50 years Baja 1000

The famous race in southern California, on a peninsula in Mexico, is certainly one of the most dangerous and toughest races in the world. The race for motorcycles and vehicles of class 11, modified and converted Volkswagen Beetle vehicles (nowadays also trucks and other custom cars are allowed to participate), goes over 1000 miles.

But the Baja 1000 has its origins in a much less tough race. Bruce Meyers created the Beach Buggies during the hippie culture in the 1960s. Vehicles on a Volkswagen Beetle chassis with individual, partly made of plastic, bodies. Again and again, smaller races took place on beach sections with these beach buggies or beetle derivatives. They met at the weekends. But in 1967, the small meetings became an organized big off-road race with a prescribed route. The start is in Ensenada, the destination is near Cabo San Lucas. In between 1000 miles of dusty desert roads.

Bruce Meyers, now 91 years old and creator of the Beach Buggies and Baja Beetle tells in an interview about the history of the Baja 1000 and why this race is so legendary today, but at the same time so dreaded.