Idaho racer wins Baja 1000

By Mike Vogel

CREATED Nov. 25, 2012

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  • David Kamo from Caldwell won the Baja 1000 with his Johnny Campbell Racing (JCR) teammates. He's the first Idahoan ever to win Baja in the motorcycle category. Video by IdahoOnYourSide.com

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David Kamo has accomplished an incredible feat. To even finish Baja is a challenge.

But that's exactly what he and his JCR Honda teammates did.

A brutal grueling ride through the Mexican desert

Twenty straight hours of full throttle insanity.
We caught up with him on Sunday and asked him about this huge win.
Winning Baja
It's a pretty typical Sunday in David Kamo's garage.

The Caldwell motocross racer is going riding with his dad and his buddies.

But what's different now, is he's in an exclusive club of champions

“The experience of Baja, it's amazing. It's like you're in a whole other world racing,” said David Kamo, 2012 Baja Motorcycle Champion.

His team won the the Baja 1000 in Mexico last week.

First place in the motorcycle 450 and above class.

“Being the first person from Idaho to go out and win Baja is a spectacular thing,” said Kamo.

It's one of the world’s most treacherous races.

“You have cows, horses and people doing daily driving down the road that you are racing down,” said Kamo.


Up the Mexican Baja California Peninsula.

“You see Jesus about ten to many times and it just frightens you, but it's also fun,” said Kamo.

It is a giant loop from Ensanada to Lapaz.

“It's kind of an adrenaline rush, like I'm totally scared the entire time I'm doing it, and you're riding on the edge, a roll of the dice,” said Kamo.

David and his JCR Honda teammates Colton Udall and Timmy Weigand took turns riding the same bike

“We just gave it all we got. We had three riders on our team and we're racing against Kawasaki with four riders, and KTM with four riders,” said Kamo.

The trio finished in an astounding 20 hours, 9 minutes and 30 seconds.

David is quick to credit his parents, Kit and Curt Kamo.