The ninth stage from Riyadh to Haradh brought both highs and lows for Van Loon Racing. The fast course offered chances for high rankings, but a wrong valley and bad luck kept the teams from a perfect day. Nevertheless, both Erik van Loon and Hein Verschuuren in the Audi Quattro and Anja, Ben and Jan van de Laar in the Iveco Powerstar drove strong times and managed to finish once again.

Anja, Ben and Jan drove an impressive first part of the test: “We had to start at the very back, but could really push. We flew over the course and caught up with many competitors. By kilometer 300 we were averaging over 100 kilometers per hour, which felt really great.”

Unfortunately, things didn't run as smoothly later when they ran into the wrong valley, which cost them at least half an hour. “The truck performed great today and we were able to enjoy the racing, but it was really bummer. There was a nice classification in it, but luck was not on our side.” In the end, they finished 13th, after even being in fourth place for a short time.

Erik looked back on a good and instructive day: “We were close to a stage win, but in the fourth regularity test we missed the measuring point by a few meters. That gave us 100 penalty points, on top of the 13 we already had. The winner had 14, so that was a real shame.” Everything else went smoothly, but the dunes remain tricky for the Audi because of the long first gear. “Hein did a great job, and apart from those penalties it went super. We will continue tomorrow in good spirits.”

The tenth stage takes place in the dunes of the Empty Quarter. After a long connection to Shubaytah, the competitors will have these tough dunes in front of them for the first time. With 115 kilometers of timed mileage, it doesn't seem all that difficult, but nothing can be taken for granted in the Saudi dunes. The Classic participants have over 300 kilometers of testing tomorrow.

Source: Van Loon Racing