The most magical part of Dakar, this is how the true heroes of the world’s toughest race live: “I check every screw on my bike every day”

among them dakar There are three types of heroes. Once the mechanics arrive, they stay up all night adjusting and repairing the vehicles so they can leave for the next day’s stages. Motorcycle riders risk their lives as they accelerate through the thousands of hazards hidden in the desert, reading the roadbook at speeds of 170 km/h. And there are 25 pilots who must be put up a notch for the adventure they embrace to endure: Pilots Number of motorcycles in original categorythe purest class of the Dakar, with Catalan Josep Pedro winning his third stage in a row.

The MD surprised him in the middle of a mechanical review of his bike and reminded him of the results. “I didn’t want to see the results because my hair would stand on end.”he said. He had just realized that he was far behind the leaders and had less comfort than other category drivers. I was already close to the top 20 in Rally2 and RallyGP Common among all motorcycles. Josep Pedro has accepted Sportish’s proposal to show how the original drivers live their daily lives in Dakar.

Your camp is the most magical place in a vast encampment. dakar. Because it’s where the love for engines, bikes, and above all, adventure lives. An unbridled passion to experience the Dakarian spirit of the 80’s of yesteryear, which leads them to face the world’s toughest race without any consolation. I miss that adventure, which was so fulfilling and at the same time so hard. Radical.

5 spanish pilots

This is a very tough category with five Spanish pilots taking part. Javi Vega, Josep Pedro, Rashid Al-Al-Rahadir, Fernando Dominguez and debutant Borja Perez. We surprised Josep Pedro to find out what the daily life of an original driver is like. By the way, I’ll tell you something you don’t know. Overall results after winning 3 stages in a row in this hero category.

It is no exaggeration to say that it was an extreme experience. The best in Dakar. Although these riders face the same routes as other bikes in the general classification, there are very distinct differences that make the race a significant experience. They compete without any mechanical support and are not equipped with any equipment to help them reach the bivouac.. Alone in the face of danger. Every day, they travel over seven hours and hundreds of kilometers on motorbikes, arriving exhausted at their camp next to the center of the bivouac. They cannot rest like others.

Once the remaining motorcycle riders arrive, a mechanic or team of mechanics will repair their motorcycles. Not them. Back at camp, his work has only just begun. The most difficult part begins: they have to repair the bike with their own handsand do it now because every minute counts. You must eat and sleep as much as possible to have the strength to face the next day. In addition, sleeping in a tent is compulsory, but the rest of the time you will usually sleep in a caravan. Every pilot has his own numbered toolbox in which he keeps his personal belongings.

Post-stage toolbox and machine routines

“It’s like a small workshop. The original box contains all tools and spare parts for the motorcycle. I bring everything I can put on the bike here, including oil filters, air filters, spare parts to change out the entire transmission kit during breaks… and now I go through my daily routine. ”Josep Pedro told this newspaper after winning the fifth stage. He had arrived at the bivouac around 2:30 p.m. And it was 6pm. And he was still working on the bike.

“New oil filter, new oil, new tires already installed, air filter already installed, general check of hardware as half the screws come loose every day, and little else.” duck. However, please keep in mind that if there is a problem with the stage, the work can be even more extensive and the working time may be longer if you arrive much later, work at night and have to fix more damage than usual.

For this reason, Josep says, “One of the most important things in this category is to try to maintain a fairly fluid pace in order to arrive at the bivouac early. What’s rarely talked about or seen is what the slowest riders arriving at night have to prepare their bikes for…it’s like a separate category. “It’s very difficult.”.

True pilots live their daily lives under the basic rule of saving time, with the clear goal of getting as much sleep and rest as possible. “One of the pieces of advice João Pedrero gave me was, ‘Do whatever you want, but try to get seven hours of sleep a day and you’ll be fine.'”

Sometimes you have to stop doing some things because you need to get some sleep. “The last thing we need is a shower. If one day the weather is bad and we don’t shower that day, we sacrifice that. Dinner, yes, always, because that’s our energy.” But as Javi Vega told me, you can eat dinner here while the bike is being repaired, which has never happened to me before,” he added, crossing his fingers.

Everyone sets up and takes down tents.

Mr. Pedro then showed the MD the original By MOTUL truck that supplies lubricants and other products. And behind that is a tent area where they sleep. “This is my humble residence and it’s very dirty,” he said.

“Each pilot is required to set up a tent within the camp and take it down individually before departure.”he explained. Plus, no matter how dusty they were, I wore bike shorts to let the wind flow in front of my helmet and boots. There are two things that are non-negotiable for him. It’s a luxury mattress and above all a “home pillow”.

Josep was one of the first to arrive and set up shop “Being in a good location away from the hustle and bustle and next to the friends you want.”he added. However, there was a pilot who had not yet arrived. Among them is Spaniard Fernando Dominguez, who usually arrives at the camp around sunset.

And after seeing all this, one final question remains. Why make this adventure even more extreme? That’s one of the main questions. The answer is simple. In some cases, it may be because it is the cheapest category and the best option due to lack of budget. But that’s not the main reason. The majority of drivers who compete in the original do so because they want to experience the purest Dakar possible.same as the previous one. A unique experience. With the exception of Josep Pedro and Javi Vega, who came looking for a category win, there are few competitors in contention for the result. The important thing is to feel a sense of adventure, of testing yourself. They are the heroes of the desert.