~ Auto Buzz ~: DAKAR RALLY: Why Spend $100,000 to Suffer for 14 Days? The Dakar is the ultimate challenge for every off-road enthusiast. It’s much more than a race, it’s a pure human adventure.

For the majority of Dakar racers, the dream of finishing is worth the many sacrifices it takes, both personal and financial. And, invariably, if something goes wrong—because of a crash or a mechanical failure—and the rider can’t finish, the first thought is to find a way to return the following year. This is the Dakar. It’s a cocktail of adrenaline, challenge, sacrifice, and endurance. There are 14 race days, 13 special stages, 5,600 miles to cover, 2,800 miles of which are in timed sections, two countries crossed (Argentina and Bolivia) with the Dakar reaching the summit of 15,000 feet altitude, 354 competitors (143 bikes, 46 quads, 110 cars and 55 trucks) and 60 nationalities represented. For 44-year-old Briton Chris Cork, it was worth his house. He sold his place in Devon to enter the 2015 Dakar. On Day 4 he crashed and injured his wrist, hand, and vertebra. It took him several months to recover completely, but he had to come back this year because he felt he would have lived a miserable life without fulfilling his dream. Fortunately, for his 2016 effort he could find sponsors because his story moved so many people in England.

Team HRC Rally's Ricky Brabec.

It was a dream come true for 24-year-old Californian Ricky Brabec, who received a phone call offering a seat on the factory Team HRC Rally last July when he was sitting at home with a broken neck. The talented desert racer entered the Dakar through the front and showed from the beginning what he is capable of. After warming up, he finished seventh in Stage 4, the first moment of truth on the rally with the 390-mile loop around San Salvador de Jujuy in the north Argentina at altitudes of 11,500-13,000 feet. In contrast, it took Scott Bright three years to be finally able to take on the toughest rally in the world—three years to find financial funding and to get physically ready for the event. For the former MotoGP racer, Jurgen van den Goorbergh, the Dakar is pure challenge. And as if the challenge of riding with full support isn’t enough, he is racing in the Malle Moto class, in which the riders have no mechanic or vehicle assistance and can count only on themselves, two travel cases (80 liters each) and one extra set of wheels. “I like the extreme adventure and I aim at winning the Malle Moto category,” says the Dutchman. “It’s tough as when we return at the bivouac after 5-6 hours of riding, we have to work on the bike. I sleep in average 3-4 hours per night and during the day I never stop, not even for peeing, I learned how to do it while riding!”

Budget, of course, makes all the difference and the pro rider can count on a pro team that takes care of everything, from the map man to the physiotherapist. They can sleep in a motorhome instead of a tent, but despite this extra comfort, the spirit of the Dakar remains close to what it used to be when the Dakar was in Africa: Everyone helping each other because tomorrow it can be your turn to need help. So the Honda rider Paolo Ceci towed his teammate Paulo Goncalves for 200 miles on Day 2 and Laia Sanz stopped 40 minutes to rescue the enduro world champion “Pela” Renet who crashed and lost consciousness 12 miles before the beginning of Special Stage 4. “We were riding at 11,500-13,000 feet and because of the altitude it was difficult to maintain the concentration,” said Sanz. “I always listen to the music while riding, it keeps me awake. Renet crashed and I was the first to arrive on him. I was very scared but fortunately after a while he started moving. I remained with him till the arrival of the helicopter.” The Dakar counts thousands of these stories because the extreme conditions of the race bring the sport back to its origin. So it’s no surprise when Italian Franco Picco returns racing on a quad to celebrate his 60th birthday after 31 years of Dakar on a bike, in a car, or in a truck as assistance team, or if the Mini Cooper driver Nani Roma, winner in the bike and the car category, looks for his wife and rider Rosa Romero at the end of special stage. Just the time for a kiss and then they both continue their race, he in the car and she on a bike.

Dakar leader Paulo Goncalves entering Bolivia.

Amateurs and Pros share the same bivouac and it’s cool to see nine-time rally world champion Sebastien Loeb and his co-driver taking notes at the competitors briefing or the huge facilities of the American superstar Robby Gordon, this year with a second car at the start driven by 18-year-old Sheldon Creed on his Dakar debut. “I like the adrenaline of the race, the stunning landscapes, and the mix of cultures,” commented Ricky Brabec on his first Dakar adventure. “Sixty nationalities at the start means an incredible concentrate of cultures and mentalities unified by the sharing the same passion.”