On an earlier trip we left Ensenada and headed out to San Felipe, forty riders strong. At the time paved roads that led to Ojos Negros ended at the pepsi stand about 10 miles east of Ensenada and quickly became two track trails. The SCORE races often use it for some current races, but back then it was a much longer route that took you up a mountain over looking Ojos, and it didn’t cut through any ranches, it was really remote, even more so than today. Once we reached the overlook we had this overwhelming ‘HALLALUJAH! Civilization!” feeling.

A little premature celebration. For the decent down we broke into smaller groups, hoping it would increase our survival rate. I selected a group of compassionate looking riders, those who might not leave me if I did break down. That was how I met Rich Rowell, and we’ve been long time friends ever since. Anyway, all of the seperate groups were now scattered all over Baja, and if there was someone who actually knew the way he was quickly long gone. Together, my group and I were trying to find out way to Independencia, short for Los Ninos Heroes de la Independencia, where we could fill up on gas. We were somewhere west of our destination, and well into our reserve tanks and getting nervous, when we came upon a small dried out lake bed- about a mile in diameter with a ranch building in the middle. Desperate for gas we rode up and called to the possible owner, but it seemed that no one was there. Sitting out in the open was a fifty-five gallon drum- with gas inside. So we siphoned some gas, terrified the entire time that the owners would show up with guns blazing. I dumped some oil in the gas tank, left five bucks sitting on the drum under a rock, shook my bike a few times to mix the oil and gas and took off in a panic. I got about 400 yards and, “Glub!”. That’s when I learned that if you are going to add oil right into your gas tank you better remember to turn off the gas tap first.

So we sat in the middle of this dry lake, under the blazing sun, for about an hour while I stripped the carburetor on my Husky. I had just bought it from Malcom, a few years before “On Any Saturday” ever came out. He was just as friendly and modest then as he is today. Of the group that had started out riding, only about twenty, roughly half, actually showed up in san Felipe. I was one of them. I just wasn’t riding. My bike had seized and spent the last forty or so miles in the back of a truck with wooden stakes for sides. And of those twenty only three or four actually tried to ride back to Ensenada. I never heard of them again, so either they made it, or they didn’t. My first two memories of San Felipe are really polar opposites. My first flight to Baja I flew over it and thought, why would anyone ever want to go to that sunbaked, two block square piece of nothing? My second encounter was when I arrived on this bike trip, and let me say, paradise never looked better.

Nicole called to ask me whether I had any Baja memories and I told her I was drawing a blank. Now, at four in the morning I can’t sleep because my mind is going a mile a minute. That denoted real fast, but I guess only to us old timers I can’t remember hearing it from the mouths of you young whipper snappers. When I first moved out to California from Philadelphia in 1964 I discovered Baja, at the time it was basically only Tijuana and Ensenada. I got myself a plane and found out there was a little more down there. One of my earliest trips abroad was to Bahia de los Angeles with my wife in my Convair L-13, a plane nobody remembers. I was still a student pilot and technically it was illegal to have anyone with me, but I’ve been known to break a rule or two. Lucky for me she thought I could do no wrong. think of those girls who recklessly go para sailing. They faithfully allow themselves to get towed behind a speedboat because of their memories of being safe with daddy. We guys know better and stay away from the parachute rides. more here…

Glamis San Dunes with helmet camera from Danny “Zefra” Oneor our dearest return customer. We fix him yearly with his Glamis addiction. Thank you for the video.

See more Let’s ATV off-road videos as well famous guests and groups visint with us for the ultimate SoCal ATv and dirtbike fun here…

Riding Lessons Part of a California Motorsport Adventours vacation is to be introduced to ATV’s or Dirt Bike Riding and the fun that comes with it when you do it the right way.
If you desire one on one attention and the student/ teacher experience that comes with riding alongside one of our professional guides, then ask us about our lessons. Our guides will show you, your friends, wife, or kids how to ride Dirt Bikes, Atv Quads or Jet Skis. more here…

Family adventures just as the name suggest. ATV trips for the whole family! Spending quality time together as a family – riding ATV’s and dirtbikes, exploring (with experienced guidance) the mountains and deserts SoCal and Baja has to offer. What a blast!! It’s an experience that will challenge & thrill the entire family, novice and experienced riders alike. There’s nothing we enjoy more at Let’s ATV than tailoring our adventures to our guests’ idea of perfection. Even out little guests! (Sorry, the pet can not come riding a quad… ) We offer discount more here…

Check this out if you consider driving in Mexico! You will only need your USA DL to do so. Over the past 15 years, we have driven 150,000 miles in Mexico. I would not hesitate to go right now if I wanted to or had to. I have put together some useful and interesting information on how do drive a car into Baja California, Mexico or places like Sonora and South of Texas. You can buy Mexico Insurance online in minutes without even stopping at the border. Just have your registration and credit card ready. See also our car insurance page in that regards here. We know driving into Mexico is fine. When driving in Mexico with Car Insurance you will have nothing to worry about other than getting lost. But if you drive to Rosarito, Ensenada it is only one freeway. There are only 3 turns that you should know about. That’s about it. Maps are available at local book stores and auto clubs.

If you don’t want to drive into Mexico, you can hire one of our Mexican-American Guides to assist you on your journey. They are extremely knowledgeable of the Baja region and can help with the heavy luggage and building supplies. Passenger Vans, Cargo Vans, and Trucks for Rent in San Diego southern California that also allow you to go into Mexico. We have 10-15 passenger vans for rent and we can provide Mexican Insurance. more here…