Looks like an American rider won the stage for the bike category. As this implies, he apparently wasn't sure whether to believe it when they told him.
We went every year from 73 through 78, Those first couple of years were insane. Back then no one had a concealed carry permit. If that kind of thing hap- pened now they would need mucho body bags.:cornut:
Stage 7: [ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WCsVUGZEFRI"]DAKAR 2017 - STAGE 7 - MONDAY, JANUARY 9 - LA PAZ / UYUNI |ENG - YouTube[/ame] [ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z0Kn5NZLWIQ"]Stage 7 Summary - Car/Bike - (La Paz / Uyuni) - Dakar 2017 - YouTube[/ame] [ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yAQJkIJHpGY"]Stage 7 - Dakar Explore - Dakar 2017 - YouTube[/ame]
If this guy makes it to the end he deserves some kind of special trophy. On the other hand, for all I know he's just one of many going through the same level of difficulty and with the same amount of spirit. FWIW, this is also one of the UTVs that was reclassified as a buggy in the cars category after the rally started because they decided their engines were too large (or powerful?). [ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S3jTVGIEcXU"]Mini docu; Dakar madness for Tom Coronel in special 5, mud, hail, towing and sleeping in the desert - YouTube[/ame]
That road doesn't look so good... More route trouble along today's stage. There may be more re-routing required. One report claimed that mudslides and landslides might force a 24 hour detour to get back on track. :crazy: We'll see...
I think the organizers are doing a great job considering all the problems they have been faced with. Helping people comes before the rally. Good on them for doing the right thing. Being an organizer of a rally is a very thankless job for sure.
Nearly Half The Dakar Rally Hasn't Run Because Of Bad Weather, Massive Landslide (jalopnik.com) Full article and MORE PICS here: http://blackflag.jalopnik.com/nearly-half-the-dakar-rally-hasnt-run-because-of-bad-we-1791085125
The Dakar is a different kind of mess today. Lots of navigation issues causing loss of time for most of the leaders on bikes and a bit of carnage. Peterhansel briefly took the lead from Loeb and then he hit a biker. This isn't a first for Peterhansel but at least this time he stuck around until medical assistance arrived. The rider, Marcic, has multiple breaks in one of his legs. Also, Hirvonen, the lead MINI driver, had a big issue early on and lost more than an hour, got back underway and then fell off the timing board. Still no word on the cause(s).
The bike rider second in the overall standings, Pablo Quintanilla, has withdrawn, diagnosed with head trauma and loss of consciousness. Lots of riders lost time to navigation mistakes today and I expect the reports of carnage to continue to trickle in. Tough stage, apparently.
Giniel de Villiers' Toyota. Somehow this managed to finish the stage in 6th position. I'm guessing that means they lost the wheel (and the rest of the truck) VERY near the finish.
Two Top-Three Riders Sent To Hospital After Brutal Dakar Rally Stage (jalopnik.com) Full article here: http://blackflag.jalopnik.com/two-top-three-riders-sent-to-hospital-after-brutal-daka-1791146303
[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t3LK1Dffcu8"]DAKAR 2017 - STAGE 10 - THURSDAY 12 JANUARY - CHILECITO / SAN JUAN | ENG - YouTube[/ame] [ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0FimL4OYJjE"]Stage 10 Summary - Car/Bike - (Chilecito / San Juan) - Dakar 2017 - YouTube[/ame]