Caution: Another senseless shooting in Mexico

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Below is a true story of another senseless Baja rider randomly shot on 11/02/08.

It was written by Dan Walsh, one of the riders.

Please read this before considering ridng in Mexico. Is it worth the risk?

Since the events of Nov. 2nd, I've been praying for the timing to give a

statement regarding the facts, along with a story to give everyone a

better understanding of what happened. My main goal is to give awareness

to all and provide clarification of what actually happened, as well as

document for not only myself but for Steve, Aaron and our families.

Typing this will be one of the hardest things I've ever done.

Remembering exactly what happened, step-by-step, and writing down what

Aaron, Steve, and I witnessed and experienced is something that still

haunts us. Please accept my apology if this is too graphic or

disturbing, but the facts need to be addressed for us all. Ultimately,

we are all fortunate that this will be written as a testimonial of

events as opposed to an obituary. It is because of the grace of God and

overall support that Steve, Aaron and I are still here. I apologize in

advance for not mentioning everyone who helped Steve to safety or

orchestrated any of the supports.

I'm encouraging you to take the information as it is and please do not

alter it to fit what you would rather believe or be influenced to

believe. This is all true facts of what we experienced. I am by no means

a writer but I will do my best to keep things as simple as possible. I

was compelled to write this after reading all the posts online and

hearing local news reports state that this was an unfortunate hunting

accident. Steve, Aaron and I have no doubts in our minds that this was

no accident. Yet the three of us have no explanation for why someone

would fire a rifle at close range (less than 100 feet) and then point

the rifle again at another rider. We have many speculations of why this

happened but I will leave it at this: we simply came across an area

where we were not welcome and someone was willing to kill, even though

we were on what we know as public property.

Our weekend started off by Aaron, Steve and I departing for Mexico

leaving from Campo and crossing through the Tecate area. We left our

vehicle at one of Aaron's contacts in Campo and rode our bikes across

the border. We spent an entire day pre running the upcoming Baja 1000

course leaving from the grade of La Rumorosa and ultimately ending up at

our evening destination, Mike's Sky Rancho. During the day we completely

exhausted ourselves riding a very rough but incredibly fun course.

Having some carburetor problems with the KLX loaned to me by Alba, it

made my trip a bit more difficult. Aaron had his body beat to heck by

the roughest track he's been on. Needless to say, by the time we got to

Mike's Sky Rancho, Aaron was sick from a major migraine and I was

miserable and grumpy from being worn out from the ride and frustrated

with a bike which I hadn't had the time to properly tune prior to the

trip. Then of course, there is Steve, who doesn't get tired or grumpy,

and encourages us by reminding us he loves us...with a grin. In other

words, it's Steve's way of saying, "You pussies ride and quit whining."

During the night our chase guys, who didn't skip a beat during the day,

ended up having a little too much fun and come morning, they were no

where to be found. As luck would have it, Chris Haines Tours was staying

at Mike's and one of their chase drivers offered to carry our bags

across the border for us so we didn't have to carry them on our bikes.

Wondering if we would have enough gas to get back to Valle De Trinidad

(VDT), we noticed that our bikes were mysteriously topped off with fuel.

Our chase guys, who had originally planned to head home the next

morning, probably realized we needed fuel, went off to have their fun,

and simply forgot about a couple of bags. No big deal so we made some

jokes and were on our way.

With our bikes full of fuel and our bags taken care of, we departed

Mike's after breakfast, around 8:30 Sunday morning. We rode out of

Mike's and picked up the course, following it towards VDT. On the way,

Aaron, unfortunately influenced by me, pulled a wheelie on his xr650r

Honda, looping it out. Laughing and slightly embarrassed, he picked up

his bike and continued on without a rear fender. Once we hit VDT, we

fueled up, topped off our water packs and were ready to head for home.

Our plan was to ride up Hwy 3 to Ojos and catch the remaining part of

the Baja 1000 course back into La Rumorosa to finish out our weekend of

pre-running. With no desire to ride the course any longer we started

pounding pavement. With a couple of veteran racers and an impatient

young adult, that only lasted about 7-9 miles. Over the radio we all

agreed that the Hwy sucked and we should ride some trails to at least

have some fun heading home.

We turned off at Jamau and headed north, parallel to the highway. We

knew the area rather well as it had been used in recent race events. It

is also a well-traveled area by many Baja riders. We rode more or less

at a slow rate of speed, admiring the scenery and doing the usual

picking on each other over the race radios. Aaron led for a while, then

Steve, then Aaron, and back and forth while I cruised in the back

staying just slightly out of the dust. At this point we were

approximately 15-17 Km from the initial turnoff. Heading north, we

picked up sections of old Baja 500 and 1000 race courses, which were

familiar to Steve and I. We stopped for a quick break near a small pond

and continued on.

