Stage 8: 395km with more than 100km of dunes!
The long liaisons and sand-packed menu made this trek to southern Saudi Arabia one of those stages that drag on and on and on. The first 200 kilometres of the special was nothing but sand and dunes as far as the eye can see, as the competitors jumped from one valley to another. Eventually, the landscapes changed at the end of the day (in the evening or at night) as many entrants had been delayed by the complexity of the stage.
After a very good results yesterday on a terrain that perfectly matched Jerome driving style, today was a stage with many dune ridges to cross. This is where we have less experience and we actually had difficulties to keep up with the pace of the cars in front.
Noticeable moment, while climbing a very high dune, we had to try many times to pass over it. Then the variator belt heated and we had to change it. It results in some time loss, but all in all we keep that 7h place in our T4 class beside finishing the stage 9th, 29 minutes behind the winner of the day.
We will fight hard to keep that position, and noticed one competitor behind us had issues too, so this is comforting our place so far. It will be difficult to get higher in the rankings, but the rally, even with 4 stages remaining, is still very long and everything can happen, really.
Jerome de Sadeleer – Driver : « We struggled in the big dunes as we couldn’t follow the guys in front. It is not my favorite terrain but I know I keep learning. Let’s focus on tomorrow’s stage where we will try to perform well. I will focus on my driving and car management to finish the rally and rely on Mika for the navigation part. »
Mika Metge – Navigator : « The guys in front seems untouchable, as their cars are so fast in the sand, especially now that the dunes are dried up and really soft. Competitors behind made mistakes too, so we keep that 7th place we want to defend. Tomorrow will be another day and more than ever I’m decided not to do a single mistake in navigation. »
Cyril Neveu – Team Manager : « Today sounded like a reminder that Dakar is a long and tough rally where we must perform on all terrain, in all conditions and all the time. It was difficult in the sand dunes but we don’t have to forget Jerome is a rookie when talking about rally raids. Still, I am really proud with what they are achieving. »