are
required to carry emergency distress beacons in case of the very real possibility
of an accident so that they can summon medical aid by helicopter very quickly
even though they are racing across some of the most hostile terrain in the world.
Thierry Magnaldi's bike which is shown in the picture to the left also show's some of the other adaptations that are done to the bikes so that they can compete in this gruelling event, the extra fuel is being carried in side tanks ( where Thierry's race number 3 is ) and in front of him is his road book which tells him what the route is where the checkpoints , refuelling stops are and any dangers that should be avoided like large holes not visible when travelling at speed or even minefields!. The high intensity rear lights are also visible at the rear of the bike these are required so that the bikes are visible to other competitors through the dust that is kicked up by all the vehicles competing in the rally, the last thing you want when you have dropped your bike is a 12 ton tatra truck running over you in the dust because he can not see you in front of him. This event is not just for motorbikes but cars, trucks and even quads which for the first time in the 1998 event two quads actually finished the event, another first for the 1998 event was the winning of a stage by the English rider John Deacon and the French rider Stephane Peterhansel taking his sixth victory in the Dakar to become the competitor with the most victories.
The
event over the years has grown into a huge logistical operation with several
large planes required to move all the equipment through the different countries
in Africa just so that the event can be televised around the world so that adventure
hungry fans like myself can drool over the beautiful terrain that the competitors
are going through but not have to face all the difficulties like extreme heat,
thirst, lack of sleep or plain getting lost in the vast terrain.