LOS ANGELES, Calif. -- With the release of the official course map, GPS files and course notes this week, pre-race activity increases significantly starting Friday when the world’s best desert racers officially begin their pre-running and course logistics activities for next month’s 44th Annual Tecate SCORE Baja 500, the second-oldest desert race in the world.

Round 4 of the five-race 2012 SCORE Desert Series, the World’s Foremost Desert Racing Series, will feature over 275 entries, competing in 28 Pro and 7 Sportsman classes for cars, trucks, motorcycles and ATVs The popular event will be held May 31-June 3 in Ensenada, Mexico.

SCORE is in its 39th year as the world’s foremost desert racing organization. This race is traditionally one of the most popular events on the SCORE schedule, and most of the world’s best desert racers are expected to be in action at this year’s 44th anniversary of the Tecate SCORE Baja 500, the original desert race produced by SCORE on July 26, 1974.

With late entries accepted up to race morning in the 450-mile race, entries so far have come from 32 U.S. States from Hawaii to New York and the U.S. Territory of Guam along with the additional countries of Mexico, Australia, Austria, Canada, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Finland, Germany, Guatemala, Ireland, Italy and Japan.

The green flag will drop for the race at 6 a.m. on Saturday (June 2) for the motorcycle and ATV classes in the Tecate SCORE Baja 500, followed by the car and truck classes three hours after the last ATV at approximately 10 a.m. The elapsed-time race, with a 22-hour time limit for all competitors, will start and finish in front of the Riviera del Pacifico Cultural Center on Boulevard Costero in the heart of Ensenada, leaving and returning into the city through the Arroyo Wash.

The talented field of veteran desert racers heading to Baja includes 22 defending class winners out of the 30 Pro and Sportsman classes that had finishers in last year’s race. Several, however, will be racing in different classes this year.

Last year’s overall race champions are among the early entries in this year’s race. The overall 4-wheel winner in 2011 was Las Vegas’ Bryce Menzies, who drives the No. 1 Red Bull Menzies Motorsports Ford F-150 SCORE Trophy Truck. Recording the fastest overall time while leading all motorcycles in last year’s race was Kendall Norman, Santa Barbara, Calif. and Quinn Cody, Buellton, Calif., on a Honda CRF450X while the fastest ATV was the Honda TRX450R team led by Brandon Brown, Umatilla, Ore. Norman will be riding solo this year on another Honda CRF450X while Cody will be the second rider for Mike Brown on a KTM 450SX-F. Menzies was also last year's SCORE Overall and SCORE Trophy Truck season point champion as well as being selected as the 2011 SCORE Rookie of the Year.

The rugged 450-mile course, which runs in a clockwise direction, resembles a deflating balloon, winding east to Ojos Negros, down to near San Felipe, back West to the Pacific Ocean below San Vicente and back north east through Santo Tomas on the way back to Ojos Negros and then Ensenada.

The only pre-running that will be allowed on the first 41.04 miles of the course will be outbound only and only on Thursday and Friday, May 31 and June 1. No inbound pre-running on the last 41.04 miles of the course will be allowed. Pre-running of the rest of the course will start and finish in the Ojos Negros area.

The four official race checkpoints, where all vehicles are required to make a quick stop, will be located at race mile 88.56 (Santa Catarina), rm219.72 (lower Matias wash), rm314.13 (Northwest of Colonet near the Pacific Ocean) and rm402.90 (West of Ojos Negros). The course will also have 52 virtual checkpoints. All vehicles are also required to run International Rally Consultants tracking devices and live vehicle tracking will be available during the race at www.racetheworld.net.

The course will also have five short, controlled-speed pavement sections that total 13.67 miles where the speed limit for the race vehicles is 60 miles per hour, subject to time penalties for exceeding that speed in those very limited pavement sections.

The featured SCORE Trophy Truck division for high-tech, 850-horsepower, unlimited production trucks has a race-high 39 entries in this year’s Tecate SCORE Baja 500.

Besides the three overall winners, among the other defending Pro class champions in the Tecate SCORE Baja 500 entered this year to date are: Luke McMillin, El Cajon, Calif. (Class 1/2-1600), Donald Moss, Sacramento, Calif. (Class 3); Rudolfo Iribe, Tijuana, Mexico/Justin Matney, Bristol, Tenn. (Class 8); Sergio Salgado, Mexicali, Mexico (Class 10) Rafael Navarro IV, Temecula, Calif./Vic Bruckmann, Lemon Grove, Calif. (SCORE Lites), Matney (Class 11), Clyde Stacy, Bristol, Va./Eduardo Laguna, Mexicali, Mexico (Class 4); Mike Johnson, El Paso, Texas (Class 30); Jeff Kaplan, Thousand Oaks, Calif. (Class 40), Wayne Matlock, El Cajon, Calif. (Class 25) and Carl Vella, Ardsley, N.Y. (Class 26).

