By Brian Hilderbrand

Wed, Apr 2, 2008 (2 a.m.)

Despite almost four decades of experience putting on desert races and over a year of planning by Southern Nevada Off-Road Enthusiasts, there were some in the desert racing ranks who doubted the all-volunteer group could pull off a resurrection of the Mint 400.

Ken Freeman, a member of SNORE’s board of directors and a longtime competitor, found out in an unusual way that his group’s hard work had paid off in a successful event Saturday.

“I’m going down the course and going through a bunch of bumps and we catch a little air, and there are two BLM guys out there and they’re clapping and giving me the thumbs-up, and I thought that was just amazing,” Freeman said, referring to two officials from the Bureau of Land Management, which grants groups permission to race on public lands and oversees those events.

The new Mint 400 did not draw as many race vehicles — 216 started, about half the number entered in the original event. And it didn’t draw the huge crowd of spectators that its predecessor did during its heyday.

But virtually everyone connected with this year’s event deemed it a success.

K.J. Howe, a former executive with the Mint, then a downtown casino, who served as race director of the original Mint 400 in the ’70s and early ’80s, said SNORE did itself proud and proved the naysayers wrong.

“SNORE did a heck of a job,” said Howe, who competed in a portion of the race in a Class 18 buggy. “Everybody said they couldn’t pull it off — but they did.

“I think in successive years they’re going to get all the little wrinkles out and give it a little more of the glamour stuff that we did in my day. But they can’t do that all at once. You’ve got to see if the product works first, and they’ve proven it works.”

Lee Kirk, outdoor recreation planner for the BLM, said the event was a success from his group’s point of view.

“It went well,” Kirk said. “It was very well-organized and it was quiet for us, so that’s a good thing.”

Kirk would not estimate how many people watched the race in formal spectator areas north of Jean and in Primm, but race organizers said a BLM ranger told them about 10,000 people watched the race from behind Buffalo Bill’s Resort & Casino in Primm. Kirk said the agency reported no problems with fan behavior during the daylong event.

In addition to Saturday’s race, the vehicles that competed in the Mint 400 occupied Fremont Street East on Thursday and Friday for tech inspection. Although the crowds there did not rival those for the original event, at least one local businessman proclaimed it a success.

“The group that put it on did a great job,” said Mike Nolan, general manager of El Cortez, one of the race sponsors. “I think (SNORE) really pulled it off well and we were excited about it. There were a lot of people on the street and I thought it was great for the community and downtown.

“Did we set any records in our casino? No, but we don’t have a single complaint, either. We think it was good for the area, and what’s good for the area is good for us.”

Freeman said his group was overwhelmed by the positive feedback from competitors. SNORE has begun planning next year’s event.

“The response that we got was actually better than we expected and we were ecstatic with the number of people that showed up,” Freeman said. “It has been quite some time since we had a following like that from the general public. The race came off without any major issues and we’re going to do it again next year.”

That came as welcome news to Las Vegas native Brian Collins, a second-generation desert racer who won the overall and Unlimited Trucks titles Saturday. Collins finally added a Mint 400 championship to his racing resume after competing in — but never winning — the original event.

“I was going to the Mint 400 when I was 8 years old and I think fifth or third was my best finish,” Collins said. “To be able to come back and say I now have a Mint 400 overall win is a great feeling.

“I would love to see this race continue. Anything to do with off-road racing, anything that helps the sport, anything that keeps us racing in the desert, I don’t care what series it is or who’s running it, it’s all positive.”