In this episode of Conversations with Big Rich, Big Rich Klein talks with Keith Purmal, a 2025 Off-Road Motorsports Hall of Fame inductee and one of off-road racing’s most trusted voices.
Keith shares stories from growing up in Las Vegas, developing an early interest in electronics and ham radio, and working in communications at Area 51 and Nevada Power Company. His lifelong passion for radio technology eventually connected him with legendary promoter Casey Folks and the Las Vegas 400.
For more than four decades, Keith has coordinated race communications across Nevada, Arizona, California, and Baja. He describes the challenges of installing repeaters on remote mountaintops, managing multiple radio networks, adapting to Starlink and satellite communications, and staying calm when races take unexpected and sometimes tragic turns.
Keith also reflects on Casey Folks’ leadership, the importance of volunteers, and the teamwork required to make an off-road event successful. He discusses his Hall of Fame induction, the emotion of being recognized by the racing community, and his plans with Cindy to continue supporting races while traveling and enjoying retirement.
This episode celebrates the behind-the-scenes professionals who help keep racers safe and events running—and the off-road family that makes the lifestyle so special.
TRANSCRIPT
[00:01:13.280] – Big Rich Klein
My guest this week has been organizing race communications for over 40 years, being that voice that was steady, clear, calm, and reassuring at events in Nevada, Arizona, California, He made racing safer being that guy behind the mic. My guest is a 2025 Off-Road Motorsports Hall of Fame inductee. His name is Keith Purmal. Good morning, Keith Purmal. So good to have you on the podcast. It was good to get to know you during the ORMHOF induction ceremony and gala last year. And I’m looking forward to this conversation.
[00:01:58.220] – Keith Purmal
Good morning, Rich. Glad to be here. Thanks to you and ORMHOF for everything.
[00:02:03.720] – Big Rich Klein
Well, let’s get started with the first question I ask everyone, and that’s where were you born and raised?
[00:02:11.440] – Keith Purmal
I was born in Wisconsin and moved to Las Vegas in diapers. My dad was in the Air Force, so I’ve been in Las Vegas for 66 years now and, um, never lived anywhere else.
[00:02:29.230] – Big Rich Klein
You said your dad was in the Air Force?
[00:02:31.750] – Keith Purmal
Yeah, he was at Nellis, and that’s where my sister was born, like, a year and a half after me. Okay, so you’re—
[00:02:42.060] – Big Rich Klein
all your memories are of Las Vegas, so you’ve seen Las Vegas grow up? Yeah, yeah, definitely. And yeah, what was it like living in Las Vegas as a child, um, those 66 years ago?
[00:03:00.240] – Keith Purmal
Uh, it was awesome, you know. Um, I, I just, uh, I deliver papers with my stepdad and uncles, so I got to see the town kind of more than most kids. We got basically delivered papers, newspapers all over town. And I got to see some, you know, roads that are now major roads when they were dirt. And just, it’s grown by leaps and bounds compared to what I first remember. I can imagine.
[00:03:38.120] – Big Rich Klein
Just the Strip alone is You know, I’ve seen old pictures of, you know, the casinos when they first got started. And then it’s like, you know, it’s a big difference.
[00:03:51.660] – Keith Purmal
Yeah, my mom worked as a change girl at like the Horseshoe. Oh, wow. And I remember picking her up at work and, you know, being downtown. And one time seeing LBJ when he was walking down on Fremont Street. As a little kid. Uh, we drove by kind of where he was walking through the middle of town. READ MORE
