After the technical issues, the sixth but the gold!
4th Stage: Nazca - Arequipa
8th January 2013, Tuesday
Connection distance: 429 km
Special stage: 288 km
At the beginning of the Dakar Rally, the difficult stage is switched by another one, even the harder. Yesterday, during the stage many crews failed. The difficulty of the stage hosted by the desert in the fourth day even escalates. During the most important first weeks stage the competitors had to complete the 2 km long extremely hard acclivity, which is probably more difficult than the famous Dakar downhill of the sand hill into the Iquiqe in Chille in the ninth stage of the Dakar 2012.
Aleš got with his result and the sixth place in the stage to the leading of the Dakar 2013 in the trucks category! There are more reasons, why did this happen. The stage was leveled, all the top drivers had their times fitted in the half an hour. Plus the Dutch driver De Rooy had firstly bad luck, because he ended in the finish behind our Aleš. The time difference is only 56 seconds, nonetheless the crew 503 and also the Princess 503 is in the most precious and the most beautiful place as they can be. The stage did mostly fit to the Russian crews in the Kamaz. Mardeev won the race right before his fellow countryman Karginov and Nikolaev was the fourth.
However, the driver of InstaForex Loprais Team, Aleš Loprais, was not satisfied after finishing the race: ”Todays stage was really interesting! High dunes, dried riverbeds, the first cactuses and the soft sand called the fesh. I tried to keep my pace, but also not rush and not mindlessly attack the lead. We do not have the back up, I mean the fast assistance as the De Rooy or other teams have. We did the whole special stage well unless one small trouble. About hundred kilometers until the finish we got broken the front damping, so I had to slow down. I was afraid, that I will pluck the wheel.”
Wars Aleš about the first technical problems of the Princess 69 a adds with smile: ” I have been fondling the Princess on the driving wheel and I have been telling her, to survive. But he hits in the cabin were uncomfortable in my back is hurting now. The crew is fine, we are gonna recover in the afternoon and the Princess will get new damping. But we are having very long connection distance in front of us and we will work on it after that.” Said goodbye todays golden Aleš Loprais from InstaForex Loprais Team!
A the end the words of Karel Loprais were true: “It is important to stay concentrated during the whole stage. To pay attention to all the troubles waiting in this hard landscape. Plus the crew must expect the heat, which will be hard even for the technic.”
The fifth stage
the reasonable pace
9th January 2013, Wednesday: Arequipa- Arica
Motorcycles/ Four-wheelers
Connection distance: 275 km
Special stage: 136 km
Cars/ Trucks
Connection distance: 337 km
Special stage: 172 km
The relatively late start add the slowest competitors an extra time to compare the time they lost. Anyway all the competitors will change the time zone as the Dakar rally changes the time zone. In this stage, connecting the two states and entering the Chile, will be obvious the difference between the landscapes and also between the average speed of the competitors.
The roads of the motorcyclists will probably stay in their arms. The environment is good for the attacks, but all the rocky parts of the road and also the rivers, whose must be defeated, will reduce their happiness. Those riding the vehicles with four wheels will have to jink in relief from valley to valley and also the navigators will have to keep their eyes open wide, focusing on the itinerary of the road.
