The First half of Africa Eco Race is already left behind. Today the racers went almost 700 km to the bivouac located in the resort town Dakhla.
According to Andrey Karginov from KAMAZ-master team, the current stage was quite easy for his crew.
“We drove at the maximum speed the whole leg, although, cars outran us, because their speed limit was 190-200 km.p.h, the speed limit of trucks was 150 km.p.h. There were dangerous places, stones, but we were careful and didn’t puncture a single wheel,”- told Andrey Karginov.
The co-pilot of the second KAMAZ-master crew Aleksandr Kuprianov also finds the current stage without big problems.
“We drove in a fast and confident way. In general, it is a duplication of the last year’s stage. We drove at the maximum speed during almost the whole special. First we outran a car stopped for a wheel change, then we passed another car at the speed. And at around one hundred kilometers before the finish let Andrey Karginov go first and later drove behind him. It was a pleasant day, a good result. We have shortened the gap with our rivals. So, we enjoyed it,”- noticed Aleksandr Kuprianov.
Tomorrow according to the plans of the race authorities we are having a rest day on the ocean coast. However, this day racers and especially mechanics have a lot to do.
“We only call it “a rest day”, crews also do their part. Thus, tomorrow is a full working day in terms of mechanics.” – explained Aleksandr Kuprianov.
“We are going to do the scheduled work. In general it is replacement of springs, as they experienced severe loads during the first half of the race. Apart from that we will do the planned inspection of the trucks and check if everything is ok,” – added Andrey Karginov.
Already on Sunday, 8January, the sportsmen will continue their way and finish the Moroccan part of the competition. According to Andrey Karginov it was quite good for his crew. “All in all I like it. The route is challenging, “killing” tracks, our favourite. Thanks to the race authorities for the first half of the race,” – said the pilot.
The Moroccan route brought many problems due to the big amount of stones. As for Mauritania, it is famous for its loose sands.
“In fact, Mauritania becomes the turning point. Somebody loses his or her leading positions, other, vice versa, suddenly speed up. Mauritanian specials are full of surprises, therefore it is important to be attentive. Sands are very loose, so you mustn’t make mistakes in the course. Apart from it, it has interesting navigation: changes in direction, you have to find all control points. In general, there is something to fight for,” – noticed the navigator Aleksandr Kuprianov.
7 more legs and more than 2 000 km on the territories of Morocco, Mauritania and Senegal are still ahead for the racers. As a reminder, the finish of Africa Eco Race will be organized at Lake La Rose in Dakar on 14 January.
