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| Best in the Desert | |
|---|---|
| Name | Best in the Desert |
| Formation | 2005 |
| Type | Motorsport sanctioning body |
| Headquarters | Nevada, United States |
| Region served | Southwestern United States |
| Leader title | President |
Best in the Desert is a sanctioning body and series organizer for off-road racing in the Southwestern United States, staging desert endurance events that attract competitors from across North America. The organization ran marquee races and series that intersected with venues, manufacturers, teams, and media outlets central to off-road motorsport culture. Its events connected a network of racers, sponsors, sanctioning entities, promoters, and broadcast partners.
Founded in the mid-2000s, the series grew out of an earlier lineage of desert racing linked to Baja California, Nevada, Arizona, California and associations such as SNORE, Mojave Desert, Mint 400 traditions. Early governance involved figures with ties to Baja 1000, Mexican 1000, NORRA alumni and regional organizers who previously worked with SCORE International and Best in the Desert-adjacent promoters. The series expanded during the 2010s alongside increased manufacturer involvement from companies like Toyota, Ford, GM, Honda, Polaris and BRP. Growth coincided with regulatory frameworks shaped by state agencies in Nevada, Arizona State Parks, Bureau of Land Management, and local counties, with stakeholder interactions involving Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority and municipal partners.
The schedule featured endurance and short-course staples including multi-day desert endurance races such as formats comparable to the Baja 1000, Baja 500, and multi-stage events like the Mint 400. Races included long-standing competitions held near Las Vegas, Laughlin, Pahrump, Henderson, Ely and southwestern corridors near Yuma and Lake Havasu City. The series hosted trophy classes, time-trial formats, and short-course spectacles resembling events in the calendars of USAC and Lucas Oil Off Road Racing Series. Series points championships attracted entrants from circuits like Stadium Super Trucks, SRO Motorsports Group, and crossover entries from International Six Days Enduro motorcycle veterans and AMA competitors.
Courses traversed public lands across the Mojave Desert, Sonoran Desert, Great Basin, and corridors near Hoover Dam, Valley of Fire State Park, and terrain around Death Valley National Park. Start/finish locations often used staging areas in Las Vegas Motor Speedway, municipal parks in Henderson, and remote desert staging areas akin to historic routes on Federal Highway 1 north of Ensenada. Course design required coordination with Bureau of Land Management, county sheriffs such as the Clark County Sheriff, tribal governments like the Colorado River Indian Tribes where applicable, and emergency services from Nevada Division of Emergency Management.
Competitors entered vehicles across classes including purpose-built Trophy Trucks similar to championship machinery campaigned by teams running vehicles from Geiser Bros. Racing, open-wheel prerunners, UTVs from Polaris RZR, Can-Am Maverick, and motorcycle entries representing KTM and Yamaha. Side-by-side classes mirrored entries in SxS and UTV World Championship fields; truck entrants paralleled competitors in SCORE International and Baja SAE-inspired designs. Classes referenced technical standards comparable to FIA off-road regulations, with safety equipment supplied by manufacturers like Bell Sports, Alpinestars, and Simpson Performance Products.
The series attracted high-profile desert racers, cross-disciplinary drivers, and teams with histories in Baja 1000, SCORE Baja 1000, King of the Hammers, and Dakar Rally participation. Notable names included veterans and champions who also campaigned for teams akin to Glen Helen Raceway alumni, drivers with ties to Rob MacCachren, BJ Baldwin, Casey Currie, Cameron Steele, and team operations comparable to Metal Mulisha and Lucas Oil Racing Development. Factory-supported entries occasionally featured riders and drivers who race in AMA Supercross, FIA World Rallycross Championship, and NASCAR development programs.
The organizing structure included a president, race directors, technical inspectors and safety coordinators who liaised with sanctioning and licensing bodies like USAC and regional promoter associations. Governance required compliance with environmental review processes involving Bureau of Land Management and state land-use policies overseen by offices in Nevada and Arizona, with insurance underwriters and safety standards aligned with ANSI-style protocols and medical response agreements with local hospitals such as University Medical Center of Southern Nevada. Administration coordinated with sponsors from Monster Energy, Red Bull, and motorsport suppliers including BFGoodrich and Method Race Wheels.
Coverage spanned specialized outlets and mainstream platforms including Motor Trend, Speed Sport, Autoweek, Racer, and broadcast partners similar to CBS Sports Network and streaming platforms echoing YouTube and Facebook Watch activations. Photography and editorial pieces ran in Off-Road.com style portals, with documentary-style features comparable to content from Vice Media and highlights syndicated by motorsport aggregators like Motorsport.com. The series influenced regional tourism overseen by entities like Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority and fostered supplier markets for BFGoodrich, Fox Factory, KC HiLiTES and aftermarket companies, while contributing to the careers of drivers who moved into Dakar Rally and other international events.
Category:Auto racing organizations in the United States