Thanks again Trevor,
Great pics as usual. ::008::
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Graham
Great pics as usual. ::008::
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Graham
Escape from DC
- Thread starter dcstrom
- Start date
HA HA Rosario, Argentina! Home of the Dakar Rally in South America. I can already tell it's going to be a HOOT! Rolled into town around 9pm last night after a 1000km day, people out drinking in the street cafes, looking at me... People pull up next to me at the lights, waving, smiling and taking photos with their smartphones. Yelling "Suerte!" (Luck!).
I'm feeling like a rock star... evidently local people know there's a race on involving motorcycles, I look different to a normal motorcycle, therefore I must be a racer. Suerte!
I think I'll just play along... I just have to go and practice my autograph now. Maybe some cute Argentinian girls will want me to sign their T-shirts? Have to be ready for that!
I'm feeling like a rock star... evidently local people know there's a race on involving motorcycles, I look different to a normal motorcycle, therefore I must be a racer. Suerte!
I think I'll just play along... I just have to go and practice my autograph now. Maybe some cute Argentinian girls will want me to sign their T-shirts? Have to be ready for that!
Ha! "You better watch it when I get into autograph mode". Yep that will be me. No flashed boobies yet but it's gotta happen soon, I can feel it.
I met Nick from Houston on a GS Adventure, yesterday we went to the racetrack which is the holding area for the Dakar bikes/cars/trucks/atv's. There's no public admission so people are lining the road watching competitors go back and forth to scrutineering. Since most people already think we are Dakar competitors, Nick came up with the genius idea for us to stand on the pegs while going in, to make us look even more Dakar-racer-like. Felt like a bit of a dick but the crowd was cheering and whistling and taking photos, while I was laughing my head off inside my helmet. Not only did the crowd think we were racers, the officials at 3 checkpoints did too, and waved us through. We got stopped at the final checkpoint, but Nick has connections to one of the teams - but no pass - and managed to talk his way in. Now that's what I call "adventure riding"!
There's a ceremonial start today followed by the real thing at 4am tomorrow. Will be a lot of people there so won't be taking the bikes. Bummer, I won't feel "special" any more!
I met Nick from Houston on a GS Adventure, yesterday we went to the racetrack which is the holding area for the Dakar bikes/cars/trucks/atv's. There's no public admission so people are lining the road watching competitors go back and forth to scrutineering. Since most people already think we are Dakar competitors, Nick came up with the genius idea for us to stand on the pegs while going in, to make us look even more Dakar-racer-like. Felt like a bit of a dick but the crowd was cheering and whistling and taking photos, while I was laughing my head off inside my helmet. Not only did the crowd think we were racers, the officials at 3 checkpoints did too, and waved us through. We got stopped at the final checkpoint, but Nick has connections to one of the teams - but no pass - and managed to talk his way in. Now that's what I call "adventure riding"!
There's a ceremonial start today followed by the real thing at 4am tomorrow. Will be a lot of people there so won't be taking the bikes. Bummer, I won't feel "special" any more!
Boobies, bikes, riders, whatever
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Rich!
Damn, those trucks are BadAss!
More Dakar-related chaos as we tried to leave Rosario in the wake of the REAL Dakar racers. I was with 3 other riders and we were mobbed every time we stopped. I was handed a baby (neither of us very happy about that!), signed kids t-shirts and posed for a million photos.
I felt a bit of a fraud pretending to be a Dakar hero, but then again, who am I to disappoint my public?
On another subject... It was 104 for most of the day, except when it was 106!
I felt a bit of a fraud pretending to be a Dakar hero, but then again, who am I to disappoint my public?
On another subject... It was 104 for most of the day, except when it was 106!
I arrived in San Luis on Sunday night after losing Nick, Miguel and Arturo on the way out of Rosario. Turns out we had conflicting ideas about where we were supposed to be going. I was heading to San Rafael, but after riding all day on my own came to an intersection pointing to San Luis in the north, where there rally was camping for the night. On a whim I turned north, knowing that if I was going to be where the rally was, I really should get up at 4am the next morning to ride out with the racers.
Turns out it was a good move, cos I found the other guys there having beer in a street cafe. They'd found a hostel as well, so with good companions, beer and a bed, I was set for the night.
It was a real thrill riding with the guys, 260km south to San Rafael, where they started their next timed section.
Turns out it was a good move, cos I found the other guys there having beer in a street cafe. They'd found a hostel as well, so with good companions, beer and a bed, I was set for the night.
It was a real thrill riding with the guys, 260km south to San Rafael, where they started their next timed section.
Ok, those last 2 posts just Blow My Mind!
I'm sitting at my desk a million miles from any adventuring today.
But those pics, and the accompanied story whisked me away for a few fleeting moments. I could swear my pulse increased and my eyes widened as I put myself in your place.
Dang you are having a ball! I could understand if you were a bit jaded by the many months you have been on this ride. But today ought to JOLT you out of it.
Just a great place to be right now. This day. This place. These people.
Thanks for sharing.
I'm sitting at my desk a million miles from any adventuring today.
But those pics, and the accompanied story whisked me away for a few fleeting moments. I could swear my pulse increased and my eyes widened as I put myself in your place.
Dang you are having a ball! I could understand if you were a bit jaded by the many months you have been on this ride. But today ought to JOLT you out of it.
Just a great place to be right now. This day. This place. These people.
Thanks for sharing.
Dirt_Dad
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Great report, Trevor. Living the dream. ::008::
Thanks guys... Snakebitten, glad I could help Here's something for tomorrow...
