Can the Mint 400 Really Be the Greatest Damn Thing Ever Seen?

That’s what Sahara Hotel President Earl Thompson proclaimed from the finish line back in 1968. It was the second running of the race, and it was a brutal one. Most of the cars and trucks entered were strewn across the desert in various states of disrepair. What kind of race would it be if nobody finished?

Just as it began to look dim for the future of the event, Thompson’s bold proclamation swayed the race promoters to stay the course. Thompson was not alone in his exuberance for the challenge. The Mint 400 exploded in popularity over the next several years, and came to be known as “The Great American Offroad Race.”

The Mint 400 was popular for 2 reasons. The first was a contingency, which is held before the race to inspect the vehicles. The contingency was an epic party, even for Las Vegas.

Held on Fremont Street, known as “Glitter Gulch” at the time, the festivities included all the trappings of Vegas: booze, women, gambling, and revelry. Packed with cars, and fans from all over the world, they all came to “the Mint” to celebrate desert racing.

The contingency was an epic party, even for Las Vegas.

One of those revelers was writer Hunter S. Thompson. He was hired by Sports Illustrated in 1971 to write photo captions for the Mint 400 race. His original 2,500-word manuscript submitted to Sports Illustrated was “aggressively rejected,” but Rolling Stone Magazine liked it enough to publish it.

His notes later became a novel that chronicled his personal debauchery. Anyone who has read the book wonders what he turned into Sports Illustrated. His novel; Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, was made into a movie in 1998 starring Johnny Depp, and Benicio Del Toro.

After the partying at contingency is over, competitors have 400 miles of rugged terrain outside the city to contend with. The silty, and rocky terrain offered the ultimate challenge for offroaders. It is always said that just finishing offroad races is an accomplishment. At the Mint 400, it was never truer.

Egged on by thousands of spectators who crowded around the known spots for action, racers went huge in extremely primitive vehicles. The race vehicles of the time might have had stronger parts, or multiple shocks, but in comparison to the sophisticated vehicles of today, were insanely unsuited for that type of punishment. The brutal terrain and aggressive driving forged heroes, and created legends.

The race was conceived by The Mint hotel owner Del Webb, and hotel executive Norm Johnson to draw people to Las Vegas. In its prime, the race was huge, but after Del Webb sold The Mint in 1988, the race began to wane.

The brutal terrain and aggressive driving forged heroes, and created legends.

The new owners were just not as enamored with offroad racing. The name was changed to the Nissan 400 before it ceased to exist altogether in 1989.

The race was dormant for nearly 20 years until the Southern Nevada Offroad Enthusiasts group brought it back in 2008. In 2012, the naming rights were purchased by the Martelli Brothers who teamed with the Best in the Desert racing organization to put on the race. The Martelli’s have an appreciation for what the race once was. They labored diligently to restore the Mint 400’s place in the offroad world.

Contingency returned to Fremont Street, and the crowds returned. The party was back, and better than ever. The race now occupies nearly an entire week with a parade down the strip, pit crew competition, time trials, 2 days of contingency, and 2 more days of racing. This year they brought the bikes back; the first time they raced at the Mint since 1977.

For those of us who attended the original, the race was still missing one element. It was moved to an existing course south of town instead of the traditional north course that was so brutal. The unlimited classes get a taste of the north course during time trials, but the races are held south of town on a course that has dry lake beds, and river washes. It’s just not the same as the pile of rocks to the north. It is still rough in the south, but not nearly as bad.

This year’s race got a boost by Mother Nature. Heavy rains changed the game. Typically they bulldoze the course before the race, making much of it flat and featureless. The rains did what they typically do in the desert, they modified the landscape.

They crushed wheels, broke suspension parts, and had racers deviating from the favored line to avoid them.

The water washed the top layer of soil away, exposing the rocks. There were still deep sandy sections filled with whoops, and the dry lake beds that had racers bumping off the rev limiter, but the rocks were ruthless.

They crushed wheels, broke suspension parts, and had racers deviating from the favored line to avoid them. It became a driver’s race that required skill, as well as brute strength. The race finally had everything that the original delivered. Some might not have liked it, but in order to be “The Great American Race”, it needs to be the most challenging, and likewise, the most rewarding.

No racer was rewarded more than overall winner Justin Lofton. His win was his third at the Mint; the only driver to ever reach that milestone. If you ask Lofton, the many spectators, or the other racers who merely made it to the finish about what they think, they might just say that the 2019 Mint 400 was the greatest damn thing ever.

