We had planned to fill up the diesel tank 10 km from the start of the timed stage, so since we had limited time to cover the 130 km liaison route to the start, we drove at the speed limit to gain time to refuel. When we arrived at the long-awaited gas station, there was no diesel, and in these parts, almost everything runs on gasoline, and diesel is only used by trucks. So we started the special worried about our range, as the stage was already long, 547km, almost entirely sand, and we used more fuel than we should have on the connecting section. 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, Go, and Albert's powerful hands pressed the accelerator on the steering wheel and the 4 wheels of our Iveco dug into the Saudi soil to launch the truck forward. The stage was very fast, dusty and almost entirely on sandy ground. Like the previous stage, it ran through valleys and sandy plains, separated by narrow dune chains, which we crossed to connect to the next valley and then full throttle to the next dune chain. The dunes were mostly easy to tackle today, and Albert navigated them with skill and ability, surfing the dune walls with skill and rhythm. Despite all this, today we have given a good blow to our balance with the truck because we have broken a leaf spring and there is something in the engine, which does not quite work as it should, which has forced the Andorran to shine especially since we have run out of torque at low revs, ergo we have not been able to afford to hesitate for a single moment at the risk of the powerful Iveco sinking into the fine, soft sand. With 100 km to go, concerned about fuel consumption, and despite Marc and our pilot's reluctance, we eased off the gas a bit to save fuel. We lost a few minutes but we made sure we reached the finish line. Without further delays, we crossed the Harlequinade in a time of 5h42', which gives a not inconsiderable average speed, taking into account that we had a 15' neutralization and another of 20' between cp1 and cp2, which were 13 km apart. Today, we mourn the passing of Paulo Gonçalves, a Portuguese motorcycle racer who passed away during today's stage. May he rest in peace. Gas i xampany!!! Ferran MarcoAfter a well-deserved and restorative rest stage in which both the crew and the machine had our setup, we started today's stage from Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia, heading southwest towards more temperate lands.
Dakar. Stage 7 Riyadh- Al Dawasir
