Dreaming of sleeping

Dakar 2019 | Stage 7 | San Juan de Marcona > San Juan de Marcona
January 14 ^th 2019 - 11:36 [GMT -5]

He was ready and, above all, resolutely determined to take part in the race. Gregory Stuart oversees a macadamia nut plantation in South Africa, but his true passion is the Dakar, an event that has captivated him since he started riding a motorbike over two decades ago. This year, he decided to take the plunge. The tall, strapping lad made the challenge even harder by signing up for the Original by Motul category for riders without assistance. Shortly after finishing the first stage after the rest day, he sports the same fatigued expression as most of his fellow adventurers resting on their trunks. The dunes of Tanaka lived up to their fearsome reputation: "It took me over four hours to overcome these 80 kilometres of dunes. Now and then I had to try six or seven times before managing to crown them, it sapped all the energy out of me." After about 15 hours on the saddle, Greg knows he has survived a crucial stage, but he remains guarded about his prospects of making it to the finish: "We've still got four very difficult days to go where anything can happen. I'm really tired." Of course, the schedule of an Original rider plays a big part in all of this, explains the rookie, who is trying to pull himself together: "I'm sleeping an average of four hours a day… but I got five on the rest day! It's even harder than I thought, especially with the dunes, which are unlike anything we've got in South Africa. At any rate, I'll give it my all, keep up my spirits and take care of my bike. I have to finish every day."