Best In The Desert “Vegas to Reno” Honors Casey Folks With Extreme Off-Road Desert Racing

Best In The Desert Racing is almost back from its annual summer break—and each year they pick a fine time to rest up. Because every year, midway through August, the racing association hosts the longest off-road race that the United States has ever seen, through the grueling and unforgiving Nevada desert, no less. And this year, for the 23rd consecutive summer, Best In The Desert’s Vegas to Reno week is back, kicking off the unofficial start to the second half of the racing season—and hopefully building upon the record-setting popularity and success of last year’s event.

Best In The Desert Racing Association (BITD), anchored in Las Vegas, Nevada, is recognized as the largest professional desert off-road racing organization in North America. With 10 major events each year, including the Mint 400, the BITD’s crown jewel is undoubtedly the approaching Vegas to Reno extravaganza.

True, The King Of The Hammers may be the winter highlight of the off-road world. But there’s no doubt about it—summertime belongs to the Vegas to Reno run.

Legendary Off-Road Racing

The favorite race of BITD’s legendary founder—late Off-Road Motorsports Hall Of Famer Casey Folks—Vegas to Reno saw its highest numbers in participation and attendance last year. And with 2019’s race week upon us, operations manager Donald Jackson, Folks’ longtime collaborator, and his team are excited to set the bar to a new height.

“This legendary event is absolutely the ultimate desert racing adventure,” Jackson says. “It is our flagship event and we are all fully dedicated to making sure Vegas to Reno will always continue in the great tradition and spirit that Casey would want.”

In 1984, after a successful racing career of his own, Folks started BITD as a forum for desert motorcycle racing. By 1996, he hatched the idea for the first Vegas to Reno Race, adding cars, trucks, and quads to the mix. (Today, there’s a UTV class as well.) Fittingly, all Vegas to Reno runs will now be named in Folks’ honor.

The 2019 General Tire Casey Folks Vegas to Reno presented by FOX checks practically every box on racers’ dream checklist.

A long, grueling course that tests stamina? Check.

Elevation changes and a dizzying array of ever-changing terrain to keep drivers on their toes? Yup.

Unpredictable temperatures and unruly desert conditions thrown in for good measure? Of course.

Nearly everyone who is anyone in the world of desert racing has made their bones at Vegas to Reno. Robbie Gordon, Rod Hall, Curt LeDuc, Mike and Robbie Groff, and the great Rob MacCachren are all veterans of this inimitable contest.

Grueling Conditions

The 2019 Vegas to Reno race will contain all of the elements that have made it such a favorite in the past. Though the entire event is a four-day affair, the race itself takes just one. But it’s a LONG one, folks.

Beginning on Friday and running all the way through to Saturday morning, teams must come in under the 24-hour mark in order to officially be counted as finishers. No easy task, since the race, as usual, spans about 550 miles, starting north of Las Vegas and finishing just south of—you guessed it—Reno, Nevada. Elevation along the route varies between 3,000 and 7,200 feet, and temperatures can range from the high nineties in the day to the cold low forties at night.

Overheating in the daytime is always a factor. Plus, the dusty conditions in the Nevada desert can make it nearly impossible to pass, at times bringing visibility down to absolute zero. Plus, things like rest, food, and other human bodily necessities are also a crucial factor, making it a smart option for some teams to carry multiple drivers for the full-day affair.

In Loving Memory

Continuing to be a hit with its ever-growing fan base, BITD events continue to thrive with the public, largely by operating in the spirit of Casey Folks example as best they can. Now co-owned by Folks’ sons, Daryl and Bryan Folks, their father’s desire to make these events safe and well-paying for contestants, as well as exciting, interactive, and affordable for the burgeoning fan base is never far from their minds.

Casey Folks built a reputation as a great steward of off-road sports throughout his career, earning particular respect for his championing of measures for drivers’ safety, as well as his care for the environment, as noted by his many friends at the Bureau of Land Management. His respect for the desert that hosts them each year is evident and lives on today. (For example, any race team found leaving a tire behind is docked a whole hour from their time! That can easily be the difference between victory and defeat, virtually abolishing the practice.)

Better Than Ever

Fans continue to fall in love with BITD events like Vegas to Reno, not just for the excitement, but for how up-close-and-personal they can get to it. The time trials are pivotal for ensuring drivers a start position in front of the pack and out of the dust, and are a favorite event of attendees. The race itself sees scores of supporters at the starting and finish lines, and the Sparks Nugget Awards Ceremony on Saturday night is a party unto itself that fans ought not miss.

Aside from the action, vendors and sponsors are there showing off their wares—the top parts and technology that (quite literally) drive the circuit. This year, brands like General Tire, FOX, Ford, Lucas Oil, VP Race Fuels, KC HiLites, FabTech, Rugged Race Radios, Polaris RZR, Method Race Wheels, and plenty others are all proud sponsors.

The 2019 Vegas to Reno promises to be the biggest success in the near quarter-century resume of this iconic event. Bringing together all off-road racing disciplines and vehicles for a wild four days of white-knuckle racing in the dusty Nevada desert, fans and race teams alike are counting the days. With spectators predicted to be in record numbers, and competing teams expected to overshadow last year’s massive enrollment of 350-plus, it is gonna be one heckuva party to kick-start the second half of the season.

The 2019 Best In The Desert General Tire Casey Folks Vegas to Reno runs August 14 – 17, 2019. If you’re interested in attending or registering for competition, click here for more information.