… roligt trin for trin på Tenere-klubbens hjemmeside, så klik dig ind og læs mere om vores tur.

Vi har nu fået lagt nogle få billeder online – besøg vores galleri.

Så er Intercontinental Rally 2012 overstået og vi er vel hjemme i Dannevang.

Der kommer selvfølgelig en beretning, men du kan allerede nu se diverse “officielle” videoer fra arrangørerne med tilhørende tekster (engelssprogede) – når vi får redigeret lidt i vores eget omfattende materiale, kommer det selvfølgelig også online snarest muligt.

Stage 1 :  Almeria-Tourarirt

Short prolog, ferry crossing and liaison to Touarirt in Northern Morocco.

Stage 2 : El Guercif-Merzuga

Long, difficult and absolutely spectacular second stage! Starting into the bitter cold desert air the bikers suffered a lot in the early morning hours. The special was in some places very technical and there were some early mechanical problems and few minor mishaps. As we are down for the night in the bivouac we are very pleased to report that everyone is healthy and able to continue.

Stage 3 : Merzouga-M’Hamid

The 3rd stage along a traditional Dakar route provided for a memorable outing. Early in the stage the crews had to choose between navigating a tricky rocky section or avoid it by crossing a sandy ridge. Team Portside’s Unimog had to be pulled out from the deep sand by a near by military unit. Later in the stage the most difficult obstacle proved to be long sections of baby powder fesh fesh which sapped energy out of bikers and frustrated car pilots while running for extended time in low gear on full gas put a lot of stress on the vehicles. Those who crossed the deep sand were rewarded with miles and miles of flat and fast piste through dry lake beds and rocky planes

Stage 4 : M’Hamid-Tata

Extremely challenging stage with a bit (or lot) of everything: fesh fesh, deep sand dunes, wet lake bed and steep mountain roads. It was easy to loose a lot of points as many competitors arrived late at the bivouac but the overwhelming sentiment was that this stage was one of the highlights of this years rally.

Stage 5 : Tata-Fort Bou Jeriff

Stage 6 : Fort Bou Jeriff-Laayoune

It seems this year the physical punishment just will not stop. Another day, another draining stage. The day started with the crossing of the legendary Plage Blanche, a remote 50 km long beach battered by the waves and winds of the Atlantic Ocean. Rising tide meant that the dry part of the beach was soft and the going was tougher than expected. The bikes were squirmy and cars overheated easily as they struggled to keep pace along the waterline. Once off the beach the stage continued over a network of rocky path used to carry supplies into coastal fishing camps. Navigational mistakes proved to be costly as at least one rider drowned their bike in a river estuary. Next the caravan had to make some distance to move close to the city of Laayoune. But even the pavement provided no respite for the weary crews as the gail force side wind was relentless and the road was covered in sand drifts. Finally another 130 km long off road section made sure everyone was running on empty by the time they reached the bivouac. The motorbike race standings changed significantly as two of the leaders dropped out due to exhaustion and injuries. Tomorrow’s stage is composed of a long liaison and a short special section. Hopefully the weather will cooperate and the competitors will be able to cover the day at a more relaxed pace.

Stage 7 : Laayoune-Dakhla

Finally a stage with a shorter and easier off road section! The caravan proceeded on the blacktop south towards the city of Dakhla with a special section on flat, wind swept plains short distance from the bivouac. The easy terrain perhaps relaxed the concentration of one of the riders a little too much as he had a high speed crash after hitting a hidden dip at a hight speed. Fortunately the check up at the local hospital showed no injuries other than bruised back. Otherwise not much has changed in the standings.

Stage 8 : Dakhla-Nouadhibou

A liaison stage the cross the Morocco-Mauritanian border. Thanks for advanced preparation by the organization the border crossing went extremely smoothly and everyone got across within an hour. The short drive across the mined no-man’s land strip reminded everyone the importance of good way points as car wrecks litter the land scape. The late afternoon in Mauritania was hampered by strong winds and resulting sand storms and everyone is relieved to be in the comfy bivouac now.

Stage 9 : Nouadhibou-Nouakchott

After several days of high winds and blinding sandstorms forced us to forego Atar and instead head to Nouakchott the special followed last year’s course. To extend the range of the motorbikes to cover the 500km distance through some very remotal coastal regions the rally team set up a refueling station around the half way mark. We timed the beach crossing to coincide with the low tide and everyone got across safely except for the soaked race director sweeping the course. One notable drop out from the race was Mark Hughes, who’s engine rebuild engine suffered another breakdown.

