Chris Lokken was participating in his first Baja 500 near Ensenada, Mexico, on June 2 when he called to tell his wife he was having the third best day of his life, behind only his wedding day and the birth of their child.

The next day, Lokken, a Carlsbad resident, was killed when a truck he was riding in rolled down a 100-yard ravine one mile from a checkpoint.

Lokken was thrown from the truck and died at the scene from head and internal injuries he suffered, said media relations director Dominic Clark of SCORE International. SCORE is the governing body of the Baja 500, a 420-mile race that takes as many as 18 hours to complete.

Lokken, 31, was in the rear portion of the crew cab -- an area without a seat or seat belt -- because his vehicle had broken down with transmission problems at road marker 195. Lokken had waited several hours before he got into the back of the truck, which also was entered in the race. Lokken wanted to hitch a ride to the next checkpoint, which was two miles away.

As Lokken flagged down the truck he was on the phone with his wife, Meggan, who works as a counselor for the Escondido Union School District.

The couple, who moved to North County more than a year ago from Orange County, also have an infant daughter, Lauren. Lokken co-owned Red Belly Racing with Brian Zehring and Kris McDonald and was attending night school to obtain his master's degree.

"He basically said I am getting in this truck to get help and to get warm," Zehring said, "and then he told her 'I love you.' "

Zehring, who said that phone call was made at 11:42 p.m., also heard from Lokken earlier in the night.

"We had three forms of communication in the buggy," Zehring said. "We actually bought a separate device you could use as a satellite phone. He called me at 10:30 p.m. to tell me the transmission was broke. And we responded we were 40 miles from him. But we would have to go opposite of the course (traffic), which we couldn't do. So I told him to hang tight and help is on the way."

Sal Fish, the chief executive officer of SCORE, said six competitors have died since the company began officiating races in 1973.

"One death is too many, but if you consider how many miles and the nature of this sport, the track record is unbelievable," Fish said. "But don't get me wrong. It is not a good deal, and I am sorry there is even one."

This year's race marked the first time Lokken and Zehring had participated as drivers, and just the second time for McDonald. Last year, Lokken was a part of McDonald's chase team.

"He was real instrumental last year," McDonald said. "We had been talking about going for a few years. Brian and Chris had the opportunity to be in the race and he was taking it real serious."

Zehring said they began preparing for the race last July.

"We felt prepared," Zehring said. "One of those things about Baja is if you get stuck in Baja, you can't go out and get your car until your race is over because you can't be on the course until all the cars are off."

At one point, near road marker 110, Zehring mentioned to Lokken that, because of some early difficulties they had encountered, maybe they should pack it up and go home.

"He just looked at me like I was crazy," Zehring said. "There was no way he was stopping. He wanted to be in the car and wanted to be in Baja. He knew there would be a possibility there would be a problem, but nothing was going to stop him from being there."

Fish said the risks of racing in the Baja 500 were outlined in detail to each driver.

"It spells it right out in our drivers briefing in the second or third paragraph," Fish said. "Off-road racing is a very dangerous sport. Anyone that puts themselves in a race vehicle or motorcycle realizes they are taking a pretty good chance of having an accident. No one believes that is going to happen, though."

Stacy Power of Ramona met Lokken four years ago and she said they became instant friends.

"We talked a lot about family and a lot about other life things," Power said. "This Baja thing meant the world to him. He was real excited about it."

Lokken's death has struck a chord in the racing community. Lokken was very popular and people have taken to the Internet to post and reminisce about his life. Several threads have appeared with pictures and memories of Lokken. McDonald said he touched many lives.

"He was real charismatic and well liked," said McDonald, who met Lokken nine years ago and said he was one of his best friends. "He got along with everybody. He was the hit of the party and a real friendly guy.

"A lot of people are going to miss him. It leaves a big hole in the lives of a lot of people."

A private memorial is slated for June 16, after which Lokken's body will be cremated. Donations to the Lokken family can be made at any Wells Fargo bank (checking number 5076550887). E-mail donations can be made through PayPal and sent to chrislokkenfund@hotmail.com.

Contact staff writer Matt Null at mnull@nctimes.com.