VAN DELM Peter BEL 31/08/1962 186 cm 86 kg

RUTTEN Yves BEL 10/05/1975 175 cm 65 kg

THIJS Vincent BEL

Vehicle

MODEL	MAKE
TGS 18.480	MAN

RANKING

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15
Scratch	45	34	25	26	29	-	-	20	56	54	-	-	16	14
Stage	45	34	25	26	29	-	-	20	56	54	-	34	16	14	-	-
Overall	45	38	29	23	25	-	-	29	27	27	-	24	25	24	-	-

Peter Van Delm : «A truck that passes a car in the Sahara»

For most of the participants, the Dakar is a challenge; a dream that grows in their imagination before coming to fruition in the desert. This is the case of driver Peter Van Delm and mechanic, Yves Rutten. This is a story of revelations. “I was in front of my television, remembers Peter Van Delm, it was almost 15 years ago. I saw this truck overtake a car in the Sahara in a huge cloud of dust. Since that day, I have dreamed of participating.”

And when he finally decided to go for it, he immediately thought of his old friend, Yves Rutten. “It would be impossible not do it without him.” Yves, an automobile engineer-designer who will serve as a mechanic on the Dakar, was 12 years old when the idea began to germinate in his head. “I never watched television. It didn’t interest me. Except in January when the Dakar was aired. My mother saw me hypnotised in front of the set, incapable of looking away.”

For this first attempt, the Belgian trio is packing a large doze of humility in their kit. “We are going to South America to drive and learn,” says Peter. “We will run our race without worrying about the standings or the other trucks.” Although their truck is “competitive”, they’re aim is not a top result for the time being. Because for Peter Van Delm it is clear that “this first participation is the precursor for others”. Meanwhile, the Belgian is not hoping to experience the same misadventure in Argentina and Chile that he did in Hungary and Romania in the Dakar Series where he was forced to retire with a herniated disc.

Dakar start photos on line: www.maindruphoto.com

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