2009's Dakar - Argentina - Chile

Touaregs in formation – no more racing teammates

dakar2009 — Sat, 17 Jan 2009 06:09:33 +0000

With nothing to lose, Nani Roma stormed his Lancer forward today and took the penultimate stage win of this year’s Dakar Rally. It is a first stage victory and a consolation prize of sorts as well, not only for himself and co-driver Lucas Cruz, but also for the Mitsubishi team – which has been watching over its sole remaining contender like a mother hen.”This stage victory is a satisfaction for everybody,” declared Roma. “Now, we are going to go back to Buenos Aires without taking too much risk. I am not disappointed at the end of this Dakar.”In the Volkswagen camp, the rally-leading drivers are running their Touaregs in formation. Giniel de Villiers and Mark Miller even stopped to allow Dieter Depping to catch up and play the role of guardian angel.

“I think we can call this a team stage. The most important is to reach the finish, particularly after losing a car yesterday,” said de Villiers, referring to Carlos Sainz’s crash.With a maiden Dakar victory opening its arms to greet the VW effort at tomorrow’s finish, team boss Kriss Nissen has issued his orders in an attempt to avoid any trouble on the final kilometers.”The manager wanted us to drive like this today and we abide by the wishes of the team. It’s important for Volkswagen to finish the Dakar in first and second places,” de Villiers underlined. “We don’t want to take any chances anymore. It would be meaningless. We worked hard to get to this and throwing it all away on the last two stages would not be clever.”

Robby Gordon raced by the Volkswagen trio, teasingly giving a few shouts from his Hummer’s horn as he raced ahead… The Touareg convoy then followed Gordon without even a hint of pressuring the American. With Sainz’s accidental retirement yesterday, the Volkswagen team can no longer count on an all-blue Dakar Rally podium, but the first two steps can easily be theirs. The third step should have Gordon’s name on it, despite losing about 20 minutes due to a mechanical problem which occurred after hitting a boulder. Going into the rally’s final stage on Saturday, de Villiers holds a 2’20″ lead on teammate Miller, who in turn enjoys a 1:27’13″ advantage on fellow countryman Gordon.

2009 Dakar Rally – Stage 9 Results

dakar2009 — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 04:14:43 +0000

It sure was a blue Monday for American motorbike fans as KTM rider Jonah Street pulled out the 2009 Dakar due to a wrist injury incurred on the previous stage. Street had always been competitive during the event, climbing up to fourth in the overall biker rankings before he hung up his helmet at the beginning of this 449 kilometre special stage between La Serena and Coplapo. On a positive note, however, it was awesome to see Holland’s Frans Verhoeven win today’s stage after starting in 33rd position. Storming through dust and dunes, the KTM rider stunned everyone by crossing the finish line over three seconds ahead of Fretigne and Lopez who finished second and third respectively. Spain’s marc Coma may have come fourth, but this Dakar flyer still manages to retain his lead in the overall biker standings.There were no big surprises in the car category as, once again, Volkswagen’s Carlos Sainz notched up yet another special stage victory. Both this man and his machine seem completely unstoppable. America’s Mark Miller was second in the other VW Race Touareg (after losing the lead due to a puncture) and Hummer’s Robby Gordon third – a result that saw him snatch second place from Giniel de Villiers in the overall car standings. De Villiers was leading the stage up until the first checkpoint where he took a wrong turn and got lost for +- 30 kilometres. Come on guys, we know it’s tough out there but those mistakes will come back to haunt you.

Car Results – Stage Nine:

1. Sainz/Perin VW 05:56:08

2. Miller/Pitchford VW 05:57:55

3. Gordon/Grider Hummer 05:58:24

4. Terranova/Guehennec BMW 06:06:14

5. De Villiers VW 06:08:09

Bike Results – Stage Nine:

1. Verhoeven KTM 06:26:33

2. Fretigne Yamaha 06:29:42

3. Lopez KTM 06:30:13

4. Coma KTM 06:31:32

5. Despres KTM 06:32:36

More Dakar results and information at Puro Off-Road.

