So, the 2014 Dakar rally is long gone – what are they doing for 2015?
It appears the Bolivian experiment was a success; they’re returning to the country for four rounds this year, after racing there for one round last year. They’ve also split up the route; cars, trucks, quads and bikes won’t all necessarily be on the same path this year. That’s possibly going to create some interesting effects, and maybe even make things more dangerous, as there won’t be as many racers nearby to help competitors who get into serious trouble.
However, it seems race organizers figure it’s safer to split the classes up and avoid inter-class collisions – a bike wouldn’t stand much chance if run over by a trophy truck. It also lets them tailor sections of the race more specifically to certain classes.
The race will run Jan. 4-17 in 2015. Along with Bolivia, the race will also visit Argentina and Chile again, starting and finishing in Buenos Aires. The Chilean town of Iquique serves as sort of a half-way point this year; the rally biouvac will spend three days there, including two rest days. By the way, different categories will also have different rest days this year, and the trucks and cars are also going to be running marathon stages, where drivers will have to repair their vehicles themselves without outside help.
Yamaha didn’t win the title at Dakar this year, but racers Olivier Pain and Cyril Despres finished third and fourth, respectively. Check out their highlight reel below.
