Columnist Brian Hilderbrand: Ragland draws 1st position in Baja 500 desert race

Thursday, April 29, 2004 | 9:13 a.m.

Brian Hilderbrand covers motor sports for the Las Vegas Sun. His motor sports notebook appears Friday. He can be reached at bh@lasvegassun.com or (702) 259-4089.

Veteran off-road racer Larry Ragland, who drives in the Trophy Truck division for Las Vegas-based Collins Motorsports, drew the first starting position among the car and truck classes for the June 5 Tecate SCORE Baja 500 desert race in Ensenada, Mexico.

Marc Francke of Marina del Rey, Calif., drew the first starting position for motorcycles and all-terrain vehicles in the computerized drawing held last weekend at SCORE International headquarters in Los Angeles.

Ragland, 61, teamed with Collins Motorsports owner Brian Collins in the first two races of the season and is listed as the driver of record of the No. 12 Chevy Silverado. Collins has been the driver of record since the team entered the Trophy Truck class but turned the designation over to Ragland this season because Collins will miss the Baja 500 to attend his son's high school graduation.

Ragland and Collins finished fourth in class and fourth overall at the San Felipe 250 in February and Ragland is seventh in Trophy Truck points after two of five races. Ragland owns five class victories and three overall titles in the Baja 500.

Two-time defending overall race winners Troy Herbst of Las Vegas and Larry Roeseler of Hesperia, Calif., will start 18th in Class 1. Herbst has five class victories, including two overall titles, in the Baja 500 while Roeseler is tied for second all-time with 13 class victories and 11 overall titles.

SCORE Trophy Truck points leaders Mark Post and Jerry Whelchel drew the 12th starting position for the Baja 500 while Ed and Tim Herbst of Las Vegas will start third. The Herbst brothers are 14th in Trophy Truck points after two races.

Rob MacCachren of Las Vegas is entered in two classes for the 36th annual Baja 500. He will team with Gus Vildosola of Mexicali, Mexico, in Trophy Truck and also will co-drive with Danny Anderson in Class 1-2/1600. Vildosola and MacCachren are fourth in Trophy Truck points and MacCachren is fourth in the Class 1-2/1600 standings.

More than 260 entries in 23 professional and five sportsman classes are expected for the 26th running of the Baja 500, which will start in downtown Ensenada and finish inside the Deportivo Antonio Palacios baseball stadium.

Ed and Tim Herbst of Las Vegas won Class 1400 (unlimited production truck) and finished fifth overall while Las Vegans Rob MacCachren and Steve Olliges and Sam Chambers of Glenwood Springs, Colo., teamed to win Class 7300 (pure stock mini truck).

Russell Pearson of Henderson and Ty Davis of Hesperia, Calif., teamed to win the Open Pro motorcycle class. Other local riders who finished first in class included Matt Gosnell and Clint Braun (250 Pro); Ross Williams and Roger Russell (Over 40 Pro); Chris Fry, Tony Aguilera and Nacoma McCormick (4-Stroke Expert); Paul Buckles (Over 35 Expert); and Bret Greenholz (Quad Expert).

The next event on the BITD schedule is the TSCO Vegas to Reno, June 24-26.

Two Southern Nevada racers, Rob MacCachren (Class 1-2/1600) and Mark Hutchins (Class 10), are among the drivers who have completed every mile through the first two races and are eligible to share a $12,000 bonus should they also win their respective class points championships.