Legendary off-road racer Walker Evans died Aug. 2. He was 86 years old.
Born on December 3, 1938, in Cedar Lake, Michigan, Evans has been one of the sport’s best racers, innovators and ambassadors. Over his long and successful career, Evans earned 142 victories in both desert racing and short-course competition, claiming 21 championships and nine Baja 1000 wins in the process. In fact, his nickname is “The Legend.”
Evans got his first sample of off-road racing when he drove a Rambler Sedan in the 1969 NORRA Baja 500 for actor James Garner’s American Motors Team. During his career, Walker has driven Dodges, Chevrolets, and Fords.
Inducted into the Off-Road Motorsports Hall of Fame in 2004, Evans was a key figure in growing factory support for desert and short-course racing, thanks in large measure to long relationships with Dodge and Goodyear.
In 1994, he built and raced the first Dodge pickup in NASCAR’s Craftsman Truck Series, and later helped pioneer competitive rock crawling. No matter the venue, Evans was always at the head of the field.
Evans’ brilliant career in SCORE racing on the Baja California Peninsula also included six victories in the SCORE Baja 500 (1970, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976), one win in the SCORE San Felipe 250 (1991), and six SCORE championships (1974, 1975, 1976, 1978, 1983, 1986), five of which were in Class 8 and one in Class 2.
