Winner of the Dakar in 1997, Kenjiro Shinozuka (NIS – n°330) was welcomed by dozens of Japanese journalists as he arrived for the technical scrutineering. Fifty-seven year old “Shino” however managed to ease through to the main administrative desk where he announced that this 28th edition would be his last as a competitor. “My decision has been taken: it’s my last Dakar. But I still hope to enjoy myself one last time behind the steering wheel. To win? No, that’s not my goal. After that, I don’t yet know what I’ll do but I do know that we need new talents in Japan. Just look at our drivers, there all sixty or over, like Asaga san or Sugawara san… So I might help out in finding new promising competitors for the future”.

Winner of the 2005 rally-raid World cup in the production category, Ronan Chabot (TOY – n°327) will be starting the Dakar with big ambitions behind the steering wheel of a standard vehicle. A category where the battle promises to be fierce and fascinating, against Benoît Rousselot “who has also driven a lot this season”, Jean-Pierre Strugo “always a dangerous opponent” or Asaga, the title holder of a class now called T2. The Toyota France driver hasn’t however lost his big smile. “A lot of competitors have only the Dakar to look forward to while we have already managed our goals. We are therefore serene. Our Land Cruiser has gained in performance which has allowed us to go 30% faster in rough terrain. The car is perfectly designed for this Dakar and we are very confident because we haven’t stopped driving this season. That should help us take off at a fast pace. After that, we’ll just have to wait and see but one thing’s for sure: it’ll be a great race”.

Maybe more than any other competitor, Hubert Auriol (ISU – n°350) is at home on the Dakar. Showing up this Wednesday after-noon on the event parking lot before going through scrutineering, it was like he had never left the event. Hopping out of his D-Max Isuzu prototype vehicle, the driver also known as “the African” was welcomed by warm cheers and a good old pat on the back. Enough to delight the three-time winner of the event (1981 and 83 on a bike, 1992 in a car) and former event director from 1995 to 2003. “I’m happy to be here. I feel relaxed, calm. I have no pressure. To have my a… back in a car suits me well. But when you come to start a Dakar, you don’t just come for a walk in the park. Our goal with Jean-Paul (Forthomme)? To make it to Dakar in the best possible position. It’s true that we haven’t driven a lot but the car is completely finished. We’re ready.”

KTM Repsol team manager had no intention in hiding his ambitions this after-noon during scrutineering. “We have the riders to aim for first position”, insisted Jordi Arcarons while going through administrative checks with his “boys in orange”. While, Marc Coma should be his number one option, the Spanish boss has big expectations concerning Chile’s Carlo de Gavardo. One slight problem however seemed to bother the Catalan: the new regulations. “I completely share the security concerns but I hope we won’t lose the race because of time penalties”. In a team that will have to do without injured Jordi Duran (but with late starter Andy Caldecott) the race tactics look simple. “The race is of course opened for all our riders but we’ll be betting on Coma and De Gavardo. Giovanni Sala will be more of a water-carrier working for his companions. His riding skills and his speed can be very useful for the team.”

In the bike race, one of the first big names to appear for scrutineering was Norway’s Pal-Anders Ullevalseter. Wearing his traditional green t-shirt alongside is green machine, the Norwegian looked rather confident before the big start of the event in three days. Ullevalseter was forced to quit after injuring during last year’s race and had finished 5th back in 2004, a year that saw him win the rally-raid World Cup. Yet again, the man who finished the rally-raid in the top 10 on three occasions looks to be the strongest privateer and will be seriously challenging the official KTM riders. “I have worked a lot this year, doing a lot of motocross and enduro races. I feel great, even better than last year. I’m just a bit worried about the new regulation and navigation rules. But I still hope to manage a good performance, and even finish within the five best positions.”

Last year’s “Volant Dakar” competition that crowned Chicherit and Baumel and allowed them to start their very first Dakar has been extended to the World for this 2006 edition and is now known as the « Dakar Challenge », co-organised by Eurosport. This very special contest, supervised by former event winner Kenjiro Shinozuka saw Swedish pair Tobias Johansson-Bo Holmstradn triumph in fine fashion. The new coming crew went through scrutineering this after-noon. “I’ve been competing in motorsport races ever since I was 8 years old and I had two dreams: to compete in the Pike Peaks race and start the Dakar. I haven’t yet fulfilled the first one, but being at the start of the Dakar is huge. Thanks to the team that surrounds us, we are about to start the race in excellent conditions and I am very confident. I believe we can manage a good result in our category, but the main goal is first and foremost to make it to Dakar”.

