WIN THE ULTIMATE
BAJA SURF & CAMP RIG
+ $25,000 IN GEAR | FOLLOW THE BUILD | ENDS JULY 16
STACK YOUR ODDS.
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THE ULTIMATE SURF RIG
CHALLENGE 🏁
Latest episodes:
Can a $50K Baja Rig really keep up with the $200K builds?
A lot of folks think you need to spend a quarter million dollars before you can safely cruise down to Baja, sleep well, and chase waves off the beaten path.
But the reality is, some of the gnarliest spots we’ve ever been will have a 30-year-old Toyota with the floorboards rusted out, happily cruising down the same unnamed beach.
So what do you actually need?
REQUIREMENTS:
- Reliability
- Durability
- Washboard-eating speed
- Room for boards and camp gear
- Power that doesn’t quit
- Lights that work when things go sideways
- A camp setup you actually want to live out of
Basil’s Garage builds insanely dialed Baja exploration trucks. Big suspensions. Flatbeds. Campers. Power systems. Lights. Just absolute rippers.
When you’re in Baja with one of those trucks, you can go anywhere and have every comfort.
SO THIS IS THE MISSION:
Build a rig that’s damn near as useful, comfortable, and capable as one of those flagship builds — for $50K or less.
That’s what this giveaway is all about.
YOU'LL SEE:
- Every part.
- Every price.
- Every install.
- No sponsor pricing.
- No mystery math.
- No pretending stuff is free.
AND WHEN IT'S DONE?
We’ll take it to Baja and run it next to a $200k built F-250 with all the kit, so you can see what the differences really are.
And then, somebody gets the keys.
Could be you.
Can a $50K Baja Rig really keep up with the $200K builds?
A lot of folks think you need to spend a quarter million dollars before you can safely cruise down to Baja, sleep well, and chase waves off the beaten path.
But the reality is, some of the gnarliest spots we’ve ever been will have a 30-year-old Toyota with the floorboards rusted out, happily cruising down the same unnamed beach.
So what do you actually need?
REQUIREMENTS:
- Reliability
- Durability
- Washboard-eating speed
- Room for boards and camp gear
- Power that doesn’t quit
- Lights that work when things go sideways
- A camp setup you actually want to live out of
Basil’s Garage builds insanely dialed Baja exploration trucks. Big suspensions. Flatbeds. Campers. Power systems. Lights. Just absolute rippers.
When you’re in Baja with one of those trucks, you can go anywhere and have every comfort.
SO THIS IS THE MISSION:
Build a rig that’s damn near as useful, comfortable, and capable as one of those flagship builds — for $50K or less.
That’s what this giveaway is all about.
YOU'LL SEE:
- Every part.
- Every price.
- Every install.
- No sponsor pricing.
- No mystery math.
- No pretending stuff is free.
AND WHEN IT'S DONE?
We’ll take it to Baja and run it next to a $200k built F-250 with all the kit, so you can see what the differences really are.
And then, somebody gets the keys.
Could be you.
THE TRUCK YOU ACTUALLY NEED.
A good Baja truck is not about bolting on everything in the catalog.
It’s about building the right tool for the job:
1. A Reliable Platform
2001 Dodge Ram 2500
Yep, the one truck guys still hunt for. Powered by the legendary Cummins, the million-mile motor. Simple, stout, proven, and easy to work on.
This is the truck you beat up in the desert, put 250K miles on it, then pass it down to your kids so they can do the same.
2. BUILD THE FOUNDATION
TOYO • CJC • Nomad
Baja is rough: whoops, rocks, sand, silt, heat, heavy loads, long miles. Every year, the Baja 1000 chews up race truck after race truck. Many of them fail to even finish.
For the Surf Truck to survive, the foundation has to be dialed. Suspension. Wheels. Tires.
That’s what keeps the truck moving. So that’s where the money goes first.
3. BUILD THE STORAGE
GFC • DECKED • Rig’d
You’re hauling boards, tools, recovery gear, food, water, camp gear, spare parts, propane, a campfire, and whatever else is “in there somewhere.”
But if you throw it all in the bed, it’s not a camp rig. It’s a yard sale with tires.
Good storage gives everything a place to live that's dry, secure, and easy to grab. Cause when you need something quick, there's no unloading half the truck to find it.
4. ELECTRIFY THE THING
Redarc • IceCo
Electrical is not a luxury. It’s safety.
The Redarc system keeps your phone and InReach charged. The IceCo keeps food unspoiled, so you’re not hungry, hot, and looking at a cooler full of questionable meat.
The right power system let's you quit worrying and have fun. That's the whole point.
