Motor Sports: Handley, Stein have their eyes on races south of the border

Mark Handley plans to spends a few days in the Baja sun this weekend, battling the desert elements as he coaxes his truck through the rugged terrain.

Handley knows racing in the SCORE Baja 500 won't be easy, but he looks at it as a tune-up for his ultimate goal -- the Baja 1000 this winter.

The San Marcos resident and co-driver Marc Stein of Del Mar came together last year with a plan to conquer the most prestigious annual off-road race. Stein, 41, has the know-how, while Handley, 39, brings sponsorship and a strong will.

They formed Solar Racing to race in the SCORE Desert Off-Road Series and the Best in the Desert Series in preparation for the big event. They are third in the Stock-Full class in SCORE, but out of title contention in the other series. They were top-five in both last season.

"SCORE has the big races, while Best in the Desert is more sophisticated in the races and more corporate," Handley said. "They have more money with more cars, but Baja is it. It's our Indy or Daytona."

Handley worked on chase teams that helped drivers during the races from 1998-2002, but needed the partnership with Stein to make the move to being a driver. Handley grew up riding motorcycles and being a general race fan. He attended a Baja race in '97 and was hooked.

"I got older and realized I wanted more metal around me," Handley said of his move away from motorcycles and into cars.

Stein has earned four class championships in SCORE and four in Best in the Desert, even winning the Baja 1000 in '97. He's leading the SUV class in Best in the Desert.

It has been an unlucky year so far for the duo when together. Transmission problems stopped them in a January race, as did a blown motor during the San Felipe 250 in February. They've rebuilt their Ford F-150 since then, and are giving it a full test this weekend.

Success now isn't needed, but it'll help lay the foundation for their goal in November.

"My main focus is to win the Baja 1000 this year," Handley said. "I hope to be doing this for a while. But if you win that, you know you've made it in off-road racing."

Barron the designer

When El Camino High alum Alex Barron is away from the Indy Racing League, the Menifee resident has either been racing, developing or teaching people about go-karts. They are small racing vehicles with 80cc to 125cc engines. It's where he started racing as a child.

Now JM Racing has introduced the Barron/Avanti go-kart chassis, which Barron helped design to handle well for a beginner and a veteran. He has a feel for karts, winning three national titles in them before starting his open-wheel career.

"I'm extremely proud of this, and not just because my name is on it," Barron said. "I think I've been a positive influence in karting. Almost all aspects of karting transfer to higher levels of racing. What I learned in karts, I use in the Indy Racing League."

On the move

Vista-based NHRA Top Fuel driver Larry Dixon will participate in the Players Run, a seven-day cross country car rally that begins in New York today and ends in Los Angeles on June 12. It benefits The Children's Miracle Network.

The event will caravan through 12 states and part of Canada, visiting various race tracks. It's an invitation-only event filled with celebrities such as actor Stephen Baldwin, actress Michelle Rodriguez and soccer player Cobi Jones.

Dixon is a two-time defending season Top Fuel champion. He and Indy Racing League driver Arie Luyendyk, Jr., will compete together in the first two legs from New York to Kansas City, before he returns to the NHRA tour in Columbus, Ohio, on June 10-13.

"I think this is going to be a really fun deal," Dixon said. "And to top it off, it's for a good cause. I'm really looking forward to it."

Del Mar Mile update

The Formula USA dirt track series is no more, but Clear Channel Entertainment promised the Del Mar Mile will go on. Instead of promoting a dirt-bike race, the second-year AMA Supermoto TT Series is the featured event on Oct. 17 at the fairgrounds.

Supermoto was a support race that visited Del Mar last year with the dirt bikes. It's a competition that combines motocross, dirt track and road racing.

"We're real comfortable with how it went last year, and we're excited about showcasing the hot new area of motorcycle racing," said Roy Janson, the vice president of operations at Clear Channel. "Del Mar is a great location, great venue and with a lot of tradition."

