Desert racing is the act ofracing through thedesert in a two- or four-wheeled off-road vehicle. Races, which generally consist of two or more loops around a course covering up to 4,660 miles (7,500 km), can take the form of Hare and Hound orHare scramble style events, and are often laid out over a long and harsh track through relatively barren terrain.
Point-to-point–style races, including the famousMint 400 andBaja 1000, attract nationally ranked and celebrity drivers. This type of racing tests theendurance and capabilities of racer and machine, and while organized clubs or teams sometimes field multiple sponsored riders for particular events, desert racing in its purest form is largely an individual endeavor. Winning racers accrue points to advance their rank and placement in future contests.
Desert racing vehicles, which include ruggedenduro-style motorcycle, four wheeledall-terrain vehicles, trucks (likeGroup T4), pickup trucks (likeTrophy Trucks), anddune buggies, have specialized suspensions with increased wheel travel.[1] The now-defunct Barstow to Vegas, which was held in theMojave Desert from 1967 to 1975 and 1983 to 1989, was a well-known example of desert racing inNorth America. Desert racing, in its most organized form, began in Southern California in the 1920s.[2][3]
The sport has also seen rapid developments in other countries. InPakistan, the Cholistan Desert Rally began in 2005,[4] with more than 100 drivers in the 2018 event won byMir Nadir Ali Khan Magsi.