The first silver stage for the son Alex
The opening ceremony of this year's Dakar Rally was spectacular. There was a large event with the representatives of the Argentine Government held in Rosario on Friday. Yesterday, on Saturday, then held ceremonial parade of all participants on the podium, which lasted approximately six hours. Aerobatic aircraft embroidered ornaments above the town, helicopters circled and each of the competitors could enjoy his moment of glory. Interest of the Argentinean fans was huge. Three million of them should gather for the preshow to Rosario. But that’s nothing compared to the expected ratings in the world. More than 70 television stations in 190 countries will broadcast the race! Ales commented it: ”Beautiful atmosphere, Argentines were amazing as usual. We also had a short meeting with the winners of the competition by Budvar and Sherlog. We had dinner together and also talked about the Dakar. But now we are going to the start of the first stage. Suerte – as locals say – good luck!”
The first stage ran from Rosario to San Luis (liaison section 629 km, special stage 180 km). After the start in Rosarion the racers went along the Rio Tercero. They drove 405 km through Caňada de Gomez, Villa Maria and Rio Tercero towns. About 50 km after the Rio Tercero started the 180 km long first special stage. It coiled like a snake in the form of the letter S in the foothills of the Sierra de Cordoba with Champui peak, which rises to a height of 2790 metres above sea level. Dirt-stony measured section started at 500 meters above sea level, the end was already located at an altitude of approximately 2100 meters above sea level. Right at the 29th kilometre waited the first control point for the racers. After passing the special stage travelled the racers 224 km to the southwest to San Luis.
504 crew may be satisfied with the gained second place and our pilot Ales added a personal message: “The first Dakar silver this year. It could be gold, but there was a small navigation mistake. But it is a very nice result compared to the Kamaz team and other major competitors. The stage measured nearly 200 km and the spacing between the first and second place is only ten seconds! This shows the current difficulty and evenness of the category. After a long and busy day with almost 900 km on the road we have finally arrived to the bivouac. The working on the Queen 69, which today went well, started again. Both Tatra now receive the necessary service and the mechanics will not stop until the morning. Dakar has already started. And I, respectively we have started up in a personal life. My son Alex was born a few days before the race. This symbolic stage silver I would like to dedicate to him and his wonderful mother. Although I wanted gold for him (and it was damn close), I believe he can wait a while and we will succeed with the Queen… Thank you all for your good wishes and support that we receive during the race from fans.”
We add our congratulations not only to the team for a great start, but especially Alex. Lot of health, happiness and success in many races that the life will bring to him!
