wordplay: Don Bain
images: Wide Open Baja

Once the holidays are behind us, many of us will start to plan the winter vacation we’ve been working towards since summer. Those who dream of winter walkabouts will then split neatly into two groups: one will pull up the websites for places like Vail, Steamboat Springs and Purgatory. The rest will research destinations where the only frost is on the cervezas or margaritas, where the boarding involves white-capped breakers and the word gear means sandals, snorkel and sun block.

It is the members of this second group we’d like to engage today with a recreational option they may not have considered. There are many places with nice resorts, plentiful beaches and a wide variety of activities, water sports, restaurants and nightlife. From windsurfing to jet skis, sailing to deep sea fishing, on horseback or ATV at the golf course or in the spa – these things can be found far and wide in resorts from the Bahamas to Puerto Vallarta. Still there’s one thing you won’t find in any of those places.

Have you ever heard of the Baja 1000 – the tortuous race across the forbidding desert peninsula? This is where some of the best cross-country drivers in the world annually team up with some of the foremost automotive engineers to try and conquer the mighty Baja. Here a driver takes a well-built vehicle along with his skill and determination and goes head to head with gravity, unforgiving terrain and the desert itself.

If you’ve ever watched these guys you couldn’t help but wonder what it’s like to drive one of those Baja vehicles over the desert terrain. If you plan your vacation in Los Cabos, you can dip your toe into those waters, safely and securely, experiencing a thrill like no other.
A company called Wide Open on Plaza del Mar in Cabo San Lucas will take you to their track just outside of town and, after a few short instructions, they’ll give you your skull cap, helmet and goggles. The instructions are simple: power through the turns and let off the gas when you catch a little air.

They show you where to step on the rear wheel and the tubular frame to slip down into the driver’s seat of the Chenowth Magnum offroad racer. After fastening a six-point harness and running straps around your biceps, they’ll trip three toggle switches and push the start button bringing the 160-horsepower Porsche engine to life with a roar. Your racer has heavy-duty shocks, allowing each wheel up to 20 inches of vertical movement. Clutch the four-speed shifter and you’re ready to go. Since there’s no reverse gear you can only go forward from here.

Pick from solo or two-seater models, should you and a buddy want to share the
ride. The outing costs $250 for seven laps around the 3.2-mile track with additional laps at $30 each. The track is a lop-sided loop through the desert with two jumps and four turns, including two power-slides.

The first lap you’ll take a bit slow, getting used to the vibration, the track and the racer – after that the thrill starts to kick in and you start testing the limits of gravity and how to use acceleration to slide right through the turns. Most of the track you’ll take in second or third gear, only shifting to forth on the straight-aways as you accelerate for the jumps.
Something happens as you speed around the track – time, and to some extent gravity, no longer matter. You become completely immersed in the experience and pushing your own limits – a rare and exhilarating form of freedom.

If it sounds like an exclusively male indulgence, you’re wrong. Women are not immune to the allure of power, freedom and pushing the limits any more than men. Don’t be surprised if your lady’s right in there giving you some serious competition. Win or lose, you’ll both have the time of your life.

If seven laps around the track turns out just to be a taste of something you want a whole lot more of, Baja Wide Open also offers four to seven day cross-country outings with full support and luxurious accommodations at the end of each day. As you drive across the starkly beautiful landscape you stay in immediate radio contact with your hosts and guides, one of four Baja 500 and Baja 1000 champions with over 15 trophies among them.

(949) 340.1155

WideOpenCabo.com