Most liked posts in thread: Dakar 2013

Angib · Jan 14, 2013

Nathan said: ↑

And on the seventh day even the Dakar shalt restâ€¦ San Miguel de Tucuman in Argentina plays host today to the rest day for all the participants in the thirty-fifth edition of this fascinating rally.
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And full marks to Tucuman for having publicity girls that look as cute as anyone could want - and yet they're dressed modestly enough that their grandmothers would be proud to see them at work:

Steve · Jan 14, 2013

Steve · Jan 14, 2013

Leg 9: Peterhansel takes a step closer to victory (best-of-rallylive.com)

14/01/2013 11:26 pm

Although it was won by Spaniard Nani Roma, the longest leg of the 2013 Dakar saw Mini/Michelinâ€™s StÃ©phane Peterhansel strengthen his overall lead after Nasser Al-Attiyahâ€™s buggy sustained damaged.

Leg 9: San Miguel de Tucuman-Cordoba (852km)

After pulling off Ruta 157 to the right, we still faced a drive of some 80km before reaching the end of Stage 9, the longest of this yearâ€™s rally (593km, including a 120km neutralisation). Itâ€™s here that we started to see the first roads signs indicating place-names like La Falda, Cosquin and Capilla del Monte, all of which are visited by the WRCâ€™s Rally Argentina.

Indeed, the Dakar resembled a WRC event today, with a menu of twisty, occasionally fast mountain stages which were technically challenging for the drivers. Orly Terranova, who was second on the road this morning, was the first driver to show at the finish control where he was noisily greeted by his home fans. â€œI had trouble overtaking Chicherit along a narrow, dusty portion. My brakes had a tendency to lock, reported the Argentine driver.

It was a brake issue, too, that prevented Giniel de Villiers from taking todayâ€™s win. The intermediate classifications showed the South African Toyota Hilux driver in the lead before his front-right brake disc failed: â€œWe didnâ€™t have any spare rear discs, so we continued after isolating the rear brakes. Itâ€™s a shame because it would have been nice to earn a stage win for Toyota.â€

Despite his disappointment, the 2009 Dakar winner has emerged in second place overall after Nasser Al-Attiyah hit a tree with 100km remaining. Lucio Alvarez suffered the same misfortune and badly damaged his windscreen. â€œA branch entered the cabin, but we were lucky.â€ Guerlain Chicherit was also reported to have stopped with a damaged wheel by Carlos Sousa who was himself troubled by the smell of transmission oil.

The dayâ€™s winner was Nani Roma who collected his second stage victory of this yearâ€™s event. â€œI spent more than 200km in Robby Gordonâ€™s dust,â€ the Spaniard grumbled at the finish.

â€œWe were travelling at the same speed as him but we had to pass a high number of bike and quad riders at the same time. It wasnâ€™t easy for anyone,â€ noted the American driver.

Stage 9 classification:

1, Roma/PÃ©rin (Mini), 5h36m28s. 2, Peterhansel/Cottret (Mini), +6m54s. 3, Terranova/Fiuza (BMW), +6m54s. 4, Gordon/Walch (Hummer), +8m37s. 5, De Villiers/Von Zitzewitz (Toyota), +9m39s. Etc.

Provisional positions after SS9:

1, Peterhansel/Cottret (Mini). 2, De Villiers/Von Zitzewitz (Toyota), +49m31s. 3, Novitskiy/Zhilstov (Mini), +56m3s. 4, Roma/PÃ©rin (Mini), +1h34m16s. 5, Terranova/Fiuza (BMW), +2h1m8s. Etc.
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Steve · Jan 14, 2013

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8qvBrizz910]Leg 9 - 2013 Dakar - Best-of-RallyLive.com (GB) - YouTube[/ame]

papa-j · Jan 14, 2013

Steve - your coverage updates are highly appreciated.
Wow - that flooding was nasty!! Drivin' and :cryin:

rum4 · Jan 14, 2013

Thanks for the updates.

Steve · Jan 15, 2013

Leg 10 preview: the caravan heads back northâ€¦ (best-of-rallylive.com)

15/01/2013 9:38 am

The 10th leg of the 2013 Dakar will end in La Rioja, but the Cars/Trucks and Bikes/Quads will follow slightly different routes on their way there after Km183.

La Rioja is the main town of the province of the same name and the heat there can be suffocating at this time of year when life seems to pass at a very sedate pace. The town also serves as base for tourists eager to explore the outstandingly beautiful Talampaya and Ischigualasto reserves. The latter is known for its Valle de la Luna (Lunar Valley).

The landscapes visited by the rally are stunning and the first 183km will be covered by all competitors. Competitive action will begin in the mountains near La Valle de la Punilla and will basically feature twisty tracks up to Km130 before becoming faster to Km183 where the paths of the Car/Truck and Bike/Quad runners will separate for the first time. From here, the former will begin a long descent to Passage Control 2 (Km195) which is followed by a faster portion. The bikers face a technically demanding itinerary from Km183 and Km224, after which the conditions are said to be more straightforward.

After a short shared portion, the cars will split from the bikes again from Km288 to the finish. This section is said to be very narrow and stony, whereas the track will be smoother for the bikers. The dayâ€™s menu also includes two river crossings. The depth of the water was said to be 20cm at Monday eveningâ€™s briefing.
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Steve · Jan 15, 2013

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M-dqrSldjzQ]2013 Dakar - Performance - XtreM Adventure powered by Michelin - YouTube[/ame]

Steve · Jan 15, 2013

Cool video from the day Robby Gordon flipped his Hummer, including onboard footage!

2013 Team SPEED Dakar Stage 4 on Vimeo

Steve · Jan 15, 2013

A huge day -- hat trick -- for the X-Raid team. The winner of the stage (Terranova) was driving the X-Raid BMW (X3?) entry and 2nd and 3rd went to Roma and Peterhansel so X-Raid swept the podium.

Dakar Stage 10: Peterhansel extends lead again (iRallylive.com)

15.01.2013 19:46

StÃ©phane Peterhansel of France, co-driven by Jean Paul Cottret in the Monster X-Raid All4Racing MINI, has ended Stage 10 of the 2013 Dakar with a increased lead over second-placed Giniel De Villiers - Peterhansel now 52 minutes 38 seconds ahead as he bids for an eleventh Dakar victory:

"Today it was again a very technical stage like the WRC. But this morning I changed my strategy a little bit, because Nasser withdrew yesterday. So the gap between the second [De Villiers} and me is a little bit bigger, so I decided to drive a little bit more safely. But it was too safe, because at the beginning after only 100 km Terranova gained two or three minutes on me and was just behind me, so I decided to push a little bit more to the end. Also it's better because when you push you are more concentrated. When you are relaced it is easier to make a mistake."

"For the race, for the show, it's no good, for the suspense, it's not really good, but for me it's not so bad and it's more comfortable. I can manage the car as well. I can manage for example the stage tomorrow and the stage at Copiapo which will be really complicated in the dunes. So if I have more time I'll be able to manage the race, to wait to see the good places to cross the dunes, so it's better for me for sure..."

Orlando Terranova of Argentina won the 353km stage: Peterhansel's teammate, Russia's Leonid Novistkiy, is third, 1 hour 8 minutes off the lead.

Cyril Despres on his 450 Rallye KTM has taken the lead over Ruben Faria in the Bikes - the gap 1 minute 37 seconds. In the Quads, Marcos Patronelli of Argentina on his Yamaha has a 1 hour 27 minute 47 second lead over Ignacio Casale of Chile.

The Trucks are yet to complete...the Race2Recovery Wildcat of Matt O'Hare and Barney Gillespie is on the stage.
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Steve · Jan 15, 2013

Leg 10: Terranova wins on home soil (best-of-rallylive.com)

15/01/2013 9:13 pm

Todayâ€™s action saw Argentinaâ€™s Orlando Terranova claim his first stage win of the 2013 Dakar. StÃ©phane Peterhansel consolidated his lead ahead of De Villiers, while Nani Roma has edged a little closer to the provisional podium. Al-Attiyah has officially retired.

