Dakar Mag
Stage 11 | Truck
AlUla > Yanbu
540| IBRAHM ALMUHNA
All aboard the Saudi truck
Ibrahim Almunha, Osama Alsamad, Raed Abo Theeb and their Mercedes Unimog continue to make their way towards Jeddah at their own pace.
The Mercedes Unimog no. 540, the only truck with a 100% Saudi crew, has been advancing at a leisurely pace since the start of the race in Jeddah. Ibrahim Almunha, Osama Alsamad and Raed Abo Theeb, racing in class T5 for original vehicles, have been consistently the last truckers to reach the finish of the specials. "We haven't been sleeping much", says Ibrahim, the driver. "We pulled an all-nighter in the marathon stage because we only...
Stage 11 | Bike
AlUla > Yanbu
63| KONRAD DABROWSKI
March, march, Dąbrowski!
Konrad Dąbrowski has been riding for as long as he can remember —so long, in fact, that he sees his motorbike almost as an extension of his body. Although he boasts the track record of a seasoned veteran, the 19-year-old Pole is poised to become the youngest biker to finish the Dakar tomorrow evening. Konrad has little time for such trivia as he savours his first experience in the Dakar, a rally he has come to know intimately thanks to the tips received from his father Marek and his brother in arms, Jacek Czachor, without having ever visited the race before: "It goes...
Stage 10 | Bike
Neom > AlUla
27| JOAQUIM RODRIGUES
Exorcising his demons
Joaquim Rodrigues, brother-in-law of the late Paulo Gonçalves, yesterday completed stage nine of the rally in thirteenth position, 30 minutes behind Kevin Benavides. Although he is twelfth in the general standings, the Portuguese rider hardly cares about his position. The reason he is here this year is to first and foremost put flight to his inner demons.
Yesterday, when he reached the finishing line on stage nine in the sands of Neom, Joaquim Rodrigues removed his mask and started to cry. The tears ran down his dust-covered cheeks, taking with them the...
Stage 10 | Car
Neom > AlUla
A solar-powered bivouac
Whilst the Dakar organisers presented the project aimed at transforming the rally into a very low emissions event by 2030, Guerlain Chicherit’s GCK group is pursuing a twofold involvement because, in addition to a hydrogen-powered car, the driver turned businessman also wishes to provide green electricity to cover the energy needs of the bivouac.
Guerlain Chicherit is the type of guy who thinks on a grand scale. Since he took a step back from competitive rally-raids after having notably achieved fifth place on the Dakar in 2010 and...
Stage 9 | Original by motul
Neom > Neom
125| FRÉDÉRIC BARLERIN
In not so total command...
For his third participation on the Dakar, Frédéric Barlerin has developed a degree of maturity and serenity. However, the 65th placed rider in the general standings also knows that the race is untameable.
Frédéric Barlerin is not quite the same. His first Dakar finished in pain and disappointment in the middle of the Peruvian desert, exhausted and fresh out of solutions to complete the fourth stage. The following year, he again experienced extreme tiredness, but found a second wind that allowed him to pursue his dream to its completion....
Stage 8 | Bike
Sakaka > Neom
100| AUDREY ROSSAT
Pushing beyond the pain barrier
Audrey Rossat, a skilled enduro rider, is taking part in her first Dakar. The Frenchwoman is finding it physically tough and begins the second week trying to hang in there and complete the rally.
Again yesterday, Audrey Rossat reached the finishing line of the first special on the marathon stage with gritted teeth. The Frenchwoman, in sixty-ninth place, 3 hours and 39 minutes behind the stage winner, took the time to sit down with the organisers at the finish to have a bite to eat and drink a little, enjoying a hand massage from the doctor in charge of checking the...
Stage 7 | Lightweight vehicle
Ha'il > Sakaka
"Dakar Sistaz" in the starting blocks
The progression of 16-year-old Yasmeen and Aliyyah Koloc is already turning heads in the Dakar bivouac, as the sisters work towards their ambition of starting the race in 2023. Inspired by the feats of drivers such as Seth Quintero, third overall in the lightweight vehicle classification at age 18, they are already finding their bearings… and are dead serious about it!
Fate can sometimes shake up one's...
Stage 7 | Bike
Ha'il > Sakaka
117| JAMES ALEXANDER
Keep smiling
James Alexander, the last biker to reach the bivouac in Ha'il before the rest day, is tackling his first Dakar with contagious enthusiasm. The 50-year-old Botswanan is having the time of his life on the Saudi sand.
James Alexander was the last biker to finish the timed sector on Friday, as he had been on Thursday. "But I'm not as tired this time round", he blurted out as he retrieved his card. "I suffered a lot yesterday, so this morning I took it easy because my whole body was sore. I ended up going too slowly... If I'd been smarter, I could have avoided having to...
Stage 7 | Lightweight vehicle
Ha'il > Sakaka
Saudi women revving up for the Dakar
Since women in Saudi Arabia were granted the right to drive in June 2018, the Saudi Arabian Automobile and Motorcycle Federation has supported the projects of several female drivers. Dania Akeel and Mashael Alobaidan were invited to follow the rally from up close in the hopes of lining up for the start of the 2022 edition.
They are poised to become a force to be reckoned with in the Dakar. A handful of Saudi...
Stage 6 | Bike
Al Qaisumah > Ha'il
46| SIMON MARCIC
Simon Marčič, coasting along
A regular on the Dakar and on the list of major mishaps, the Slovenian rider has had an eventful rally since the start in Jeddah, complete with delays, cuts and bruises…
In all circumstances, Simon Marčič never lets his smile slip. Since his first participation on the Dakar, he has encountered almost all the incidents he could imagine, with a capacity to accumulate, tackle and overcome them that beggars belief. The 2016 edition is probably his most heroic vintage, on which he enrolled for the first time in the unassisted bikers’...
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