One name synonymous with off-road is Walker Evans. The sport would not be where it is today without the work and dedication he put in. Walker Evans’ name is in a league with off-road superstars like Ivan Stewart and Mickey Thompson.

Evans began racing in the late 1960s and earned 142 victories and 21 championship titles in short-course and desert racing events, including five Baja 1000 wins. Given his success, there is no reason why he does not deserve the nickname, “The Legend,” as he is one of the most accomplished competitors in the sport of off-road racing

It was Evans’ passion for off-road that eventually turned into a business. Located in Corona, California, just a short drive from our office, Walker Evans Racing has been around the off-road industry for quite some time sharing a wealth of knowledge with customers.

A throwback picture to Walker Evans racing back in the day. Photo Credit: Chris Collard

History Around Every Corner

We arrived at Walker Evans Racing and met up with Ried Nordin for a tour of the shop. He has a storied career in off-road as well. “I come from a racing background as my father raced desert in the late ’60s to early ’80s. He raced the very first Baja 1000 in 1967 and won his class,” Nordin said.

Left to Right: Larry Roeseler, Reid Nordin, Todd Romano, and Hans Waage.

“I started Kawasaki’s desert and Baja off-road program in 1987 and was part of the team that won nine straight Baja 1000’s, along with countless Baja and Best in the Desert championships. After Kawasaki stopped Baja racing I helped the Ultra Wheels and Terrible Herbst teams achieve many more Baja victories. I won the Baja 500 and the Baja 1000 in 2009 and had the privilege of being a navigator in the Impact Racing Trophy Truck,” Nordin continued.

The passion for off-road runs through everyone’s blood, which was clearly evident when we entered the shop. “My love for everything off-road, 4X4, UTV, and adventure continues here at Walker Evans Racing,” Nordin said. 

History is in the air and the building. “The original Walker Evans Race shop was in another building in Riverside, California, but we have spent a majority of our history in this building. This building is approximately 24,000 square feet,” Nordin said. “A cool fact is … Walker used to land his helicopter on the property. Next to my desk is the old window to the original dyno room, lots of horsepower was made on the other side of this window.”

There were no wheels being made at the time, but we saw the machines used to drill them. Once the castings arrive, each wheel is cut to order with the correct lug pattern and preferred lug type: tapered, flange, or flange pro-am. “We only build aluminum wheels of both high-pressure cast and forged variety,” Nordin said.

Walker Evans Racing not only produces wheels, they have ventured into the shock market making Jeep, UTV, and truck shocks. “The total number of production and aftermarket shocks built daily is confidential and varies depending on the time of year,” Nordin said.

The UTV market has taken the off-road world by storm and is affecting the way many companies look at the market. Nordin explained, “The total number of UTVs that we build performance shocks for increases each year. We have seen a solid increase in this market size, even through a relatively soft market the last five years.”

As the company stays on the forefront of the off-road market, they will continue to help drivers and enthusiasts achieve the goals they set out to accomplish.

 Racing Today

When Evans retired from off-road racing, he picked up another form of off-roading –rockcrawling. He continues his winning legacy in RCAA rockcrawling events, which he enters when time permits.

Walker Evans may not race anymore, but he has picked up rockcrawling.

Just because Evans has stepped back from racing does not mean his company has. “We built our business on racing and continue to have a strong presence at the track with support and our team of drivers in UTV, snow, 4X4, desert, and short-course truck racing,” Nordin said.

“We don’t just sponsor drivers or teams, we work with our core group of drivers to continually develop our products so we can stay ahead of our competition,” Nordin said. Even with the success of the company, the search continues for improvement to design and pushing the sport to new limits.

Short-course driver RJ Anderson (right) and Walker Evans (left) back in the day.

“Our driver list is quite extensive in all disciplines of racing, from snow and UTV to truck racing. We have championship-caliber drivers in each sport we are involved with,” Nordin said. One of the drivers sponsored by Walker Evans Racing is RJ Anderson.

Anderson’s father, Randy, began working after school at Walker Evans Racing on April 1, 1978. He quickly progressed from parts cleaner to mechanic to fabricator under the supervision of long-time off-road crew chief Danny Shields. Over the course of Anderson’s career, the Walker Evans Racing Team has amassed 30 championship titles and more than 197 race wins.

RJ Anderson turning it up in the lasted XP1K video.

Anderson has been one of the rising young guns in off-road and is the star of the YouTube series XP1K, which has millions of views. We are sure that we will see more of him and XP1K in the future with Walker Evans Racing by their side.

We would like to thank Nordin and Walker Evans Racing for the tour and look forward to testing out its wheels on Project Storm Trooper. For all the latest information on what the Walker Evans Racing team is up to, be sure to check out the website and Facebook page.