| [Pictures from Isolde Poncelet and Wim Dekoning]
Today the track was a loop of 296 km. Due to the incidents from yesterday there were not that many vehicles at the start of the second track. 'In the morning it was very misty and cloudy which made it very difficult to see any contrast in the steep dunes', according to today's quad winner, Mihaly Szabo [223, Romania]. 'Up to CP 1 it was even difficult to see where the sand stopped and where the sky started', he added. On the second day our first car was the car from the Franco Gallegioni [307, Italy]. 'In the beginning and at the end it was not easy, but I really enjoyed the ride; Libya is so beautiful' said the Italian who's driving his first rally and it's only his second time driving in the sand – talking about talent… After CP 1 the track became easier up to CP 2 where the bikes and quads refueled their tanks. After CP 3, the track went through the steep dunes again. This is where the experienced driver, Nasser Gmizi [301, Libyan], rolled his car twice. Luckily he and his co-pilot Nasser Hwas were fine, and after the broom truck had put it right again, they continued racing until the finish. There were many problems with the car, but thanks to the technical assistance team from Werner Zoetaert, the same night the car was ready to race again. There was a real traffic jam by the technical assistance trucks.. For example the VW Touareg from Patrick Lamoral and Olivier Joski had some crash damage after a jump, just like the Wrangler jeep from Yves and Freddy Den Doelder; but at the end they were all repaired. On the other hand, no serious medical interventions were needed today and that is of course the most important thing. 'Today was the most beautiful landscape I've ever seen', said Willem Jaquet [122, Netherlands] who was the first biker that arrived today and as a result became first in the general ranking for the motor bikes. By noon, the ones who had passed a night in the desert arrived in Camp Africa. They were full of stories after their adventures in the desert! They had a bit more time to prepare for the long track of the third racing day. Keep in touch, the next story will come online soon, inshallah. |
