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T
he Dakar is that most spectacular of adventures; the ultimate in endurance, navigation and riding skill. Filled with beauty, South America is without doubt a continent prefect for the world’s toughest rally. From the vast, high altitude plains to the crossings of the Andes, the enormous dry lakes and river beds, monumentally large sand dunes and unimaginable heat, the various countries have shaped a Dakar more varied than West Africa ever managed. We’ve put together the ultimate Dakar Rally Gallery, stuffed with the best images we could find from the 2015 event.
There were folks sleeping in the desert, suffering catastrophic dehydration and falling to altitude sickness everywhere. It was as incredible as always.
2015 went down in history as the toughest for a decade and one of the most brutal of all time. The distances were big, the temperatures obscene and terrain energy sapping. There were folks sleeping in the desert daily, suffering catastrophic dehydration, exhaustion and falling to altitude sickness everywhere. It was as incredible as always.
The race for the win was ruined by the continuously discussed, water logged, Uyuni Salt Flat in Bolivia, that saw fifteen competitors fail to finish the day and numerous more leave the event in the following days. Riders were stranded left, right and centre, towing for hundreds of km’s just to to be able to start the next day. KTM sold every wiring loom they had available. Mechanics worked till the riders start time the following day. It was brutal on everyone.
By the end of the rally, every bike rider had combined, skill, determination and immense luck to cross that finish podium. Like every January for the last thirty years, it was the inspiring privateer stories that really made the event so special, none more than that of Anar Chinbataar of Mongolia. With just three years of riding experience, a huge level of fitness and an endemic persistence that saw him battle from the first day till the last. You can read his monumental story here.
Until the first riders leave the podium we can only wait and enjoy the images in the gallery above. Watch the video below to see what it’s like to race the Dakar from a Go Pro.
Images by: Redbull Media, Rally Maniacs, KTM Images, Andre Chaco.
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