Stage 10 : Nouakchott

Another improvised stage to replace the two stages originally planned for the Atar region. The stage was relatively straight forward on very fast pistes with a massive dune at the finish. Due to the long liaison the car teams decided to forego the stage and the bikes raced on their own. There was one notable departure on the day with the motorcycle race leader Klaus Jensen out due to mechanical problems and Manuel Garcia taking over the lead.

Stage 12 : St.Louis

This stage provided an introduction to the navigational challenges of the Senegalese savannah. Everyone exercised caution as we raced near many small villages with curious children and ignorant goats everywhere. The short liaison provided for a memorable outing and as the moon rose over the bivouac the excitement of reaching Lac Rose tomorrow filled the cool evening air.

Stage 13 : St.Louis-Lac Rose (Dakar)

Stage 14 : Lac Rose

The moment of glory has arrived when all the pain and suffering is forgotten and the sense of accomplishment starts to settle in. After more than 5000 km and 13 days of full on racing the Rally has reached the finish line on the shores of Lac Rose, stone throw distance from Dakar and the westmost point of Africa.The last stage was a celebratory excursion over the dunes to the Atlantic ocean and few kilometers north to a pristine stretch of beach where we gathered for a group photo and a small celebrations. The friendships forged after two weeks of sharing rocky and sandy trail, suffering through freezing cold Atlas air and surviving hot Senegalese days, digging deep to cross the desolate Mauritanian deserts will endure for years and the memories will last a lifetime.

Update : så kom vi til mål i den lange kamp mod sandet.
Adventure klassen
Martin No 1
Pauli No 2
Allan no 5
Peter No 6
Jens No 8
Jørgen No 10
No 4 og 5 er biler
Vi er at finde i baren ;-)
Update special:
Vores nye franske venner på BMW 1200 vincent og thierry er No 7 og 9! Super fede drenge trods franskmænd!!!

Update :
Så kom dagen hvor vi krydsede grænsen til Senegal !
Klaus havde det 3. Sæde i service bilen og hvilken fest!
Ny indkøbt skovl kom i brug da vi kørte fast:-( englændernes disco tog derfra
vores trailer på slæb resten af dagen over skod vejen over skodveje!
Alle ryttere er glade ( i låget ) og ved godt mod! Vi ønsker os ( igen ) en ny service bil ;-)
service crewet holder midt i ingenting omgivet af dansede unger!
N 15*51’5,7″
W 016*30’43,6″
Vi venter ved dagens anden tidstagnings start med cola vand marsbar og højt humør ;-)

Update!
Klaus venter lige nu i ørknen på at blive hentet pga teknik:-(
Der er stor rører om nogle af organisationens beslutninger omkring brug af spot og regler i det hele-taget!
Solen skinder og vi har det sjovt!
Martin er nr 1 og Pauli 2 i adventure klassen

Update:
Nu er vi over halvvejs og i aftes sagde vi farvel til alle dem der kun kørte light versionen!
Dagens etape var 405 km transport og en enkelt specialprøve på 100 km!
Det blæser stadig en pelikan og hvad der af følger af sandstorm :-(
Lars tog sig et par af de grimme styrt igår og har hverken maskine eller krop tilbage til at fortsætte!
TAK for kampen Lars og kom godt hjem!!!
Nu står den på dækskift for de fleste og Jens er ved at kokkerere chilliconcarne fra vores aftensmad sponsor Tulip !

Update fra Pauli:
Martin har taget en farveprøve på en Marrokansk bil, men slap med skrækken.

Hilsner fra Tata !
Dagens etape var 375 km benhård bjerg offroad !
Og eneste ryttere idag der gennemførte hele ruten inden for timelimit var Lars og Klaus ( altså de to duracell kaniner vi har med)
Alle er ved godt mod trods trætte!
Service bilen har også idag været på offroad tur med lidt grimme skrammer til fælge , men den var igen den første fremme ved dagens Camp ;-)

På vejen skal vi lige hente Klaus’ og min mc på en eller anden racerbane.

Bæstet (vores forsyningskøretøj) er desværre brudt ned for anden gang, så Martin og Lars kørte fra Danmark i går med et alternativt køretøj, og de er nu også undervejs.

Vores start bliver nok lettere forsinket, men alle er ved godt mod og klar til de udfordringer, der måtte komme (til gengæld tager vi nok på hotel i dag ;-)