It's less than two weeks until the mythical Baja Portalegre 2024 takes place on the tracks of the Alto Alentejo region in Portugal. This year's race will maintain the same structure as previous years, although there are some surprises in store and some areas that have been less used, which nevertheless follows the pattern of always presenting something different year after year, even though there are increasing difficulties in innovating.
Also maintaining the pattern of previous editions, cars and motorcycles will have two different programs. As for the cars, their program starts on Friday 17th at 10.10 am, at the well-known Herdade das Coutadas, where the traditional prologue will be held, which in this edition will be 5 kilometers long. Also on Friday, there will be another section with a configuration that already has some history, SS1, which will start in the town of Ponte de Sor, 80 kilometers west of Portalegre, and will be about 60 kilometers long, ending in the historic town of Crato, closer to Portalegre.
Saturday will be the big day of the race, with two sectors of 150 kilometers each. The first sector of the day will start again in Ponte de Sor and end in Alter do Chão. SS3 will start near the small town of Gafete, also covering 150 kilometers, this time a little further north and will bring the participantes back to Herdade das Coutadas, where the Prologue takes place.
The motorcycles will have a slightly different program. On Friday they will be the first on the track, followed by quads and non-FIA SSVs, covering a 'shorter' version of the prologue, just 3.5 kilometers long. SS1 will be the same as the cars, with 60 kilometers, linking Ponte de Sor to Crato. On Saturday, the program includes only one sector, which will be around 300 kilometers long, starting 40 kilometers away from Portalegre, and making a long arc through Ponte de Sor, before returning to the host city, also ending in the area where the prologue will be held.
As for the participants, the usual crowds are expected, but the overwhelming majority of these drivers will be local riders, for whom this race has a very special symbolism and takes on a unique importance. As for the internationals, although several have signed up, the main stars are in Morocco, so very few will be in Portalegre. Since the Dakar left Europe, the Baja Portalegre has been in a very unfortunate position, depriving many foreigners of the chance to come to Portugal to take part in what most consider to be the best Baja in the world.
Photos can be ordered here: www.imagensdesportivas.pt
More about Portalegre, Crato, Gavião, Alter do Chão and Ponte de Sor here.
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