Shortly after we had stopped I rounded a corner still riding in the back

and noticed that Steve's bike was lying on the ground in front of a

fence, which caught me off guard. It wasn't a high-speed area or

directly in a corner so my first reaction was Steve dropped his bike to

pretend he had fallen. Not buying it since I saw no skid mark or any

reason he would have crashed, I then saw Aaron drop his bike and start

crawling very fast in a few strides and then he leaped over a bush. He

was screaming at me, "get down!! He's shooting at us; he's got a gun!

He's got a gun...get down!!" It took me a couple of seconds to realize

that this was not a joke. Steve appeared to be in a state of shock and

was holding his chest. I immediately dropped the Kawasaki and ran to

Steve. I never looked beyond the fence, which was blocked and barricaded

off with brush and sticks. Steve said, "He shot me." I stood over Steve

with my back to the shooter and Aaron kept yelling, "get down get down."

I thought, if I don't look back and make eye contact maybe he will not

shoot. Steve was lying in broad day light with nowhere to hide and I was

damned if I was going to let him get shot again while on the ground. Not

knowing if the gunman was 10 feet or 200 yards behind me, I told Aaron

we needed to get Steve out of there and get help. I didn't know how bad

he was shot but just seeing a hole in his black EVS body armor was

enough to know it was serious.

If this shooter was going to shoot again he probably would have already

done it. I made it a point to say loudly, "we are leaving, we are

leaving!!! Don't shoot, we are leaving." I told Steve to get on the back

of my bike but he said he couldn't and would try to ride. He was gasping

for air and groaning like I've never heard before. I picked up his

Yamaha 450 with my back still turned away from the fence and tried

kicking it over. I didn't count the kicks but when I was about to puke

from the adrenaline and kicking faster than normal... I think about

15-20 kicks, I yelled to Aaron who was scared to death to move to come

kick it and help me. Aaron had seen the shooter aim the rifle directly

at him and watched Steve buckle over and fall off of his bike hitting

the ground. Even though he was shocked and had made eye contact with

the shooter, Aaron still worked up the courage to run toward the fence

and help me with the Yamaha. After Aaron tried unsuccessfully to kick

several times he threw the bike down. I started the Kawasaki and coaxed

Steve to get on the back and get out of there. Aaron jumped on his bike

and we rode away slowly with Steve on the back still not looking back or

giving any impression we were any threat. We later found out from

Aaron's GPS that from the time Aaron dropped his bike and dove for cover

to the time we rode away from the fence was approx. 6 minutes.

We managed to make it approx 1.5 miles riding slow and by then we

started looking over our backs to make sure we were not being followed.

Steve was yelling at me, "stop, stop, stop I can't go another foot stop

and let me down." I later found out from Steve that since I was still

wearing my backpack and hydration system it was pushing on Steve's chest

making it even more unbearable. We stopped, still not knowing if we were

being followed or why we were even a target. I looked at Steve's wound

and rolled him over to see if the bullet had exited his body. The wound

was a small caliber size hole but I was just as worried knowing what a

low caliber round will do bouncing around inside a body. Aaron used his

phone to call Bi National Insurance. After a couple of failed attempts

(they were not answering the phone), he called his dad, who was

initially in disbelief, thinking we were kidding. Within seconds and

after some reassuring choices of vocabulary, Mr. Cornicelli was all over

it and remained calm, telling Aaron to provide the GPS coordinates and

he would make the calls to Bi National Insurance and dispatch a

helicopter.

At this point I insisted that Aaron head to the highway (an 8 mile trip)

to get help. He said, "no, we need to stick together." I told him I

would go and he could stay with Steve and again, he said no. He was

worried the shooter could be coming for us. Aaron made it pretty clear

without busting my face that we were sticking together. Realizing we

were in a situation out of our control with no way to help Steve's

condition, we began to pray over Steve. We asked for guidance and

ultimately for the Lord to step in and take control. Steve, in complete

agony and with no way to explain in words his pain, said, "Get me on the

bike and I'll ride." We started the Kawasaki and helped him on, leaving

some of his riding apparel still on the trail. Steve managed to get

rolling on his own strength while I jumped on the back of Aaron's Honda.

Not only was Aaron's bike missing the rear fender, but Aaron was also

wearing a large backpack, which left me with about 4" of seat. But that

didn't matter as I was so focused on encouraging Steve every foot of the

way. I still wonder how I didn't slip off and get tangled in the rear

wheel which looked like a saw blade calling me out!

Steve continued on, hiding the pain and convincing us that he was going

to make it to the highway. About half way to the highway, Steve lifted

his helmet and vomited twice. This was the second scariest part as I was

not sure if Steve was truly going to make it to the highway. Without

stopping we rode directly beside him ready to catch him if he fell. We

could only pray while riding and watch his eyes closing and him groaning

over the sound of the bike. Aaron and I were basically coaches, almost

as if beside a woman in labor, coaching him to breathe and hang in

there. It was clear he had either a punctured lung or some major

internal injuries because he could barely breathe. He continued to vomit

throughout the 10 miles of dirt roads. We realized the vomit was deep

brown to almost purple in color. Knowing he was bleeding internally made

the 10 miles feel like 100 miles. We knew if we kept encouraging him to

continue riding a few more feet we would hit the highway, get help, and

a chopper would fly him to a hospital.