From the group above, Luke McMillin is racing in Class 1 this year as is Matney (with Stacy) and Laguna is driving in Class 6. Stacy is also driver of record for a team in Class 5-1600.

The Sportsman class winners returning from last year as of today are: Peter Lang, Santa Rosa, Calif. (SPT Buggy), Randy Swing, El Cajon, Calif. (SPT Truck) and Ulises Fierro, Tijuana, Mexico (SPT M/C>450cc). Lang has moved up to Class 6 this year and Fierro to Class 21.

Prominent Mexican racer Juan C. Lopez along with Cody Parkhouse, Mike Brown and Josh Frederick have all drew pole positions in their respective divisions for the race.

Mexico’s Lopez, who finished second in both Laughlin races and sixth in San Felipe in the No. 18 RPM OffRoad Chevy Silverado is second in SCORE Overall and SCORE Trophy Truck points. RPM OffRoad, based in Bristol, Tenn. leads the point standings in six classes after the first three races of the five-race 2012 SCORE Desert Series. RPM has eight vehicles entered in the Tecate SCORE Baja 500 and as a team they have earned a total of 13 class wins the first three races of the season.

Besides Menzies and Lopez, among the other entries in SCORE Trophy Truck are current season point leader Rob MacCachren, the overall 4-wheel winner in this race in 1996 and a long list of other SCORE Trophy Truck winners in this event including Menzies (2011), Andy and Scott McMillin (2010), B.J. Baldwin (2008), Brian Collins (2006, 2007), Robby Gordon (2005), Alan Pflueger (2004) and Curt LeDuc (1995). Collins, Las Vegas will be the second driver for NASCAR Cup and Nationwide series driver Brendan Gaughan of Las Vegas, while LeDuc will be a driver for Nick Vanderwey, Phoenix.

Continuing to move out from the shadow of his father and his uncle’s experienced tracks, second-generation Southern California desert racer Cody Parkhouse of Long Beach, is fourth in SCORE overall points and continues to lead the unlimited Class 1 and will start first in his class in a Chevy-powered Jimco open-wheeled desert race car.

Brown, Murrieta, Calif., who ironically also drew the first start at the last SCORE race in San Felipe, will lead the motorcycle classes into the Baja desert with co-rider Quinn Cody, Los Olivos, Calif., on a factory-supported KTM 450SX-F.

A former SCORE Overall ATV point champion (2005), Josh Frederick, Moapa, Nev. and teammates Dillon Zimmerman, Murrieta, Calif. and Cesar Lopez, San Felipe, Mexico, will start first among the ATV classes in a Can-Am DS-450. Frederick won the first 2012 SCORE Baja race for ATVs in San Felipe.

While late entries will be accepted up to race morning, as of today, the Pro 4-Wheel vehicles classes with the most entries are: SCORE Trophy-Truck (39), the unlimited Class 1 (21), Class 10 (13) and Class 1/2-1600 (10).

Leading the pro motorcycle classes is the open Class 22 with nine entries to date.
Class 25 and Class 24 lead the ATV classes so far with six entries each and leading the Sportsman Motorcycles is the SPT M/C> class with 18 to date.

Following his third victory in the last five races and second in three races this season, Las Vegas’ All-America racer MacCachren has launched himself into the SCORE Overall and SCORE Trophy Truck point lead after three of five races in the 2012 SCORE Desert Series.

With back to back overall wins in 2012 (Laughlin-Round 2 and San Felipe) after opening the season with a ninth-place finish in the first round in Laughlin, Nev., MacCachren, 47, has earned 177 championship points in the No. 20 Rockstar Energy/MasterCraft Racing Ford F-150. He is not only the SCORE Overall point leader, he is also at the top of the leaderboard in the marquee SCORE Trophy Truck division.The recent San Felipe victory was also MacCachren’s fourth in the last six SCORE races.

In San Felipe, MacCachren also earned the 75 all-time SCORE Baja overall race win for noted tired manufacturer BFGoodrich. BFG Tires have now been the tire of choice for the overall 4-wheel vehicle winners in 22 MasterCraft Safety Tecate SCORE San Felipe 250 races, 28 in the Tecate SCORE Baja 500 and 25 in the legendary Tecate SCORE Baja 1000.

SCORE points are based on starting, finishing, placement and number of official starters within each class.

With consistent Laughlin finishes of fourth and third along with a seventh in San Felipe, Steve Strobel, Clarks, Neb., has moved up to third in SCORE Overall points and remains third in SCORE Trophy Truck in the No. 94 Strobel Motorsports Ford F-150.

