Baja and Back: 5 Days on the Vintage 1000

Date

24.11.24

Source: Bike Bound

5 Days and 1000 Miles through Baja on Pre-1981 Motorcycles…

Speed Deluxe is a workshop based in Chattanooga, Tennessee, which specializes in parts fabrication, vintage motorcycle restoration, and full-on custom builds. But that isn’t all…

About a decade ago, Speed Deluxe founder Adam Sheard got talking with our good buddy Chastin Brand, and the idea for the Vintage 1000 was born — a 5-day, 1000-mile ride that blends the epic (mis)adventures of a long road trip with a love for vintage motorcycles.

“The Vintage 1000 was inspired by a conversation between Adam Sheard (Speed Deluxe) and his friend Chastin Brand after participating in a motocross race. Adam thought – what about an event involving riding vintage bikes (pre-1980) 1000 miles off-road over 5 days? Harking back to the days of enduro events where you have to fix your bike as you go and make it to pre-scheduled stop points each evening.”

Today, the Vintage 1000 is run by Speed Deluxe Vintage Adventures. The routes are generally 75% off-road, with participants riding 150-250 miles per day on their pre-1981 machines, which typically translates to 8-12 hours on the trail.

Vintage 1000 trips include Arizona, Oregon, the Smoky Mountains, and Baja (~1000 miles, 5 days), and shorter Vintage 500 trips (~500 miles, 3 days).

Speed Deluxe fully maps and preruns each route, and navigation is accomplished via roll charts provided to each rider. No GPS. There are a maximum of 30 paid riders divided into riding groups of 5-6, and the whole party camps at different preselected campgrounds each night, with food, beverages, a generator for charging electronics, and a chase truck / support crew on hand.

Our friend and photographer Drew Perlmutter has been a diehard Vintage 1000 participant since the early days, and he recently completed what might be the most epic yet of the Vintage 1000 adventures — the 2024 Baja Route — on his 1964 Honda CL72 250cc.

As some of you might know, two veteran off-road racers, Dave Ekins (Motorcyclist editor, founder of Dirt Rider, and brother to the legendary Bud Ekins) and Bill Robertson Jr. (co-owner of Honda of Hollywood), ran the first 950-mile timed run of the remote Baja Peninsula in 1962 on a pair of Honda CL72 Scramblers, pioneering what would become the Baja 1000. So we can’t think of better bike to take back to Baja for the Vintage 1000.

Unfortunately, Drew’s CL gave him no shortage of headaches along the route… However, considering the 250cc Scrambler had already completed both the Southern Oregon TT and Colorado Vintage 1000 this summer, it’s had one hell of a year — almost certainly the most adventurous 2024 of any CL72 in the world!

Drew did a stellar job documenting the ride, capturing truly inspiring shots of the landscape, the adventures, the flora and fauna, and the realities of life on the trail.

Below is Drew’s day-by-day report from the ride, with plenty of photographs to give you an inside look into one of the most inspired, nostalgic, and fun events in modern day motorcycling. Interesting in participating? Check out Speed Deluxe Vintage Adventures to learn more!

Ride Report: Baja Vintage Expedition!

Words and Photos: Drew Perlmutter

Baja Day 1:

Chastin Brand on his Triumph desert sled!

Hot sun, slippery sand, broken bikes and broken bones, epic scenery and so much more… We started in Bahia De Los Angeles and quickly went off in search of adventure — and soon found it.

Early on we had a rider crash and suffer a broken collar bone, but he’s good now and recovering. It was a humble reminder for us all to be cautious on this terrain.

We continued on but not for long as my bike soon started leaking oil and smoking heavily. We found the source of the leak to be the seal behind my points. We fixed it, but the points were failing and I’d need more time than we had on the side of the trail, so we loaded up my scrambler on the Land Cruiser and continued on.

The riders faced miles and miles of sand throughout the rest of the afternoon and into the evening. A couple spills, a flat tire, and more sand eventually brought us into camp after dark.

