A restless bivouac

Anything but peaceful! Early this afternoon a sandstorm raged through the
bivouac in Atar. And some of the KTM teams are certainly not in a good mood.
The reason for that were penalties handed out by the race organizers. Due to
them the overall standings were changed around completely.
Fabrizio Meoni was punished because he had left the allowed space, which
runs along both sides of the route, on the first part of the marathon stage
on Thursday. “I am really mad. What a funny regalement. I had ‚Äì
unfortunately - left the given path alongside the track and therefore had
missed two of the so called waypoints, virtual GPS point. I was punished
with a 10 min penalty; five minutes for each waypoint.” Thus Fabrizio lost
his lead in the overall standings.
Alfie Cox described this new rule as out-of-touch. According to it,
competitors are allowed on a 3.3 km wide path, only. “Yesterday I wanted to
ride on a route which seemed promising to me. It was Fabrizio who held me
back and told me that I would be leaving the allowed path by doing so. That’
s when I asked myself – what nonsense. If I cannot decide which route I want
to take - soon it‚Äôs no longer a race.”

In the bivouac in Atar discussions erupted between the team managers and the
A.S.O. Claudia Patuzzi, manager for the teams KTM Gauloises, “Okay, Fabrizio
had left the allowed path, but it would only be fair if the GPS equipment of
all the riders are checked. Further, I think, it isn’t right if competitors
like Fabrizio get themselves lost, due to a mistake they make, loose time
and then get an additional time penalty for it. A regulation where everyone
has to ride on the very same track from A to B surely isn’t according to
what the Dakar is all about. The great challenge to find the optimal route
by precise navigation is totally annulled by that.” The A.S.O. insists on
the regalement, but has changed the penalties. Instead of punishing the
offender with 5 min for each left-out waypoint it is now one minute. With
that Fabrizio Meoni grabs the overall leadership again. He has a one minute
margin on Cyril Despres and about three minutes on Marc Coma.

Andy Caldecott dropped from 3rd to 8th place. He was punished for exceeded
speeding. “Four days ago I must have been speeding on a liaison. It was 5
a.m. in the morning and the vision was terrible when I headed towards a
village. I knew there must be a speed trap, but it wasn’t located within the
village. It was set up right in front of it. When I passed it I was still a
bit over the speed limit. Due to the 17 min penalty I have lost my tight
grip on the top riders. That‚Äôs bitter.”

Some facts about life in the bivouac: Mechanics have a field day today. They
take the bikes carefully apart, check each individual part and prepare them
for the second part of the rally. For Team KTM Repsol Red Bull all engines
are changed. “The complete team made the decision; it wasn‚Äôt for the
mechanics to decide this,” explains Manel Salinas, mechanic for Marc Coma,
“Safety is most important. Otherwise we also change wearing parts, like the
chain, the air and oil filters as well as prepare an oil change.” Service
for Team KTM Gauloises works totally different. Marc Weber, mechanic for
Jean Brucy, states, “I‚Äôm not going to change the engine. It runs flawlessly.
We’ve engaged a pressure-loss check, changed the sparks and checked the
carburetor. I‚Äôll probably also renew the clutch.”

Fabrizio Meoni is going to take off with a new engine tomorrow. His mechanic
Romeo Feliciani explains, “I‚Äôd rather change the engine. If there is a brake
down I will be the one to be blamed. One never knows exactly just where or
why parts might be worn or cracked.”

Team manager Hans Trunkenpolz claims, “Each team work autonomously from one
another. It’s what we have wanted them to do. That is a very positive
development in my eyes. One feels a healthy distance between Team Gauloises
and Team Repsol-Red Bull.”

All riders are healthy. “All riders are offered a massage to loosen their
muscles,” explains physiotherapist Ralph Pariasek, “Fabrizio always demands
a special massage for his back. Alfie’s shoulder has to be bandaged again;
it helps to stabilize it. All truck drivers are treaded for sore backs.”

The crews of the T4 trucks from KTM have done fantastical so far.

Silent heroes
They sit in their MAN trucks and race across the track: two trucks, which
carry spare parts for KTM on board. In case they are needed they can provide
fast assistance. Peter Reif, Gunter Pichlbauer and Stefan Huber make up the
crew for the race truck with the starting number 543. Stefan Huber, in
charge of the motorcycle repair, talks about his effort, “It is the first
time I’m part of a truck crew and I think it is great. Both of the others
are old hands and know exactly what they are doing. Peter chases the truck
across the tracks, just as others run a car. And Gunter is an excellent
navigator.” So far the crew‚Äôs help during the race hasn‚Äôt been needed much.
Nevertheless the specials weren‚Äôt easy. “Oftentimes we are on the road until
late at night,” claims experienced Dakar member Peter Reif, “Sometimes you
don’t know what is going on just a few meters in front of you; what
obstacles are hidden.” The guys were lucky with their fuel on the marathon
stage. While others run out of fuel on the way to Tichit their MAN truck
made it, but barely. Peter Reif remembers, “I looked at my fuel gauge and it
was almost empty. I was driving almost at a walking pace, but luckily we
made it.”

The same is true for the second KTM race truck as well. It is driven by Karl
Sadlauer, navigated by Franz Maier, with Martin Mayer as the third member
aboard. They chase after the motorcycle riders and provide help especially
for the KTM amateurs. The private rider’s angles were a blessing for anyone
being stranded in the desert on the 7th stage. But the crew (starting number
542) has more to offer than just gasoline. “The guys out there sometimes
just need someone to talk to,” explains Karl Sadlauer, “I guess one could
call us a psychological aid on four wheels.”
Sadlauer, Reif and Co. – everyone on the trucks, accomplishes great things
day after day. When they aren’t racing they help where they can. And when
they don’t help they are racing. It is certainly true that the spare part
supply trucks should be up front as well. Because the faster they are the
less time the motorcycle riders lose in case of a brake-down. The
motorcyclists are full of gratitude and this is the pay for the undergone
drudgery.

Tomorrow the competitors have to challenge a 483 km and extremely tough
special. It loops around the bivouac in Atar. The organizers call it the
most difficult dunes of the rally. They are located in the Erg El Beyyed.
Before they are reached the participants will have to climb the Thanga
crossing. The weather in Mauritania makes the stage even more difficult.
There is still a strong wind blowing and the vision is extremely low. This
afternoon the desert faced another phenomenon: It started to rain!