In addition to season class point championships, the racers are also competing for part of the nearly $400,000 in cash purse and contingency postings each race. Drivers in the Pro car and truck classes are also attempting to earn prestigious SCORE Toyota Milestone Awards given to all car and truck class drivers who complete every required mile of the five-race season. Being presented by Toyota Motorsports for the 27th consecutive year, a total of 31 drivers are still in the hunt for the awards for the 2012 SCORE Desert Series after the first two rounds in the five-race series.

Racers are also competing for the annual SCORE Off-Roadsman of the Year awards, including the MasterCraft Safety SCORE Rookie of the Year award. All categories, except Engine Builder and Original Buggy Chassis Manufacturer, will be determined by public on-line voting while Engine and Buggy awards are determined by season points.

Tecate Beer is the title sponsor of the three SCORE Baja races.

MasterCraft Safety is co-title sponsor of the 26th MasterCraft Safety Tecate SCORE San Felipe 250.

Official Sponsors of the SCORE Desert Series are:
-BFGoodrich Tires, Official Tire
-Volkswagen of America, Official Vehicle
-Sunoco Race Fuels, Official Race Fuel
-Slime, Official Tire Sealant
-Symons Ambulance Company, Official Ambulance
-Bilstein, Official Shock Absorber
-Instant Mexico Auto Insurance, Official Mexican Auto Insurance
Official Sponsors of the SCORE Baja 1000 are:
-Coca-Cola, Official Soft Drink
-Volaris Airlines, Official Airline
-Lightforce Performance Lighting, Official Driving Light
Additional SCORE Sponsors are - Proturismo Ensenada, Baja California Secretary of Tourism, COTUCO Mexicali/San Felipe, Las Vegas Events, Blue C Advertising, SignPros, PCI Race Radios, McKenzie’s Performance Products and Advanced Color Graphics.

For more information, contact SCORE at its Los Angeles headquarters 818.225.8402 or visit the official website of the 2012 SCORE Desert Series at www.score-international.com.

44th Annual Tecate SCORE Baja 500
June 1-3, 2012—Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico
Total Entries: 214 (as of 5/16/12)
(from 32 U.S. States, Australia, Austria, Canada, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Finland,
Germany, Guatemala, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Mexico and U.S. territory-Guam)
Pro Cars & Trucks
SCORE TROPHY-TRUCK (39)
18 Juan C. Lopez
30 Robbie Pierce
97 B.J. Baldwin
20 Rob MacCachren
94 Steven Strobel
49 Ryan Arciero
16 Cameron Steele
23 Dan McMillin
17 Mike Julson
19 Tim Herbst
31 Andy McMillin
34 Ken Losch
48 Jimmy Knuckles
55 Mark Workentine
93 Chris Kemp
57 Mike Palmer
12 Brendan Gaughan
45 Gary Magness
1 Bryce Menzies
15 Armin Schwarz
95 Scott Whipple
21 Gus Vildosola Jr.
2 Pete Sohren
24 Adam Householder
10 Greg Nunley
84 Nick Vanderwey
98 Gary Weyhrich
77 Robby Gordon
83 Martin Aguirre
51 Kory Scheeler
14 Josh Daniel
9 Mark Weyhrich
28 Alan Pflueger
22 Roberto Encinas III
76 Jesse Jones
39 Ron Whitton
52 Jessica Baumgartner
71 Rick D. Johnson
50 John Langley

CLASS 1 (21)
101 Cody Parkhouse
102 Josh Rigsby
103 Clyde Stacy
104 Luke McMillin
105 Tony Miglini
106 Damen Jefferies
107 Ronny Wilson
108 Guy Petersen
109 Ryan Sharman
110 Jon Walker
111 Steve Schovajsa
112 Mark Stevens
113 Monica Greenhill
114 Lyle Bask
115 Francisco Perez
116 Harley Letner
117 Mario Acosta
118 Buddy Feldkamp
146 Scott Zeppenfeldt
100 Justin Davis
149 Ron Gibbs

CLASS 1/2-1600 (10)
1601 Matt Ferrato
1602 George Peters
1603 Steve Achey
1604 Arturo Velazco
1605 Jason Coleman
1606 Brad Wilson
1607 Rob Archibald
1647 Eliseo Garcia
1648 Wes McKenzie
1649 Hiram Duran

CLASS 3 (2)
300 Donald Moss
349 Billy Bunch

CLASS 5 (3)
500 Kevin Carr
501 Raymond Gray
502 Jose Lopez

CLASS 5-1600 (3)
551 Trevor Anderson
552 Erich Reisen
579 Clyde Stacy

CLASS 6 (5)
601 Gregg Hempel
602 Eduardo Laguna
603 Peter Lang
618 Gavin Skilton
600 Heidi Steele