Pit passes

  • Three Ramona residents swept the podium of the dwarf car race at Barona Speedway last weekend. Kevin Drake, Bill Groves Jr., and Marc Teixeira were the top three in the 36-car field.
  • Poway's Joe Herold finished 11th in the NASCAR Southwest Series race at Irwindale Speedway last weekend, while Oceanside's Dean Kuhn won the support West Coat Pro Truck race.
  • Ramona's John Manke finished second in the sportsman race at Cajon Speedway last weekend, while Temecula's Mike Weimann took third in the pony stock event and Gary Scheuerell of Murrieta was third in the Legend Cars.

This weekend's schedule:


Nextel Cup

MBNA America 400

  • SITE: Dover Downs International Speedway (oval, 1-mile, 24 degrees banking in turns)
  • SCHEDULE: Sunday, race, 10 a.m.
  • FAST FACTS: Jimmie Johnson swept both Dover races in 2002. … Jeff Gordon's streak of top-10 finishes ended at six after placing 30th last week. … The race was shortened to 400 miles in 1997 to make it more competitive. It was 500 miles from 1971-96.

Busch Series

MBNA America 200

  • SITE: Dover Downs International Speedway
  • SCHEDULE: Today, race, 10 a.m.
  • FAST FACTS: Kyle Busch finished seventh or better in the last six races and has a 38-point lead over Martin Truex Jr. in the standings. … Jason Leffler led 34 laps last week, the first time he has been in front all season.

Craftsman Trucks

MBNA America 200

  • SITE: Dover Downs International Speedway
  • SCHEDULE: Today, race, 1 p.m.
  • FAST FACTS: Dennis Setzer is $63,000 shy of becoming the fourth truck driver to reach $3 million in career earnings. Jack Sprague, Ron Hornaday Jr. and Joe Ruttman were the first to reach the plateau.


Warner Cable Roadrunner 250

  • SITE: The Milwaukee Mile (oval, 1.032 miles, 9 degrees banking in turns)
  • SCHEDULE: Today, race, 6 p.m.
  • FAST FACTS: The series' first-ever night race was held at Milwaukee last year. … Paul Tracy has three wins here. … Patrick Carpentier has two podium finishes in his last four races at Milwaukee and set the qualifying record of 185.500 mph in 1998.



Nextel Cup

Season points

1. Dale Earnhardt Jr. 1,798, 2. Jimmie Johnson 1,793, 3. Matt Kenseth 1,687, 4. Jeff Gordon 1,654, 5. Tony Stewart 1,587, 6. Bobby Labonte 1,554, 7. Elliott Sadler 1,537, 8. Kurt Busch 1,521, 9. Ryan Newman 1,500, 10. Kevin Harvick 1,498, 11. Kasey Kahne 1,420, 12. Jamie McMurray 1,414, 13. Rusty Wallace 1,381, 14. Jeremy Mayfield 1,350, 15. Mark Martin 1,336, 16. Casey Mears 1,311, 17. Dale Jarrett 1,304, 18. Sterling Marlin 1,276, 19. Robby Gordon 1,227, 20. Ward Burton 1,206.

Busch Series

Season points

1. Kyle Busch 1,962, 2. Martin Truex Jr. 1,924, 3. Michael Waltrip 1,807, 4. David Green 1,795, 5. Bobby Hamilton Jr. 1,724, 6. Jason Keller 1,712, 7. Ron Hornaday Jr. 1,667, 8. Greg Biffle 1,615, 9. Jason Leffler 1,589, 10. Kenny Wallace 1,504, 11. Robby Gordon 1,485, 12. Mike Bliss 1,412, 13. Johnny Sauter 1,410, 14. Kasey Kahne 1,408, 14. David Stremme 1,408, 16. Stacy Compton 1,397, 17. Tim Fedewa 1,389, 18. Casey Atwood 1,363, 19. Ashton Lewis 1,349, 20. Robert Pressley 1,282.

