David FRETIGNE – YAMAHA – 1st in the bikes overall
« I always attack hard and this is what I did today. No clever calculations or particular strategies, I just rode without mistakes. I was really into it. I even improved my time in the second lap. On over 100 km, I attacked, without taking inconsiderate risks. I stayed tonic so I could handle the bike in case something happened. The sensations were excellent.… »
Thierry BETHYS – HONDA – 2nd in the bikes overall
« It wasn't really my day. From the morning I had to run back after 4 km. Something stupid, the gas tube was pinched against the body of my bike. But this terrain is my favorite play field and I had a lot of fun and was less aggressive. I didn't want to put myself under pressure. This afternoon, around km 30, while looking away to choose my cap, I missed a drop and fell heavily. More afraid than hurt but my GPS was broken. I followed Da Costa who put me back on the right trail. The bike is somewhat damaged though.»
Bruno DA COSTA – HONDA – 3rd in the bikes overall
« The special was superb this morning, but too plowed in this afternoon. I was opening for the first time in an off-track leg and I did quite well. I went around in circles around km 15 and David passed me. In the second lap, I was just behind Thierry when he fell. The front of his bike slid from under him and he fell on his left side, on some hard ground. He really scared me. He was a bit shaken and his GPS was broken but he got back up quickly and I opened the trail for him. Around km 40 Marchini passed us, but staying with Thierry was more important. »
Michel MARCHINI – YAMAHA – 4th in the bikes overall
«This morning I headed straight instead of turning and there was my another navigation mistake! A silly thing to do in such a short leg. But riding on the sand was really nice. The leg was great.»
Harite GABARI – YAMAHA – 5th in the bikes overall
« Two falls this morning and a bigger one this afternoon! In the first lap, going down a dune, Pisano surprised me and I mistakenly touched the brakes. I fell on my side. In the second lap I was trying to unlock my GPS and kept accelerating. I was taken by surprise again. My chin hit the navigation instruments and I ended up on the ground. I have been racing for five days now and i realize I should prepare more in the future.. »
Michaël PISANO – YAMAHA – 6th in the bikes overall
« A beautiful special, very nice ride. A nice change from the rocks. A bit of hesitation and I got back on the right trail, with just the right amount of attack. »
Sébastien COËT – KTM – 7th in the bikes overall
« I turned around at Waypoint 9 when I already had it validated. The sand and the dunes were great. In the first lap I tried to follow to David but not for long, he is much better than me... in the second lap, even if we had a big storm for 10 km, it was great. I am drenched but happy. It's a great rally, and what a test for the machines and for us! »
Jean-Paul HIGY – YAMAHA – 8th in the overall
« It's America! Everything is fine. Today it was great to ride on such a terrain. Thank you!»
Ken WORTMAN – KTM – 10th in the overall
« Dunes under the ran are fantastic! It was my favorite day. It turns out I am quite at ease on sand, for a first time. I was a bit anxious yesterday but it's all fine now and I can say I like dunes. I don't regret working out to be in good shape, I am handling things alright. Thank you to Patsy Quick and their assistance team for their work! »
Cyril JOANNIN – KTM – 18th in the overall
« After breaking my shock absorber i got the spare part shipped from Marseille. I was a bit afraid of the dunes, being on the biggest bike in the rally. But everything was fine and I had a lot of fun.… »
Virginie PREMAT – YAMAHA
« First time on the dunes and I was very anxious. I went easy because it was impressive. I had some fun but was cautious. On the downhill parts I wasn't exactly reassured. Psychologically, it was hard to get started. »
Climent VICENT – BOMBARDIER – 1st in the quad category
« For the past two days I have had some problems with my filter getting clogged. I had to fuel up with some bad quality gas and in spite of our efforts we can't seem to find any solution. I have to ride at 60 km/h… »
Jean-Christophe MENARD – YAMAHA – 2nd in the quad category
« I had so much fun today that I was screaming with joy while riding!!! I am super happy. »
Jean-Louis SCHLESSER – Buggy Schlesser – 1st in the cars overall
«The sand in the first lap was very soft. There were some incredibly head-spinning downhill parts. This special was very hard. We turned the pressure around now. Novitskiy can't make anymore mistakes now. In the second lap, the off-track hard turned into a track. We had a big storm in the dunes. For 20 km, the visibility was greatly reduced.. »
Leonid NOVITSKIY – BMW X3 – 2nd in the cars general
«We got stuck in the sand several times around the same place and wasted a lot of time. I have very little experience in this kind of terrain with this car and I made few mistakes..»
Ronan CHABOT – Toyota Land Cruiser – 3rd in the cars overall, 1st T2
«We left with completely deflated tired and never had a problem with the sand. On the rock we didn't want to stop to inflate them so we had to slow down to avoid a flat. Etienne Smulevici followed us for ¾ of the lap. This afternoon, trying to avoid a fallen down bikers we went out of the trajectory and blew a tire another good day, with 2h30 ahead of the 4th in the overall!»
Régis DELAHAYE – Buggy MD Sport – 5th in the cars overall
« Impeccable navigation, going over the dunes was OK. We ripped off the spare wheel support and the wheel tore off part of the body. Nothing bad for this great leg. »
Etienne SMULEVICI – Buggy SMG – 7th in the cars overall
« A lot of pleasure on this buggy terrain. Today not navigation mistakes... it's great.! »
Alain FRICKER – SSV Drakart
« Today a lot of fun on this terrain, with our little vehicle. The only problem was ill-adapted tires. But cardans, suspensions and transmission have been great. We had a big storm and my glasses were like an aquarium. Without a radio we cut through he dunes and did a bit of gardening. »
Find all the information on www.npo.fr
Lydie ARPIZOU – photo NPO
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