Steve made it to the highway and literally collapsed from exhaustion and

pain. Aaron and I helped Steve get into some shade, and then we ran onto

the highway to flag down a car. The first car came into range within 4

or5 minutes, but it seemed like 45 minutes. The first 3 or 4 cars we

stopped (because we were not moving off the highway) wanted no part of

what was happening. They were most likely locals, had small kids and

sped off. The 4th or 5th car that stopped was a lifted truck with a

racing number of 500 on the rear window. They helped us by heading back

into VDT to find police or an ambulance. Keep in mind that the first

stop we made was to call a Medi-Vac through Bi National Insurance.

Unsure if they ever received the GPS coordinates from Joe, we were

afraid to move Steve in case a chopper was already en route. My fear was

that we'd move him too far and miss his opportunity to be flown out.

A few minutes passed when a police truck pulled up to assist. Shortly

after, a large group of military soldiers were passing by and they

quickly surrounded the area. They stood around for some time while we

explained where the shooting took place. We showed them the exact

location on the GPS and explained that we left a bike on the scene. They

had no comments, just kind of stood around. Aaron needed confirmation if

the chopper was in route but had poor phone range. So, while I was

trying like crazy to fill Steve with encouragement that he would make it

through this, Aaron jumped in the truck with the gentlemen who went and

flagged down the police. They headed north two miles where Aaron made

another call to his dad to confirm where we were. Around this time even

our chase guys who disappeared the night before showed up and were there

to help. For them to show up at this time would have never happened had

they been chasing from the time we initially headed off the highway.

They helped translate for us and later went back and retrieved the bike

with a police escort.

At this point I began arguing with the police when they said we need to

get Steve to a clinic in VDT as there was no ambulance that could come.

I told him forget it, a chopper was coming and I would not move him

again until the chopper landed and he was on his way to a hospital. At

this point the police man grabbed Steve's hand and felt his pulse and

vitals. He then put Steve's hand in mine and said, "Feel how cold amigo?

He will not make it if we don't go now!" Without a further word or

thought I picked Steve up and we carried him to the back of the police

pickup truck. We rushed south to VDT. I was praying someone would see us

or find Aaron and let him know we were going to the clinic. At this

point Steve was really gasping for air and I was pleading with him to

take short breaths. I figured he had multiple broken ribs and maybe a

punctured lung. As we entered VDT I saw directly across the street some

Americans and a lifted truck with Team SRD on the window. I knew that

truck belonged to a friend, Justin, and started calling his name. The

sirens were blasting over my shouts and I was on my knees holding

Steve's head, keeping him from getting a concussion while the police

truck hit every possible pothole! I yelled a few times for Justin but

never saw him. Just some racers and chase crews looking and trying to

figure out what was happening.

Fortunately, I caught the attention of probably the best people to have

around in a situation like this. Cameron Steele's wife, Heidi, along

with one of their Desert Assassin (DA) crew guys, Cody. They saw my name

on my jersey and sent someone to see what was going on. DA's guy,

Poncho, arrived at the small clinic in VDT and immediately learned that

this was a life or death situation for Steve. Within minutes, Steve was

hooked up to an IV and oxygen and the doctor was checking his vitals.

Steve was in bad shape as his blood pressure was dropping and things

were way more than could be taken care of in this small clinic.

Cameron and his entire crew of friends and racers were there almost

immediately after Poncho radioed them, like an army of soldiers ready to

come and fight for us. Cameron immediately contacted Oscar Ramos,

Score's attorney. Oscar began searching for the quickest source of air

support. Steve was in horrible pain and was asking me over and over

"where the **** is the helicopter." I told him over an over it was on

the way and he was going to make it. Poncho and I took turns holding the

oxygen mask on him and encouraging him to fight. Cameron and his guys

were all outside contacting everyone they could and getting the word out

about what had happened.

I remember Cameron coming into the small room and telling Steve, "You're

going to make it Steve, a chopper is coming." Without looking up, Steve

knew who was there speaking and it gave him that much more comfort

knowing the word was out, support was there, and help was coming.

Aaron made it to the clinic by simply following the commotion and

expressed that he had contacted several sources for air support. At one

point I know a small plane from S.D. was ready to depart, and the No

Fear helicopter was ready to go, just waiting for a location or a medic.

It seemed like anyone who knew someone with a plane or helicopter was

contacted and getting ready to come for the rescue. Steve continued

fighting while we finally got confirmation that a police chopper was en

route from Ensenada and would be here in 40 minutes. This would be the

quickest form of transportation. I kept telling Steve, "5 more minutes"

and was pissing him off so he would fight minute by minute. The clinic

was unable to give Steve anything for pain other than hooking up an IV

and providing oxygen. Once the chopper was close to arriving an

ambulance finally showed up, which I believe came from up North by Ojos

Negros. Once the medics had prepared Steve for flight, Cameron and crew

gave Aaron and I a change of clothes, and insisted that we get out of

our riding gear and prepare for a long night.

