| November 14, 2023
Serving as the final stop of the 2023 season, California City hosted the fourth and final round of Best In The Desert Championship, crowning several champions after 180 miles of racing through the California desert. The 59.5-mile race course consisted of high-speed roads, flowing two-track roads, sand washes and a good mix of elevation, all nestled just a few miles outside of the high desert town.
The Trevor Hunter/ Hayden Hintz duo finished out the 2023 BITD Championship with a win at Cal City.
Photos by Harlen Foley
First off the line, and eventual overall winners, Hayden Hintz and Trevor Hunter made first dust at 7:00 AM sharp Saturday, setting the pace early on their DirtBikeTest/1-800-Dent-Doc-backed Honda CRF450RX. With the championship all but locked up, the two set out to test the versatility of Honda’s lineup and raced the CRF450RX instead of the usual CRF450X the two have used all year. Surprised by the bike’s performance, Hintz said, “I was really happy with how the bike worked and overall had another fun day racing. BITD laid out a fun, flowing course that mixed it up from what we’re used to, and the CRF450RX handled everything thrown at it really well.”
The N1 team had a smooth race from start to finish, steadily pulling time on the rest of the field, as they grew accustomed to the different race bike. With the win, the two clinched their fourth consecutive Open Pro title as a pair and a first for Honda in several years.
Austin Farley and Jack Miller were second overall and first Open Expert.
Behind the N1 team, the young Open Expert duo of Austin Farley and Jack Miller finished second overall, aboard a Taco Moto/City Paving/AHM TX300 Husqvarna, and the class win. Riding with an injured wrist for most of the year, Farley was third bike off the line and suffered through some lingering dust in the early miles. Early into the first of three laps, Farley made his way around the second Pro bike to move up to second overall, where they’d have a dust-free race to the finish. With the day’s win earning the duo the class championship, Farley’s celebration will be limited as he looks to get his wrist fixed in preparation for a move up to the Pro classes for 2024 with teammate Jack Miller.
The Over 40 Pro class belonged to Brett Stevens and Chris Frye on their FOHSE/Sportsman Cycle Husqvarna. Stevens celebrated his birthday weekend the best way he knew how, by closing out their perfect season with another win and the class championship. Starting second off the line, the team ran third overall for much of the race, but some issues later in the race dropped them in the standings, though they retained the class lead all the way to the checkers.
Brett Stevens and Chris Frye enjoyed a perfect season in the 40+ Pro division.
The title of the first female to cross the checkers belonged to Krista Conway, who, riding all 160 miles solo, finished in the top 10 overall on her way to winning the Women Expert class.
Other notable finishers include Remington Matthews winning Ironman Expert class and finishing third overall; the trio of Wesley Grimshaw, Morgan Shultz and Kirt Hulsey taking top honors in the Over 30 Expert field in fourth overall, and Aiden Weisser winning the Open Amateur class.CN
Krista Conway soloed to victory in the Women’s class.
Overall (Unofficial)
- Hayden Hintz/Trevor Hunter (Hon)
- Austin Farley/Jack Miller (Hus)
- Remington Matthews (Hon)
- Wesley Grimshaw/Morgan Shultz/Kirt Hulsey (GG)
- Krista Conway (Bet)
