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The NTD Racing Family

The Idea for NTD Racing was born in the Mechanical Engineering Department at the United States Air Force Academy over 25 years ago.  A hard charging team of future Air Force pilots built an 8hp Mini Baja and and raced to victory over 63 Universities in the grueling Arizona desert.

 

Today, NTD Racing still has 3 of the original members plus a growing family of Veterans and civilian service members working toward our goal of crossing the finish line.  This is our Journey to the Baja 1000.

Dave

Dave

Owner / Driver: Dave "Nitetrain" Pryor is a retired Air Force F-15C pilot and current Delta Airlines pilot. Today Dave lives in Monument, Colorado, with his Wife Michelle and their son. In his spare time he likes to build anything that makes his Dad say "You are crazy!"

Denny

Denny

Team Manager / Driver: Denny LeBow was raised in Tyler, Texas, and now calls Fort Worth home. He is a recently retired Department of State Diplomatic Security Special Agent. Denny and his spectacular wife Jenn have four children and two dogs. He enjoys live music and cold beer.

David

David

Driver: David Lassiter is a Program Manger on a Flight Simulation Program with CAE in Arlington, TX were he has been employed for nearly 30 years. He’s been married almost 20 years and has 4 daughters, 1 son and 3 grandsons. In his spare time he enjoys hanging by his pool with his family, Desert Racing, Off road adventures and scuba diving. David has yet to say no to an adventure.

Danny

Danny

Driver: JD “Danny” Whitaker was born and raised in Tyler, Texas and still considers it his home of record. He is a retired Army officer and current department of defense mental health provider currently serving with his wife MAJ Natalie Whitaker in Fort Knox, Kentucky. In his free time Danny enjoys adventure racing, UTV dirt track racing, trail running and raising their two young daughters. His high octane energy is infections, albeit dangerous for Pablo Escobar's couch.

Mike

Mike

Driver: Mike Matthews is a ski patroller on Vail Mountain in the winter and owns his own tree cutting business in the summer. He has lived in the Vail Valley for almost 30 years. Before becoming a patroller he was a cook which allowed for daily backcountry runs. He has been married for close to 20 years and has 2 dogs. Mike enjoys what he does for a living (maybe a bit too much?) and spends his free time hanging with his wife and dogs.

Bear

Bear

Driver, Mambo wrangler: Paul “Bear” Cory is a retired Air Force A-10 pilot and current FedEx pilot. He has deployed all over the world and currently lives in Colorado Springs with his wife of over 25 years and his son. He enjoys traveling in his RV and Jeeping whenever he can. Won’t turn down any adventure! No seriously. Test it, you'll see.

Ryan

Ryan

Driver: Ryan Nunez is raising his 3 beautiful children in San Diego, CA with his wife Julie who he met in Italy. He serves as the North America Alliances lead at Salesforce for Accenture. A good day for Ryan includes surfing, CrossFit, chasing his kids and occasionally his wife. He fills the empty hole created after the NTD racing relocation to Colorado with yearly trips to the Baja!

Jim

Jim

Driver: James “Jim” Johnson is a recently retired Special Agent for the Department of State’s Bureau of Diplomatic Security. Clearly, he is also the most attractive person on the NTD Racing team, which is more of a burden than anything. With his free time Jim enjoys sailing, building guitars, and motorcycle trips. Jim can be found most midnights in the dunes on the cape. If not there - go to O’Malley’s where he will be found planning his escape.

Angela

Angela

Driver: Angela Lassiter is the Manager of Procurement Services for CAE, USA, where she has been employed for over twenty years. Angela is married with five children and three grandchildren. In her spare time she enjoys off road adventures in her Jeep and country dancing with her husband David, which was the primary motivation for the dance floor on Mambo's roof

Dave

Dave

Driver: Dave “Smuggler” Johnson is a retired F-15 and F-22 pilot and currently the President of Johnson Brothers Appliances (a small family business in Bend, Oregon). He has been married for over 20 years to his incredible wife Carrie and has 4 awesome kids. He enjoys designing and building stuff on the rare occasion he has any free time.

Bailey

Bailey

Driver: Raised in the plains of Nebraska she fled to the Rocky Mountains almost 20 years ago where she met her partner in crime, Mike, and has been laughing her way through their adventures ever since. Hobbies include the usual: hanging with Mikey, snuggling with the pups, drinking some beer, playing cards, and mountain biking.

