N° 519 - TEAM GINAF RALLY POWER
- KIES
- Anne
- NLD
- 26/07/1952
- 183 cm
- 95 kg
|
- VAN HERPEN
- Michel
- NLD
- 06/10/1966
- 182 cm
- 82 kg
|
 - MEGENS
- Emiel
- NLD
- 17/04/1971
- 198 cm
- 86 kg
|
| MODEL |
MAKE |
| X2222 |
GINAF |
 |
| |
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
6 |
7 |
8 |
9 |
10 |
11 |
12 |
13 |
14 |
15 |
|
| Scratch |
14
|
8
|
46
|
40
|
43
|
17
|
-
|
27
|
23
|
30
|
-
|
-
|
48
|
45
|
| Stage |
14
|
8
|
46
|
40
|
43
|
17
|
-
|
27
|
23
|
30
|
-
|
26
|
48
|
45
|
-
|
-
|
| Overall |
14
|
9
|
27
|
32
|
37
|
19
|
-
|
20
|
20
|
20
|
-
|
19
|
19
|
18
|
-
|
-
|
Anne Kies: "500 kilos heavier than the others"
In ten attempts, Anne has seen it all on the Dakar. A day of victory, he even heard a crazy rumour that a woman named “Anne” had won a stage. “It isn’t my fault if in France the girls are the ones named that way”, he says laughing. No, Anne is really a man and based on his ten appearances, he has plenty of other anecdotes to tell. His biggest memory goes all the way back to his first Dakar, on a bike (1983): “It was a stage of over 1300 kilometres and the end of it, there were no longer men but zombies at the finish”. Anne had finished eighth overall.
Since 1987, the Dutchman lives the Dakar in the cabin of a truck: "At 55, I feel a lot better behind the steering wheel of a truck. Riding a bike is a lot harder. You have to think about everything and know how to do everything on your own”. That’s how Anne Kies who will be proudly bearing on his Ginaf X 22.22 a flag of the Friesland Province (north of the Netherlands), justifies his switch from two wheels to big machines.
For the South American edition of the Dakar, Anne will take off with navigator Michel Van Herpen – 2 Dakar, one withdrawal, and once out of the standings, “not a great record”, he says – and a mechanic who will be appearing for the first time in the world’s most famous rally, Emiel Mergens: “My team mates have already told me that I wouldn’t sleep a lot…” “He’s very good”, says of him Michel Van Herpen. “He rapidly makes things easier”.
To make things easier will be the role of the crew that will be servicing the two top trucks of the Ginaf team. “Therefore with a truck heavier due to 500 kilos of material, we can’t really aim at a good standing”, explains Anne Kies who eventually adds that he would be “satisfied with a place in the Top 20”.
Dakar start photos on line: www.maindruphoto.com