Stage victory went to Despres – Red Bull KTM

dakar2009 — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 20:30:29 +0000

In fighting form after the rest day, the stage victory went to Despres (Red Bull KTM) 1’49 ahead of Coma (Repsol KTM) with local hero Francisco Lopez (KTM) third (at 2’56). David Frétigné, Jonah Street and Ullevalseter all ran into problems allowing Cyril to move up two places to third overall. He is now less than 30 minutes from second-placed Frétigné in the overall standings. Coma continues to maintain an impressive lead of 1h06’28 over Frétigné. He also has a 1h33’34 over Cyril. Alain Duclos (Kaestle KTM) had his best day of the rally so far, finishing fourth (at 12’39) with Jordi Viladoms fifth (at 13’12). For more Dakar Race, Africa Race and Baja Desert Racing News and Information please visit Puro Off-Road

Cyril Despres
“The man who makes the modification to the road book, Jean-Pierre Fontenay said in his notes that today was more rally and than rally-raid and he wasn’t joking, we must have taken 2000 corners. We were riding on something like a smooth white laterite piste and there wasn’t much grip. I tried to stay standing up the whole time, shifting my weight back when braking and then moving it to the middle when accelerating. At refuelling I saw that I had come back on Marc and Lopez and that Fretigne and Street were losing time. Then just after the CP1 we had a tricky bit of off-piste. Towards the end Francisco really attacked and that suit me fine as I wanted to put as much time between me and the guys behind me. Moving up to third has really given me a boost.”

Marc Coma
“It was technical today like an Enduro, there wasn’t much grip and it was difficult to maintain a good pace without out-braking yourself. Although it was challenging it was fun to ride. As was predicted I caught up Lopez and Cyril caught me and we crossed the line pretty much together. ”

Alain Duclos
“That was more like it. I liked the terrain today, my back felt better after the rest day and I was able to ride like normal. It looks like we are coming to a few difficult days so it is good that I will be starting close to Cyril and be there to help him if he should need me. ”

Jordi Viladoms
“There was so little grip that I was worried about spinning the tyre too much and overheating the mousse so I made sure I accelerated as gently as possible out of the corners and tried to pull as high a gear as possible. At refuelling I saw that in fact the mousse was doing ok and so after that I was able to pick up the pace a little. ”

Dakar organisers exclude Al Attiyah

dakar2009 — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 03:46:11 +0000

The news fell over the bivouac in mid-evening: Dakar Rally boss Etienne Lavigne announced that the current rally leader in the cars category has been ruled out of the event. “The No.302 BMW of Nasser Al Attiyah and Tina Thörner has been excluded from the rally,” stated Lavigne, explaining that “nine way points were missed” during Thursday’s stage. The Qatari had earlier admitted to missing a way point because he used alternate routes in an effort to save his overheating engine.
The now former rally leader held the advantage over Volkswagen drivers Giniel de Villiers and Carlos Sainz, and seemed the only driver able to hold back the VW charge.
Giniel de Villers is now the new leader of the 2009 Dakar Rally. On Friday morning the South African will therefore open the road from Mendoza, Argentina to Valparaiso, Chile where Saturday’s rest day awaits.

Mitsubishi challenge down to two Lancer.

dakar2009 — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 03:35:57 +0000

The sixth stage of the 2009 Dakar Rally between San Rafael and Mendoza marked a day that Team Repsol Mitsubishi Ralliart would rather forget, after team co-driver Gilles Picard (France) was taken ill on the special stage and forced the immediate retirement of his driver Luc Alphand (France) from the race.

Team mates Stephane Peterhansel (France) and Joan ‘Nani’ Roma (Spain) finished the stage with the fifth and sixth fastest times, but now hold sixth and fifth in the overall standings and face an uphill struggle to regain the lost time over the coming days.

