Team RallyRaid UK Dakar 2008
For the 30th edition of the rally, beginning in Portugal and finishing three weeks later in Senegal, RallyRaid UK, Britain’s largest and most successful privateer team, will consist of KTM riders, car drivers, mechanics and support crew, in all sixty two dedicated and enthusiastic people. They are one of the few teams to contest the motorcycle, car and truck classes. This year the bikers will use the new KTM 690 Rally machines while the drivers will be aboard the unique Desert Warrior cars. These are built from scratch, a space frame and fiberglass design, using BMW diesel engines with the power at the four wheels now exceeding 245 bhp, close to the allowable maximum. Diesel is the preferred fuel because of the need to have 800 kilometer (500 miles) range, the additional fuel needed for petrol power would significantly increase the overall weight.
For support they use three impressive trucks, two with six wheel drive and one smaller with four wheel drive.
These are backed up by three American Ford F350 4x4 pickups and a Land Rover Discovery for ’fast’ assistance. These seven fully equipped and specially prepared vehicles carry twenty-five mechanics. The aim of every member of the assistance team is to get the two 4x4 trucks competing in the T4 class, the fifteen Desert Warrior cars and the six KTM 690 motorcycles to the finish. Historically, depending on the severity of the course, only twenty to forty-five percent of the more than five hundred starters manage to arrive at the finish. The advance information from the French organizers indicates that 2008 will be a hard event with more emphasis on navigation rather than outright speed.
RallyRaid principle Paul Round, himself a regular competitor placed second privateer in class in 2004, feels that 2008 will be a good year for the team. For this years rally the team will be truly international with members representing fourteen countries. These are Britain, USA, Holland, South Africa, Belgium, Lithuania, Romania, Kenya, Israel, Australia, Spain, Slovakia, Sweden and France. Last year RallyRaid UK rider Tom Classen from South Africa, riding a KTM 660 in his first Dakar had a fifth on stage and finished in eighteenth place. He returns this year riding the new KTM 690 seeking to improve on that position and maybe give the team their first stage win. New this year is the next generation of Desert Warrior, an all new design sporting advanced electronics, all independent suspension and straight shift gearbox. The honour of testing this brand new model in the rally goes to regular RallyRaid UK competitor Paul Green from Southampton.
Paul Round (Left) and Michael Jones (Right)
Regular bike reporters Dot and Jim Jones will be updating the Beady race web site with news of UK competitors and son Mike (ex Enduro Champ) with his wife Sue (known as Milly) in the co-drivers seat of race car 462. This will be their second time as competitors and on course mechanics that gives them a change from organizing the assistance and bivouacs.
Milly and Beady at start of Dakar in 2006
Everyone in the team is wishing them the best of luck in getting to the finish. Mike has been working hard all year in preparing the cars and bikes especially getting to grips with all the technical electronic stuff that a twenty-first century rally car has on board. Mike and Sue will celebrate their twentieth wedding anniversary on the rally and after the confines of a rally car cab for twenty days lets hope they are still married when they reach the finish!
Dot and Jim are also going out to the rest day to bring first hand news of the goings on and all the inside information and gossip-the stuff you like to know.
For more information about the Dakar get a copy of the great book written by Dot and Jim titled 'Dakar, the challenge of the Desert' dedicated to John Deacon, Britain's most successful Dakar bike rider with a forward by World Champion Rally Driver Ari Vatanen.
Click on the link to the teams website for diary updates www.rallyraid.co.uk
Follow the Dakar on the official website which has real time plotting of every competitors position on the course, go www.dakar.com.
Alternatively Eurosport transmit a nightly update from rally HQ in the bivouac.
KTM replica fairings for sale to fit either the 660 or 690 models.
link here to fairings page.