Crawlin’ With the Jeep Wrangler TJ

Jason Zamora’s 2000 Jeep Wrangler TJ

When it comes to rock crawling, it’s not power that should be your focus as you build. Unless you’re racing in Ultra4, your rig should be reliable, able to articulate, have very low crawl gearing, and have very strong axles. Power means nothing if you can’t get over a boulder without breaking or crashing it. That’s why Jason Zamora’s 2000 Jeep Wrangler TJ doesn’t have a ridiculous LS or Hemi swap – you don’t need it while crawling.

The Jeep Wrangler TJ was built by Engelhart and Moat (EM) Performance in Santa Fe Springs, CA, of which Jamie Moat talked to us about the build. “We wanted to build a fully capable Jeep with the best bolt-on part in the industry,” he said when we asked him about the build. The full build time was only four months, but the quality you see in not just the parts, but the finished product looks like a TJ that was built over several years. The mirror finish black paint job was done by One Off Rides Garage in Corona, CA and just doesn’t look like a paint job a crawler would have. That probably speaks more about the driving style of Zamora, though.

The engine is bone stock inside 4.0-liter AMC engine, an engine that is regarded as one of the best Chrysler engines ever built to power most any 4WD. Back then, it made 190-horsepower and 235-lb/ft of torque. Zamora’s probably makes about that or just better with the addition of a header and K&N intake system. The only other addition is the 100-amp alternator to drive the GGLighting 50-inch LED light bar and two-inch Pillar Pods, KC HiLites Rock Lights, Warn winch, stereo system with satellite radio, and ARB Compressor that sends air to the ARB Air Lockers.

The lift comes from a combination of a body lift with a front and rear Currie Enterprises Four-inch TJ Johnny Joint Suspension System. It features four-inch lift springs in combination with their adjustable upper and lower short arms that use Currie Johnny Joints, a rebuildable rod end joint that is stiffer than the rubber joints of the OEM control arms but not as teeth rattling as traditional rod ends. This also comes with adjustable front track bar, a rear trac bar relocation bracket, new polyurethane bump stops, and their Antirock adjustable front sway bar.

EM Performance also installed a set of Fox 2.0-inch diameter Performance Shocks. These are a set of monotube shocks that have an internal floating piston to separate nitrogen charged air from the oil. This eliminates oil aeration from pressure changes at the shock piston, which can happen from the oil boiling in the lower pressure areas of the piston’s travel. They feature better valving for off-road driving and on-road handling than the original OEM shocks.

That suspension connects to a pair of Dana 44 housings front and rear. Both also have ARB Air Lockers attached to 4.88:1 gears that spin the chromoly axle shafts. Those shafts are attached to Raceline Avenger Beadlock wheels in 17×9 with a 4.5-inch backspace (-13 offset, for you Euro and JDM wheel types). The beadlocks clamp down on a set of sticky Milestar Patagonia M/T tires in 37×12.50R17 all around. These tires have proven themselves at Ultra4 at places like the King of the Hammers and even racing at the Mint 400. Stopping this Wrangler TJ is an upgraded big brake kit while steering is handled by a Currie Currectlync Steering System with a Fox Steering Stabilizer damper on the tie-rod. The steering box is protected by a steel skid plate as, without it, it would be vulnerable to rock impacts.

With larger tires and increased suspension travel, you need to make room by modifying the body. For EM Performance and Jason, it was a call to GenRight Off-Road. For maximum front approach clearance, the stock bumper was replaced by a GenRight Stubby front bumper. Rear departure is increased by their Rock Crawler bumper and the GenRight tire carrier keeps the spare from contacting the ground in high-angle crawls. If needed, the rocker panels are protected by their Rock Sliders while the transfer case gets protection from their Belly Up Steel Skid Plate.

The fenders are no longer stock and tube versions from GenRight replace them as they open the fender areas for the bigger Patagonia M/Ts. However, to cover the inside of the front fenders, GenRight inner fender panels replace the TJ parts and helps keep air flowing through the radiator. Otherwise, the air would just flow around the radiator because that would be the easiest path. It also allowed the tube fenders to work without cutting the stock Wrangler TJ fenders.

While the passengers sit in the comfort of Mastercraft Suspension Race Bucket Seats up front and a suspension rear bench seat in the rear, they are fully protected by a GenRight Full Roll Cage. It bolts in place of the TJ cage but features far more protection by adding triangulation to the roll hoops and additional side impact strength at the A-pillar bars with a crossbar that fits over the stock TJ dashboard. They can drive without a cover or use the Spiderweb Shade made for the cage.

