In just a few weeks – from February 2nd to February 12th – the Johnson Valley area will transform into a massive arena of dust, exhaust and speed as off-road racers and fans from all over the world will converge for King of the Hammers – one of the largest off-road events of its kind. Last year over 80,000 people came to the hi desert for the 10 day event, and this year there’s no reason to expect that it won’t be even bigger.
The giant off-roading race will feature over 500 teams racing in a variety of classes – from T1 Trophy trucks down to Class 11 VW Bugs, UTVs and an EVery man Challenge Class which has races for both stock and modified vehicles.
The Johnson Valley shared use area is located North of Joshua Tree out Old Woman Spring Road – and the 10 day event will see increased traffic on Highway 62 near that intersection – as well as heavy traffic on the two-lane road that leads to Johnson Valley, Soggy Dry Lake and other popular camping and off-roading areas.
Increased traffic won’t be isolated to the roads though, as off-road fans are free to continue to use the public lands for OHV activities during the races. Sunfair dry lake usually sees an uptick in campers and off-roaders – and both weekends surrounding the races will most likely see busier grocery stores and gas stations as visitors stock up.
King of the Hammers starts on Groundhog Day – February 2nd, and will go until February 12th.
Links:
Tickets: https://kingofthehammers.com/shop/