The police chopper finally arrived, close to 2 hours from the time we

made it to the clinic. This was a very small police chopper, primarily

used for patrolling locally in Ensenada, and wasn't prepared for longer

flights. When it arrived they had to pull fuel cans from inside the back

seat area of the chopper and refuel. One of the DA guys was helping by

the old school way of sucking through a tube to expedite the process.

After a face and mouth full of fuel he definitely got things going.

These guys are absolutely on top of things and would take any risks

necessary to get Steve up in the air. The chopper had barely enough

room for a pilot, co-pilot and medic, let alone Steve. Steve was

strapped to a board with a blanket over him and duct-taped, almost

resembling a mummy. Once loaded, he was literally sticking out both

sides of the chopper. It was more than I could stomach and I couldn't

watch as he flew away. I knew his pain was intense and the amount of

blood he had lost would play a huge factor in whether he made the

flight. Once up in the air we all cheered with joy knowing he was at

least heading for the best hospital available in Baja, the Angelos

Hospital in T.J.

At this point Aaron and I were still in shock from the events. Our bikes

and gear were loaded up on the DA's caravan, but they needed to drive

south to pick up a truck / trailer before heading up towards Mexicali.

Aaron's dad was planning to pick us up from Mexicali and take us back to

my truck and then I would drive to T.J.

I realized it would take several additional hours to see Steve again if

I went with the DA guys, even though I had promised him and Jody that I

would not let him die or leave his side. Close to 40 minutes after the

chopper left Trinidad I was riding with Cameron, his dad (Big Daddy),

Heidi, and their family dog - Booger. I'm sure Booger sensed my concern

because he rested his head on my lap giving me a sense of ease. I heard

Cam mention it sounded like the chopper had made it and landed. I was

relieved but still a mess not knowing Steve's condition, so I tried my

best to relax and just pray to myself. Close to 20 minutes later, still

heading south towards San Felipe, Cameron talked to Oscar and confirmed

the chopper hit a storm going into TJ and had not landed yet, but was

circling around until things cleared. At this point I was pretty much

jumping out of the truck and was determined to find a way to travel to

TJ by hitch hiking. Cameron calmed me down and arranged for another

chase truck heading to Ensenada to give me a ride. I jumped out and

Cameron stopped me to give me some extra cash in case of emergency. I

hopped in a passing truck and said, "take me to the truck waiting to

take me to Ensenada." Unfortunately for Cameron and his crew I jumped in

the wrong truck. But fortunately for me I got in a truck with great

people who were horrified to hear my story, and they took me toward

Ensenada. I wouldn't find out until later that night that I jumped in

the wrong truck and gave Cameron and his crew a scare that I had

disappeared!

Aaron stayed with Cam's group and encouraged them to continue on, as he

was sure I would make my way to Steve and his family. Fortunately Aaron

was riding in another vehicle, otherwise he would have knocked me out

and kept me safe with Cameron and the DA guys. Aaron thinks things

through and knew the best thing was to stick with safety and get across

the border and then come back later since family was at the hospital and

Steve was in good hands. I had other thoughts...since I heard over the

radio that Steve was still floating around in the air with his face

literally getting beat by a storm; I pretty much acted on impulse.

To sum it up, some incredible dudes from Callaway racing managed to get

me to one of their friends in Ensenada, who goes by Baja Dan. Once in

Ensenada he called the hospital for me and even got Steve's wife on the

phone. Jody let me know that not only did Steve make it to the hospital

alive but that he had already undergone surgery and all went extremely

well. Steve's family was at the Hospital before the helicopter even

arrived. Finally, Steve was in good hands.

Steve had an exploded spleen (which was removed), a tear in his liver

and damage to his intestine and colon, but his major organs were OK. He

lost more than 50% of his blood and doctors said if he had taken an

ambulance from VDT to even Ensenada, he would have died half way through

the trip. The TJ hospital was incredible and the surgeon that performed

the surgery was top notch. Talk about a ton of weight lifted off my

heart. The amount of joy was unexplainable.

The Callaway race team guys planned to stay in Ensenada that night, but

promised to get me to a taxi or bus, or drive me to TJ themselves.

Before even seeing a taxi, I noticed a truck full of bikes pulling out

and immediately jumped out and asked where they were heading. They said

Rosarito and I said awesome, I'm coming with you guys. Without any

issues, these complete strangers who live in Rosarito agreed to help me

get to Rosarito. I explained the situation to the guy sitting next to me

in the back seat and he couldn't believe what he had heard. To my

amazement he scrolled his 2-way to Oscar Ramos who was already at the

hospital and let him know he was bringing me to the hospital. It was

crazy that I ran into someone who not only agreed to take me directly to

the TJ hospital, but he had contacted the very same Oscar who had pulled

the right strings to get the chopper down to VDT. It turns out I was in

great hands since the guy I was sitting next to is a race promoter in

Mexico and runs a Motocross track in Rosarito. We were pulled over by

the Policia a mile or so out of Ensenada and I thought, "great.. what

are the odds." However the police just talked to the driver for a minute

about a license plate issue and then let him go. I actually thought

things could get ugly, and yep, I started praying to myself again. A

quick stop in Rosarito to unload the bikes and the gentlemen then drove

like Mario Andretti on the back roads to TJ and literally took me

straight up to the waiting room.

