This year's Dakar was affected by three accidents
9.2.2022
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Dakar Rally, the most famous long-distance competition in the world, has written its 44th chapter this year. And trucks from the workshop of the North Bohemian MKR Technology team were part of it. Mario Kress and his technicians prepared two special Renault trucks for this year, as a part of Dutch team Riwald Dakar. The goal was to reach the top ten. Although this goal was not fulfilled due to accidents, the Czech-Dutch formation is satisfied with the finish line anyway.
"The hard work of the whole team, which I'm damn proud of, was seen. I'm proud of the boys for what they were capable of during the stages. Even the pilots themselves did not believe at times, but together we worked absolutely fantastically. We have something to build on, we have a well-functioning team, and trucks have worked well this year. Like a well-oiled machine. But we need to realize that the Dakar is simply the Dakar. It is set so that not everyone reaches the finish line. It's a damn tough competition in which luck plays a crucial role. Everything has to fit together perfectly and we can be happy that we avoided any major technical difficulties. We are not disappointed. We have reached the finish line and we are full of experience, technical data and ideas for what to improve," Mario Kress, head of the MKR Technology team and chief designer of Renault racing trucks summed up this year's 44th edition.
The team from Chvalín in North Bohemia has prepared two C460 Renault Trucks models for this year's Dakar. One with a hybrid drivetrain, the first hybrid special in the entire history of Dakar, for pilot Gert Huzink, and a classic version for Pascal de Baar. Twelve sharp racing days, one day off and a total of over eight thousand kilometers awaited the crews this year. The race began and ended in Saudi-Arab Jeddah. More than half of the distance was timed sections. "Trucks have shown that they are able to fight for fifth to seventh place. But the technology suffers terribly, the wear is striking. Year-round development, extensive testing, suspension work and engine reliability have paid off, and we have now made full use of it. However, this year's Dakar was again extremely demanding and this is confirmed by the measured data. It is unbelievable what the crews and the technology had to endure,” remarked Mario Kress.
So how did the Dakar develop for the North Bohemian machines led by Dutch pilots? The very beginning showed that the set goal can be realistic. The crews finished the initial 1A stage in the sixth and tenth time. After that, however, Dakar started at full speed and brought the first troubles. While Pascal de Baar arrived just behind the top ten, Gert Huzink and his hybrid special got stuck in the desert for several hours. He was stopped by a cracked aluminum pipe between the turbo and the intercooler. At that moment, hopes for a good overall position have evaporated. "Fortunately, it showed what kind of fighters in the team are and how advantageous the hybrid system was at the time. Under normal circumstances, with such damage, the crew would not have had a chance to reach the finish line, but the electric unit worked as a great support for a diesel engine that lost its power," said Mario Kress.
However, Saudi Arabia was hit by heavy rains, so the crews in the 2nd stage skipped the planned marathon part. The convoy headed straight for another bivouac in Al Qaisumah. Gert Huzink worked his way to thirteenth place that day, Pascal de Baar finished two positions behind him, but in the 3rd stage he improved even more. While Huzink was thirteenth again, de Baar had already attacked the top ten. However, the delighted de Baar was stopped in the 4th stage by a very unpleasant accident, after which he no longer believed to continue. At the same time, on the same day, Huzink's hybrid truck managed to fight its way into the top five for the first time. On the one hand, great joy, on the other, de Baar's disappointment and eight-hour loss. "However, the technicians were able to repair the damaged steering arm in the morning and Pascal was able to start the next stage quite unexpectedly. I saw tears of joy on his face. At that moment, simply no words were needed; this is how the team worked. One is committed to the others. We went on," Mario Kress described the moments of tension.
In the 5th stage, de Baar continued very carefully after previous experience, but still managed to work his way back up to the 21st place. Gert Huzink, on the other hand, had to repair the leaking oil pan and crossed the finish as sixteenth truck. The crews of both trucks entered the free day with great satisfaction. Gert Huzink finished the 6th stage again in the top five, de Baar was classified thirteenth. The technicians were also enthusiastic, and thanks to the scheme of the stages, they spent several days in the bivouac in Riyadh, and everyone could concentrate as much as possible on preparing the trucks for the second part. And in the second half both special trucks started very well. Gert Huzink finished sixth in the 7th stage, Pascal de Baar finished twelfth. In the 8th stage, however, his truck reached the finish line in emergency mode on seventeenth position, three positions behind Pascal due to a faulty temperature sensor. He closed the top ten in the upcoming 9th stage, in which Huzink was twelfth. But the crucial moment for the hybrid special truck came only three stages before the final finish. In the 10th stage to Bisha, treacherous Saudi-Arabian dunes, the high sun and absence of shadow prepared a trap for them. "The crew did not assess one of the dunes right at the beginning of the stage. They were surprised so much that they flew drove into at a hundred kilometer speed. After a hard impact, the chassis broke just behind the cab. The overload in the cabin was more than eight G. It was a huge hit," said Mario Kress, adding that everyone was glad that nothing happened to anyone. "The accident only showed how safe the special truck is built, because despite a strong impact, the cabin remained intact and fortunately the crew got out without any damage," Mario was relieved.
Only Pascal de Baar, who was the twelfth that day, continued in the competition. In the following stages, however, he improved – in the penultimate 11th stage was again in the top ten, he closed the final 12th stage just one place outside top 10. In the final ranking, he managed to climb to the fourteenth place.
This year's Dakar was once again dominated by Kamaz, who owned the first four positions with the fastest Russian Dmitry Sotnikov. The teams said goodbye to the rally with the traditional trip to the final ceremonial ramp prepared on the Formula 1 racing circuit in Jeddah. "Due to all the restrictions, we could not enjoy the final ramp as ceremonially as we used to. It was a pity, because this is a moment that everyone is looking forward to – to finally reach the finish line," Mario Kress remarked as he began to summarize: “The Dakar was affected by three major accidents - two Gert's and one Pascal's. Otherwise, we could really be in our dream top ten. There is nothing we can do about it. It is a part of the Dakar. That's why we are not disappointed," added Mario Kress.
What more? Dakar has brought a lot of new information and especially technical data, which the team intends to utilize for further development. "We know where there are opportunities for innovation and room for improvement. We have something to work on and a big thank you to all our partners for that. I appreciate that they are watching us and standing behind us. We can still do a lot together," Mario Kress is looking forward to further challenges.
