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Motorsport News: Russ Bonds Weekly Report

Dakar is the Big Kahuna

In motorsports, there are tough races, and then there are tough races. For sprint racers, 78 laps at the Molson Indy Toronto seems like a long way, but to a veteran of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, its a cakewalk, nothing more than an afternoon drive. So, what would it take for the 24 Hours of Le Mans, or the Rolex 24 at Daytona to look like a lunchtime break - welcome to the Dakar.

By any standard, trying to put the Dakar into reasonable terms is tough at best, but as it is a new year, with new challenges... here I go. You see, the Dakar rally is an event of extremes. Extreme distances: 5,619 miles - if you dont get lost - of which 2,991 are timed stages, compared to about  2,175 miles for a Le Mans run. Covering that distance also takes a bit of time, like 16 days. The event runs from Lisbon, Portugal to Dakar in Senegal,

Welcome to the Dakar, the toughest race of all. (Photo: Volkswagen of America)

and there are some very difficult stages, some parts youd have trouble walking through let alone driving. There also have been, in the past, holdups - yep, just like the old west - robberies, and unfortunately a fair number of deaths to competitors. The only thing that everyone can agree on about the Dakar is that it is by far the toughest event in motorsports.

This year, Volkswagen has sent five race prepared Touaregs to contest the event. They have some fairly famous names in them, but most are not recognizable to many North Americans. The five VW entries are driven by Jutta Kleinschmidt

Volkswagen has sent five race prepared Touaregs to contest this years event. (Photo: Volkswagen of America)

/ Fabrizia Pons, Mark Miller / Dirk von Zitzewitz, Bruno Saby / Michel Périn, Carlos Sainz / Andy Schulz and Giniel de Villiers / Tina Thörner.
But what is even more astounding is the release VW sent out that shows just what it takes to compete at this event, at this level. It really puts it into perspective. For a start, they have 12 tents just for offices and race shops for the Touaregs that have to be set up and dismantled every day. Kleinschmidt has done this event 15 times. There are 25 tons of spare parts and equipment transported in seven Volkswagen team trucks, including 400 wheels already fitted with tires, and those seven trucks are part of a 28 vehicle

A total of 508 participants start in Lisbon: 240 motorbikes, 188 cars and 80 trucks. (Photo: Volkswagen of America)

fleet. Volkswagen also has sent 78 team members, including doctors that have 50 square meters of bandages, and over 1,000 painkillers. Those team members will use up 1,560 team shirts, and consume over 2,000 ready made soups and snacks.

A total of 508 participants start in Lisbon: 240 motorbikes, 188 cars and 80 trucks, and an additional 240 vehicles form the accompanying vehicle armada at the Dakar Rally. Add to that over 500 hours of television coverage - in Canada it airs on Speed TV - and there are more journalists than competitors - 780 have been issued credentials.

The final staggering numbers? Here in the U.S., gas is hovering just under the two and a quarter dollar per gallon mark ($2.22 on Tuesday). Volkswagen will use 20,605 gallons during the event - do

Volkswagen will use 20,605 gallons during the event that runs from Lisbon, Portugal to Dakar, Senegal. (Photo. Dakar.com)

the math. That could well be the best description for commitment to a motorsport event, so what has Volkswagen achieved with all this outlay? Well after the first two stages, they have the lead. Works driver Carlos Sainz, famed for years of leadership in WRC, leads the desert classic in his Race Touareg 2 by 1 minute 30 seconds after the first stage in Portugal, on his "Dakar" debut no less. Local matador Carlos Sousa lies second in a Nissan. With VWs Bruno Saby in third position followed by team mate Jutta Kleinschmidt. Three of the five Volkswagen works drivers are among the top four of the 174 competing teams.

"Im satisfied to have set the fastest time at the very beginning. The conditions were everything but easy: A junction was difficult to see and we actually had to turn-back. Thats why the result is all the more satisfying," Sainz said after the first stage.

American

The torturous Dakar rally is like no other event in the world. (Photo: Volkswagen of America)

Mark Miller is 10th in his Touareg.

"Id set out to size-up the rally on the European stages, which definitely paid off since the grip level was difficult to judge under these conditions. The Race Touareg 2 ran perfectly."

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