The second stage of the Dakar Rally brought out the best of the Van de Laar family. During the two-day stage of almost a thousand kilometers, Jan started behind the wheel of the Iveco. Despite an hour's delay due to a quick repair, they managed to limit the damage. On the second day, Ben took the wheel and they drove smoothly to the finish line and to a handsome eighth time. Erik and Hein had a good day, they were the best in their class. Opening the test was difficult today, but they were very satisfied.
The first day of the 48h Chrono started well for Jan, Ben and Anja. “Jan steered us with a steady hand through a beautiful but challenging course full of high dunes and changing surfaces. Unfortunately we got technical problems, but eight kilometers further on Team De Rooy was ready to replace the rear axle retaining ring. With renewed confidence, we drove on to the rest point at 482 kilometers.”
There a special experience awaited the siblings. “Spending the night in the middle of the desert with only a tent and sleeping bags provided by the organization. It was simple, but unforgettable. Today Ben got behind the wheel and it went smoothly. We quickly found our rhythm and managed to make up quite a bit of time thanks to Jan's good navigation. It was a varied stage with dunes, fast tracks and treacherous rock areas. We finished eighth so we made up most of yesterday's delay.”
The trio was especially proud of their teamwork. “We are thoroughly enjoying this adventure. Tomorrow another new challenge awaits us, we can't wait!” During tomorrow's stage, they will go from Bisha to Al Henakiyah over a fast and technical 327-kilometer test.
Erik and Hein also enjoyed the second part of the second stage. “It went nicely again! Opening today was tricky and not easy. It was hard to find the good trails, but otherwise it went fine again. The Audi drives great, it's really enjoyable. Tomorrow will be another long day with lots of kilometers, we have four regularity tests and a navigation test ahead of us. In total we have to cover more than 800 kilometers.”
Automatic translation of the Dutch version
Source: Van Loon Racing
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