5. LIGHT IT UP
Baja Designs
If there’s one thing you can guarantee about Baja, it’s that sh*t’s gonna happen. And you don’t want to be stuck in the dark when it does.
Baja Designs built its name from testing lights in the same harsh desert that eats trucks, tires, and plans for breakfast. Race teams trust them because when you’re moving fast after dark, guessing is not a strategy.
6. MAKE IT CAMP
HOWL • Hest • JetBoil • MKC
Once the truck gets you there, it’s home.
For sleep, Hest makes it so you don’t wake up feeling like you got folded into a tackle box.
HOWL gives you the center of camp. A spot to warm up, dry wetsuits, talk trash, ogle the stars, and remember why you drove all that way in the first place.
MKC is the knife for food prep, camp work, and filleting that tastes-like-lobster trigger fish you speared.
JetBoil Genesis is the stove to cook it all up.
Do the truck right, and home is where you park it.
WHAT YOU COULD WIN 🏁
The complete Baja Surf Truck, built with bomber gear from brands we trust.
Here's the full prize list:
BASIL’S GARAGE — THE BUILD
A 2001 Dodge Ram 2500 turned into the under-$50K Baja surf truck.
BAJA DESIGNS — THE LIGHTS
Night-driving lights for Baja miles after dark.
GFC — THE SHELTER
A simple, fast topper setup without giant-camper complexity.
DECKED — THE STORAGE
Drawers for tools, recovery gear, food, and even campfires.
CJC OFFROAD — THE FOUNDATION
Suspension support for washboard, whoops, sand, and long miles.
TOYO TIRES — THE TRACTION
Tires for sand, rocks, silt, pavement and rough desert miles.
NOMAD WHEELS — THE WHEELS
A simple, strong, classic wheel that's built for the mission.
RIG’D — THE CARRIER
Rear-mounted utility for spare tire, gear, and HOWL hauling.
HOWL — THE FIRE
A real campfire when you're a hundred miles from the nearest tree.
REDARC — THE POWER
Clean, reliable power for fridge, lights, charging, and camp life.
ICECO — THE COLD
A fridge/freezer that keeps food fresh and drinks cold on the hottest desert days.
HEST — THE SLEEP
Real sleeping comfort when home is where you park it.
JETBOIL — THE COOK KIT
Fast coffee and precision cooking in the wildest places imaginable.
MKC — THE KNIFE
One knife to handle scaling fish, cracking coconuts, and regular Baja camp work.
+ More to come
GET 100 ENTRIES
THE OFFICIAL GARAGE Bundle
The official shirt and sticker pack of "Basil's Build for the People." Because the right truck won't have you robbing banks to get it.
Model is 6' 1" 180lbs wearing a large
Recommended to size up.
Giveaway email submission required for entry! CLICK HERE
STACK EVEN MORE ENTRIES
Shop The Giveaway
Every dollar spent at HOWL gets you one more shot at the truck.
Shop for more Entries
Do I have to buy anything to enter?
Nope. No purchase necessary.
Enter with your email and you’re in for 1 entry.
How do I get more entries?
A few ways:
Every $1 spent at HOWL = 1 entry.
That means:
Garage Shirt = 38 entries
R1 = 374 entries
R4 = 1,474 entries
The Garage Shirt + Sticker Bundle gives you double entries, 100 for $50.
What is the Under-$50K Baja Surf Truck?
It’s a 2001 Dodge Ram 2500 that Basil’s Garage is building into a Baja surf + camp rig.
We’re counting the truck and each part at full MSRP to see if we can build something simple, useful, and badass for under $50K.
Then we’re taking it to Baja, testing it against a $200K build, and giving it away.
What happens if the build goes over $50K?
Then you’ll see exactly where.
That’s part of the experiment. Real builds creep. We’re showing the math either way.
What comes with the truck?
The truck will include the full build system: shelter, storage, power, lighting, cold storage, camp comfort, fire, cooking gear, and the supporting gear listed on this page.
Final prize details are listed in the Official Rules.
When does the giveaway end?
The last day to enter is July 16, 2026.
When is the winner drawn?
The winner will be drawn on July 17, 2026.
We’ll contact the winner using the information they entered with.
How will the winner be chosen?
The winner will be selected in random drawing according to the Official Rules.
No purchase is necessary to enter or win.
Where can I read the Official Rules?
Can I enter if I don’t want texts?
Yes. Texts are optional.
Email gets you entered. Adding your phone can unlock bonus entries and text-only updates, but it is not required.
DON'T MISS THIS
READY TO WIN THE TRUCK?
One email. One shot at the ultimate surf rig.