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Day 13: Copiapó > La Serena
Jan 19th
Stage 13: The last big day
In the last long stage of the 2013 Dakar it would have been easy for riders to think that the hardest days were behind them. #156 Todd Smith approached the day conservatively and was setting good times early on. By WP8 he appeared to have found a steady rhythm and was running 17th fastest. However not long afterwards he found himself with a much greater challenge before him.
“200km into todays stage the map tower broke off my bike (not from crashing), so for the remaining 200km special and 200km liaison I carried it in one hand – not fun I’m telling you! I was feeling pretty good before that too but I lost heaps of time trying to fix it. So, I think I’m still in 34th overall after a pretty low placing for todays stage. Well just one stage to go. If I can get to the finish with no more drama I’ll be relieved.”
Tenacity and perseverance saw him through to the flag but he lost an hour in the last three waypoints. Thankfully, #131 Warren Strange had a clear run and chipped away at the order to finish 23rd on the day. #89 Brett Cummings continued his upward trend, finishing 29th for the day to place 43rd overall. On his quad, #274 Paul Smith cruised along to finish in 11th place.
GHR times and overall placings: MOTO
23th #131 – STRANGE Warren (AUS) 46h32m32s (+04:55:14 behind leader)
34th #156 – SMITH Todd (AUS) 47h57m28s (+06:20:10 behind leader)
43rd #089 – CUMMINGS Brett (ZAF) 50h02m42s (+08:25:24 behind leader)
GHR times and overall placings: QUAD
7th #274 – SMITH Paul (AUS) 53h31m11s (+05:43:52 behind leader)
Stage 14: La Serena > Santiago
Tomorrow is the last day of racing and only 625km remain in the 2013 Dakar. A 346km special in the low-lying coastal country will decide the final standings before the podium finish in Santiago.
Stage 14: La Serena > Santiago. Courtesy dakar.com
Stage 14: La Serena > Santiago. Courtesy dakar.com
Day 05: Arequipa > Arica
Jan 10th
Stage 05: Done and very much dusted.
Stony hills, riverbed crossings, fesh fesh, broken tracks, and off piste sections littered with boulders conspired together with the ever present challenge of navigation in a punishing 136km leg to Arica. Even the leaders were taken aback by the difficulty of the seemingly short stage in which passing was both onerous and perilous.
Comments from Todd Smith:
“Stage 5 was a tough one, thank God its done! I didn’t have much energy as a result of yesterday but went ok. I stopped along the way to help (fellow Australian) Troy O’Connor. I gave him a spanner then a heap of quads got back past me. It was tight running in bull dust for ages after. I lost time at the end because they changed the road book for the last 10km and I went back to check it out. The stage itself started with knee deep fesh fesh (bulldust) then 11km off piste rock field (with no defined road), and more fesh fesh. I was constantly passing riders. To top off the exhaustion we lose 2 hours tonight with the change of time zones!”
Glenn Hoffmann: “After Stage 4, Todd and Brett were pretty drained but they both soldiered through Stage 5 and that’s what matters. Everyone riding for the team is up to it. The mechanics are up to it. We keep going. Obviously Todd’s troubles are frustrating because they came just as he was coming to grips with the sand and the navigation. But the team are doing what they do best. It’s a long race. The bikes are fast and the boys are uninjured. Warren (Strange) is in the top 30 and riding really well. He’s always had the ability but this year he’s incredibly focused on the end result. Each of the last three days has brought an improvement in the standings for him. Same thing for Paul Smith who is very strong in the rough terrain. He’s still looking to sneak into the top 10 quads. The longer and tougher the stage, the better he does on the 700XX. The next couple of days are expected to be long, brutal shifts for everyone but that’s why we’re here.”
GHR times and placings: MOTO
28th #131 – STRANGE Warren 13h01m04s (+01:09:35 behind leader)
50th #156 – SMITH Todd 14h45m04s (+02:53:35 behind leader)
89th #089 – CUMMINGS Brett 16h34m56s (+04:43:27 behind leader)
GHR times and placings: QUAD
16th #274 – SMITH Paul 16h42m12s (+03:21:16 behind leader)
Stage 6 Arica > Calama will be the longest yet at a total of 769km, including an extensive 455km special. The bikes have a very early start at 04:30, perceived as 02:30 due to a change in time zone. The bikes, quads, cars and trucks share a single route once more so the added pressure of traffic will compound the duress as they move into the Atacama Desert. A neutralised zone mid stage will provide some time for recovery before they’re dropped knee deep into fesh fesh. While the top 25 riders in the moto division are still only separated by a single hour, the lengthy stage, fatigue and damage are bound to mix things up.
