in selected races with Troy Herbst in Class 1, recorded his last victory in the 1994 Tecate SCORE Baja 1000, where he won in SCORE Trophy-Truck in the first year of the marquee SCORE racing division.

"I just can't fit this year's SCORE Baja 500 into my racing schedule, although I tried hard to make it work, so it's great to have a talented driver like Jimmy Smith give my desert crew some solid practice before November's SCORE Baja 1000," said Gordon, who drove in the first two SCORE races this season and who plans to run the first half of the Tecate SCORE Baja 1000 before turning the wheel over to his father Bob Gordon when he heads to the NASCAR season-ending race in Homestead, Fla.

"There aren't many people I would let drive my SCORE Trophy-Truck and take over my crew for a race, but Jimmy Smith is certainly one of the few. My Team Gordon desert racing program in Southern California continues to grow and I will always race as many SCORE races as I can fit into my schedule. Normally, I would drive solo in the SCORE Baja 1000 (1,070 miles), which definitely helps my mental and physical preparation for running both the Indianapolis 500 and the NASCAR 600 mile race on the same day (May 30, this year)."

This year's SCORE Trophy-Truck class features 11 racers who have combined to win 41 of the 64 races in the 10-plus years since the special class debuted, including five of the 10 race winners in the Tecate SCORE Baja 500.

Leading the way is Mark Miller, the returning two-time defending SCORE Trophy-Truck winner in this race.

Miller, 41, Carefree, AZ, won with Larry Ragland in 2002 and with Ryan Arciero, 30, Foothill Ranch, CA, last year in the No. 81 Miller Racing Chevy Silverado. Miller will race again this year with Arciero, who he teamed with to also win last year's Tecate SCORE Baja 1000.

With five class wins in the Tecate SCORE Baja 500, including three overall crowns, Larry Ragland, 61, of Cave Creek, AZ, has teamed this year with Las Vegas' Brian Collins. Collins, who has always been driver of record in his SCORE career, offered Ragland the position this year because Collins knew he would be missing this year's Tecate SCORE Baja 500 to attend his daughter Courtney's high school graduation. Collins did split the driving during the first two races of the season and is scheduled to share the wheel for the last two races as well with Ragland, who is currently seventh in SCORE Trophy-Truck points in the No. 12 Collins Motorsports Chevy Silverado. Besides winning with Miller in 2002, Ragland drove solo to win in SCORE Trophy-Truck in this race in 2000.

Among the other entries to date among the race-record 21 in the featured SCORE Trophy-Truck class are the teams of Las Vegas brothers Ed and Tim Herbst, Dan Smith/Dave Ashley, of Riverside, CA, Mark Post, San Juan Capistrano, CA/Jerry Whelchel, Rancho Santa Margarita, CA, and Mexico's Gus Vildosola and Las Vegas' Rob MacCachren.

The eldest Herbst brothers, Ed, 43, and Tim, 41, have teamed up to win a record four of 10 SCORE Trophy-Truck season point championships (1999, 2000, 2002, 2003) and a record 11 of the 64 all-time SCORE Trophy-Truck individual races in their No. 1 Terrible Herbst Motorsports Ford F-150. The pair, however, doesn't have a win in this race in this class, although Tim has two class wins (Class 1 in 1998 with his younger brother Troy, and in the old Class 2 in 1989 with Ed).

Smith, 40, and Ashley, 47, have a combined 10 class wins in this race (six for Smith and four for Ashley), including the SCORE Trophy-Truck win in 2001 in the No. 8 Enduro Racing Ford F-150. In their illustrious careers, they have teamed up for nine SCORE Trophy-Truck race wins and the season point titles in 1998 and 2001.

This year's SCORE Trophy-Truck point leaders after two races, Post, 47, and Whelchel, 43, have posted four career SCORE Trophy-Truck race wins, although none have been in the Tecate SCORE Baja 500 in their No. 3 Riviera Racing Ford F-150. Post/Whelchel finished third in the season opener in Laughlin in January and won in San Felipe, Mexico, in February.

Vildosola, 50, and MacCachren, 39, currently fourth in the 2004 SCORE Trophy-Truck point standings, have combined for five career SCORE Trophy-Truck race wins (one for Vildosola and four for MacCachren).

MacCachren, who won this race in 1996, was the 1994 SCORE Trophy-Truck season point champ. They will drive the No. 4 Vildosola Racing Ford F-150.

MacCachren is pulling double duty this year, as driver of record and fourth in points in Class 1-2/1600 in his MacCachren Motorsports Fraley-VW. Driving for him when he is driving in SCORE Trophy-Truck this year is Las Vegas' Danny Anderson.

Besides Jimmy Smith, the two other drivers entered so far in SCORE Trophy-Truck who have won one race in this popular high-speed class are Mexico's Juan C. Ibarra and Gary Dircks, Anthem, Ariz. Ibarra, 27, of Ensenada, will drive the No. 32 Ford F-150.

Dircks, who drove solo to win this year's SCORE Laughlin Desert Challenge, will split the driving with Mark Porter, 38, Cave Creek, AZ, in the No. 23 Dircks & Porter Racing Chevy Silverado. The team is currently second in season points.

While past class race winners and season champions certainly are the favorites in Baja, the SCORE Trophy-Truck division is an elite racing class with many proven and talented racers.