Today’s special stage was originally shortened from 394km to 232km and then to 178km because of the risk of standing water caused by recent rainfall. Event officials sent a route vehicle into the stage on Wednesday to monitor a river crossing which was already 80cm high and the decision was taken to skip the section on safety grounds.

Mitsubishi’s mechanics finally completed the work on Peterhansel’s and Jean-Paul Cottret’s (France) ‘Racing Lancer’ just before the pair were scheduled to leave the bivouac and head into the liaison section to the sixth stage to Mendoza.

Peterhansel had incurred a 15-minute penalty in San Rafa?l on Wednesday evening for missing a time control. He eventually set the fifth fastest time.

Luc Alphand (France) was forced to withdraw from the Dakar Rally 12km after the start of the stage this morning, when co-driver Gilles Picard (France) was taken ill assisting Alphand in putting plates under a wheel when they were stuck in the mud. As a precaution he was airlifted to the bivouac in San Rafa?l for medical checks, but Alphand was unable to continue. Picard then underwent an electro-cardiogram test and everything was normal.

Joan ‘Nani’ Roma and Lucas Cruz Senra (Spain) held sixth position through the opening passage control and maintained his position to the finish.

Al-Attiyah disqualified from Dakar Rally.

dakar2009 — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 03:33:56 +0000

Nasser Al-Attiyah has been disqualified for missing hidden waypoints on today’s stage of the Argentina-Chile Dakar Rally. The Qatari was leading after yesterday’s stage to Mendoza, but complained of overheating and a possible cracked cylinder head to his BMW engineers last night. Only 5 kms into the stage that was shortened from 394 to 178 kilometres, Al Attiyah soon found the water temperature rocketing to 130 degrees with the first dunes approaching.

Team Dessoude´s Hopes go up in smoke.

dakar2009 — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 03:43:09 +0000

Just 5 km from the finish line of the day’s special stage, whilst lying in 11th position on this unforgiving stage, the Proto 05 driven by Christian Lavieille and Jean-Paul Forthomme suddenly caught fire. In less than two minutes, the vehicle was turned into a brazier. Luckily, the crew was able to get out uninjured, but their disappointment is immense. This new blow has destroyed months of work and development, and morale is low. In the meantime, the two T2 category Nissan Pathfinder cars of Jean-Pierre Strugo and Frédéric Chavigny are still out on the track.

A trying special stage was in store for the competitors today, taking them from Neuquen to San Rafael in the Province of La Pampa, a true, ruthless Dakar stage. The first decisive turning for the race leaders. The sand made its first appearance, with a 20 km chain of sand dunes to cross. Long off-road sections, as well as technical sections, and some ‘rios’ – the local equivalent of the wadi – to drive along, was the programme which awaited the remaining competitors. The factory cars suffered, which left little hope for an easy passage for the amateurs, many of whom will have to spend a night out in the dunes.

Everything started well for the Proto 05. Starting out on the pace, Christian Lavieille knew that the day would be difficult. But when the finish line was just 5 km away, everything changed dramatically « There were two more ridges of sand dunes to cross, through the many spectators who had come to watch. Going through the second dunes, we began to smell smoke in the cockpit, and we saw spectators making big gestures at us, telling us we should stop. I braked, and as soon as I stopped, the car immediately caught fire. We have no idea what caused this sudden fire, and most probably we never will.

Did extremely dry grass get caught up under the car and catch fire? Oil on the hot exhaust? We just don’t have the answer. What is certain is that there was no warning in the cockpit. In under 30 seconds, everything just went up in smoke. It’s a real blow, as it is becoming more and more difficult to find the budget to compete, and I was counting on a good result in this Dakar and now – nothing. We had been driving carefully since the start, knowing that some stages like the one today would be terrible. We had a good hand to play, finishing 11th today. Everything has been destroyed. I am also thinking of André Dessoude, who trusted us and who has suffered a great loss today, losing his vehicle.”