CLASS 7 (1)
700 Dan Chamlee

CLASS 7SX (5)
741 Alfonso Bernardino
743 Ricardo Garcia
740 Elias Hanna
745 Roman Paniagua
759 Justin Fisher

CLASS 8 (2)
801 Rick Sanchez
839 Rodolfo Iribe

CLASS 10 (13)
1001 Morgan Langley
1002 Peter Hajas
1003 Chip Prescott
1004 Matt Cullen
1005 John Martensen
1006 Lee Banning
1008 Perry McNeil
1009 Jimmy Slaughter
1010 Mark Lawrence
1011 Mike Lawrence
1000 Sergio Salgado
1013 Jorge Nuza
1049 Ty Godde

SCORE LITES (8)
1200 Rafael Navarro IV
1201 Brent Parkhouse
1202 Jeff Sanca
1203 Gregg Ryan
1204 Hector Garcia
1247 Arnoldo Ramirez
1248 Leonardo Navarrete
1249 Otoniel Huerta

STOCK FULL (1)
879 Joe Bacal

STOCK MINI (1)
779 Andy Bell

PROTRUCK (1)
1350 Chelsea Magness

CLASS 7-2 (2)
721 Dave Boynton
720 Reid Rutherford

CLASS 4 (2)
418 Mike Shaffer
419 Derek Fletcher

CLASS 2 (1)
219 Clyde Stacy

PRO MOTORCYCLES
CLASS 22 (8)
2x Mike Brown
3x A.J. Stewart
4x Robby Bell
5x Mark Samuels
1x Colton Udall
7x Kurt Caselli
8x Francisco Arredondo
9x Kendall Norman

CLASS 20 (3)
151x Dane LaFontaine
152x Tony Gurule
179x Gabriel Williams

CLASS 21 (6)
101x Adam Neuwirth
102x Jim O’Neal
103x Adolfo Palacios
104x Francisco Septien
105x Carlos Casas
106x Ulises Fierro

CLASS 30 (5)
300x Mike Johnson
301x Javier Hernandez
302x Mario Valenzuela
303x Kevin Murphy
349x Christopher Parr

CLASS 40 (6)
401x Oscar Fazz
402x Mike Johnson
403x Mike Prunty
400x Jeff Kaplan
405x Mike Kay
406x Chuck Shortt

CLASS 50 (3)
501x Marc Prince
502x Seiji Kubota
519x Mark Winkleman

CLASS 60 (2)
601 Al Perrett
600x Donald Lewis

PRO ATVs
CLASS 25 (6)
2a Josh Frederick
3a Brandon Brown
1a Wayne Matlock
5a Greg Row
6a Rafael Torres
7a Mike Cafro

CLASS 24 (6)
101a Rafael Torres
102a Manuel Jimenez
103a Miguel Olivas
104a Cristian Anaya
105a Guillermo Berenger
149a Gabriel Valencia Jr

CLASS 26 (1)
200a Carl Vella


SPORTSMAN
SPT BUGGY (4)
1401 Christopher Augenti
1402 Stephen Ankeny
1403 Dan Hansen
1449 Jim Bunn

SPT TRUCK (1)
1500 Randy Swink

SPT UTV (4)
1800 William Morris
1801 Thomas Graves
1802 Jason Murray
1803 Chris Koch

SPT M/C< (10)
201x Daniel O’Leary
202x Brad Masciotra
203x Mike Mensinger
204x Dan Troy
205x Carlos Orenday
206x Jobel Coronado
207x Fred Sobke
208x Carlos Gracida
209x Mark Sasaki
249x Mark Winkleman

SPT M/C> (18)
251x Carlos Valdez
252x Hideyuki Fukuoka
253x Andreas Hoyler
254x Kevin Muggleton
255x Cesar Torres
256x Kazuhiro Nakamura
257x Carl Yakiwchuk
258x Akihiri Saito
259x Dave Campbell
260x Takehiro Yorimitsu
261x Scott Darkow Jr.
262x Brad Baker
264x Luke Dupin
265x Steve Grieb
266x Adrian Ruiz-Esparza
267x Risto Niemi
268x David Camarena
299x Carlos Sanchez

SPT ATV (10)
51a Richard Epperson
52a Justin Ryan
53a Paul Engen
54a Jose Manuel Soto
55a Juan Gonzalez
56a Roger Rubio
57a David McFarland
58a Adolfo Loya
60a Juan Dominguez
99a Rusty Batza