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 | Silk Way Rally: French Rally Team Dessoude heads for the Russian steppes.
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For the third consecutive year, the French Team Dessoude will follow the Silk Way Rally’s tracks. This event stamped "Dakar Series" will cross Russia from Moscow to Sochi (city which will host the Winter Olympic Games 2014) and will again be full of traps. On the seven legs of the programme (4126 km to go), the competitors will face many and varied terrains from which from the steppes to the desert of Kalmykia and the Black Sea.
Strong presence for Team from St-Lô which will enter four cars on this third edition: the new Oryx Diesel Buggy for Christian Lavieille and Jean-Michel Polato, a Nissan Pathfinder T2 for Frédéric Chavigny and Jean Brucy, the Proto N05 for the Chinese driver Zhou Ji-Hong co-driven for the occasion by Jean-Pierre Garcin, and finally a Nissan Patrol T1 for Jack Brun and Alain Menesson.
For this race, Team Dessoude has set several goals. The first is to "test" the new Oryx Diesel Buggy in race conditions. For this mission, the lively and agile "little" buggy will be driven by experienced Christian Lavieille. Christian will have to test the mechanical parts and to refine the set-ups. If all goes well, a podium in two-wheel drive category remains an option.
Pleasantly surprised by his first laps at the wheel of the buggy, Lavieille explains: "I am always very pleased to enter a race. Driving is always a great pleasure. I like the challenge represented by the Oryx Buggy. The first version had participated in the Dakar 2011 with Isabelle Patissier, who made a great race. Since then, the engine has changed for a diesel. I tried the Oryx recently and I must admit that I was amazed!"
"The weight/power ratio is just amazing. This first run was very positive. With a low fuel consumption, we will take less fuel for stages and this will allow to maintain a quite low weight. It remains to work on the suspensions that are still perfectible. What I really appreciated on the Oryx Buggy is its extremely low noise level! I’m no longer used to such a silence! The weight/power/price ratio of this car is a formidable weapon" he added.
"For my part, I'll have to adapt my driving to the Buggy. Driving a propulsion car is different from driving 4x4 cars. My only experience of two-wheel drive takes me back to my first Dakar in 2003 ... First of all, we are on the Silk Way to work but if we could achieve a good result, I won’t be disappointed!"
In T2 (production cars) category, Frédéric Chavigny will be again on the starting line. This year, the French driver, who lives for twenty years in Russia and who knows particularly well the terrain, hopes to do as well as 2010. Already co-driven by Jean Brucy, the only French team still in the race crossed the finish line in sixth place overall, claiming another victory in T2. In 2011, the challenge is simple, claiming a new success in the category!
Newcomer to Team Dessoude, the Chinese Zhou Ji-Hong will be driving the Proto N05. To guide him in this adventure, he can rely on Jean-Pierre Garcin’s experience. Zhou Ji-Hong will really discover the car in Russia with the aim of preparing the 2012 Dakar.
Finally, Jack Brun and Alain Menesson enter their Nissan Patrol T1 for the first time on a "big" event. Having already participated in a Baja in 2010, in Russia, the pair starts a new challenge. Their goal, reaching the finish line in Sochi on 16th of July.
2011/07/10 | 20:02 CET | ARTICLE: MR/SY/DESSOUDE
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