In a will wanted by event director Etienne Lavigne to communicate on the actions led by the Dakar, Mali-Guinean singer Mory Kante welcomed Roger Kalmanovitz to talk about the charity programs that go on all year around in Africa thanks to “Actions Dakar”. A real discovery for the United Nations ambassador: “I didn’t know how much the event did for Africa. It’s fantastic because it’s something that people aren’t aware of. Anyhow, the Dakar is very important for Africa, it’s an efficient bridge between North and South. It’s one of the rare ways to help the World discover Africa from the inside. What the reality is, its richness and its needs!” The rally should soon welcome the continent’s star singer again who has promised to be at the Lamé bivouac on the 12th of January.

Part of the organisation, David Castera event sporting co-director, is one the main men in charge of the big start in Lisbon. And the rally preparation carries on with three days to go before the first stage on New Year’s Eve with the traditional scrutineering sessions. “As usual we are a bit late on our planned schedule because it takes time to start this big machine. The main difficulty is due to the installation of all the security devices and especially the Iritrack system, and the competitors aren’t used to that. But we’re slowly catching up time on this delay, especially because it isn’t the busiest day. The race anyhow promises to be exciting. Yesterday we flew over the first two specials by helicopter with event director Etienne Lavigne and we were reassured by the conditions. It’s been raining quite a lot in the past few days but the tracks look fine.”

After 16 Dakar rallies on a bike (including a fourth spot in 2000), Jean Brucy (MIT – n°367) is about to live a first experience on four wheels as a co-driver in a Mitsubishi. Thanks to his experience and his knowledge of the desert, his goal is to help his young 23-year-old driver Mana Pornsirached of Thailand make it to the finish line in Dakar. Early November, the Franco-Asian crew tested their diesel vehicle for a day on the Creusot circuit. Frenchman Jean Brucy seemed delighted during the day’s technical scrutineering. “It’s a new challenge for me. I just hope I won’t be frustrated by the navigation. I have to give Mana my knowledge of the Dakar and help him find a good rhythm during the stages. Our goal with the Mitsubishi team is of course to make it to the finish line and for Mana to gain in experience for the years to come. But the team instructions are clear: if he’s in trouble in the sand, I’ll take over behind the steering wheel.”

Before going through scrutineering tomorrow, Carlos Sousa who finished seventh of last years edition looked to be the most expected man on the day, cheered by his local fans and requested by the national media. The Portuguese driver who will be counting on a very promising Nissan pickup (similar to that of Giniel De Villiers who finished 4th last year) hopes to impress on the Portuguese stages and aims at a top five position in Dakar.
“Hosting the start of the Dakar is a great moment for Portugal. It’s a huge event and will give the country a huge boost on a tourism point of view. I know that all the Portuguese have great expectations. I have a lot of pressure on my shoulders. I hope to clinch a place in the leading three in the first two Portuguese stages that I know very well. But I believe that a driver like Carlos Sainz should perform well. Concerning the overall standing, I really think that I could have finished on last year’s podium with the car I have today. But meanwhile, the Mitsubishi and Volkswagen teams have improved a lot. Nothing is therefore settled. But my goal is a to be in the leading five in Dakar!”

One of the first competitors in the corridors of the administrative scrutineering was Josep-Maria Servia (SCH – n°316)… Although he will be going through scrutineering with his V6 Schlesser-Ford buggy on Friday, the Spaniard was checking out the facilities with his Josefina Roman who will be competing in the truck race as a co-driver alongside Jordi Juvanteny and José-Luis Criado. Also a member of the Servia clan, Salvator (brother of Josep-maria) will also be going through the technical check with his BMW today.

The first day of scrutineering officially started this morning at 8h00 AM… 262 competitors or crews are expected under the tents of the Belem Cultural Centre that hosted the Universal Exhibition of 1998. The first man to show up for technical and administrative scrutineering was Portuguese quad rider Antonio Ventura (BOM – n°252). Scrutineering will carry on until the 30th of December before the real start of the race on New Year’s Eve and a stage heading to Portimao, south of Portugal.