Anyone with children is aware they are always listening; in fact, it seems they are never out of earshot. Cayden MacCachren turned that trait into a Baja 1000 class win in 2023 after taking his Polaris RZR Factory Racing UTV to victory lane in only his third start in the famed race.
Several hours ahead of Cayden, his famous father Rob MacCachren stood on the streets of Ensenada after finishing third overall in the trophy truck division and waited for his son to complete the race. On a sunny November afternoon, Rob undoubtedly reflected on how they got to this moment in time.
Cayden’s win was only five years in the making. In another sense, it took a lifetime.
Most competitive drivers climb into a car when their age is easily counted on two hands; Cayden didn’t start racing until 16. But at the age of 21, the 2023 Pro UTV Open class winner feels he has at least 21 years of experience.
“Once I got in the car when I was 16, I already had this database of knowledge in my head,” Cayden told NBC Sports as he stood in La Paz, 1,310 miles south of the finish line of the 56th Baja 1000. “I know what I’m feeling (in the car).
“The speed of my career has been pretty rapid. It’s only been four or five years since I started racing and the first three of those was in a feeder series.”
Cayden may not have been behind the wheel in his earliest years, but he was part of the sport nonetheless.
“My first year with SCORE was 2021 so this is my third Baja 1000 but I feel like I’ve been down here for 40 years. I know the roads because of the knowledge that comes from my father and everyone he’s been around and everyone I’ve been around now.”
A Family Affiar
Racing is in the MacCachren genes.
Cayden’s grandfather Bob MacCachren started racing in the early 1970s against drivers like Parnelli Jones and Bill Stroppe. Standing at his side, still in his formative years, was Rob.
Like his son Cayden, Rob wasn’t entirely certain then if he wanted to race. Basketball held a greater interest and Bob did something that should be a lesson to all parents. He didn’t push Rob into racing, saying instead that if he was not interested in continuing behind the wheel, they would sell the car. Rob could do something else.
Rob not only showed interest, but he also became one of the most successful racers in the history of the Baja 1000. He entered the 2023 race with the record for the most four-wheel wins at six. This year, Andy McMillen tied him as part of the three-driver team that scored the overall win last week.
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Rob not only followed in his father’s path as a successful offroad racer, more importantly he followed his example as a parent. Rob allowed Cayden to develop his own interest in the sport at his own pace and in his own way. Father and son both credit a love of video games as part of Cayden’s introduction to offroad racing.
“Ultimately when he was 15 years old, I was thinking I don’t know if he’s going to like offroad - if he wants to do this or not,” Rob said. “But we had the opportunity to use a RZR RS1 when he was 15. He got bit by the bug and did his first race. He loved it and we were all in.”
Learning by Example
Now the instruction took on a different character. Cayden learned by example from Rob and the other professionals that surrounded them.
In 2021, son and father teamed up for an overall Mint 400 win. It was quickly obvious that Cayden not only had the talent, but he had been paying attention.
“I started racing when I was 16 or 17, but I really started racing when I was born,” Cayden said. “My dad’s been doing this 40 plus years and I’m 21, so all my life I’ve been in racing. When I was a kid - an infant - I didn’t understand it, but as I grew up, I was able to take it in and soak it up like a sponge.
“By the time I was around and able to understand what was going on, he had successful programs running so I never had to learn how to run a successful program, I just knew the right way to do it because I was always around him.”
Occasionally sitting in the navigator’s seat while his father did recce runs through the desert or simply listening to the conversations in the shop, Cayden soaked in the information.
Rob was not always aware it was happening until he saw just how fast his son had become.
“I realized after the fact that when he was young, he was paying attention - was listening - so ultimately when he got the chance to do this, he did really well to begin with,” Rob said. “That makes me as his dad very proud. I’m here to support him to do as much as I can to do what I’ve done. ... He’s definitely been a great student of the sport.”
A Baja 1000 to Remember
In 2023, both drivers were looking for distinction. Rob was vying for a third consecutive Baja 1000 win in the premier division, something he previously did from 2014 through 2016 - notably with Andy McMillen as a co-driver in two of those races.
In Cayden’s first two Baja 1000, in 2021 and 2022, Rob won with Andy’s cousin Luke McMillen.
This year, Cayden had a stacked team. Starting the race and running the first 500 miles, Cayden turned the driving duties over to Justin Morgan for the middle stage run through the night. Morgan is the defending six-time motorcycle overall Baja 1000 winner. Another famous son, Rhys Millen raced the final stage to bring the Polaris RZR home as the overall winner.
Standing in victory lane, Cayden had not yet processed the gravity of the win.
“I’ve been up for 35 hours so nothing has sunk in yet,” Cayden said. “I’m about as dirty as a sock and I don’t even know what to say. It’s special; it’s cool, but over the next couple of weeks or months or years - by the time I’m in a nursing home - I’ll be thinking about this day.”
