Jan122018January 12, 2018January 17, 2018109Commentsby Jen Dick

Dakar 2018: A tough and beautiful race so far

Posted in Bikes, Racing, Riding

As we reach the well-earned rest day of Dakar 2018, it can certainly be said that this year’s route so far has been one of the toughest. From the start in Lima, Peru to today’s rest day in La Paz, Bolivia, the competitors have passed through days of desert and will now head into the mountains, racing at an altitude of over 2,500 meters.

Luciano Benavides (ARG), Laia Sanz (ESP), Sam Sunderland (GBR), Matthias Walkner (AUT), Toby Price (AUS) & Antoine Meo (FRA) KTM 450 RALLY Dakar 2018 © PhotosDakar.com

The opening part of the 40th edition of the notorious Rally Dakar was through the dunes and desert in Peru, with off-piste riding, tough climbs, soft sand and high temperatures to battle through. A mass start on the beach on day four offered a different kind of spectacle followed by some tough navigation and difficult terrain, while Day 5 provided the second longest stage of the rally with extremely tough mountainous sand dunes during the special stage. Austrian-ace Matthias Walkner said after Stage 5: “That was such an exhausting day. They said the rally this year was going to be one of the toughest ever and it’s certainly the hardest Dakar so far for me.”

Yesterday’s stage brought the riders from Arequipa, Peru to La Paz, and while last year’s winner Sam Sunderland is unfortunately out of the race, the KTM Factory Racing Team is enjoying strong and consistent results from all of its riders aboard their KTM 450 RALLY machines heading into the second half of the event. With 3,034 km covered so far, and over 5,000 km to go across eight stages, including the ultra-challenging marathon stages where no assistance can be given by the team, we take a look at some of the most beautiful images from the race so far …

217669_Laia.Sanz_Red Bull KTM Factory Racing_Dakar2018_158 217349_Laia.Sanz_Red Bull KTM Factory Racing_Dakar2018_049 217780_Laia.Sanz.No15_Red Bull KTM Factory Racing_Dakar2018_238 217923_Laia.Sanz.No15_Red Bull KTM Factory Racing_Dakar2018_279 217922_Laia.Sanz.No15_Red Bull KTM Factory Racing_Dakar2018_277 217340_Laia.Sanz_Red Bull KTM Factory Racing_Dakar2018_040 217396_Toby.Price_Red Bull KTM Factory Racing_Dakar2018_034 217940_Toby.Price.No8_Red Bull KTM Factory Racing_Dakar2018_266_PhotosDakar.com 217398_Toby.Price_Red Bull KTM Factory Racing_Dakar2018_036 217793_Toby.Price.No8_Red Bull KTM Factory Racing_Dakar2018_232 217758_Toby.Price_Red Bull KTM Factory Racing_Dakar2018_191 217944_Toby.Price.No8_Red Bull KTM Factory Racing_Dakar2018_271_PhotosDakar.com 217355_Luciano.Benavides_Red Bull KTM Factory Racing_Dakar2018_060 217927_Luciano.Benavides.No77_Red Bull KTM Factory Racing_Dakar2018_295 217744_Luciano.Benavides_Red Bull KTM Factory Racing_Dakar2018_218 217782_Luciano.Benavides.No77_Red Bull KTM Factory Racing_Dakar2018_246 217784_Luciano.Benavides.No77_Red Bull KTM Factory Racing_Dakar2018_248 217741_Luciano.Benavides_Red Bull KTM Factory Racing_Dakar2018_215 217352_Laia.Sanz_Red Bull KTM Factory Racing_Dakar2018_059 217651_Sam.Sunderland_Red Bull KTM Factory Racing_Dakar2018_091 217694_Sam.Sunderland_Red Bull KTM Factory Racing_Dakar2018_131 217696_Sam.Sunderland_Red Bull KTM Factory Racing_Dakar2018_133 217386_Sam.Sunderland_Red Bull KTM Factory Racing_Dakar2018_010 217652_Sam.Sunderland_Red Bull KTM Factory Racing_Dakar2018_092 217756_Sam.Sunderland_Red Bull KTM Factory Racing_Dakar2018_183 217929_Matthias.Walkner.No2_Red Bull KTM Factory Racing_Dakar2018_251 217752_Matthias.Walkner_Red Bull KTM Factory Racing_Dakar2018_190 217641_Matthias.Walkner_Red Bull KTM Factory Racing_Dakar2018_097 217683_Matthias.Walkner_Red Bull KTM Factory Racing_Dakar2018_135 217787_Matthias.Walkner.No2_Red Bull KTM Factory Racing_Dakar2018_227 217638_Matthias.Walkner_Red Bull KTM Factory Racing_Dakar2018_094 217913_Antoine.Meo.No19_Red Bull KTM Factory Racing_Dakar2018_280 217920_Antoine.Meo.No19_Red Bull KTM Factory Racing_Dakar2018_290 217666_Antoine.Meo_Red Bull KTM Factory Racing_Dakar2018_172 217726_Antoine.Meo_Red Bull KTM Factory Racing_Dakar2018_207 217772_Antoine.Meo.No19_Red Bull KTM Factory Racing_Dakar2018_241 217917_Antoine.Meo.No19_Red Bull KTM Factory Racing_Dakar2018_287
<
►
>
Luciano Benavides (ARG) & Laia Sanz (ESP) Dakar 2018 © PhotosDakar.com

Photos: PhotosDakar.com

Tags: