Baja 500 - Legends In Our Own Mind

We were having a family dinner, and my brother brought up the idea of us having a family motorcycle outing to Baja.  He had taken the trip and every time he talked about it, he had the sparkle in his eye.   This time I was all in.  I had always wanted to do it, but the further I had gotten away from dirt bikes, the easier it was for me to resist.  My wife is an accomplished sportbike rider, but had never spent any real time on the dirt.  Not a problem, we felt it in our best interest to take a couple of trips to Highland Park and rent some KTM 250XC-F’s.  She would ask if we thought that she could handle Baja, and we said what we have always said to people, “It will be a breeze”.  At that point, what else could we have said?  She would later dog cuss us as we would continually lead her into life threatening situations.

So the trip was set.  My brother, Carelton, his two sons, Richard, 20, Hayden, 16, my wife, Margaret, and I were going to take a Baja Adventure Tour.   After doing some research, we determined that Trail Boss Tours was right up our alley.  Chris & Nancy Stewart were former class winners of the Baja 500, were willing to cater to our requests, and they had a fleet of new Yamaha WR250 & WR450 through their direct association with Yamaha. 

We flew into San Diego, where Chris loaded us up and headed for Ensenada, Mexico.  His support man Tim following with the prepped bikes in a sweet enclosed trailer.  Chris is our kind of guy.  We shared bench racing stories all the way to our resort.  There is not enough time in the day for Chris to share his lifetime of wild, funny motorcycle adventures.  He reminded us of the guys my brother and I grew up racing with.  He could throw down on Saturday night, only to smoke you from start to finish at the races on Sunday.  This guy was a true warrior.  He has been riding hard forever, limps to the bike, and he sets a blistering pace from sun-up to sun-down.  We would ride into some of the most god-awful places, go to some remote place to eat, only to have Chris on great terms with everyone around, eat the best damn food I ever put into my mouth as cock roaches strolled by wearing sombreros.

Chris had the tour thing down to a science.  He would sprint out to a comfortable lead to prevent the pinhead former racers (me) from riding over their head and endangering themselves by trying to prove how fast they were by stalking the guide.  My brother and Richard, who was riding incredibly well, were in close pursuit.  Our support vehicle always met us at the right time in the right places.  We split our group into two parts for some of the more demanding sections.  My wife and my patient youngest nephew would take some routes to meet up with us after we would blaze some of the tougher race sections.  I can’t say enough about our cleanup rider, Seve, who was a huge help to my wife and nephew with instruction.  He ensured their safety and made their experience fantastic.

The highlight of our trip was the ride through the famous dry lake bed in route to the more famous Mike’s Sky Ranch.  The 13 mile loop to Mike’s Sky Ranch was fantastic and conquered by the entire group.  It was the kind of experience that most riders never even dream about.  At the ranch, we ran into another group with a tour company that we investigated prior to the trip, and we could tell that they were not having anything near the fun we were having with Chris, Tim, and Seve.  We made the right choice.

Every morning we would awake to sore bones, fantastic food, and perfectly prepped bikes by Tim, ready to do it all over again.  I can honestly say that this was a dream trip for me.  I left knowing that I had ridden and stayed where my hero’s Malcolm Smith, Steve McQueen, Larry Roessler, and Ty Davis had been.  As I write this, I am trying to figure out how to put together a Rocky Mountain trip with Trail Boss Tours.

Baja Itinerary

Day One: You will be met at San Diego’s Lindbergh Field. After rounding everyone up we will travel to Ensenada, about a two hour drive from the Airport. We will be staying in Ensenada, here you will have your first taste of authentic Mexican cuisine and enjoy all the amenities of a top notch resort.

Day Two: on our first day of riding we will cruise to the San Pedro Martir Mountains. We’ll descend into Valle De Trinidad for a Lunch break. From there you can choose from 3 different routes, so pick your poison.  We have routes for all levels. At day’s end, our Trail Buckaroos will ride into the famous high mountain resort of Mike’s Sky Ranch, where more fun begins. Mikes features comfortable rooms, hot showers, a pool, trout stream, pool table, and a friendly lounge beset with posters, stickers and photos covering 30 years of off road racing history. After our mesquite barbequed steak dinner we’ll kick off a lie swapping, bench racing session and general good time. At the bar you can try some of Mike’s private reserve; it will warm your bones the Baja way.

Day Three: The day begins with plenty of hot coffee and machaca con huevos, then its time to roost West to the Pacific on more of past and present Baja race courses. Along the way we will Lunch at Rick and Maria’s, after lunch we will ride down the beach heading south for this evenings destination, The Old Mill, located on San Quintin bay.

Day Four: Ride North up the beach, stopping at Shipwrecks for breakfast. Then we will run up the coast back to Ensenada, heading through fishing villages and farm fields, on the Baja 500 course. Once back in Ensenada we will load up and drive home.

Mike’s Sky Ranch: This route to a secluded backcountry lodge begins at a signed junction at a point 10.7 miles southeast of Valle de Trinidad. High-clearance vehicles are necessary. The first half of the trip is over a dirt road rising gradually over semi-arid landscape. Cerro San Matias (elevation 7100 feet) is visible to the east. The road becomes rougher and more winding as it approaches a junction at mileage 13.8. Here is found a 6000-foot graded airstrip that belongs to Mike's. A rough road to the right goes to Ejido Los Pocitos. Bear left to continue 8.2 miles farther over rough surface to the ranch. Another road to Mike's, coming from the vicinity of Meling Ranch, is rough going due to heavy rains the last several years. Mike's Sky Ranch rests on a knoll overlooking Arroyo San Rafael, a wooded valley flanked by steep, brush-covered mountains. The ranch offers motel-type accommodations, family-style meals, a swimming pool, horse-back riding, sycamore-shaded campsites and information about trips into the rugged country to the east. The small stream that flows through the valley yields small rainbow trout. Hunters can go after deer, rabbit, quail and mountain lion.