Luke McMillin - 2010 SCORE 1600 Champion

McMillin Racing Rattles Baja Peninsula

San Diego, California (November 23, 2010) Fielding three race cars at the 2010 Tecate SCORE Baja 1000 was quite an endeavor for Mark McMillin and his McMillin Homes race team. By the time the last of his three race vehicles had reached the finished line of the 1061-mile race, he and his sons, Daniel and Luke, celebrated a season championship and two top ten finishes.

Driving the first half of the race in his #23 McMillin Homes/BFGoodrich Tires race truck, Mark McMillin had a near flawless run to the halfway point at San Ignacio. Arriving to the McMillin Racing pit at San Ignacio, Mark McMillin was in 7th position among the leaders. Crew Chief Cameron Parrish rode in the right seat with Mark and stayed in with driver, Chuck Hovey, until the La Purisma pit. Chuck ran a solid pace and survived 20 minutes in the devilish Baja silt, where four trucks were able to get past him. After a whopping 1000 plus miles of racing, the #23 McMillin Homes truck crossed the checkered flag in 10th position among the elite SCORE Trophy Trucks.

Mark smiled proudly acknowledging, “All three of us had a great race. Our first goal is to always have a fun and safe race and we accomplished that. We had three fun preruns during the month leading up to the race and everyone came home safe and sound. I’m so very proud of my sons, Daniel and Luke. Daniel was in a difficult position racing for the championship in Class1 after not finishing at the SCORE Primm 300 race. He ran great at this long race and finished second. On the other hand, my youngest son, Luke, earned his first championship in his rookie year and I couldn’t be any prouder of my sons. This has been a special SCORE Baja 1000 and sharing it with my family has been fantastic.”

At the finish line in La Paz Mark McMillin said, “It’s been a great year and I have to thank BFGoodrich Tires for their continued support as well as Mastercraft Safety. Sal Fish and SCORE continue to promote the best off road race in the world and we are happy to be standing here at the finish line of the 2010 Tecate SCORE Baja 1000.”

Racing in his first full season, Luke McMillin started off the season at the SCORE Laughlin Desert Challenge with an impressive top five finish and he never looked back.

Crossing the checkered flags at the 2010 Tecate SCORE Baja 1000, Luke McMillin earned his first ever season championship. Following in the footsteps of his family of racers, the youngest racing McMillin has set the bar high for generations to come.
“We had a pretty good race. Starting in the back of the pack, we passed a lot of people, but I had a couple of flat tires racing in the heavy dust where it was very hard to see. After 520 miles and 12 hours of driving, I made it through the field to the 4th position at the halfway point. I handed the race car to Andy DeVercelly and he charged hard and raced into 2nd place where Adam Pfankuch took over at Loreto. Adam was making time on the leader and we lost a transmission at race mile 900. Winning the SCORE 1600 season championship was the goal when we started the year in this new Alumi Craft car and it’s been a great season,” said 2010 SCORE 1600 Champion, Luke McMillin.

Daniel McMillin and Casey King started this year’s race in the McMillin Homes/BFGoodrich Tires Class 1 car at approximately 11:55 am on Thursday morning and the first 275-miles of the race were flawless. However, it all changed when they entered Frog Canyon, about 10 miles south of Coco’s Corner and just before El Crucero. The racing duo drove their Class 1 car literally underwater in a very deep hole that later was the demise of many racers. Locals who came to spectate the race at Frog Canyon jumped into action and tried to pull the JIMCO Class 1 out of the water hole to no avail. Daniel reached out to the Desert Assassin’s Pit Crew led by a man described by many as a the last pirate in the desert, Troy Harper. Harper, a Baja racing veteran, drove his 4-wheel drive truck near the water hole and within a few minutes the #103 McMillin Homes Class 1 was racing south towards La Paz.

Daniel later recounted, “The water was inside the cab of the car and up to the bottom of the seats. But once Troy towed us out, I fired it right up and we got going again. I thought we were done, but Troy and the Desert Assassins saved our race. From there all the way to Vizcaino, we had no issues. It was a great race and when I handed the car over to Steve Sourapas, we were 10 minutes behind the leader. Unfortunately, Steve became sick and had to get out of the car, so Gary Arnold got in the car with Brian Coneen riding in the right seat and they drove the car to the finish line. Our JIMCO Class 1 was almost perfect for the entire 1061-mile race, but we lost power steering only 20 miles from the finish. We charged on and got across the finish line in second place. We couldn’t race at this level without the dedication of the entire McMillin Racing crew. They worked hard for months prior to the race and throughout the race they never gave up, always providing us with a competitive reliable racecar and race support. We race the 2010 Tecate SCORE Baja 1000 without a single flat on BFGoodrich Tires. Fourteen hours of this year’s race was at night and the Baja Designs/Sol Tek lights were awesome. Thanks to FOX RACING SHOX for a perfect suspension setup and our DANZIO tuned engine survived going swimming in Frog Canyon before the halfway point of the race. Mastercraft Safety has supported us with a great race suits all season long. Thanks to our race team sponsors for there continued support all year long.”