The endurance competition Paris to Dakar Rally 2020, or Dakar for short, is considered one of the most demanding off-road motorsports in the world. The now legendary competition takes place over 13 days, during which the competitors cover up to 14,400 kilometers long.
Dakar it actually is persistence competition while driving with different means of transport relentlessly the field, a distance many times greater than that which can be measured on the route between Los Angeles and New York and back. All this in perfect protective equipment and it burns fever. Everything is going on 12 days, and in addition to these, there is also available 1 day for rest.
In all these years, of all the motorcycles, off-road sports cars, four-wheelers and other participants in the competition, there are approx 50 percent "wobbled" before the goal. V worst years the percentage of those who made it to the finish line fell on everything 20 percent. The most common reasons for resignation are injuries, mechanical malfunctions, and they are also almost every year mortal victims. So far there have been more than 70.
The origin of Dakar
The creation of the Dakar could be blamed on a fortunate or unfortunate set of circumstances. Years 1977 is a French racing driver Thierry Sabine participated in the competition Abidjan–Nice and in the meantime lost in the desert Tenere in the south-central Sahara. While trying to find the right path, he thought the environment and unforgiving terrain were perfect for a grueling endurance race. After returning to civilization, the thought of the desert did not give him peace, and so it is with some effort December 26, 1978 182 competitors were already waiting at the start of the first Paris competition–Dakar. That was a long time 9,920 kilometers, and only crossed the finish line 74 competitors.
Over the years, Dakar has grown by sizes and recognition, thus attracting the best racers and sponsors with deep pockets. Years 1986 was so called 'black year', when they accidents Thierry Sabine, along with a journalist, a French singer, a radio operator and a pilot, were killed in a helicopter crash. The founder sadly said goodbye, but his legacy is still alive today.
History of the Dakar routes
For most years, the competition took place in Europe and Africa, on the relation between Paris and Dakar. In order to reduce the number of competitors, there are years 1992 introduced tracking with GPS for motorcycles and cars. That year, the destination moved to South Africa Cape Town. Years 1995 for the first time in history the race did not start in France, the honor went to the Spanish city Granada. Years 2000 the competition ended at the pyramids in Gizi. Years 2007 the Dakar began in Lisbon, years 2008 but he was cancelled due to threats from an Islamic terrorist organization Al Qaeda. The result was that since the flight 2009 competitions held in Southern America, by countries such as Chile, Bolivia and Argentina.
Dakar daily routine
He drives to competitions one stage on day, and individual stages are on average long between 800 and 880 kilometers. The goal of each stage is a so-called bivouac, a large 'base' where the competitors have places to rest and the factory teams have time to repair their vehicles. Due to the huge distances that the competitors have to cover in one day, it is also adapted scoring system. Time is still playing the largest role, and in addition, the exact places on the route that the competitor must drive past are important. If it misses certain place, it will be known in temporal surcharge.
Vehicles allowed
Various types of vehicles can take on the extremely demanding track in the Dakar competition. It competes with fast ones field ones cars, quadricycles, cars, divided into categories of desert buggies and SUVs. We must not forget about motorized bikes and field trucks weighing more than 3,500 kilograms. The competition with trucks is a little different, but they also have their own, modified route. Every means of transport must follow as a rule class, in which it is placed, and in each class the engine volume, weight restrictions and a bunch of other rules must be taken into account.
Why is the Dakar so extreme?
The Dakar has become the most demanding race in history for several reasons. Not only do the competitors have to cover huge distances every day, they also have to travel through challenging terrain where they encounter sandy dunes, mud, streams, sand, crushed earth, rocks, global and falls through. They are competitors in this extremely fast, which makes him follow the competition a lot injuries. Accidents are actually “routine" competitions for both individuals and factory-supported teams. Dakar puts it to the test suspension, chassis, engine, seals, bearings and even screws and nuts. The demanding terrain contributes to many breakdowns, which for individuals not sponsored by a factory team means hours and hours of repairs instead of a hard-earned rest and sleep.
Preparations for the Dakar
The preparations require a lot more than you might think at first. Competitors prepare for several years, because they have to do well to 'train' your body, gain enormous condition and se psychologically to prepare for an extremely tiring 13 days of competition. The recent Dakar winner stated that he was preparing with five o'clock riding a motorcycle per day. Just as demanding as physical and mental preparation, it is also demanding and complex logistics. The means of transport with which they are competing must be transported to the start, together with everything necessary tools and spare parts, and most importantly, the team, which must also provide it with powerful off-road vehicles.
Motivation and records
What drives competitors to such a demanding race is difficult to define. The prize money isn't exceptional, and most competitors don't even make it to the finish line. From more than 300 there are at least competitors 75 percent individuals who do not have the support of major motor vehicle manufacturers. Most of them are in the competition because of wishes, to try it out mine borders and because it's simple they enjoy in this extreme motorsport.
In more than 40 years of history Quite a few records have been set at the Dakar. Years 1991 is a French competitor Stéphane Peterhansel with Yamaha won his first Dakar. He also won the victory in years 1992, 1993, 1995, 1997 and 1998. But as if that wasn't enough, there are years 2004 won the Dakar for steering wheel car and thus became the first in the world to win the Dakar with both motorized by bike as with by car. Of course, he also won several further desert tests with the car. To this day, Stéphane Peterhansel is a man with the most victories in the Dakar competition.
From 2001 KTM dominates the motorcycle world. They were winners of the Dakar between the years 2001 and 2019. In the truck category, the best in the world is the Russian competitor Vladimir Chagin, who strung together just 7 wins. It is the best in the category of four-wheelers Marcos Patronelli with 3 victories. You can be in the same class Yamaha boasts the most titles, as she has dominated since the year 2009 by year 2019.
Impact on production vehicles
Dakar has been offering the ideal for decades polygon to test new technology. This is especially characteristic of motorcycles, which has led to the fact that today we have several motorcycles available for challenging terrain and discovering the unknown. We can take a motorcycle as an example BMW G/S, which was initially developed right for the needs Dakar. We could also see this at last year's motorcycle fair EICMA, where, among other things, they are Honda, Husqvarna and Ducati presented concepts with a mind to demanding terrain and adventures.
Dakar 2020
Sunday, January 5th, it started Dakar 2020. It's about already 42nd competition in a row, which this time took place for the first time on challenging terrain The Saudis Arabia. The competition started in the city Jeddah, but it ended after difficult, long and tiring 7,456 kilometers, in the city Al Qiddiya. Med motorists the Spanish veteran won this time Carlos Sainz, for which it is already the third victory at the Dakar. Category winner motor wheels he's American this time Ricky Brabec. The Slovenian representative among motorcyclists was this year Simon Maričič, which occupied 50. place in absolute competition. The most successful Slovenian representative in the Dakar competition it certainly is Calm Resident, which was attended by 18 times. His best ranking was 13th place in absolute classification.
More information:
dakar.com