Leading this second group will be Southern California brothers Jason and Josh Baldwin. While the team is based in Wisconsin because of Midwestern racing the family does, Jason, 34, and Josh, 27, have been strong runners in both SCORE races so far this season. Second generation desert racers following in the footsteps of their father Jim Baldwin, Jason is currently third and Josh fifth in the 2004 SCORE Trophy-Truck season points. Jason Baldwin has started the season with fourth and second place finishes while Josh has finished sixth and seventh so far in the 2004 SCORE Desert Series.

Pre-race festivities for the 36th Tecate SCORE Baja 500 will center around the Riviera del Pacifico convention center in downtown Ensenada on Friday (June 4). Traditionally drawing thousands of spectators, the pre-race Manufacturer's Midway and display of all the race vehicles will be held adjacent to the San Nicolas Hotel, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday (June 4). The post-race awards celebration will be held at the Riviera del Pacifico on Sunday (June 6) at 10 a.m.

SCORE official sponsors for 2004 are: BFGoodrich Tires-official tire, Southern California Ford Dealers-official vehicle and CL Bryant-official fuel supplier. Associate sponsors are: Tecate Beer, Coca-Cola of Mexico, Instant Mexico Auto Insurance, Fram, Autolite, Prestone, Bilstein, Signpros, P.C.I. Race Radios, McKenzie's, and Advanced Color Graphics. Associate sponsors for the 36th Tecate SCORE Baja 500 are the Fideicomiso Publico para la Promocion Turistica de Ensenada and Cotuco.

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

36th Annual TECATE SCORE BAJA 500
June 4-6, 2004 Ensenada, Mexico
Official SCORE TROPHY-TRUCK Entries
(Unlimited Production Trucks)
(as of 5/17/04) (By Class Starting Order)

(Vehicle No., Driver of Record, Co-Driver, Vehicle, Team)
12 Larry Ragland, 61, Cave Creek, AZ, Chevy Silverado, Collins Motorsports
21 Roger Gray, 27/Robert Gray, 59, Cupertino, CA, Chevy Silverado, Phoenix Racing
1 Ed Herbst, 43/Tim Herbst, 41, Las Vegas, Ford F-150, Terrible Herbst Motorsports
7 Scott Steinberger, 36, Cypress, CA/Jesse Jones, 38, Phoenix, Ford F-150, PCI Racing
99 Nick Baldwin, 50, Foothill Ranch, CA/Ronnie Gillespie, Gardnerville, Nev., Ford F-150, Riviera Racing
2 Pete Sohren, 40, Glendale, AZ/Rick Geiser, 39, Phoenix, Ford F-150, Racing2Win
8 Dan Smith, 40/Dave Ashley, 47, Riverside, CA, Ford F-150, Enduro Racing
81 Mark Miller, 41, Carefree, AZ/Ryan Arciero, 30, Foothill Ranch, CA, Chevy Silverado, Miller Racing
28 Alan Pflueger, 37, Honolulu, Chevy Silverado, Pflueger Racing
66 Jason Baldwin, 34, Irvine, CA, Ford F-150, Baldwin Racing
97 B.J. Baldwin, 24, Las Vegas, Ford F-150, Baldwin Motorsports
3 Mark Post, 47, San Juan Capistrano, CA/Jerry Whelchel, 43, Rancho Santa Margarita, CA, Ford F-150, Riviera Racing
25 Enrique Legaspy, 30/Abraham Legaspy, 29, Punta Colonett, Mexico, Ford F-250, Legaspy Racing
23 Gary Dircks, 42, Anthem, AZ/Mark Porter, 38, Cave Creek, AZ, Chevy Silverado, Dircks & Porter Racing
5 Marty Coyne, 47/Travis Coyne, 24, El Centro, CA, Ford F-150, Coyne Motorsports
86 Josh Baldwin, 27, Irvine, CA, Ford F-150, Baldwin Racing
4 Gus Vildosola, 50, Mexicali, Mexico/Rob MacCachren, 39, Las Vegas, Ford F-150, Vildosola Racing
10 Michael Jakobson, 35, Somis, CA/Todd Sanderson, 42, Leucadia, CA, Chevy Silverado, Jakobson Motorsports
32 Juan C. Ibarra, 27, Ensenada, Mexico, Ford F-150, Ibarra Racing
22 Bucky Strunk, 50/Ron Gasinski, 32, Tucson, AZ, Chevy Silverado, Strunk Racing
31 Jimmy Smith, 57, Buena Park, CA, Chevy CK1500, Team Gordon

Tecate SCORE Baja 500
All-Time SCORE Trophy-Truck Winners
1994--Ivan Stewart, Alpine, CA, Toyota SR5
1995--Curt LeDuc, Cherry Valley, CA, Jeep Grand Cherokee
1996--Rob MacCachren, Las Vegas, Ford F-150
1997--Ivan Stewart, Alpine, CA, Toyota Tundra
1998--Ivan Stewart, Alpine, CA, Toyota Tundra
1999--Ivan Stewart, Alpine, CA, Toyota Tundra
2000--Larry Ragland, Cave Creek, AZ, Chevy Trailblazer
2001--David Ashley/Dan Smith, Riverside, CA, Ford F-150
2002--Mark Miller, Carefree, AZ/Larry Ragland, Cave Creek, AZ, Chevy Silverado
2003--Mark Miller, Carefree, AZ/Ryan Arciero, Foothill Ranch, CA, Chevy Silverado

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

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