So, as you can see, power isn’t the factor that limits a vehicle’s crawling ability. Both the 2.5-liter and the 4.0-liter powered TJs can be made into respectable crawlers. That is if you put your money into the parts that matter like the tires, suspension, axles, and protection. Jason Zamora’s EM Performance built TJ is plenty proof of that concept. 

Mint 400 Takes Over Las Vegas

The Mint 400 offroad race was a huge spectacle, even for Las Vegas. The vehicle parade down Las Vegas Blvd. on Wednesday was hard to miss. Even if you didn’t catch a glimpse, the sound of engines churning out thousands of horsepower could not be ignored. For two full days after, Freemont Street was transformed into a huge party with hundreds of fans, vendor booths, special events, and of course, race vehicles. Over 450 teams would be taking the green light on Saturday morning. In the meantime, time trials would be held Thursday morning, the pit crew challenge would be decided, A Miss Mint 400 contest judged, and numerous parties were taking place.

At time trials, the biggest, baddest vehicles in the race, the Trick Trucks, were bested by Harley Letner in his unlimited open wheel class 1500 buggy. The Trick Trucks excel on the long stretches where they can open up their 800 plus horsepower engines and let their nearly three feet of suspension travel eat up the bumps. On the qualifying course, there were several tight turns and other terrain that held the Trick Trucks in check. Instead, the super-fast Letner stole the top spot. Known for his incredible talent behind the wheel, and the ease at which he operates on the edge, Letner is a contender for the top qualifying spot at every race. He is the defending class 1500 champion and represents the unlimited cars well.

The Method Race Wheels Pit Crew Challenge had cash and prizes up for grabs from Fox Racing, BFGoodrich, Impact Racing, and Rigid Industries. The crews that do the hard labor on race day had their moment to shine. In the 6100 class, defending champs GHA Racing picked right up where they left off last year with a fast time to beat. When the dust settled though, it was Householder Motorsports beating GHA in the finals with a time of 54.8 seconds. The Trick Truck, and 1500 unlimited class were loaded with some of the best crew members in the business. Heavyweight teams like MacCachren Motorsports, Youtheory, and RPM Racing were all knocked out in the first round. Last year’s runner up, Team Ready Gunner, were able to change two of their BF Goodrich 40-inch TA tires in just 45.4 seconds to take the victory.

The night culminated with the Miss Mint contest. Former Miss Mint winners include “Wheel of Fortune’s” Vanna White and “Wonder Woman” Lynda Carter. This year’s contest had six finalists who embodied the heritage of the competition. “This was intended as a call to arms to find a woman worthy of 50 years of American off-road racing culture,” explained Mint 400 co-owner Josh Martelli. Ashleigh Figearo, Bailey Hughes, Janna Breslin, Tia McDonald, Olivia Gray, and Lesley Andreas all made it to the finals. They all spent the day with founding father KJ Howe and Spanish Tony of The Gentleman’s Guide To Racing. After tests of shooting ability, off-road driving prowess, and wine tasting, Bailey Hughes was crowned Miss Mint for 2018. Hughes is a great ambassador to the sport. A part of the Sims Motorsports UTV team, she has even worked the merchandise trailer in the past! Afterward, everyone wandered over to the Dusty Times Magazine launch party where The Eagles Of Death Metal ripped everyone’s faces off with their insane music.

When race day finally arrived, cars were divided between two races. The limited cars would run either 2 or 3 laps in the morning, depending on the class they were in, and the unlimited cars and trucks would do 3 laps in the afternoon. They are split up for both safety reasons, and to accommodate all of the vehicles racing. After the morning race, a pattern was established. Nearly every race was decided by a thin margin. The class 10 cars are the top of the food chain in the morning race. They have limited engines but unlimited suspension. With not a lot of horsepower, their technique is to keep the throttle pinned at the rev limiter the whole time. Brock Heger beat Arnoldo Gutierrez Jr. by a scant 22 seconds. In the turbocharged UTV class, one of the largest with 68 entries, Justin Lambert charged from the back of the pack to take the win over Phil Blurton by only less than a minute after 7 hours of racing.

There had been a light drizzle for most of the day, and when the sun dropped, it began to rain. The big unlimited vehicles would race into the darkness and rain on their final lap. The defending two-time trophy truck champion in the SCORE series, Apdaly Lopez, looked to be the overall winner. That was until local Las Vegas racer Bryce Menzies put a charge on during the final lap. Menzies was able to pull out a slim 28 second margin to take the win.

The Mint 400 has roots that date back to the 1960’s. It was also featured in Hunter S. Thompson’s famous book Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, A Savage Journey to the Heart of the American Dream. The spectacle witnessed this year rivals those early days. Anyone who took part, contributed to the history that will be written about in some future novel.