Lucas Bell 
If you were to ask most people about the Rough Riders, chances are their response would have something to do with Teddy Roosevelt. The First U.S. Volunteer Cavalry Regiment cemented their place in American history during the Spanish-American War, as a result of their heroics under the command of the future president. However, long-time fans of off-roading may remember when Ford raced a number of trucks under that same name during the early 1990s. Well, a pair of new trademark applications suggests that the race team could be returning by way of the “Bronco Rough Riders”.
The Ford/BFGoodrich Rough Riders participated in races from 1991-1995, during which time they were a nearly unstoppable force. With teams and vehicles spread across multiple classes, the Rough Riders managed to bring home more than 20 off-road driver and manufacturer championships for the Dearborn automaker. It appears that Ford might be trying to tap into the ongoing 1990s nostalgia with their new Bronco, as the company just filed trademarks with the USPTO for the names “Ford Rough Riders” and “Bronco Rough Riders” on September 29th. The filings were first discovered by the folks over at the Bronco6G forum.
Ford describes both new trademarks identically in the USPTO filing, which states the following under the goods and services section: “Entertainment services in the nature of automobile racing; Entertainment services, namely, entertainment of others by participating in automobile racing events”.
The plural “Rough Riders” name would also imply that there’s more than one Bronco race vehicle. So don’t be surprised if the official announcement also confirms multiple Bronco R desert race trucks. Ford also is a major sponsor of SCORE-International Off-Road Racing, Best in the Desert, and Ultra4 racing series.
While there is no official word from Ford about any of this at this point, it is an exciting find no less. It is possible that the company just hasn’t decided on which name they’d like to use for their racing Broncos, or they could have plans for both. Perhaps the “Bronco Rough Riders” will be home to SUVs racing in different classes, whereas the “Ford Rough Riders” could become a new team based around the Raptor and Ranger pickups. Regardless of how it shakes out, it’s pretty clear that Ford intends to go racing soon. Don’t expect to see these teams hit the dirt until 2021 at the earliest however.