We were set up on the Gulf side of the peninsula in a little bay. The moon was nearly full but the sky was also filled with stars.

Comet visible on the first night at camp!

We ate, repaired, relaxed, and readied for day 2.

Baja Day 2:

We were headed coast to coast today, starting on the Gulf side and heading for the Pacific. The previous day was an adventurous start to the trip; we were all anxious to see what today would bring.

I got my bike timed and fired up last night, however this morning it wasn’t cooperating. The battery was low and it seemed like it maybe had a draw from somewhere. Regardless, I got it charged and headed out for the days ride.

I didn’t make it very far before the CL72 spit out the seal behind the stator. We quickly removed the stator and re-set the seal, but just a few feet down the road it came out again. At this point I was obviously starting to suspect a bigger issue somewhere with all this crank pressure.

A problem to investigate at camp later tonight, but for now it was back on the support truck. Slightly a bummer, but it was honestly hard to be upset riding in a Ford Raptor through the desert.

The rest of the day were cave paintings, more sand, cactuses, and eventually making it to the beach for camp. I got to tinkering on the scrambler as the sun set and moon rose. We saw the comet again, had a fire on the beach, ate good, and slept under the stars.

Baja Day 3:

At this point, my bike was not cooperating. I was having charging issues and we were guessing it was losing compression. My crank breather was smoking heavy, as well as out the exhaust.

Possibly blow by past the rings which was causing pressure to push the seals out too. Unfortunately I’d miss out on riding from here, but was barely bummed as I was still on an adventure.

I rode with @adamjsheard in the Raptor and trailed groups throughout the day. We came across a few repairs out in the desert, nothing the riders couldn’t handle.

The landscape was epic, cactus as far and wide and as tall as I’d ever seen them.

@r_lamarzipan and @jamiesheardphd were in the Land Cruiser, cruising alongside us into camp for the evening. From the coast we made it to the middle of the desert.

We were surrounded by palms and ruins of an old oasis under the full moon. We had wonderful hospitality from the ranchero whose family property this was.

Baja Day 4:

Today was a long day, but pretty epic especially at the start. Laguna Chapala, a dry lake situated in the middle of the Baja peninsula. We rode here last year and were here again to let loose and rip it across the desert.

I was no longer riding as my bike was shot. Final consensus was losing compression somewhere, probably past the rings. Ah well, no complaints. Especially with a camera and drone in my hands. I had an awesome time capturing the riders blasting it!

We spent just a short time here before continuing on for the day, over 100 miles left to go before making it to camp…

After Laguna Chapala, the remaining trail out to the coast was a long one. We were already halfway through the day, maybe more and the sun was going fast.

We were back on the Pacific side of the peninsula, looking for Punta Maria, which would be our last night of camping on the trip.

Right at sunset @fugitiveinks suffered a frame failure on his Triumph Trophy Trail 500. The support trucks arrived just as they were finishing up the repairs. They removed his luggage rack and placed it over where the frame had split.

Ratchet straps to finish the job and it ended up getting him to camp. However, he’d choose not to ride the last day to further damage the bike.

It quickly got dark and the riders still had a ways to go. The last 2 hours were under the cover of darkness as we pulled into our little point on the coast.

It was peaceful, we were on the water’s edge. We ate, took Ibuprofen, we laughed, wrenched, and got ready to do it one last time the following day.

Baja Day 5:

It was our last day on the @vintage1thousand Baja Expedition. We woke up to a beautiful sunrise on the Pacific coast, camped on Punta Maria. What a week it was!

I rode in the support trucks for the following days since my bike quit working and today I was in the Land Cruiser with @jamiesheardphd and @r_lamarzipan.

The riders had just another 100 or so miles left to go to make it to the finish in Bahia De Los Angeles. They were off in search of dusty trails as we crawled along the coast and eventually into a small town for gas.

We also had to make a handful of stops for Jamie and Rachel to get under the Cruiser and reattached the exhaust that kept coming off…