Alongside Christian, Jean-Paul Forthomme had quite a fright. “I am pleased to be in one piece this evening. There was no time to be scared. I quickly looked to make sure that Christian had got out, and threw myself out of the cockpit which had started to burn. I tried to get my bag, but as the flames were coming from the back, and the strong wind was blowing them forward, a sheet of flames prevented me. So my passport and my wallet have gone, but it’s more important to be alive. The fire took place in just fractions of a second. So many things go through your mind in times like that.”

André Dessoude was very much affected by what happened today, and especially disappointed: “I am very disappointed that we have to retire when we were in a fine position to have a good race. Christian had driven beautifully since the start, and the car was working perfectly. Now, everything has collapsed in seconds, and moreover we have lost the vehicle. This has been a real blow, which we now have to learn to live with. The only positive aspect is that Christian and Jean-Paul are safe, and that is the main thing. We still have two cars in the race, which we have to get to the end of the rally.”

Dakar Rally heading to South America for 2009

dakar2009 — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 15:39:52 +0000

The next Dakar Rally will zoom past the Andes, over Argentine plains and through Chilean desert instead of racing through African scrub and dunes. Forced by the threat of terrorism to cancel this year’s race, organizers hope to give the Dakar Rally a new beginning by swapping continents and going to South America in 2009. Race director Etienne Lavigne detailed the route in a telephone interview Monday. He was already in Buenos Aires, scouting out the Argentine capital that will host the start and finish of next year’s race. “It’s a very, very big adventure,” Lavigne said. This year marked the first time that the 30-year-old rally, one of the biggest competitions in automobile racing, was called off. Next year will mark the first time that it will not race in Africa. The race will start in Buenos Aires on Jan. 3 and finish in the Argentine capital Jan. 18, organizers said “Dakar competitors are going to discover new territory, new scenery, but with the same sprit of competition and adventure, with very hard stages,” Lavigne said.About 500 competitors signed up for the 2008 edition, which was canceled in January after French government warnings about safety. Lavigne said the race will return to Africa when it can. The threat of a terrorist attack pushed the element of risk to levels organizers deemed unacceptable this year. Eight of the 15 stages were to have been in Mauritania, where al-Qaida-linked militants killed a family of French tourists on Dec. 24. “It’s just a pause with Africa, because unfortunately the security conditions aren’t there,” Lavigne said. He said the welcome in South America has been “fabulous.” The 2009 edition will traverse 5,600 miles in Argentina and Chile, with racing over nearly 3,700 miles in 15 days, with one rest day. The race will start in Buenos Aires, go to Patagonia, the Andes mountains and venture into the Atacama desert, the world’s driest, Lavigne said.

Known as one of the biggest and most grueling competitions in racing, this was the first time in the 30-year history of the event that it was called off. The event promoters promise a 9000 km loop including 6000 km between Buenos Aires, Argentina and Valparaiso, Chile. read all important news in regards the rally and teams at Puro Off-Road

Dakar 2009

dakar2009 — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 17:37:44 +0000

On the morning of January 3rd 2009, 530 teams will take off from Buenos Aires: 230 motos, 30 quads, 188 cars and 82 trucks, representing 49 nationalities. The figures for this South American Dakar are amazing. In addition, the elite of worldwide rally-raiding will meet to fight it out over these new territories. Mitsubishi’s title will be up for grabs against their major rivals at Volkswagen, BMW and Team Gordon. In T2, we will find Toyota and Nissan looking for a highly coveted victory. On the two-wheeler side, KTM will turn out in force to maintain its domination of the discipline. All the best truck teams will be there, too: Kamaz, Tatra, Hino, Mercedes, Ginaf, and the title-holder Man will vie for first place. The enthusiasm emanating from the Dakar 2009 contestants finds an even greater echo in the Argentinians and Chileans, who show exceptional eagerness for the rally. The Dakar exists above all because of a longing for discovery and a capacity to confront the unknown. By crossing the ocean, the rally is ready for an experience that is true to its values and temperament. 100 % Dakar: it is the quality of the challenge offered to the competitors with one idea always in mind: human adventure, extreme adventure.