SAMtNEWs 18. follow DAKAR 2013 ARGENTINA & CHILE. January / February 2013

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1 SAMtNEWs 18 January / February 2013 See video of the tour Dakar 2013: follow DAKAR 2013 ARGENTINA & CHILE Official Travel Partner

2 ENCOURAGING LEADERS OF THE WORLD See testimony of Semir Boughattas in: For the 4th consecutive year SAMt had the pleasure of following the 2013 Dakar rally which can only be described as nothing less than exhilarating! The anxious waiting of spotting the distant dust cloud from the lead motorcycle rider blanketed by a helicopter hovering overhead, combined with the dry desert dust, sweltering heat and the cheering crowd, one gets that nervous goose bump feeling that only appears when watching the worlds elite do their thing at their very best. After all, the Dakar rally is the mother of them all! Photo by Jaroslav Jindra 2

3 Tour... DAKAR Circuit Argentina y Chile UNIQUE LANDSCAPES MAKE US LIVE NEW EXPERIENCES Then there is the unique scenery which only the north of Chile and Argentina can provide. The dramatic landscapes from the arid salt flats in the Atacama desert to the vast snow capped plateaus of the Andes always there to smother the viewer with breathtaking moments. 3

4 ESSENTIAL: THE HUMAN GROUP The third element to make this event truly memorable is of course our Riders. Our group this year was made up of 13 motorcycle riders, 5 Australians, one Italian, 6 Chinese and a Czech (SEMIR) who joined us for the 3rd time. On the SAMt team, we had John on his R1200 GS Adventure, and Gaby and Erik in the support vehicle. 4

5 The teams first night together was at a small eco camping called Huarango which is situated in the middle of the desert close to the township of Iquique. With a cool beer in hand and dinner being cooked in a 44 gallon drum (a specialty of the house) the group quickly got to know each other and learn a little more from the SAMt team of what we had in store for them for the next 10 days. In between beers, bikes were issued, contracts signed, GoPro units fitted, helmet visors polished, all in anticipation of getting away early at the crack of dawn to see our first day of Dakar! See testimony of Edward Tsui in: 5

6 CLOSER TO DAKAR Whilst its always a challenge to find the perfect viewing spot we came very close and secured ourselves a cracker location right in the middle of the desert. 6

7 With the Dakar right on our front door step, we setup our spider tent, erected the table, unfolded the chairs and settled in to view some great racing. After a hearty BBQ, it was time to pack up our kit and head off towards our final destination for the day, San Pedro de Atacama. 7

8 RIDING ON SAND It quickly became evident on our way out to the main road from our viewing location in the desert (about 3 kilometres of gravel & sand) that not all our riders had paid close enough attention to the competitors with regards to techniques when riding in sand. Actually come to think of it, our support vehicle driver forgot to watch the cars as well! Lets just leave it there! 8

9 A BREAK See testimony of Rod Visser in: Day 2 was a rest day for SAMt. I little bit embarrassing when one considers that the competitors have just one rest day after 8 gruelling days and 4000 kilometres! Nonetheless, pride was put aside and the morning was used to explore the beautiful little village of San Pedro whilst in the afternoon we spoilt ourselves and had a relaxing swim (float actually) in the Ojos del Salar (eyes of the salt flat) followed by a few dozen Pisco sours and Pizza cooked on site. 9

10 CROSSING THE ANDES Our 3rd day involved riding across the Andes towards Argentina. A 430km day at altitudes of above 4,500m plus customs thrown in. Lucky we had our rest day! We were lucky and treated to some fantastic weather during the crossing even though in some pockets it threatened to rain once or twice. Paso Jama, the name of this crossing, is as beautiful as it is unpredictable and must be appreciated by each rider in his own way. Some see the beauty in the vivid colours which seem to change at every bend, others the abundance of nothingness, and for others the fast corners with near perfect cambers time and time again. AT METERS HEIGHT Whatever the reason, each rider rode at his own pace, stopping as he wished, until we all finally met at the entrance to Purmamarca which would be our final resting place for the day. 10

11 Day 4 would be a special day in our itinerary as it would be the day when we rub shoulders with the competitors and get to see their toys up close. Today we would ride to Tucuman and spend the afternoon at the Bivouac. But why rush to the Bivouac to catch a glimpse or even a photo with your favourite Dakar Champion when you can be a champion yourself! Yes thats right folks, many of the local people have either difficultly in identifying the difference between a Dakar prepared bike and a SAMt prepared bike or simply just don t care and seize the moment every time we pulled into a gas station. The closer we got the Tucuman the greater the frenzy was! Needless to say our guys got into the mood, posed for pictures, signed autographs and even took some of the younger lasses for a spin around the block! See testimony in: See testimony in:

12 5.00 o clock start lead us into day 5 as we needed to cover over 200km before 7.30am to see the A competitors come through at the 20km mark. We found another great location, this time on a narrow slippery country road. Watching Robby Gordon fly through this section was not only thrilling but a privilege. After a great days viewing, home made garlic filled sausages with cold beer (yes the Aussies smelt out the beer!) we were off to our retreat for the night, a local winery at the foot of the Andes mountain range. Robby Gordon WATCHING ROBBY GORDON FLY THROUGH THIS SECTION 12

13 BACK IN THE ANDES The next two days would see us ride back over the Andes but this time on a fantastic gravel road which was flanked by wild guanacos, llamas and colourful flamingos on the edges of the watery salt flats. 13

14 Our arrival into Chile took us to the small city of Copiapo (if it sounds familiar thats because its the town where the 33 trapped miners were rescued) where we witnessed our last day of the Dakar racing. And what better way than to watch it amongst the giant sand dunes of the Atacama Desert. LAST DAY OF DAKAR Photographs by Jaroslav Jindra 14

15 After the group enjoyed another BBQ from the support vehicle we made our way to our second last destination, the Pisco Elqui valley. Here we slept (well some of us did!) under the stars in the comfort of a dome tent (others just slept under the stars) after a festive evening was had by all. Some celebrated the fact that they had made it this far without incident, others the new friendships they had made during this adventure, and others, well, they ll just about celebrate anything! 15

16 IT WAS A PLEASURE TO SHARE THIS EXPERIENCE AND HOPE TO SEE YOU AGAIN Photo by Jaroslav Jindra Until then! follow DAKAR 2013 ARGENTINA & CHILE 16

17 2.0 SAMt TOUR PATAGONIA Don t miss the chance to ride it! November December 2013 Punta Arenas - Osorno Total Kilometers days - 14 nights Mythical ROUTE 40 See further details on this tour and the description of the route we will take on: More information! SAMt CONTACT contacto@samttours.com