Leg 10: Cordoba-La Rioja (632km)

Just as the WRC stars were completing their shakedown session ahead of the Rallye Monte-Carlo, the car competitors were beginning the 2013 Dakarâ€™s SS10 in La Falda which the World Rally Championship will visit in a few monthsâ€™ time. There was no snow to be seen here, merely sun-baked tracks (ground temperature: 60Â°C) and 353km to cover in one go. Thatâ€™s the competitive distance of an entire Rally Argentina!

Nasser Al-Attiyah, one of the rallyâ€™s early pace-setters, failed to start todayâ€™s test following a crash and, apparently, engine problems on Monday. That spells the end of this yearâ€™s challenge from Qatar Red Bull which leaves South America with five stage wins to its name.

That left StÃ©phane Peterhansel (Mini/Michelin) with a cushion of almost 50 minutes over second-placed Giniel de Villiers and under no pressure. â€œWe still pushed quite hard today in order to stay focused,â€ he admitted. He ended up with the dayâ€™s third-best time, just 12 seconds behind his team-mate Nani Roma who is now within striking distance of the provisional podium after Novitskiy suffered a puncture.

Argentinaâ€™s Orly Terranova spent most of today running first on the road but went on to win SS10 for BMW/Michelin: â€œI had a good day and I loved the stage. This is my first win with Paulo as co-driver, so Iâ€™m very happy for him. The only problem is that I will now be first on the road over the Fiambala dunes tomorrow.â€

Giniel de Villiers failed to find a good rhythm this morning and found himself in the dust of Robby Gordon for some 150km: â€œI couldnâ€™t get close enough to trigger my Sentinel warning device, so all I could do was sit patiently on his tail.â€ Meanwhile, Carlos Sousa stopped twice to repair the water pump drive belt of his Great Wall, losing around 20 minutes in the process.

The battle in the Truck class was perhaps settled yesterday when Gerard de Rooy was delayed by mechanical trouble. This morningâ€™s leader was Russiaâ€™s Nikolaev (Kamaz/Michelin).

Stage 10 positions:

1, Terranova/Fiuza (BMW), 3h57m58s. 2, Roma/PÃ©rin (Mini), +2m7s. 3, Peterhansel/Cottret (Mini), +2m19s. De Villiers/Von Zitzewitz (Toyota), +5m26s. 5, Gordon/Walch (Hummer), +6m51s. Etc.

Provisional positions after SS10:

1. Peterhansel/Cottret (Mini), 28:12:00 â€“ 2. De Villiers/Von Zitzewitz (Toyota), +52min38 â€“ 3. Novitskiy/Zhilstov (Mini), +1h08min40s â€“ 4. Roma/PÃ©rin (Mini), + 1h34min04s â€“ 5. Terranova/Fiuza (BMW), +1h58min49s
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Steve · Jan 16, 2013

Leg 11 preview: the fine sands of Fiambala (best-of-rallylive.com)

16/01/2013 9:14 am

Fiambala has emerged as one of the high spots of the Dakar since its move to South America. There is always drama of some sort in the regionâ€™s white dunes and mountains, and this year the drivers and riders have accumulated 10 days of fatigue since the start of the eventâ€¦

Fiambala, in the foothills of the Andes, has little to attract tourists, with the exception of the ancient tree that was planted in front of San Pedro church 200 years ago, plus its natural hot water spas which climbers visit en route to the Tres Cruces National Park where the El Salado and Monte Pissi mountains peak at almost 7,000m.

The town was badly affected by the recent rain storms which battered northwest Argentina and the centre is still under water in places.

