World Diabetes Day race car takes fifth in the Mint 400

Scott Anderson and Carrie Molho set a blistering pace in the official World Diabetes Day off-road race car at the recent Mint 400 near Las Vegas, Nevada.

Desert Dingo Racing's '69 VW Beetle - the official World Diabetes Day off road race car - took fifth in class in the historic Mint 400 desert race outside Las Vegas, Nevada (USA) on March 29 and team members used the event to spread the word about the growing threat of diabetes.

The Dingos, based in Silicon Valley, California, campaign the VW in off road races in the U.S. and Mexico. Two of the team members have have type 2 diabetes and several other team members have a history of the disease in their families.

The course was tremendously challenging and cars were breaking down all over the place," said crew chief Richard Palasik, who lives with Type 2 diabetes. "The biggest challenge, though, was the silt. The faster cars churned it up all day and by the time we were on the course, it was two to three feet deep in places."

Driver Scott Anderson and co-driver Carrie Molho, who took the first 101-mile leg, took the car from eighth place to fourth, despite losing the two rear shocks and having to retrieve the night-driving light bar.

Anderson and Molho autographed hero cards during a fan meet-and-greet two days earlier when race organizers took over the main street in Old Las Vegas. Desert Dingo's hero cards have a photo of the car on the front and the warning signs of diabetes printed on the back.

Palasik and co-driver Greg Creech took the second 101-mile leg of the race, completing their lap just as the sun set. The team welded the rear skid plate back on (after retrieving it where it had fallen off a few hundred yards before the pits) and driver Bob Russell and co-driver Jim Graham set off on the last leg. They had just freed the car from getting bogged down in three feet of silt when they got word from the team that they had timed out and the race was over.

The team raises money for International Diabetes Federation-sponsored awareness and education programs and distributes information on the warning signs of diabetes to race fans.

Desert Dingo Racing will be competing in several races in the U.S. in the coming months, leading up to the 42nd annual Baja 1000 in Mexico in mid-November.