Dakar 2013: Stage 6 Arica > Calama. Courtesy of dakar.com
Dakar 2013: Stage 6 Arica > Calama. Courtesy of dakar.comDay 03: Pisco > Nazca
Jan 8th
Stage 03: Straight out of Africa…
As predicted, Stage 3 of the 2013 Dakar was a real roller-coaster ride for the riders. 171 bikes and 35 quads rolled into a decisive special where all faced the dilemma of whether to follow their own navigation or trust that of their competitors. From afar the landscape was breathtaking, but the 4km transport delivered the field straight into a sea of rolling sand dunes waiting to swamp the unwary. The roadbook only hinted at the true difficulty of the topography and once more the field has been whittled down by hidden hazards. However with all three taking care today, GHR riders #156 Todd Smith, #131 Warren Strange and #89 Brett Cummings all improved their overall standings in the moto division.
Comments from Todd Smith:
“I had a good day today and took it really easy. I’m getting much more confident, and have got to know the navigation better. I picked a few guys off but made a few minor navigational errors and had a little lie down in the fesh fesh. I’m getting the hang of the dunes – the other guys are so fast through the dunes, but I catch them on the flats. I got 19th for the stage and have moved up to 24th outright. All going really well.”
Warren Strange had a steady run without trouble. Fluctuating between 29th and 36th fastest on the special he closed in 32nd place for the stage and 33rd overall. South African Brett Cummings lifted his 79th overall by 4 spots to secure 75th outright. He was 76th on the stage.
In spite of some mechanical damage and navigation issues, GHR quad rider #274 Paul Smith only slipped back one place overall to hold 19th overall in his division. Starting well, the navigation errors had cost him 40 minutes by WP3. “I should have trusted my gut” were his words at day’s end. Instead he was lead astray by others before sustaining front suspension damage on rocks at the base of a steep 600m descent. Importantly he remained uninjured, and despite later fuel transfer issues he nursed his TRX700XX to the end of the day, 21st on stage.
GHR times and placings: MOTO
24th #156 – SMITH Todd 6h38m17s (+00:23:14 behind leader)
33rd #131 – STRANGE Warren 6h48m38s (+00:33:35 behind leader)
75th #089 – CUMMINGS Brett 7h48m22s (+01:33:19 behind leader)
GHR times and placings: QUAD
19 #274 – SMITH Paul 8h47m54s (+01:52:14 behind leader)
Stage 4: Nazca > Arequipa continues to flank the Pacific in a south-easterly direction, but will be the first really arduous day for the 2013 edition of Dakar. The GHR crew face another pre-dawn reveille for the special and the first bike will leave bivouac at 05.45hrs. Three massive ascents waiting in Stage 4 will dwarf those encountered in previous stages, as will the severe drops beyond each one. The first, a 1,600m dune, will give way to mountainous rocky tracks topping out above 2,200m only to thrust downwards once more to the refuel at CP1. Beyond the 250km mark the final brutal climb up 1,000m of sand may prove to be especially difficult for anyone who has sustained damage or logged fatigue earlier in the day. The stage then drops from dizzy heights immediately before the finish. All will have traveled over 700km before respite and repairs come at the Arequipa bivouac.
Safari 2012 – Leg 5
Sep 28th
Leg 5 of the 2012 Australasian Safari consisted of a looping anticlockwise circumnavigation of the Bidgemia Station to the north east of the overnight bivouac at Gascoyne Junction. SS11 Gascoyne’s 147.25km opened with fast rally roads before switching to rougher and less defined station tracks. GHR Honda #10 rider Michael Johnson (USA) crashed out and was sadly forced out of the event just as he was finding his stride. SS12 Bidgemia was a much longer 301.39km and scattered the field as riders contended with now disused tracks littered with hidden rocks. By day’s end, GHR frontrunner Jacob Smith’s lead stood at over 25 minutes despite his conservative approach as the race end has come in site. GHR quad rider Paul Smith remains comfortably in front of the quad field even after becoming lost and riding without his front brakes for a large portion of the day. South African national #8 Brett Cummings had a solid day and recovered from a navigation error to assume both the lead of the Dakar Challenge for this year and 5th place overall.