With all that said, I made it to the hospital and met up with the Martz

family in the waiting room. Seeing the looks on the faces of Steve's

parents and Jody, I knew that Steve was doing much better than when I

had last seen him. Completely spent with exhaustion but overwhelmed with

joy, I made it to see Steve not only alive but drugged up and out of

pain. He then told me more details about the shooting. He actually saw

the shooter very clearly, and remembered everything and every second of

agony. He said he was in so much pain on the one-hour helicopter ride

that he was cursing God and asking to end this misery. I assured him God

had other plans and ultimately even controlled his thoughts. I truly

think the Lord just allowed Steve to seek and recognize God even being

involved and ultimately the one calling the shots.

After a quick visit with Steve I stayed the evening in the waiting room

eager to see his progress the next morning. Jody and I talked for hours,

until the sun rose, about how strong Steve was and how Aaron and I

managed to find ways to keep him encouraged as we knew he was going to

still be a damn good father and husband and hard-headed pain in the

rear!

Aaron was traumatized by the day's events and once I spoke with his

family and knew he made it back across the border safe it was just

another big sigh of relief. He ranted on and on about how the DA guys

hooked him up and took extra care of him. From clothes to dinner and

even offering to pay the tolls, the DA's refused to let him pay for

anything.

Monday was a blur after a sleepless night. We had a few visits and

meetings with the District Attorney's from TJ & Ensenada, but we simply

just wanted Steve back home in the U.S. We prayed around lunch time for

an open door to get Steve back to the U.S. Just before dark the answer

came that he was stable enough to be transported. Within minutes Sharp

Health Care dispatched Mercy Air to land on the roof of the Angelos

Hospital. I snuck in to let Steve know the chopper was on its way to

take him across the border to Sharp... I think I said "just 5 minutes

buddy" and if he could have gotten up I think he would have beat me to

death! But not Steve, he smirked and said, "Ya, right...heard that

before!" After some insurance drama and billing, the Martz family came

to an agreement with the hospital's payment requirements, squared up,

and we all went outside to watch the chopper light up and take Steve to

the U.S.

Once the chopper fired up shortly after nightfall it was as if we all

held our breath and as it flew away and disappeared behind the building

we all let out a big sigh of overwhelming joy. At that point I fell

apart and finally realized Steve was going to be OK. Jody was falling

apart with joy and I couldn't even look at her through the tears.

Steve's mom and dad, and several of his friends and I were all more than

ready to jump in the vehicles and head for the border. Steve made it

back to a S.D. hospital and was in great hands once again. His recovery

has been going extremely well and he is expected to be home within 6-8

days if he continues at the rate he's going.

Steve's a fighter and is already eager to get home and tell his story.

The Martz family has requested minimal, family-only visiting to give

Steve the rest he needs. He wants so much to see everyone, entertain,

and tell the stories, but it is just too much for now. We are planning a

welcome home celebration and will keep everyone informed.

On behalf of the Martz family, Aaron and myself, we really want to

encourage everyone to understand what Steve went through and how he

suffered while simply enjoying what he loves the most. He has told me

more than once throughout our friendship and racing career that if he

died he would want to be doing what he loves, which is racing or having

the time of his life racing anything with a motor for that fact. Steve

was clinging to his life over something as random as a gunshot wound, in

a familiar area we have traveled before. And for an unknown man, wearing

hunting camo's and directly shooting one of the nicest guys in the

world, over what? That's our confusion and this wasn't Steve's time to

go. We are fortunate the gun was only fired once and that we all made it

out without another shot fired. We are thankful we are alive, but we

also want to make all of our friends in the off road industry aware of

the fact that we had no doubt in our minds that we were not going to be

effected by any violence in Mexico, only to be caught off guard with

this life changing experience. I pray for anyone still going down to

Mexico to understand what happened and to seriously think about what

they could get themselves into.

(Aaron's Take) After leading for sometime, Steve passed me. I came

around a corner and saw a gate up ahead and recall saying to myself,

"That gate looks odd, oh well we will have a look when we all get

there." As I continued on toward the gate, I noticed Steve had stopped

about 20 feet from the gate and was straddling his bike. Still riding

toward Steve, I saw him start to fall over as if he went to put his foot

down but the ground was not there. At first I was like, what is he

doing, until I heard him say, "He shot me!" That was when I looked up

and to the right of the gate and I saw a rather large bush and a man

dressed in camouflage gear turning to aim a rifle at me. I must have

been 10 feet from Steve, still rolling, when I saw this and all I could

do was jump off my bike screaming, "No, no, no...what are you

doing?....Don't shoot." All the while trying to delete the shooters line

of sight from me. As I jumped behind a bush, I saw Dan coming around the

corner and I was extremely concerned that he would be shot next. Unable

to warn him via the radios, I began yelling, "he's got a gun, get down."

