Our Story
We are a family-operated team competing in desert racing with a naturally aspirated stock UTV (AKA Dusty).
Several years ago, Hans and Erich dreamt about how fun it would be to race in Baja California. Fast forward, and they had a side-by-side and were studying up on different races, organizations, and rules. John volunteered to drive the chase truck, and has since joined the driving rotation.
When the team heard about the NORRA Mexican 1000, they knew they had found their home. NORRA describes it as the happiest race on Earth, which has proved to be accurate. Rather than a straight-shot, start-to-finish race, the Mexican 1000 is completed in stages spread over five days. Teams have a chance to make repairs, socialize, and rest at the end of each race day. Buckwalter Racing enjoys the format and hopes to participate in NORRA events for years to come.
Schedule & Results
2019 NORRA Mexican 1000
Ensenada to San Jose del Cabo
110th Overall
4th in Class
2021 NORRA Mexican 1000
Ensenada to Ensenada
46th Overall
2nd in Class
2023 NORRA Mexican 1000
Ensenada to San Jose del Cabo
98th Overall
1st in Class
Meet the Family
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John
John serves as driver, chase driver, and chief medical officer.
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Hans
Hans serves as driver, navigator, chief engineer, and principal owner.
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Erich
Erich’s earliest off-road memory is his uncle taking him on (and off) the logging trails of southern Oregon. His first four-wheel drive vehicle was a Mazda pickup, which he once used to pull Hans’ pickup out of the mud. He enjoys using his limited Spanish to communicate with the locals. Erich serves as driver, navigator, chase driver, UAV pilot, and lead photographer/videographer.
Meet Dusty
2017 Polaris RZR XP 4 1000
When we began, we had a difficult time figuring out what to do first. We spent a lot of time searching the internet and lurking at races, generally trying to figure out which way was up. If you want to race your side by side, here are our suggested modifications. We shop at Progressive Powersports Parts Center for their great selection and prices, and they ship most orders for free.
Electronics
We use a tablet to control our rear light bar and satellite navigation. We have an intercom in Dusty and two-way radios in Dusty and the chase truck. We run three action cameras on Dusty and two UAVs.
Lights
We turn night into day with our All Terrain Concepts full-width light bar on the roof and two light pods on the front bumper. We also have a high-mounted LED light bar on the rear to avoid getting run over.
Restraints
We replaced the factory belts with five-point harnesses and added window nets. Both modifications passed with flying colors when we rolled Dusty on its side in 2019.
Suspension
We raced the stock suspension in 2019, and bent an a-arm and a trailing arm on the first day. For 2021, we upgraded to stronger components while maintaining stock dimensions. We also had the shocks revalved and tuned.
Partners
