Nov. 17-20 in Mexico
November's 37th Tecate SCORE Baja 1000 to be televised
On new NBC series "Jeep World of Adventure Sports"
SCORE and Auro360 reach historic agreement to broadcast the legendary granddaddy of all desert races

LOS ANGELES (July 20, 2004) -- SCORE International, the World's foremost desert racing sanctioning body, announced today that November's 37th Annual Tecate SCORE Baja 1000 desert race will be televised on the new "Jeep World of Adventure Sports" show on the NBC Sports network.

In an unprecedented agreement between SCORE and Aura360, the show's producers in association with NBC Sports, the world's most famous desert race will air as a one hour special in December on the new-action-adventure sports series that debuted on April 10 of this year.

This year's legendary desert classic, to be held Nov. 17-20 in Mexico, will start in the northern part of the majestic Baja California peninsula in Ensenada along the Pacific Ocean in Baja California and finish in the south in La Paz along the Sea of Cortez in Baja California Sur.

"Monumental would be the word to describe this, absolutely unbelievable would be an even better way," said Sal Fish, CEO and President of Los Angeles-based SCORE International, which annually sanctions and produces the five-race SCORE Desert Series, capped each year with the Tecate SCORE Baja 1000, SCORE's flagship event. "The motorsports world has never seen an event like this. We have always said the Tecate SCORE Baja 1000 is more than a race-it's an adventure-and NBC Sports and Aura360 have the resources and creativity to present the grueling odyssey in a way that will capture the imagination of future adventurers."

Nearly 300 entries from over 30 U.S. States and seven 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.

"NBC is devoting top talent and producers to provide an entertaining look at a group of action-adventure events that, while popular around the world, have not been traditionally shown on American television," said Jon Miller, senior vice president, programming, NBC Sports. "We're excited about this new series."

NBC's Pat Parnell is host of the new program. Top SCORE racers will join Parnell as guest commentators and will be profiled during the telecast. A world-class action-sports commentator, Parnell hosted NBC's Gravity Games for five years, and was a commentator on NBC's coverage of the snowboarding competition at the 2002 Salt Lake Winter Olympics.

The Tecate SCORE Baja 1000 has captured the imagination of the entire world as entries have come not only from every state in the United States, but also has attracted racers from Argentina, Australia, Bahamas, Brazil, Belgium, Canada, England, Finland, France, Germany, Guam, Guatemala, Holland, Israel, Italy, Japan, New Caledonia, New Zealand, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Uruguay, Yugoslavia as well as the host country of Mexico.

"With the upcoming world premiere of the 'Dust to Glory' feature-length documentary film around the same as the NBC telecast," said Fish, "The timing is perfect for SCORE and this amazing race."

Over the years, SCORE has been the subject of numerous television specials, including ABC TV's Wide World of Sports in 1981 and last year's 'Drive Like Hell', a 90-minute high-definition documentary on the 2002 SCORE Baja 1000 produced for HDNet TV by the Essex Television Group.

Essex also produced a 90-minute documentary on the 2003 SCORE Baja 1000, called 'When the Dust Settles', for the Discovery Channel's Discovery HD Theater. It aired first in spring of 2004.

The 2003 Tecate SCORE Baja 1000 was filmed for a new 90-minute historical sports documentary film, 'Dust to Glory'. A crew of over 80 was supervised by critically acclaimed director Dana Brown. It was shot with Brown's father Bruce Brown as the creative consultant. Bruce Brown is responsible for such notable specialty films as 'On Any Sunday', and 'Endless Summer'. This year, Dana Brown released the popular 'Step Into Liquid' surfing documentary. 'Dust to Glory' is scheduled for release internationally in late 2004 or Spring 2005.

In its first 36 years, the Tecate SCORE Baja 1000 has started 29 times in Ensenada, three times in Mexicali (1972, 1993, 1994), twice in Tijuana (1967, 1995) once in Santo Tomas (1998) and once in Ojos Negros (1999), 30 miles east of Ensenada. The legendary race has finished in Ensenada 17 times, in La Paz 15 times, in Mexicali two times (1993, 1994), once in Ojos Negros and once in Cabo San Lucas (2000). The last time the race finished in La Paz was 2002.

The famous and not-so-famous have tried their hand at conquering the Baja and they have come from all walks of life. Mark Thatcher, son of Great Britian's then-prime minister Margaret Thatcher, raced in the 1982 SCORE Baja 1000. Celebrities James Garner, Ted Nugent and the late Steve McQueen all battled the Baja in the early 1970s and many racers from other forms of motorsports crossed over to try their skills.

Among the drivers from other arenas who have tested the Baja were Champ Car's Rick and Roger Mears, Parnelli Jones, Danny Ongias, Jimmy Vasser, Roberto Guerrero, Michel Jourdain Jr., Johnny Unser and Mike and Robbie Groff, NASCAR's Robby Gordon, Jimmie Johnson and Brendan Gaughan, SCCA legend Elliot Forbes-Robinson, world motorcycle champions Malcolm Smith and Larry Roeseler, Motocross legends Ricky Johnson and Jimmie Johnson (now a NASCAR champion), drag racers Don Prudhomme and Larry Minor and legendary SCORE founder and motorsports innovator Mickey Thompson.

This year's race will commemorate the achievements of legendary desert racers like Rod Hall, Ron Bishop, Johnny Johnson, and Larry Roeseler. Hall, with a record 17 class wins (including one overall win in 1972), and Bishop are the only two racers who have competed in every SCORE Baja 1000. Hall will be a favorite in the Stock Full class this year while Bishop, who will race in Class 50 for riders over 50 years old, has raced every year on a Motorcycle. Johnson, now retired, had 15 class wins, amazingly in eight different classes. Roeseler, 47, has won 12 times in this race, including 10 overall wins on a motorcycle. Roeseler will share driving duties again this year with six-time SCORE Class 1 season point champion Troy Herbst, 47.

SCORE International, founded in 1973 by the late Mickey Thompson and headed by Sal Fish since 1974, continues today as the premier sanctioning body worldwide in the sport of desert racing. SCORE races feature 17 Pro and two Sportsman classes for cars and trucks in the U.S. with 10 additional Pro and three more Sportsman classes for motorcycles and ATVs competing in the races in Mexico. SCORE races in the U.S. average 150 entries while the average in Mexico, with motorcycle and ATV classes running as well as the cars and trucks is 275.

The final 2004 SCORE Desert Series race prior to the Tecate SCORE Baja 1000 will be the 9th SCORE Las Vegas Primm 300, to be held Sept. 10-12 in Primm, Nev., 35 miles south of Las Vegas.

Current SCORE official annual sponsors are BFGoodrich Tires-official tire, Southern California Ford Dealers-official vehicle and CL Bryant Racing Fuel-official fuel. 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.

The SCORE Las Vegas Primm 300 is sponsored by Primm Valley Resorts, Las Vegas Events in association with the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority.

The "Jeep World of Adventure Sports" on NBC will air Aug. 7, Oct. 16, and on Dec. 4, 11, and 19. The SCORE show is scheduled for one of the three December programs. Times are subject to change, please check local listings.

For more details on the show, please visit www.WorldOfAdventureSports.com.

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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