I remember being baffled by Dan as he rode right up to Steve as if no

shooter was going to stop him. Then all of a sudden, it seemed to sink

in that Steve had been shot and I was terrified.

All of a sudden Dan stood up (never looking towards the shooter) saying,

"We are leaving!" At that point, Dan turned his bike around and got it

started. He picked up Steve's Yamaha and began trying to kick start it.

I remember being so terrified that I was extremely hesitant to go over

and get my bike. With great encouragement from Dan, I ran over and

grabbed my XR and began kicking it until it started. Once my bike was

started, Dan yelled at me to come over and try to get Steve's bike

started. After about 20 kicks from me, I looked at Dan and he said,

"Leave it!" I dropped it and hopped on my bike riding side by side with

Dan and Steve. We rode 1.5 miles away from the scene and Steve yelled to

pull over. I told Dan to get my phone. The first number I dialed was

Bi-National Emergency....Ring...Ring....Ring....no one answered. My next

call was to my dad to have him start making arrangements. I gave him the

GPS points and told him to hurry. After getting off the phone, Dan told

me to head to the highway for help. I told him NO as I was not coming

back to find them both dead. He said he would go and I could stay but I

refused. At this point I was concerned for all of us and we really did

not know who shot and why. I told Dan that we were all leaving together

as a team. We gave Steve the option to ride by himself or with one of

us. He decided to ride by himself. From here on, Dan's report explains

the rest and I agree 100% with everything he has written as I was there

and witnessed this entire thing. November 2, 2008, was a horrible day

and it is simply because of the grace of God that Steve, Dan and I are

alive. It is clear to me that God has other plans for us and that is why

we are so blessed to be home, safe and sound, with only a wounded friend

and a story to tell.

I hope Score can redirect their attention to this matter and simply warn

competitors, letting them know that this was no hunting accident and

could have been much, much worse. We were extremely lucky for the most

part. After reading just some of the events, ask your self if it is

worth it? As of this past weekend we were not scheduled to compete in

this 1000, but our sole intention was to pre-run sections of the course

and make ourselves available to compete if another team needed a last

minute rider. We were not on the course and were several miles from the

course on our way back home, but ultimately were riding in a very common

area where we would have never questioned our safety; until now. Sal

Fish spoke with me in the TJ hospital and both Sal and Oscar Ramos were

very accommodating and heartfelt about the situation and expressed their

deepest concerns. However, as of this weekend, about a week after Steve

was shot, I have not heard of any attempts from Score to check on

Steve's condition. I'm bothered by that, knowing not only was Steve a

licensed top Baja racer for many years, but also competed in several

classes including 7S, Class 22 pro motorcycles, and premier class 1

cars. Our team finished last year's season with a 3rd place in points

championship followed by a 4th place finish (class 22) in last year's

40th anniversary Baja 1000.

In my humble opinion I am disappointed by the conduct and overall

attitude of Score, primarily for two reasons: the fact that I feel the

organization has not yet released facts or made efforts to speak with

the Martz family, or publicly announced that this was not an accident.

We were not scheduled for this race but we left the opportunity

available. I hope to see something even as brief as a warning for the

racers and general race fans to be extremely careful since this past

week's incident could happen again and could be more than a "hunting

accident."

Steve, Aaron and I absolutely loved riding and competing in Baja, along

with coordinating several hosted tour rides, and are saddened to step

back from a once such rewarding and fulfilling lifestyle. We truly will

miss it and hope things can change soon. As recognized (I hope) Score

professional racers, I can only hope this story can build awareness for

all racers' safety in the next Baja 1000 and future races. I personally

won't be back since I was directly affected in many ways. I think

competitors will always compete knowing the danger is there, but being

honest with the facts does go a long way with a community of racers.

Moral of the story: Several heroes worked on saving the life of a fellow

racer and he was ultimately saved by the grace of God and His

involvement the entire time. This story will be closure to us and our

families, knowing that we have set the facts straight and will no longer

need to explain the same story over an over. Again, none of us are

angry with Score knowing that this was out of their hands and ultimately

not race course related, but we feel the public needs to know the truth

and if it can happen in the area of VDT, it could happen anywhere. Be

careful and race safe! The off road community is a brotherhood and

watching racers go out of their way to do anything for us is just

another reason the sport is what it is. Currently, as of 10 days from

the incident, Steve is still in excruciating pain following another

emergency surgery on Monday evening. Doctors discovered another hole in

the stomach interior which was causing infection and severe pain. Steve

is still in ICU and struggling with the recovery process.

Steve told me he is at peace and has forgiven the unidentified

individual for shooting him. He made it clear from the day after the

shooting he was not going to pursue or press charges and is comfortable

with his decision.