Rider comments:
Jacob Smith: “I was having a ball today. The first stage was tough mentally, riding into the sun with so many things that could catch you out. The track was overgrown and littered with rocks. It seemed like it went forever and navigation was very complex. The stage in the afternoon was really awesome fun but mentally it was draining. I know what it feels like to win, and what it means to the team. While it’s very easy to start thinking I’ve got it wrapped up I have to remind myself there’s still so much racing yet to come with another day to go tomorrow. Whenever those thoughts start to build I just have to snap myself out of it. One little mistake can be disastrous. It’s a nice feeling to know that even though I’m taking it easy I’m still setting good times, and the pace that works for me is still fast enough to protect my position. Rod would have won the day had he not stopped to wait for someone but in terms of stage wins I have nothing to prove right now. I’m working on the end game. I’m also happy to be leading out in the morning. I know how to navigate and it means I have no chance of getting sucked in to making someone else’s mistakes.”
Brett Cummings: “It was a long day again today. The terrain was very similar to Namibia and Botswana back home. I thoroughly enjoyed it and had no issues. In the second stage I got lost for about 10 minutes at about the 45km mark. Once I worked it out I got on it really hard and passed a few bikes. I came across one of the Dutch riders who had crashed heavily and decided to back off from there. Towards the end of the stage I saw Vern Strange broken down and that convinced me to take it even easier. There are now about 50 minutes between myself and 6th outright, and importantly I am now leading the Dakar Challenge. I’m comfortable taking whatever I can as an outright position, but I am focussed on taking out the Dakar Challenge.
Standings for GHR riders at end of Leg 5:
MOTO
1st – #2 SMITH Jake – 19:35:52
2nd – #7 STRANGE Warren – 20:04:07
5th – #8 CUMMINGS Brett (D) – 22:08:27
10th – #23 HENLEY Guy – 23:07:59
22nd – #22 GRUNDY Glen (D) – 29:39:50
30th – #1 SMITH Todd (D) – 45:36:33
QUAD
1st – #92 SMITH Paul – 24:42:31
Summary of Leg 5 from the Australasian Safari website.
24.9.11 – Safari Leg 1 wrap up
Sep 25th
The Smith brothers have opened the 2011 Australian Safari with a solid 1-2 placing ahead of Rod Faggotter in third overall for the day.
The Condobolin brothers arrived in very good time for a relaxed fuel stop at Mullewa just after 7.30 this morning, and were the first two to appear at the service in Yalgoo following 183.45 competitive kilometres in SS1. Both riders took the stage relatively gently and later recounted a stage that was overgrown for most of the way with numerous washouts to test the reflexes and make navigation challenging. At about the 60km mark Ben Grabham surged forwards and passed Jacob who had started just ahead, but dropped back after crashing in a heavily overgrown section of the course.
At service, Jake’s bike was fitted with a new rear wheel, but otherwise the #2 and #6 Honda CRF450X machines were running superbly. All other GHR Honda riders arrived in due course. WA local Charlie Ball stopped to render assistance to a fallen quad rider he found unconscious but moved on a few minutes later when the rider came to. South African Glen Grundy was hit from behind by KTM690 mounted American Seth Strait, but both riders were able to continue. David Geeves crashed heavily, but regrouped and continued the race.
Todd and Jacob Smith moved the pace up a notch with SS2 and finished the day in first and second place, securing first and second overall ahead of Rod Faggotter, Ben Grabham and Dakar Rally race winner Cyril Despres from France. On a day that Jacob described as being very difficult to lead, Todd’s advantage of just over 3 minutes is a great start to the 2011 event.
Stage SS1 times:
2nd – Todd Smith – 01:56:46
5th – Jacob Smith – 01:58:17
Stage SS2 times:
1st – Todd Smith – 02:24:07
2nd – Jacob Smith – 02:25:48
Overall top 6 standings as follows:
1st – Todd Smith – 04:20:53
2nd – Jacob Smith – 04:24:05
3rd – Rod Faggotter – 04:25:41
4th – Ben Grabham – 04:26:33
5th – Matt Fish – 04:28:11
6th – Cyril Despres – 04:29:09
Tomorrow’s stages to Sandstone comprise just over 320km of competitive riding and a short transport of roughly 70km. At the time of writing the bikes are being serviced and the riders are marking up their roadbooks.
Some more pics from the day.
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