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Written by TopGear.com
The Dakar Rally is pretty good at exhausting your supply of adjectives. Brutal. Punishing. Exhausting. Back-breaking. Insane. All of these and more apply to the gruelling (another adjective!) Dakar rally raid. Even at the best of times, Dakar is a race where broken cars are par for the course, broken bones are just as common, and even finishing the race can be beyond the capabilities of expert riders and drivers. So, when we say that Dakar 2017 was difficult, even by Dakar"s standards, you might have some idea of what we"re on about.This year"s race route took in more than 5,500 miles of South American terrain, including sand dunes, mountain passes, powder-dry scrublands and flooded plains. In fact, flooding was a bit of a theme for Dakar 2017, with sections of the race cut short or cancelled entirely due to torrential rain, flooding and landslides. It was a particularly miserable time for competitors, spending hours on end trapped in the mud, with only a washed-out camp to return to at the end of their runs. That said, it was exceptionally bad for the Argentineans who call the town of Volcan (the worst-hit area) home, with a decent chunk of their town washed away or buried under mud. As for the race itself, Dakar 2017 claimed the egos (and luckily not the lives) of some pretty big names. Carlos Sainz, Sr no stranger to off-road driving flipped spectacularly after running wide on a mountain road. Last year"s winner in the bike category, Australian Toby Price, broke his leg in four separate places and, funnily enough, had to undergo immediate surgery, rather than finish the race. And, if you still doubt the Dakar"s ferocity, a brand-new Toyota Hilux broke down. Yeah. It"s that tough.However, a lucky, determined and exceptionally tough few, each behind the wheel of Peugeot"s wicked new desert racer, made it through the cornucopia of carnage including breaking another competitor"s leg to claim first, second and third places in the car class. But it"s not an overall win. Not by a long shot. With a combined race time of 28 hours, 49 minutes and 30 seconds, the winning Peugeot 3008DKR of Dakar legend Stephane Peterhansel was slower than the first three trucks across the line, and almost a full hour behind the winning Kamaz truck, driven by Eduard Nikolaev. Sebastien Loeb, renowned for not being a slouch behind the wheel, was a further five and a half minutes off the pace, which, after nearly 29 hours of racing, is devilishly close. Finally, Cyril Despres rounded out the top three, just shy of 33 minutes off the lead car"s pace and slower than an Iveco truck, which finished fourth. Dakar, it seems, is a race where size truly does matter. And trucks dominate Dakar in a way that cars, quads and bikes could only dream of.And it"s back down in the two-wheeled arena where Britain claimed its first Dakar win. Yep, a local lad from Dorset, by the name of Sam Sunderland, has taken class honours. Chuffing marvellous, and all that.
Date written: 16 Jan 2017
More of this article on the Top gear website
ID: 6424
The Dakar Rally is pretty good at exhausting your supply of adjectives. Brutal. Punishing. Exhausting. Back-breaking. Insane. All of these and more apply to the gruelling (another adjective!) Dakar rally raid. Even at the best of times, Dakar is a race where broken cars are par for the course, broken bones are just as common, and even finishing the race can be beyond the capabilities of expert riders and drivers. So, when we say that Dakar 2017 was difficult, even by Dakar"s standards, you might have some idea of what we"re on about.This year"s race route took in more than 5,500 miles of South American terrain, including sand dunes, mountain passes, powder-dry scrublands and flooded plains. In fact, flooding was a bit of a theme for Dakar 2017, with sections of the race cut short or cancelled entirely due to torrential rain, flooding and landslides. It was a particularly miserable time for competitors, spending hours on end trapped in the mud, with only a washed-out camp to return to at the end of their runs. That said, it was exceptionally bad for the Argentineans who call the town of Volcan (the worst-hit area) home, with a decent chunk of their town washed away or buried under mud. As for the race itself, Dakar 2017 claimed the egos (and luckily not the lives) of some pretty big names. Carlos Sainz, Sr no stranger to off-road driving flipped spectacularly after running wide on a mountain road. Last year"s winner in the bike category, Australian Toby Price, broke his leg in four separate places and, funnily enough, had to undergo immediate surgery, rather than finish the race. And, if you still doubt the Dakar"s ferocity, a brand-new Toyota Hilux broke down. Yeah. It"s that tough.However, a lucky, determined and exceptionally tough few, each behind the wheel of Peugeot"s wicked new desert racer, made it through the cornucopia of carnage including breaking another competitor"s leg to claim first, second and third places in the car class. But it"s not an overall win. Not by a long shot. With a combined race time of 28 hours, 49 minutes and 30 seconds, the winning Peugeot 3008DKR of Dakar legend Stephane Peterhansel was slower than the first three trucks across the line, and almost a full hour behind the winning Kamaz truck, driven by Eduard Nikolaev. Sebastien Loeb, renowned for not being a slouch behind the wheel, was a further five and a half minutes off the pace, which, after nearly 29 hours of racing, is devilishly close. Finally, Cyril Despres rounded out the top three, just shy of 33 minutes off the lead car"s pace and slower than an Iveco truck, which finished fourth. Dakar, it seems, is a race where size truly does matter. And trucks dominate Dakar in a way that cars, quads and bikes could only dream of.And it"s back down in the two-wheeled arena where Britain claimed its first Dakar win. Yep, a local lad from Dorset, by the name of Sam Sunderland, has taken class honours. Chuffing marvellous, and all that.
Date written: 16 Jan 2017
More of this article on the Top gear website
ID: 6424