God Bless,

Dan Walsh, Aaron Cooper and Steve Martz

[boat440 0]

Update by Dirtnewz

http://www.dirtnewz.com/dr-pressreleases/2...e-11-3-08.shtml

[Strega 0]

Reading that just made my stomach shake. Just goes to show ya that the community of off roaders can be some of the most kind, generous, giving, and unselfish people around. I'm proud to be a part of such a great group of people.

[dirt dame 559]

I will say a prayer for Steve's complete recovery. That story did make me very uncomfortable. I hope other people don't go down there, for their own safety's sake.

[Crawdaddy 96]

Reading that just made my stomach shake. Just goes to show ya that the community of off roaders can be some of the most kind, generous, giving, and unselfish people around. I'm proud to be a part of such a great group of people.

+1 - it's fortunate that these guys are somewhat connected and were able to make contact with the SCORE atty to get a chopper/were recognized by some other riders by the Hospital/had a father in the states on call, etc, etc....

"I'm" not as connected, don't speak Spanish very well, etc.,etc....so I wouldn't even consider a ride south without insurance, local "in country" friends/SDAR members like Javi, etc......it's NOT worth the risk (to me)

[bikeslut 1]

the first post exemplifies all that is wrong with Baja, AND all that is good

The "bad" examples used to be few and far between... a cop bribe here and there would keep you out of most trouble...

Obviously not the case any more... too bad

Everybody going down there, take care, and use the resources available to you if you need help... SDAR would be down there with trucks and trailers if any of us needed help

(I hope)

[cardiffchris 0]

Very Sad State of Affairs and a Really Tragic Story.

I grew up camping near Ensenada ,San Felipe, and La Rumorosa in the late 70's.

It sucks that the area isn't the peacefull backcountry it once was.

I'm Glad you all made it out alive.

Best Wishes and Get Well Soon.

[Metal Twister 0]

I know that area well having made countless trips through there. Ive loved Mexico since my youth and am so sickened by what is going on down there. Im done with my ventures south until things straighten up, if they straighten up?

Its important to realize just how vulnerable we are out away from society. Even in our own back country areas its easy to run across illegal activity. I guess you just have to be extra aware of whats going on and dont go where there is a history of this kinda of thing. Thanks for posting this event up on the forum. It brings it right home to us. God Bless, M.T.

[husky4me 0]

This is a very sad story, but at the same time points out to the good aspects of human nature. In this case the riders resolve to continue, help each others, and survive. I offer my prayers to them, and wish Steve a speedy recovery, and complete healing from his tragedy.

Going out of our "comfort zone", in this case the USA, is always risky, challenging, scary, and also fun... Other countries have different laws, other customs, different languages, different challenges, and there will always be criminals ready to try to rob you, as well as people who will be nice and try to help you...

In this particular case, we can only speculate the motivation of the shooter, or why it happened. It is obvious that it was not a hunting accident, as it was clear the shooter aimed at Steve and the other riders. Was this shooter in organized crime? Was he under the influence of crystal meth? Was he angry with off-roaders that ride close to his property making noise and he just lost it? Was he just a bad person? Was he trying to rob them? Who knows what the correct answer...is I remember some years back someone driving a 4x4 or a pick up (can't remember now) around our own back country in San Diego, one guy was shot as a rancher thought he was being robbed (at least that's what he said as defense in Court).

In my recent trip to British Colombia, Canada (last week) I felt very unsafe when I was approached by a strange stranger in the downtown of Vancouver, I thought for sure I would be robbed. I was nervous at times during my trip, and was also having lots of fun. For sure, even though Canada has very close ties to the U.S. there are some cultural differences, and I felt strange in a different country.

In sum these are my points:

-Certain parts of Mexico, including our border towns, are right now out of control as far as organized crime wars, shootings, and it is unsafe to be there. You don't know who the good guy is or the bad guy, as crime infiltrates in the police. Even the locals are trying to move to the U.S. as they are scared. Some Mexicans living in the U.S. don't go to Mexico period.

-Crime happens all over the world, including in the U.S.A. Let's not generalize, but it is true that there's just been too many things happening south of our borders to make us more concern. There are also shootings in the rural areas of our US towns, and also rapes, robberies etc... I have been bothered while staying at Ocotillo Wells OHV Park on my R.V. by some people on drugs that attempted to rob me in the middle of the night. The ranger Norm at Corral Canyon told me once of a sudden suspicious death at Corral Canyon camp...

-It is sad that things are so out of control, and crime is up in Mexico, as it's always nice to explore south of the border, and now it is much more than an adventure to venture south...

-Don't go south if you don't feel safe... I was planning to join a group of riders to go see Baja 1000 next weekend, and now I'm kind of thinking more after reading this story. It just makes me feel uneasy (too many things going on right now).

[OUTERLIMITS 0]

Boat440, your first post reads as "another" rider being shot in Baja. Do you mean just another shooting in general down there or do you know of another rider that was shot? Just curious as this is the first one I've heard about.

[akcooper9 0]

Boat440, your first post reads as "another" rider being shot in Baja. Do you mean just another shooting in general down there or do you know of another rider that was shot? Just curious as this is the first one I've heard about.

Brett you are correct....he mess that up.

