Wednesday marked the 23-year anniversary of the 11 September attacks on the United States that killed 2,977 people. In their immediate aftermath, the entertainment world scrambled to postpone events or make thematic changes to their content to align with the sudden paradigm shift in American culture.
Most sporting leagues opted to postpone their upcoming games in the following days such as the National Football League and Major League Baseball, and the ramifications also extended globally such as the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Cup. Motorsport was more of a mixed bag domestically and overseas: the NASCAR Cup Series’ event at New Hampshire Motor Speedway was pushed back from that Sunday to the end of the 2001 season, while the CART race at Lausitzring and 2001 Italian Grand Prix went as usual save for memorial tributes.
SCORE International ended up being one of the few American racing championships that opted to proceed with their schedule that weekend. Scheduled for four days after the attacks on 15 September, the Primm 300 in Nevada was the fourth and penultimate race of the 2001 season, when the series bounced between Baja California (where it currently races exclusively) and the U.S.
It was not an easy decision to make. On one hand, racing so soon after such a tragedy did not feel appropriate. On the other hand, doing so could also be seen as a show of strength. One could also point out that Primm was unlikely to be targeted by terrorist activity. The only precedent seemed to be the 1991 Parker 400, where some mulled whether to proceed as it was shortly after the start of Operation Desert Storm, though that was still outside of America’s borders.
After a day of debate, SCORE President Sal Fish opted to proceed.
“America is in a state of despair at this time and all we can do is be there for one another and continue to offer our thoughts, prayers and condolences,” began a statement from Fish on Wednesday, the day after the attacks. “There are no answers to our questions and no understanding to the reason behind this insanity. Many lives have been affected by this horrendous act against our country. Our thoughts and prayers go out especially to the people of New York City, Washington DC, and the family and friends of those on the four airplanes. […]
“In regards to the race, we are following the direction of President (George W.) Bush that America must not retreat in the face of terrorism. Therefore, the SCORE Las Vegas Primm 300 race will be held as scheduled on Saturday. While we continue to grieve with America, SCORE will honour all of those impacted by this incredible tragedy with the running of this race as atribute to them and our great country.”
The day before the green flag, SCORE organised a blood drive on Friday during technical inspection outside Buffalo Bill’s Resort and Casino, where the race began and ended. Fish explained in his message that “as a desert racing family, we can do something to help some of our fellow Americans who are in desperate need at this time.”
As would later be the case with NASCAR’s return at Dover later that month, most SCORE competitors arrived at Primm with patriotic liveries. Terrible Herbst Motorsports, consisting of Troy Herbst‘s eventual race-winning Class 1 and his older brother Tim‘s Trophy Truck, featured “God Bless America!” written along the doors; the former’s truck also had an American flag at the rear.
136 Four-Wheelers entered the race, twenty-eight of which were Class 1s. The still nascent Trophy Truck class, well before its rise to being the top category today, was represented by just three trucks including Tim’s #1.
The Trophy Truck of Dave Ashley was the only driver to set a lap time below an hour and eleven minutes during the opening lap. Troy Herbst, meanwhile, was eighth after the first circuit before coming to life on lap two. He was the fastest overall competitor through the second lap while Ashley fell behind and trailed him by five minutes.
Ashley made up some lost time on lap three but Herbst delivered the final blow on the fourth and final lap to win with a total time of 4:53:29. Ashley settled for second, 2:58 back. Bob Lofton rounded out the overall podium. The Herbsts donated their prize money to the Red Cross.
Over two decades later, Terrible Herbst Motorsports continue to race in SCORE today.
Class winners
| Class | Overall Finish | Number | Driver of Record | Time |
| Class 1 | 1 | 100 | Troy Herbst | 4:53:29 |
| Class 3 | 79 | 399 | Billy Bunch | 7:17:45* |
| Class 5 | 32 | 500 | George Seeley Jr. | 6:19:03 |
| Class 5-1600 | 47 | 551 | Ernie Negrete | 7:24:50 |
| Class 7 | 26 | 701 | Craig Turner | 6:11:04 |
| Class 7S | 43 | 720 | Cory Susag | 7:11:11 |
| Class 8 | 45 | 802 | Jesse Jones | 7:22:04 |
| Class 9 | 74 | 902 | Cisco Bio | 6:07:21* |
| Class 10 | 10 | 1006 | Chris Harrold | 5:29:19 |
| Class 11 | 80 | 1100 | Eric Solorzano | 7:38:10* |
| Class 16 | 25 | 1604 | Rob MacCachren | 6:06:32 |
| Pro Truck | 16 | 270 | Scott Steinberger | 5:41:58 |
| SCORE Lites | 14 | 1214 | Kory Halopoff | 5:35:49 |
| Sportsman Class 3 | 73 | 302 | Ikuo Hanawa | 5:47:11* |
| Stock Full | 76 | 862 | Marc Stein | 6:30:30* |
| Stock Mini | 82 | 761 | Robert Land | 9:41:20* |
| Trophy Truck | 2 | 8 | Dave Ashley | 4:56:27 |