Rallye du Maroc 2019: D-3: Welcome to Fès

 
Organised under the High Patronage of the King of Morocco, His Highness Mohamed VI, the twentieth edition of the Rallye du Maroc, the second run by ODC Events, opens its doors tomorrow. The competitors have been invited to present themselves at the Hotel Marriot in Fès, where the organisers will run administrative checks and scrutineering over two days for all the vehicles and teams entered. The last round of the 2019 Cross-Country Rallies FIA World Cup and the FIM World Championship, the 2019 Rallye du Maroc will host the best competitors in the discipline.

The organisers arrived in Fes yesterday and are already hard at work, using thisfirst day to set up at the Hotel Marriott so as to welcome the first competitors tomorrow. An important moment for the participants, as administrative checks and scrutineering allows the federations to ensure that competitors’ vehicles conform to FIA and FIM regulations and so validate their participation.

Concocted by the ODC Events team, the rally route, both varied and balanced, is ideal preparation for the Dakar 2020. Something that hasn’t escaped the competitors’ attention: 145 vehicles are expected at scrutineering, a 30% increase over last year. Boosted by the presence of two times Formula 1 World Champion and twice winner of the 24 Heures du Mans, Fernando Alonso, taking part in his first international rally-raid in a Toyota Hilux, the car entry on the 2019 Rallye du Maroc brings together the best crews currently racing in the discipline. The same can also be said of the motorcycle class, with all the factory teams present, as well as a good turn out among the amateurs, notably in the Enduro Cup.

Wishing to continue with last year’s innovations, David Castera and his team have once again put the emphasis on navigation and bought more changes to the road-book. New colours have been introduced to make it as easy to read as possible. And while road-books are traditionally distributed the evening before the stage, competitors on the 2019 Rallye du Maroc will receive theirs just a few minutes before the start on stages 3 and 4. So as to get feedback from the competitors during the special and place the fans in the heart of the action, stages 2 and 4 will be neutralised fifteen minutes for all categories. Add to that a single bivouac set up near Erfoud, in the middle of the desert, where amateurs and professionals can share their adventure, and you can deduce that the organisers of the 2019 Rallye du Maroc have made it a point of honour to return to the fundamental values of rally-raid.

2019 RALLYE DU MAROC STATS

• A total of 2596 kilometres for FIM bikes-quads and FIA cars, of which 1868 kilometres are selective section.
• A total of 2309 kilometres for the Enduro Cup, SSV and Open categories, of which 1425 kilometres are selective section.
• 60% new tracks.
• 195 people on the organisation team, spread over 64 vehicles.
• 2 opening cars.
• 2 helicopters, 1 of which is medical.
• 24 doctors, osteopaths, physios or nurses.
• 55 accredited journalists.
• 20 people dedicated to communication and TV production with a daily 6’ round up and a 7’ minute magazine.
• Broadcasting of a ‘Rallye du Maroc 2019’ programme on 68 TV chains in 190 countries.
• 5 cameras on the track, 6 onboard systems.
• A 70 000 m2 bivouac, with showers and toilets, a catering area and chill out zone.
• 500 beds in the bivouac.
• 5600 meals served at the bivouac.
• 2 outside concerts in Erfoud and Fès.

FOCUS ON… FÈS !
Hosts to scrutineering for this 2019 Rallye du Maroc, Fès is one of the four Moroccan imperial cities, along with Marrakech, Rabat et Meknès. Founded by Sultan Idrisside Idris 1st between 789 and 809, its Arab-Andalusian architecture attracts visitors from all over the world, wishing to discover this ‘pearl of the desert’. Its medina, a UNESCO world heritage site, is the biggest in the Arab world. Fès is the ideal entrance to the Moroccan desert, thanks to its advantageous geographical situation.

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Source Rallye du Maroc