This is the only shooting...it was a very horrible experience. being there and seeing the guy with the gun aiming it at me, i will never go back.

Also will the original post please edit your post by deleting the copied text and just placing a link to the text? you did not ask for permission to post that nor was it given. again a link to the text is fine.

Thanks

Aaron

[Joliet 0]

Boat440, your first post reads as "another" rider being shot in Baja. Do you mean just another shooting in general down there or do you know of another rider that was shot? Just curious as this is the first one I've heard about.

Brett you are correct....he mess that up.

This is the only shooting...it was a very horrible experience. being there and seeing the guy with the gun aiming it at me, i will never go back.

Also will the original post please edit your post by deleting the copied text and just placing a link to the text? you did not ask for permission to post that nor was it given. again a link to the text is fine.

Thanks

Aaron

Aaron, are you saying this is the only shooting in Baja, or the only shooting of a motorcycle rider, or the only shooting that you witnessed?

Is this the link you are referring to?

http://www.4shared.com/file/71220654/b4d73...a_Shooting.html

After reading this sentence in the article; "I'm encouraging you to take the information as it is and please do not alter it to fit what you would rather believe or be influenced to believe." I find it hard to believe that it is not ok to use the information as long as it is not altered. The author may want to change the wording if it is indeed not ok to use.

I would like to personally thank the author for making this information public to dispel the rumors and give us some clarity on the matter.

I don't think anyone on this site would willingly do anything against the author’s wishes; it would be very helpful to know what those wishes are.

Here are a few of the many other links out there.

http://bajasafari.blogspot.com/2008/11/bul...ge-reports.html

http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread....2520&page=2

http://www.twtex.com/forums/showthread.php?t=34257

http://www.danwalshracing.com/Martz_Baja_Shooting.doc

Ken

[boat440 0]

Aaron,

Sorry about the experience you, Steve & Dan encountered. Also I hope Steve makes a speedy & complete recovery.

As far as freely posting, per your suggestion next time (hopefully this will not happen again), I will add a link.

In Dan’s words, the reason for writing his story, “...along with a story to give everyone a better understanding of what happened. My main goal is to give awareness to all and provide clarification of what actually happened..."

Thank you for your informative awareness/clarification to the off-road community.

[akcooper9 0]

Aaron, are you saying this is the only shooting in Baja, or the only shooting of a motorcycle rider, or the only shooting that you witnessed?

Grow up...

Is this the link you are referring to?

http://www.4shared.com/file/71220654/b4d73...a_Shooting.html

That link works fine and so does the one on Dan's website which i maintain and posted...

After reading this sentence in the article; "I'm encouraging you to take the information as it is and please do not alter it to fit what you would rather believe or be influenced to believe." I find it hard to believe that it is not ok to use the information as long as it is not altered. The author may want to change the wording if it is indeed not ok to use.

I am one of the authors...notice my name at the end of it

I would like to personally thank the author for making this information public to dispel the rumors and give us some clarity on the matter.

that is why we wrote it

I don't think anyone on this site would willingly do anything against the author’s wishes; it would be very helpful to know what those wishes are.

not knowing is one thing but to just feel its ok to publish something it a little out of line....like i said linking to it is the best way...

[akcooper9 0]

Aaron,

Sorry about the experience you, Steve & Dan encountered. Also I hope Steve makes a speedy & complete recovery.

As far as freely posting, per your suggestion next time (hopefully this will not happen again), I will add a link.

In Dan’s words, the reason for writing his story, “...along with a story to give everyone a better understanding of what happened. My main goal is to give awareness to all and provide clarification of what actually happened..."

Thank you for your informative awareness/clarification to the off-road community.

not a problem...i was not trying to call you out....i just wish people show where the info was coming from....

btw way, there is an update on the website

www.danwalshracing.com

[zracing 0]

I follow what has been going on south of the boarder very closely. I am very sorry that this happened to all of you and I have been hoping for Steve's speedy recovery since it happened. When I first read about the shooting I wanted to be shocked but I wasn't. Nothing that happens down there shocks me any longer. I am not a baja racer so no one will ever listen to me but I think as consumers we have only one peaceful power and that is boycott. I am very disappointed that SCORE did not pull out of baja after what happened last year(kidnapping at gun point who they thought were the Mcmillians-among many other atrocities). I will never support anyone or anything that that continue to give money to the people directly involved in all this-the mexican police/cartels. It is very sad, after 15 yrs of going to baja I will most likely never return. Thank you for sharing this information with everyone to set the record straight. Good luck in all or your recoveries.

Todd

[TrophyHunter 15]

I ran into one of the BF Goodrich support crew this morning at Starbucks. He was headed south with 3 rigs crossing later to assist with their 4 pits. He told me they were escorted from TJ south last year by the Federales (about 10) who demanded T-Shirts & hats when they arrived at their destination.

A small price to pay for the armed escort that one unfortunately needs but the "fee" wasn't very voluntary as he described it.

We get safety updates on border issues at work regularly and you couldn't pay me enough to go south.