dyton mupawaenda
Collin Matiza-Sports Editor
WITH slightly over a month before the 2024 Dakar Rally revs off in Saudi Arabia, Zimbabwean rider Ashley Thixton can’t wait to sink his teeth on the biggest motor rallying event in the world.
The 46th edition of the Dakar Rally will start on January 5, with a route entirely in Saudi Arabia.
This will be the fifth time that the event will be held in the Arab country, and it is shaping up to be the most demanding to date with a total of 12 special stages plus the Prologue that will open the action at 7am the next morning.
Today, the 1st of December, will see Thixton starting his final countdown for the 2024 Dakar Rally where he will be among 137 male and female bikers who have entered for this event.
Thixton will be Zimbabwe’s sole representative in the motorbike section of this tough event and his preparations for this race kicked into high gear when he held a fund-raising Golf Day at Borrowdale Brooke last Thursday. Speaking to Zimpapers Sports yesterday, Thixton, who needs to raise US$130 000 for the trip to Saudi Arabia for the Dakar Rally, said the golf fundraising event was a success.
“The golf fundraiser was great. The numbers could have been better but we managed to raise good funds and create great awareness for the Dakar263 Cam-paign.
“We managed to raise US$4 065 in total. We are looking at the remaining US$35 000 to complete the fund purse,” Thixton said.
He said his final preparations for the Dakar Rally were also going on well.
“Yes, I am satisfied with my training. I still have some rides set up and look to complete these rides in the next five weeks to complete my training.
“I will be riding with the HT Rally Team on a Husqvarna 450R,” Thixton said.
He is set to become the third Zimbabwean to take part in the Dakar Rally after ace motor rally driver Conrad Rautenbach and fellow biker Graeme Sharp.
And he should brace himself for a rough ride during next year’s Dakar Rally which is set to run from January 5 to 19 in the Saudi dunes.
The total distance of the 2024 Dakar Rally is 7,891 kilometres, of which 4,727 kilometres will be under the pressure of the stopwatch.
AlUla will host the Prologue that will serve to dictate the starting order, so those 27 kilometres will be vital to tackle a first week that rally director David Castera has described as “very tough”.
The first of the special stages will take the drivers and riders from the town where it all starts to Al Henakiyah, before heading towards Al Duwadimi.
However, complications will continue on the section that connects this town to the next bivouac at Al Salamiya.
From there, the competitors will set off for AlHofuf, in a stage that is some-what shorter than the rest, but with many kilometres of liaison, as well as the next stage to Shubaytah.
Once these first five stages are completed, it will be time for the 48-hour challenge destination in Yanbu.
The finishing line will be crossed after a final 175-kilometre stage which loops the coastal town on January 19, with the winner of the Touareg Trophy crowned.
In total, 778 competitors, including drivers and teams, will battle it out in 137 bikes, 153 cars in all categories, 46 trucks, 10 quads, 80 classics and 10 Dakar Future vehicles.
Earlier this week, the Dakar community sat united in front of the screen. After a long wait, the A.S.O. finally presented the entire route of the Dakar 2024 through Saudi Arabia.
Previously, the teams only knew the start town of Alula, the finish town of Yanbu and the rough route.
Rally Director Castera began with a clear statement: “This will be the toughest edition since the rally moved to the Middle East.”
The crews have to cover a total of 7,891 kilometres in January, 4,727 of which are against the clock.
As always, the Dakar starts with the technical and administrative checks.
These take place on January 3 and 4, 2024 at the start camp in Alula and end with the opening ceremony.
After a short prologue on January 5, the Dakar starts its first leg to Al Henakiyah one day later.
From there it continues to the south-east of Saudi Arabia and the “Empty Quarter”.
On January 13, the drivers can take a short breather on the rest day in the capital Riyadh before the second part of the Dakar 2024 takes them to Yanbu.
There, the Dakar entourage will celebrate crossing the finish podium on January 19.
The “48h Chrono” stage in the “Empty Quarter” is a novelty: it resembles a marathon stage. The crews have to get by without their team and mechanics for one night. But in 2024, the A.S.O. will go one step further. At 4pm on the first day of the “48h Chrono”, the stage will be stopped and the crews will have to drive to one of the six bivouacs. There they have no contact with the outside world and therefore do not know where their competitors are.
Online Reporter