Josh

Josh

Driver: Joshua Mauro was born in Pittsburgh Pa, and has lived in Vail CO for almost 30 years. He is a County Paramedic and a Ski Patroller on Vail Mtn. When he's not skiing powder, he rides moto in the woods, builds rock crawlers and hotrods, and cleans up dog fur around the house from his overly hairy Golden Retriever.

Kris

Kris

Driver: Kristofer Noël is originally from New Hampshire, but has called Colorado home for many years. Kris and his wife Jasmine run a snow cat skiing operation in SW Colorado. When he’s not skiing pow he enjoys time with his wife and dog; be it Mountain Biking, riding dirt bikes, camping or playing guitar in their band.

Topher

Topher

Driver: Topher Matthews is a nuclear engineer at Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico. His off-time is filled with chasing his two kids around the hobby farm him and his wife have in the Northern New Mexico mountains. Despite being handsomer and taller, he seems to always be playing catch-up with his cooler, older brothers.

Natalie

Natalie

Driver: Active duty military officer and mother of two very active children, Natalie has grown tired of watching her spouse have all the fun racing in the desert! So it is race time. Natalie is currently serving at Fort Knox and has spent the last 15 years moving with the military around the U.S. and the world. While Natalie remains active in adventure races and recently finished the Triple Bypass bike race of 118 miles and over 10k vertical feet, she is looking forward to the challenges and excitement of the off-road desert racing world and racing as a co-driver in the 2024 Mint 400.

Jaz

Jaz

Driver: Jasmine was born and raised in Colorado, and has been fortunate to travel the world during her time racing as a professional triathlete. Since retiring from the sport almost 15 years ago, Jasmine finds herself having the most fun when she is mountain biking and/or skiing with her husband Kris. Jasmine also enjoys playing the bass, gardening, sewing, and DIY house projects. She is incredibly thrilled and honored to join the NTD Team for the Mint 400!

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Brian

Support: Brian “Sea Dog” O’Neil is a retired Air Force and Southwest Airlines pilot. Now in his third career, he helps run the family business IP Truck, a commercial truck dealer group based in DFW. In his spare time, he enjoys restoring Austin Healey sports cars, sailing and spending time with family, friends and his dog Trooper. He's an essential part of NTD, and is fueled mostly by tacos. Schoop!

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Mark

Support: Mark “Snapper” Bennett is a retired Air Force B-1 pilot and current Delta Air Lines pilot. He lives in Huntington Beach, CA with his wife Roxane and their son. Mark enjoys spending his spare time with his family and friends on the beach in Surf City USA. Primary roles include testing the 5-point harnesses by going inverted.

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Bryan

Support: Bryan Wilson is from Lexington, Kentucky, and recently moved to Colorado after years living in Africa. A retired Marine Corps officer, he now hikes, bikes, and skis as much as he can, and goes on adventures and beer runs with his African street dogs Samba and Chef. Bryan drove from San Diego to Cabo San Lucas in 1992, and can’t wait to return to Baja.

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Rich

Support: Rich Pryor was born in Pittsburgh. After earning a BS from Penn State University and a PhD in Nuclear Physics from the University of Pittsburgh, he spent 40 years with US National Laboratories and was appointed to the President's Office of Science and Technology Policy as a Senior Policy Analyst on nuclear issues. Rich currently lives in Albuquerque where he focuses on software development and volunteers with the Civil Air Patrol as a Mission Pilot. He has been married to his wife Rebecca for over thirty years, with whom he shares 5 children and 7 grandchildren.

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Caleb

Support: Caleb known as "Provo" by his friends, is a retired Air Force pilot who now flies for Southwest Airlines. When not working, Caleb can be found revving the engine of his old truck (Boracho), hitting the links with his youngest son and friends, catching a ball game with the family, or hunting with his oldest son. Caleb knows how to enjoy life adventuring with his wife and their two boys! And let's not forget Caleb's penchant for a cold, "crappy" beer. Whether it's a frosty can of the cheapest brew in the cooler or a local dive bar's finest offering, Caleb enjoys nothing more than kicking back with a cold one in hand and swapping stories with friends.

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Loko

Support: Luke “Loko” Lokowich is a retired B-52 & U-2 pilot. He and his bride have been in the Colorado Springs area for 7 years where they enjoy traveling United’s friendly skies. Loko can’t begin work until the shop area is clean and has had all the vehicles parked squarely. Can be found organizing tools. Travels with a first aid kit.

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Millie

Shop Dawg: Millie is a 7 year old Border Collie/Aussie mix born near Lake Mille Lac in Minnesota. Millie specializes in frisbee, intense stares, and knows every store in Monument, Colorado that has dog treats behind the counter. Hates curse words.

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