The start of SS11 will begin 32km after the originally-planned start following damage to the local tracks. The first section up to Km52 is sandy with some small, reasonably straightforward dunes. From Km71 to Passage Control 1 (Km84), the dunes become more of a challenge before Fiambalaâ€™s famous white dunes (from Km84 to Km92). Then, from Km150 to Km175, the trail gets twistier, while the final part of the stage takes competitors off road, with several river crossings to tackle.

The first bike will leave the overnight camp at 5:15am, with the stage due to start four hours later. The first car will pull out of the bivouac at 7:38am and start the stage at 11:53am after a 288km road section. The finish is located 7km from the â€˜bivouacâ€™ in Fiambala.
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Nathan · Jan 16, 2013

Such nice blue skies. I miss that, it's been partly cloudy or worse for like a week here.

Steve · Jan 16, 2013

So much for blue skies.

Dakar Stage 11: rain stops play (iRallylive.com)

Stage 11 of the Dakar has been stopped because of very heavy rain, with the Cars and Trucks race halted at Control Point 1.

The rain has poured down, turning the dry river beds that cross the route into torrential flood.

Further news as we have it.
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Steve · Jan 16, 2013

As it was a few days ago, results, etc, are uncertain as organizers deliberate how to score the stage. Timing shows Gordon was fastest as of WP6 (of 7) but I think they officially stopped the action at a previous way point (WP4?) after the seven drivers who made it to WP6 had already gone past. In addition to that bit of confusion, less than a third of the cars made it to WP3 before they shut them down. Don't hold your breath for official results any time soon.....

Steve · Jan 16, 2013

Wow! Stopping the action today...good idea!

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lnFwzjsJ7n0]Stage 11 - Car/ Bike - Stage Summary (La Rioja Fiambala) - YouTube[/ame]

Steve · Jan 17, 2013

Stage 12:
Fiambala - Copiapo: The Return to Chile (Dakar.com)

After a 392-km road section, the competitors on the Dakar 2013 will tackle a 319-km timed section. The rally will cross the Andes Mountains from the east to the west this time, via the Paso San Francisco, before dropping down into the Atacama Desert to taste all the types of difficulties that can be faced in the rally-raid discipline. For the large portions of dunes located in the middle of the special, the riders and crews must climb these â€œmonumentsâ€ and avoid getting stuck in hollows that are just as big. On the tracks, the stage will be no easy task, since the rocks and stones, though scattered, could even bring the quickest competitors to a sudden halt. The participants who managed to reach CopiapÃ³ without making mistakes will have scored precious points in the final battle. Following the neutralisation of their special yesterday, the car and truck crews will probably have to tame their frustration, whilst the bikers, still closely grouped behind Cyril Despres, will have to battle to make the difference. The leading quad riders are relatively safe in terms of position, even if this stage is likely to count among the more decisive on the rally.
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Steve · Jan 18, 2013

Leg 12: a stage win for Roma in Copiapo (best-of-rallylive.com)

17/01/2013 11:19 pm

Nani Roma (Mini/Michelin) profited from todayâ€™s action to claim his third stage win of the event. The Spaniard, who was followed over the line by Robby Gordon (Hummer), has gained a footing on the provisional podium alongside Peterhansel and De Villiers.

Leg 12: Fiambala-Copiapo (715km)

Copiapo seems such a long way from Fiambala: approximately 500km, half of which was on dirt and included interminable climbs, steep descents and a bumpy asphalt road that just never seemed to end. However, the overnight camp situated some 10km from Copiapo sits in the middle of sumptuous dunes which made the long journey well worth the effort.

This year, the drive down the awesome dune that towers over the camp was not on the menu. Instead, the finish was located about four kilometres away, on a dirt track in the middle of a vast deserted plateau. Meanwhile, this was the last predominantly sandy stage of the 2013 event and consequently perhaps the final chance for the USAâ€™s Robby Gordon to profit from the potential of his Hummer.