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A day at the Dakar...
Up at 4:00 after a 900km ride the day before and a sleepless night in a hot, airless hostel bed. Need to put some air in my rear tire, lucky for me the gas stations are open at that time. Unluckily for me, none have air... I went to five of them, and each one directed me to the others. Just another reminder to get my own compressor fixed so I don't have to rely on these slack buggers.
Never mind, bit of low tire pressure never hurt anyone (!), on the road out of town by 4:40, and soon I'm in amongst the Dakar bikes, ATV's, cars and service vehicles. That was a very fun 3 hour ride into San Rafael.
Everyone has to get gas at the end of this stretch, and I started chatting to a guy who turned out to be one of the 6 Aussies in the race - Mark Davidson, no. 121 in the pics below. Good guy, not his first Dakar and told me some amazing stories of his previous race.
The spectator point is out of town a bit, so I still have 100km to get out there. I arrived around 11am, found Aussie mates Mark and Carlie's bike but walked all over the place without finding them. Had a good time taking pictures anyway.
The bikes came through first, followed about an hour later by the leading ATV's Bikes were fantastic, but when the first of the cars came through it was frightening. They are so much faster than the bikes on the rough stuff, and for some strange reason spectators move CLOSER to the track when the cars come through. It's not hard to imagine one of the cars getting out of control and taking out 50 people. Cops do their best to keep people back but it's not really possible all the time.
Not only that... I'd heard stories about the car drivers being pretty rough on the bikers as they pass, and I got a close up look at an example of that. The leading Mini came up behind a bike on the narrowest part of the track, barely wide enough to accommodate the car. This is while roaring through a tunnel of spectators. The guy is standing on the horn, right up the bikers backside, only the bike has nowhere to go except into the spectators. I don't know how he did it, but the Mini just forced his way past, missing the bike by centimeters. This is happening on a rough, sandy track with the car doing probably 120kph. Like I said, frightening.
I would have liked to see the trucks come through, but after 4 hours standing in the sun, and the soles literally melted off my crappy TCX boots, it was time to go "home" and have beer and BBQ with the great Mark and Carlie, Dave and Sue (the couple they were volunteering for) and another RTW rider from Canada, Jeremy. What an altogether great day - but an exhausting one. Much more so for the Dakar riders though!
I think I'm starting to get a bit of an obsession with Argentine police women... here's one from last week.
Here's something for tomorrow...--------------------------------------
A day at the Dakar...
Up at 4:00 after a 900km ride the day before and a sleepless night in a hot, airless hostel bed. Need to put some air in my rear tire, lucky for me the gas stations are open at that time. Unluckily for me, none have air... I went to five of them, and each one directed me to the others. Just another reminder to get my own compressor fixed so I don't have to rely on these slack buggers.
Never mind, bit of low tire pressure never hurt anyone (!), on the road out of town by 4:40, and soon I'm in amongst the Dakar bikes, ATV's, cars and service vehicles. That was a very fun 3 hour ride into San Rafael.
Everyone has to get gas at the end of this stretch, and I started chatting to a guy who turned out to be one of the 6 Aussies in the race - Mark Davidson, no. 121 in the pics below. Good guy, not his first Dakar and told me some amazing stories of his previous race.
The spectator point is out of town a bit, so I still have 100km to get out there. I arrived around 11am, found Aussie mates Mark and Carlie's bike but walked all over the place without finding them. Had a good time taking pictures anyway.
The bikes came through first, followed about an hour later by the leading ATV's Bikes were fantastic, but when the first of the cars came through it was frightening. They are so much faster than the bikes on the rough stuff, and for some strange reason spectators move CLOSER to the track when the cars come through. It's not hard to imagine one of the cars getting out of control and taking out 50 people. Cops do their best to keep people back but it's not really possible all the time.
Not only that... I'd heard stories about the car drivers being pretty rough on the bikers as they pass, and I got a close up look at an example of that. The leading Mini came up behind a bike on the narrowest part of the track, barely wide enough to accommodate the car. This is while roaring through a tunnel of spectators. The guy is standing on the horn, right up the bikers backside, only the bike has nowhere to go except into the spectators. I don't know how he did it, but the Mini just forced his way past, missing the bike by centimeters. This is happening on a rough, sandy track with the car doing probably 120kph. Like I said, frightening.
I would have liked to see the trucks come through, but after 4 hours standing in the sun, and the soles literally melted off my crappy TCX boots, it was time to go "home" and have beer and BBQ with the great Mark and Carlie, Dave and Sue (the couple they were volunteering for) and another RTW rider from Canada, Jeremy. What an altogether great day - but an exhausting one. Much more so for the Dakar riders though!
I think I'm starting to get a bit of an obsession with Argentine police women... here's one from last week.
Good times right now. But sounds exhaustive.
You, sir, are a rockstar. I love it!!!!
Sent from my Windows phone. Spelling errors free of charge.
Sent from my Windows phone. Spelling errors free of charge.
Trip of a lifetime! Thanks for sharing this!
Despres is struggling a bit so far on that Yamaha. Pain dropped back today too. But Metge moved up!
Go Yamaha!
Go Yamaha!
If this is "struggling a bit" I hate to see what you'd have to do to be "in deep shit"!snakebitten said:Despres is struggling a bit so far on that Yamaha. Pain dropped back today too. But Metge moved up!
Go Yamaha!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bWYIP2g6NDQ#t=310
