What’s the SCORE?

Thursday, June 26, 2003 | 10:01 a.m.

Preparations for next month's second annual SCORE Henderson's Terrible 250 off-road race are well under way and this year's race promises to be bigger than the inaugural event -- in more ways than one.

In an effort to avoid the problems with dust that fueled complaints last year from some Boulder City residents, race vehicles will run three laps over a 77-mile course as opposed to the five laps over the 50-mile circuit that was used last year. Race officials also plan to water a larger portion of the course nearest to Boulder City to help alleviate the dust problem.

Also, the course will start and finish on the northeast edge of the Eldorado Dry Lake Bed, just off of Nevada State Highway 95, six miles south of the junction of Nevada State Highway 93 and Railroad Pass. The start/finish line area and a pit area on the Jean Dry Lake Bed off of the old Los Angeles Highway at Knight's Ranch Road near Jean are the only two designated spectator areas for the race.

The July 12 SCORE Henderson's Terrible 250 will feature nearly $500,000 in cash purse and contingency awards, making it the world's richest desert race. The event, which will be limited to cars and trucks this year, will be the fourth round of the six-race SCORE Desert Series. Unlike last year's inaugural event, this year's race will not include motorcycles or all-terrain vehicles.

The 17 Pro and two Sportsman classes will be split into two groups, with the first starting at 6 a.m. and the truck and unlimited Class 1 classes starting at 8 a.m. Vehicles are scheduled to start to leave the starting line at 30-second intervals and will have an with an 8-hour time limit to be considered an official finisher. The first overall finisher will earn a $10,000 bonus.

Herbst Gaming and the cities of Henderson and Boulder City once again are teaming to sponsor the event, as well as a handful of pre-race events. Last year's race drew an estimated 17,000 spectators and pumped $6 million into the local economy, according to figures provided by the Henderson Convention Center and Visitors Bureau.

"We were very happy with last year's race and this event is getting bigger and better," said Bud Pico, manager of tourism and sales with the Henderson Convention Center and Visitors Bureau. "This year's race will afford fans a larger viewing area, with spectator viewing areas on both sides of the McCullough Mountains."

Pico said the course will encompass several existing off-road courses that have been used in the past, including a majority of the course that was used for last year's race.