 Born in San Diego, California, Stahl began his professional racing career in off-road racing; he scored overall wins in the Baja 1000 in his Chenowth VW in 1978 and 1980, and the car won just Class 1 (but not overall) in 1981.Stahl battled Frank "Scoop" Vessels for the win of the 1978 Baja 1000 and Vessels crossed the finish line 3 minutes ahead of Stahl - but had started 9 minutes earlier - giving the victory to Stahl by 6 minutes.He moved to stock cars 1981, competing in the NASCAR Winston West Series; he competed in the series full-time in 1982, finishing 12th in points.