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 | Dakar Rally 2013: Christian Lavieille - "The atmosphere here is excellent".
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From today, the 2013 Dakar’s competitors will start on track for some 8,000 km on the craziest world rally race. On this occasion, French Team Dessoude will write a new chapter of its rich history in the discipline.
But before taking on the adventure the latest administrative and technical checks on vehicles remains to be done. That means a marathon day in Lima on the "Circuito de Playas de Magdalena" place, along the Pacific ocean, a site especially created for the occasion.
After 21 days at sea, between Le Havre and the port of Callao (Lima), European vehicles of the 35th edition of the Dakar arrived in Peru. Among them, the Team Dessoude’s prototypes and particularly the Buggy Juke of Christian Lavieille and Frédéric Chavigny’s Atacama. After a final check-up on the service park and the compulsory technical checks, the cars were able to join the parc fermé while crews had to pass the traditional administrative checks.
In a rather relaxed atmosphere, Christian Lavieille tells his impressions: "Everything is going well, the atmosphere is excellent and it is very nice to see everyone. I don’t want to carry any unnecessary pressure and I don't want to build any script. After Peru, it will be time to look at the overall classification, but not before."
Driver of the second "Juke" Stéphane Wintenberger closely follows his friend and mentor in the discipline, Christian Lavieille. Novice or almost in rally raid, Stéphane enters here his first Dakar.
It remains no less an experienced circuit driver, winner of Dubai 24 Hours in GT3: "Taking part in the Dakar is making my dream come true. Even if the race has not started, the atmosphere is already amazing. My goal is to reach the finish and I have a top navigator to reach my goal, Thierry Delli Zotti. Moreover, Christian will have the same car and his experience will be a big help to improve."
For Frederic Chavigny, on the Proto Atacama, the moral remains excellent. With broad grins, Fred appreciates to be there: "I'm ready for this new challenge. The car has changed a lot since last year and I feel confident. But this year's Dakar begins with a big piece, so I'll be careful. I'll try to manage these first difficulties at best. The ultimate goal would be ideally the top 20."
Fully integrated to the Dessoude squad, Yves Tartarin and his Buggy (technically identical to the Juke but with a 3.5l Nissan engine) are no exception to the scrutineering rule. Highly motivated and ready to do battle on the South America tracks, the experienced Yves counts more than twenty Dakar entries. A trustworthy driver!
Always passionate, André Dessoude is chomping at the bit a few hours before kick-off. The Dakar is a race he knows by heart but no Dakar looks like another one: "Everything looks good. Crews are motivated, vehicles are ready, the atmosphere is great and we had a warm welcome. Today, after the start ceremony, the race will start with a short special stage to warm up."
After the start ceremony in Lima, competitors will drive for a 250 km liaison just before a short special stage of 13 km. The first bivouac will be set up for two days in Pisco, as the second leg on the 6th of January will be a loop. Then, the first real difficulties will appear!
2013/01/05 | 13:49 CET | ARTICLE: MR/HS/DES
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