Losing time but staying confident

Dakar 2019 | Stage 2 | Pisco > San Juan de Marcona
January 8 ^th 2019 - 00:31 [GMT -5]

It is time to pour over the road-book in preparation for the stage leading to San Juan de Marcona. Navigation is the only thing on the mind of Mayeul Barbet, who will be taking part for the fourth time as co-pilot for Philippe Boutron. A series of mishaps has not damaged the friendship of the two men, who are aware of the Dakar’s vicissitudes but also of their potential: last year, they exited the race on the stage in Fiambala, shortly before the finish in Cordoba, whilst in 22nd place in the general standings. However, at the end of the first stage, they were not exactly in a similar situation to last year: “It didn’t really start very well – we got stuck on a big dune for 20 minutes,” explained Philippe. “But it was totally my fault: I didn’t have enough speed to tackle it and then I made a bad choice to go for it”. Familiar with the hazards of sporting life, the Chairman of football club US Orleans (who play in the French second division) has a philosophical outlook on the disappointments and mishaps that he may encounter on the Dakar, a race in which he has taken part, give or take a few interruptions, since 2007. “I even believe that the best memories are the sleepless nights in the middle of nowhere, when you finally reach the bivouac early in the morning when everybody is getting ready to leave,” said Philippe. That said, the duo have the firm intention to make amends in the coming days and most importantly to reach the finish of the rally for the first time together… “Yesterday was just us acclimatising to the race,” joked Mayeul. In actual fact, the men of crew number 355 are driven by a fierce desire to achieve their goal: “We won’t give up… Each time there is a problem, it’s down to the mechanical side of things”. This way of approaching the task in hand could indeed bear fruit.