The McMillins are desert racing royalty, but Mark McMillin and his son Luke had never shared a car in a race until this week’s Mexican 1000. The two are splitting driving duties of “Macadu”, a 1979 Chenowth buggy that Mark drove to three Baja 1000 overall wins.

Macadu is a two-seat Chenowth originally intended for Class 1 competition. Built in 1978, it came equipped with a Porsche 911 engine and went on to win the Baja 1000 in 1981, 1983, and 1984. Mark, a 2018 Off-Road Motorsports Hall of Fame inductee and its chairman, would score five Baja 1000 victories in his career.

When the Mexican 1000 was revived in 2010, Mark restored Macadu to take part. He was also the grand marshal of the 2013 and 2021 races.

Luke, meanwhile, is fairly new to competing in NORRA as a driver but does join the team for it. He was supposed to enter the 2020 Mexican 1000 in a UTV alongside his brother Dan, but the race was canceled due to COVID-19. Like his father back then, Luke is one of the top desert racers today as a four-time Baja 1000 winner and SCORE Trophy Truck champion.

The younger McMillin is not the only SCORE regular taking part in the Mexican 1000 as fellow TT drivers Robby Gordon and Rob MacCachren are also signed up.

“We love coming down here for NORRA,” said Luke. “The Baja Sur, getting back down here, it’s beautiful, the two-track sandy roads with all the big cactuses and stuff. The roads just flow and it’s a lot of fun.”

Mark kicked off the race on Saturday before Luke opened the second and third stages. The lone entry in the Vintage 6-Cylinder Buggy class, they finished the first day ranked 69th overall. After Stage 3 on Monday, their #83 sits 47th in the general ranking with a best run of 35th in SS3 on Sunday.

Also involved with the team are ORMHOF board member and artist Rory Ward, Jason Ledezma, Joe Powers, and Tyler Woof. Ward previously shared Macadu with Mark in 2021.

Featured image credit: Rory Ward