Last week, Anja van Loon, Floor Maten and Suzanne Peek drove the Iveco Powerstar together for the first time. During an extensive test in Poland with the team of De Rooy, which builds the truck, they got to know the truck and have become better acquainted with each other. In three weeks, the Morocco Desert Challenge will take place and the real baptism of fire for the female truck team will follow.
"This was really cool," says Anja. "I got the hang of it very quickly, but this is so different from the Can-Am. The Iveco has so much power and a lot is possible with the truck. It was also the first time I drove at speed with Floor and Suzanne and of course we tested and tried some things. In the coming period we will do more driving and testing and get ready for the Dakar Rally as the first female truck team."
During testing, Anja, Floor and Suzanne also practiced changing a tire. "That one weighs 150 kilos, so that's pretty heavy, especially in the loose sand. We were also really looking forward to that, because even the men find that a heavy task. But it went really well and even Team De Rooy was impressed with how we did it. Real girl power!"
The first preparation is in Morocco for the Morocco Desert Challenge. "It will be the first time for me to drive this rally, but I did drive the rally in Tunisia last year from the same organization and of course the Rallye du Maroc. So I know a bit of what to expect, but it will be completely different in a truck. During the rally my brother Ben will navigate, which is also to get extra tips because he already has a lot of experience in a rally truck. I'm already looking forward to it!"
After the Morocco Desert Challenge, Anja will be doing more rallies. "That will be a mix of rallies with the baby carriage and with the truck, that calendar has not been finalized yet. We are not allowed to drive the truck everywhere, but you can also train the cooperation between driver and navigator in the baby carriage. So it will be a varied program."
Automatic translation from the original Dutch version
Source Van Loon Racing
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