Craftsman Trucks

Season points

1. Dennis Setzer 815, 2. Carl Edwards 778, 3. Rick Crawford 698, 4. Bobby Hamilton 694, 5. Matt Crafton 679, 6. Mike Skinner 677, 7. Travis Kvapil 673, 8. Terry Cook 657, 9. Jon Wood 642, 10. David Reutimann 631, 11. Jack Sprague 629, 12. David Starr 623, 13. Ted Musgrave 549, 14. Shane Hmiel 542, 15. Chad Chaffin 539, 15. Brandon Whitt 539, 17. Andy Houston 533, 18. Bill Lester 523, 19. Shane Sieg 515, 20. Tracy Hines 510.


Season points

1. Sebastien Bourdais 62, 2. Bruno Junqueira 57, 3. Paul Tracy 49, 4. Patrick Carpentier 48, 5. Mario Dominguez 47, 6. Justin Wilson 40, 7. Alex Tagliani 38, 8. Ryan Hunter Reay 32, 9. Roberto Gonzalez 20, 9. Michel Jourdain Jr. 20, 11. Mario Haberfeld 19, 11. Nelson Philippe 19, 11. Rodolfo Lavin 19, 14. Jimmy Vasser 14, 15. A.J. Allmendinger 13, 15. Oriol Servia 13, 17. Alex Sperafico 9, 18. Tarso Marques 6.


Season points

1. Dan Wheldon 158, 2. Tony Kanaan 157, 3. Buddy Rice 129, 4. Helio Castroneves 128, 5. Scott Dixon 106, 6. Darren Manning 100, 7. Bryan Herta 91, 8. Tora Takagi 88, 9. Sam Hornish Jr. 87, 10. Alex Barron (Menifee) 82, 11. Kosuke Matsuura 81, 12. Scott Sharp 78, 13. Tomas Scheckter 73, 14. Dario Franchitti 68, 15. Greg Ray 58, 16. A.J. Foyt IV 56, 17. Mark Taylor 54, 18. Ed Carpenter 52, 19. Adrian Fernandez 50, 20. Robbie Buhl 44.


Season points

Top Fuel

1. Brandon Bernstein 760, 2. Tony Schumacher 740, 3. Doug Kalitta 676, 4. Cory McClenathan 523, 5. David Grubnic 502.

Funny Car

1. Whit Bazemore 697, 2. Del Worsham 621, 3. John Force 617, 4. Eric Medlen 570, 5. Gary Densham 513.

Pro Stock

1. Greg Anderson 998, 2. Kurt Johnson 686, 3. Jason Line 624, 4. Larry Morgan 511, 5. Dave Connolly 495.

Pro Stock Bike

1. Andrew Hines 348, 2. Shawn Gann 295, 3. GT Tonglet 282, 4. Antron Brown 256, 5. Angelle Savoie 255.


Season points

1. Michael Schumacher 60, 2. Rubens Barrichello 46, 3. Jenson Button, Britain 38, 4. Jarno Trulli 36, 5. Fernando Alonso 25, 6. Juan Pablo Montoya 24, 7. Ralf Schumacher, Germany 12, 8. Takuma Sato, Japan 8, 9. Felipe Massa 5, 9. Giancarlo Fisichella 5, 11. David Coulthard 4, 12. Cristiano Da Matta 3, 12. Mark Webber 3, 14. Nick Heidfeld 2, 15. Olivier Panis 1, 15. Kimi Raikkonen 1.


Season points

1. Frank Biela, Pierre Kaffer, Alan McNish 26; 2. JJ Lehto, Emanuele Pirro, Marco Werner 22; 3. Jamie Davies, Guy Smith, Johnny Herbert 19; 4. Martin Short, Rob Barff, Joao Barbosa 16; 5. Butch Leitzinger, Andy Wallace, James Weaver 14; 6. Michael Lewis (Poway), Tomy Drissi, Vic Rice 12; 7. Christophe Bouchut, Jean-Luc Blanchemain, Roland Berville 10; 8. Jon Field, Duncan Dayton, Larry Connor 9; 9. Phil Andrews, Milka Duno, Justin Wilson 8.

Cliff Kirkpatrick is a staff writer for the North County Times. He can be reached at (760) 943-2315 or