Syndicate Moto

What’s up for the Dakar Rally in 2008? The Dakar Rally is the most challenging motorsports event anywhere; a desert race across the toughest terrain in the world. Racers must be fast, fit, smart and lucky to navigate the 6,000 mile unmarked route over the course of 16 days. No American has ever won the event. The “Dakar” starts on January 5, 2008 in Lisbon, Portugal and ends in Dakar, Senegal more than two weeks later.

Rally PanAm, backed by Top Oil, Klim and Scuderia West, intends to take lead rider Jonah Street to the top of the podium in Dakar.

Last year, Jonah was poised to win this event. Rally PanAm built custom 540cc rally bikes to compete against the factory KTM 690cc bikes. The Dakar had recently implemented a 100mph speed limit, so the team’s smaller bikes had a competitive advantage.

Two days before the start of the event in January 2007, under pressure from the FIM and manufacturers, the Dakar Rally organizers decided not to enforce the 100mph speed limit. Rally PanAm was left with a great handling bike that was 15mph down on top speed compared to the factory bikes. Team manager Charlie Rauseo says, “When we were informed of the rule change, we knew then that we were not going to win the 07 Dakar.” Jonah rode hard anyway. He was 3rd overall well into the fast African stages. He would reel the factory guys in whenever it got bumpy or twisty, but they would gain ground in the straight sections. The bike’s engine gave up soon after that.

Determined not to be burned again, the team has acquired a new 690 Rally bike. Charlie Rauseo says, “We’re looking forward to rubbing their noses in it.”

5 riders are headed to Lisbon from this side of the pond. From the United States, there are 3 riders: John Deykes from Southern California on his home-built and very tricky Aprilia 450 rally bike; Rally PanAm’s Jonah Street on the new KTM 690 Rally, and Charlie Rauseo on a custom KTM 552 rally bike. From Canada, there’s Don Hatton from British Columbia and Tod Davidson from Toronto on Rally PanAm prepared KTM 525s. Also keep an eye on Australia’s top rider David Schwartz on another KTM 690. David will be supported by Rally PanAm trucks and mechanics. Chris Blais, who finished 3rd last year on a factory KTM was injured earlier this year and will not compete in Africa.

Tough Times. We’re expecting a very difficult rally this year. This is the 30th Edition of the Dakar, and rumor has it that the French have some surprises up their sleeves. Last year was a particularly easy rally, so they are out to beat the competitors up this year. The riders will spend more time in Mauritania and no time in Mali. That means more sand and more dunes! They say that several stages will have different routes for bikes and cars/trucks, which means that those bike routes will be tight and technical. Also, the bikers will be camping alone one or two nights this year, with no help from the cars, trucks or the assistance crews.

Getting Ready. Every one of these racers, along with spouses, friends and crew, has spent an entire year preparing for the Dakar. Sure, it is expensive, but it is also very complicated logistically. And, they’ve all had to learn a completely new type of racing. Every one of these guys is a hero just for getting to the start. Each of them is going to have to dig deep and find a way to the finish.

The Dakar Rally will be televised by Versus Network (formerly OLN) again this year starting January 6 and continuing through January 21. On the web, follow the rally at Rally PanAm’s website: www.rallypanam.com. For more information on rally bikes, rally parts, training and mini-rallies, visit www.rallymanagementservices.com.

After several weekends off from racing, I just couldn’t pass up the opportunity to travel up to Montreal, Canada for a chance at earning the lion’s share of the $40,000 purse posted for the 29th annual running of the Montreal Supercross. Having not competed in this event for the last several years, I was excited to see what it had in store for the riders.

I flew out of Phoenix on Thursday to meet up with my mechanic, Jesse Black, who had gone up a day earlier to prepare the motorcycle we shipped up for the event. Jesse and my good friend, Danny Nappi, picked me up from the airport in Albany, NY and we drove three hours north to Montreal through the cool night air.

After a good night’s sleep, I had two practice sessions on Friday that both went very well. I had to run number 23 on my bike instead of the usual 32, as my AMA number was being used by a rider in the Canadian National Series. Dirt Wurx had built the track, so it was very similar to the US Supercross tracks that I am accustomed to. I posted the fourth fastest time in my first practice and second quickest in the final session. We left for our hotel in the early afternoon and settled down for a nice dinner and another night of rest.

Saturday began with two additional practice sessions, where I posted the second fastest and then fastest time in the final session. This would determine our gate pick for the heat race and in which heat we would be competing. I was the first pick in the first heat race.

When the gate dropped on my heat, my front end came up a little and had to feather the clutch just a bit. As a result, I was around seventh through the first corner. Within four corners I was up to third, then quickly displaced Jeff Northrop for second place. I took over the lead a lap later and pulled out to a six second gap over Sean Hamblin in the six-lap race to take the win.

The main was for all the marbles and the biggest chunk of the very lucrative purse money. Since the racing was so tight, I knew the start would be critical. This time I nailed the jump and rounded the first turn in fifth place. I moved into fourth quickly and passed my teammate, Jiri Dostal, for third on the next lap. On lap three I skimmed by a quick-starting Jeff Northrop in the whoops and into the runner up position. Bryan Johnson had pulled out a decent gap in the opening laps, but I began to close in over the next several laps. I was riding extremely tight and making some mistakes, but I was still keeping Bryan close enough to feel comfortable about my position. I could see Eric Sorby and Jason Thomas coming from behind, so I knew I would have to make a move soon or risk having them to hot on my heels. With two laps to go, I took the line from Bryan just after the mechanics area thus securing the lead. I rode the final two laps conservatively and took the win over Jason Thomas and Bryan Johnson.

The podium not only consisted of all American riders, it was also all Honda and all FLY Racing as well. We definitely dominated the event in front of a nearly sold-out Quebec Park-Olympic Stadium.

I would like to thank my mechanic, Jesse Black, for his efforts in preparing for this race. Also, thanks to Danny Nappi and Pete Aceto for organizing everything up in New York and to Pete for letting us take his van to the event. RideNow.com/Metro Motorsports assisted in shipping the motorcycle to New York, and all of our team sponsors contributed in supporting us at this event.

My next race is at the US Open the weekend after next. I am prepared and very excited to go to Las Vegas and see how I stack up against Ricky, James, Chad and the other competition. I hope to see everyone there!

All the best,

Ryan Clark
Team Solitaire/MB1 Racing

Photo Gallery: Team Solitaire/Kingdom/FLY Racing Honda Event Update - Dirt Rider Magazine