LA PAZ, MEXICO - On November 16, 2006, three Stock Full class race trucks flying the KORE logo left the starting line to take on the notorious SCORE Baja 1000. KORE's '06 Team Desert Assault consisted of truck No. 865 from RPM Off-Road in Bristol, Tennessee; No. 866 from Worthington Racing in Los Angeles; and No. 867 from Team Canada Racing in Alberta. Each team drove identically equipped Cummins diesel-powered Dodge Ram 2500 4x4 pickups.
KORE has been doing this for so long now that it's got the whole event down to a science. Prerunning and racing are standard Baja; you prepare the best you can, but anything can happen. By using proven, off-the-shelf parts, we eliminate a lot of variables and increase our chances of success. This not only makes building the race trucks easier but also facilitates our logistical support because each truck uses common parts.
Participating in the '06 Baja 1000 off-road race meant 1,047.8 miles of whoops, silt beds, exposed rocks, and standing water from recent hurricanes, making the course particularly challenging (it claimed 146 of the 283 four-wheel-class vehicles that started the race). In other words, 52 percent of the vehicles that started the race weren't able to drive the entire course.
"Our truck was running strong on the biodiesel we made at our shop," said Loren Worthington, owner of truck No. 866. SaraMae Kroeker, navigating for Loren, said, "I couldn't smell the tempura oil during the race because we were going so fast."
"We had passed everyone in our class within the first 50 miles, but then we broke the sector shaft in our steering box," Loren said. "We were right in the middle of the race course, which made changing out the box dangerous, awkward, and time-consuming. We barely made it to checkpoint number two on the course without timing out."
 The '03-and-later Cummins-powered...  The '03-and-later Cummins-powered Rams are well suited for extreme off-road racing. The three Dodge trucks of Team Desert Assault were built to compete in SCORE's Stock Full class. These trucks are based on production pickups that have been modified for severe abuse. |  In order to race, each truck...  In order to race, each truck was fitted with a full race cage. The interiors were stripped of the factory seats, interior panels, sound insulation, and, in some cases, glass. |  Safety is critical in every...  Safety is critical in every race vehicle. In addition to the safety cage and fire extinguishers, race seats with integrated suspensions are used. On trucks without windshields, builders also add fresh-air systems (red filters on blower motors) to bring clean air into the helmets of the drivers and passengers. |
 Spare parts and tools ensure...  Spare parts and tools ensure that drivers can fix broken pieces when problems arise. |  Spare driveshafts, suspension...  Spare driveshafts, suspension components, steering boxes, and track bars were mounted to the beds of the race trucks. |  Even the fastest trucks will...  Even the fastest trucks will race for hours at night; auxiliary lighting is critical for this endeavor. Truck No. 867 was fitted with these experimental LED lights. |