Indeed, the flamboyant American spent most of the stage in the lead â€“ at least up to Km222 â€“ but he was beaten at the very end by Nani Roma who took advantage of the last 40km of stony ground to catch and pass the Hummer. Romaâ€™s win takes him past his team-mate Leonid Novitskiy to third overall. Novitskiy was only ninth today as he recovered from the emotions of Wednesday when his Mini was swept away by a river.

Giniel de Villiers was third-fastest on the stage, just 7s behind Gordon. He still figures in second position overall behind StÃ©phane Peterhansel who collected the fourth best time on SS12. Guerlain Chicherit fell back from seventh place after encountering transmission trouble, but Orly Terranova is still fifth ahead of Carlos Sousa (Great Wall) and Ronan Chabot whose SMG team-mate Bernard Errandonea got stuck in sand along with Christian Lavieille.

The Truck class saw Karginov and Mardeev secure a one-two finish today for Kamaz/Michelin, ahead of the Michelin-equipped Ivecos of De Rooy and Biasion. The provisional overall top-three is monopolised by Kamaz drivers Nikolaev, Mardeev and Karginov. De Rooy is fifth, behind Kolomy.

Stage 12 classification:

1, Roma/PÃ©rin (Mini), 3h36m34s. 2, Gordon/Walch (Hummer), +4m18s. 3, De Villiers/Von Zitzewitz (Toyota), +4m25s. 4, Peterhansel/Cottret (Mini), +6m3s. 5, Terranova/Fiuza (BMW), +6m26s. Etc.

Provisional positions after Leg 12:

1, Peterhansel/Cottret (Mini), 32h50m2s. 2, De Villiers/Von Zitzewitz (Toyota), +50m21s. 3, Roma/PÃ©rin (Mini), +1h31m6s. 4, Novitskiy/Zhilstov (Mini), +1h34m47s. 5, Terranova/Fiuza (BMW), +2h1m50s. Etc.
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Steve · Jan 18, 2013

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7fYF1Zbu7z8]Leg 12 - 2013 Dakar - Best-of-RallyLive.com (GB) - YouTube[/ame]

Steve · Jan 18, 2013

Leg 13 preview: the last dunes of 2013 (best-of-rallylive.com)

18/01/2013 8:31 am

The rallyâ€™s arrival in La Serena sees the Dakar return to the shores of the Pacific Ocean which it left behind in Arica a week ago already. The competitors sense that the end is close, but todayâ€™s 441km isnâ€™t without its challenges.

The last time the Dakar visited La Serena was three years ago. Chileâ€™s second oldest town is worth a visit, if only for its fine beaches, universities, cathedral, and countless churches, some of which date back three centuries, not to mention the multi-coloured rocks brought to the area by the Elqui River.

Between Copiapo and La Serena, the Dakar passes close to the worldâ€™s biggest telescopes which are located here to benefit from the exceptionally clear sky. La Silla, situated 150km from La Serena, is home to the Very Large Telescope, the resolution of which is four billion times superior to that of the human eye. For example, it could easily spot a Mini ALL4 Racing on the moon, and maybe even its competition number!

StÃ©phane Peterhansel will need to have his feet very firmly on planet Earth, though, for todayâ€™s last long stage of the 2013 Dakar. The 441km test (including a 61km neutralisation) promises to be very varied, with a cocktail of dirt, stones, sand and dunes.

The first part (246 km) begins with a fast 115km portion on hard-packed ground, including some of the tracks covered on Thursday. From Km115 to Passage Control 2 (Km154), survivors will indulge in some fast off-road running before coming across some small dunes up to Passage Control 3 (Km164). The toughest part is at the end where there will be sand and more dunes.

The second part of the stage (135km) is reasonably fast, although competitors will need to be careful not to be caught out by the portions of fesh-fesh (PC5).

Yesterday evening, at 8:30pm, there were still some 60 competitors who hadnâ€™t completed SS12. They will be able to rest a little today, however, since the start is relatively late. In order to avoid the regionâ€™s notorious â€˜Camanchacaâ€™ early morning fog. The bikers will start at 9:30am, followed by the cars at 12:18pm and the trucks at 2:14pm.
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