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Collin Matiza Sports Editor
ASHLEY Thixton has now tightened his seat belts up and he said he is now more than ready to tackle the 2024 Dakar Rally in Saudi Arabia next month.
The 30-year-old Zimbabwean motorbike rider is hugely motivated ahead of the 2024 edition of the Dakar Rally after a three-day training camp in Khawa, Botswana, last week.
The attention of most local motorsport enthusiasts at the beginning of next month will be on the seasoned Zimbabwean motorbike rider who will be the country’s sole representative at the biggest and toughest motor rallying event in the world.
The 2024 Dakar Rally is set to run from January 5 to 19 in the dunes of Saudi Arabia and Thixton will be among 137 brave male and female motorbike riders from around the world who have entered the bike section of this gruelling event.
And as part of his final preparations for this two-week adventure in the Middle East country, Thixton last week spent a three-day training camp in the desert area of Khawa in Botswana under the wing of that country’s veteran Dakar Rally motorbike campaigner — Ross Branch.
Khawa is in the middle of Botswana and some of its conditions are slightly similar to the ones that Thixton will face during next month’s Dakar Rally in Saudi Arabia.
And the Zimbabwean biker was last week invited for a three-day training camp by Branch in Khawa where the latter gave the former some insight of the tough conditions he will meet during the 2024 Dakar Rally.
And after exchanging some notes with the Batswana motorsport legend in Khawa, Thixton yesterday said he now feels more than ready for what will be the biggest and toughest challenge in his sporting career.
Just weeks away from the Dakar, the Zimbabwean rider expressed optimism about his level of preparation.
He told Zimpapers Sports yesterday that the three-day training camp in Khawa under Branch was the perfect final preparation for the Dakar Rally.
Thixton also said he was now more than prepared to sink his teeth on next month’s Dakar Rally.
In fact for Thixton, it’s full steam ahead for his debut appearance at the world’s toughest off-road race.
“Training in Botswana was the perfect final preparation for the Dakar. I managed to get three days of very complicated Road books with the Botswana legend Ross Branch and fellow Dakar teammate Charan Moore from South Africa.
“I am more prepared now after my training in Botswana. Physically, I am in the best riding form of my life. Mentally, I think I will set my mind in the right gear from now (on).
“It’s been very mentally challenging. Organizing and chasing funds (for the trip to Saudi Arabia) has mentally heavily weighed down on me but that’s been part of the journey and I was prepared for it, Thixton said.
He also spoke about his three-day training camp in Khawa last week.
“We carried out many hours of noted and road-book training with Ross which was an amazing experience.
“Being in and amongst his professionalism was amazing to see how the professionals do it. Credits need to go to him and how well he carries himself and what he has achieved is amazing.”
Thixton, who will be riding a Husqvarna 450R motorbike during the Dakar Rally, is also quite confident that he will last the distance in this tough race and emulate fellow Zimbabwean rider Graeme Sharp who completed the whole course in 2000. The Dakar Rally is a tough challenge on Thixton’s horizon and he said his goal is to not die in the Saudi desert, and make the finish line.
“My expectations are to finish the Rally. That achievement is massive in it self,” Thixton said.
The Dakar Rally no longer has anything to do with the Senegalese capital of Dakar. Security concerns led to the rally’s cancellation in 2008, and in 2009 it left its original home and shifted to South America. Since 2020, the “Dakar” has been run in Saudi Arabia.
The Dakar Rally is an annual rally raid organised by the Amaury Sport Organisation and is famous for its tough terrain and off-road endurance, where an expansive field must traverse sand, rocks, gravel, and tar-mac as quick as possible.
Spanning 5,000 kilometres, the 2024 route will encompass a prologue and 12 competitive stages, taking drivers from Al-Ula and across the Empty Quarter before finishing in Yanbu.
Over half of the journey will feature new stages, according to race organisers, with the new 48-hour marathon expected to be the most challenging as competitors navigate 600 kilometres and an overnight stop-page.
The 2024 edition will return to Saudi Arabia with a prologue on January 5 before concluding on January 19 following 12 gruelling stages and one rest day.
Online Reporter