The Duck-ar Girls
Dakar 2024 |
Stage 2 |
AL HENAKIYAH
> AL DUWADIMI
January 7
th
2024
- 13:22
[GMT + 3]
A Porsche may turn heads in the Dakar bivouac or downtown, but so does a Tin Snail, as the Czech duo of Barbora Holická and Lucie Engová are finding out in their Dakar Classic participation in a kaleidoscopic car.
It was a bold move, to say the least. But Barbora Holická and Lucie Engová were not afraid. The two Czech friends decided to take on the challenge of the Dakar Classic, but they also had to pick a vehicle. A 2CV was far from the obvious choice to tackle the Saudi desert, but their decision to start their project by buying the car was based on a sound analysis: "I usually compete in the Czech championship and always in a Citroën", explains Barbora. "So my first thought was to drive a ZX in the Dakar, but it was too expensive, so I came up with the idea of the 2CV, which everyone loves."
The "Tin Snail" certainly offers incredible bang for buck in terms of charisma, but it looks like a fish out of water in a rally raid and, especially, in the dunes. As a result, they had to come up with a technical plan and make some modifications to the little gem they got their hands on. This is where Tomáš Neruda —no relation to the Chilean Nobel laureate in Literature—, a master of 2CV mechanics, stepped in. "He's definitely the best in this field, not only in the Czech Republic, but in Central Europe", Barbora claims confidently. "He added a second arm to strengthen the front axle, changed the chassis, added a stabiliser and a non-standard double shock absorber using only parts from other Citroën models, such as Mehari, Ami and even Berlingo! He worked on it for a year, at a frantic pace since last June." Josef Rataj also played a role in fine-tuning this unique 2CV, perhaps not in a way that boosts their chances of winning the Dakar Classic, but with a real flourish. The famous Czech artist whipped out every colour on his palette to paint the car named "Duckar", a portmanteau of "Dakar" and the word "duck", as 2CVs are affectionately known in Prague for their elegant "gait"! Now, they just had to stick number 712 on the car and ship it to AlUla.
On Saturday, the quirky team got their first taste of sand in a stage extending for a total of nearly 600 kilometres to the bivouac in Al Henakiyah. It was already an unforgettable experience for the pair: "It was a crazy day out there, it was really hard. We were amazed by everything that happened. Of course, we struggled in the sand because we only had a two-wheel drive, with very little oomph, so a Spanish team had to help us to get over a hill. We were knackered by the time we crossed the finish line. We need a shower, but we're fired up to finish the rally and have fun." And this was just the start of their adventure.
