Searchlight is nothing but a wide spot in the road, but there is plenty of desert around it for those who want to camp out.
Seeing the traffic on the road in some of those photos indicates to me that there could well have been in excess of 10,000. A lot of the locals took the “shortcut” by way of the dam and down through Kingman to Bullhead City, then back up, and I don’t think that route was photographed at all.
So maybe 12,000 to 15,000 is closer to the mark. If they could park where there could get TV reception, I’m sure they counted themselves “at” the rally. Works for me!
Any word on the rally in Las Vegas after the SL rally?