Dakar 2014 Dangerous race in the Chilean desert

Dakar 2014. • Dangerous race in the Chilean desert

Yesterday we surpassed themselves: intervened in the race and the track blocked the pickup in the middle of difficult areas.

It happened, to be honest, quite by accident. We arrived in the desert and shoot the riders climbed the dune a great audience. Opposite is another sandy hill, riders on it have been down. Having estimated that they will get good shots with fountains of sand, waited. Boris Gadasin (he was traveling with us), said that in this tough enough - go down and down, so what? Now, if we removed they are collected, and dumped in the desert stalled - that would be a worthy frame. Boris even promised to take us to the middle of a sand dune on a machine where we dotopaem feet to the top. We stood there for some time to determine exactly where to pass the special stage, then got into the car and drove off.

What we imagined race track proved the alternative route MOTSYK pair. The actual route passed just where we are famously entered the pickup truck. Barely got out of the car and rushed to us, "head" of the race and the spinner with TV. We panicked, not knowing which way to run up, but nothing happened - Nasser Al-Attiyah (Qatar famous racer) turned and swept a meter away from our press car. Right behind him whizzed Stéphane Peterhansel. Since our nezhdanchika spinning all evening in the dining room biuvaka Dakar-TV: I have not seen this movie, but I hope that my face looked worthy :)

After a triumphant appearance, we had a long climb to the top. It was hard to clothing and shoes clogged with sand, water, forgotten in the car, I was on two cameras (one with very heavy lens 200-400 mm) and at some point I thought to give up all to hell and move out down. Having collected will in a fist, we got the same up to the top and sat waiting. Soon appeared a gaggle of riders: almost all of them have got and easily cleared the crest, but one stuck. And then we broke the third rule - helped the rider ...

The road from Calama to Iquique was straight as an arrow:

little town, near which passed special stage, looked sad - a desert and waste:

The coast traveling between the sandy hills. Boris said, this is where the track was held in Dakar last year and is likely to take place of the future:

Finally, close the mazes over and in front of us stretched an ocean:

According to forecasts, this point must be the most spectacular. In this case, the audience almost was not, and the ones that came, half consisted of the teams fans. I must say, in Chile is not so pleased to Dakar, as in Argentina:

Here, by the way, the bivouac. In comparison with the scale of the first days, the camp looks much smaller - half rally participants have dropped out of the race:

to finish the special stage Calama-Iquique:

And this is - the same dune (or rather part of it), which we decided to climb. Boris had the intention to drop by as much as is the crest, but with three passengers and a bunch of things could pick up only half:

And so, as soon as we left the car we raced at all the king's horses. Three hundred number - Stéphane Peterhansel, the famous racer, which we affectionately call Petya. I hope he is not too foul, when he saw on his way our friendly company:

I admit that stand in the way of cars that are carried under the 160 km / h on the sand is quite scary:

From the mountain to shoot much more interesting:

It is very difficult. Lesch in Crocs almost obzhog on hot sand feet. In the photo is difficult to convey the height of the dune, look at the bottom of the machine, to imagine the scale:

Finally, we climb to the crest. Rider on the square meter has not held just before the summit and began to descend:

In the middle of the dune, he turned and began to rise again on the diagonal:

I almost drove the photographers on the heels:

Although everything that happens, and looked quite dangerous at the top of elation prevailed among the few photographers:

Motogon who is stuck at the top. Pogazovav unsuccessfully, he begged to be pushed, and show up on the slope of the dune. Closest to him stood Dimka, but he decided that the driver asks him direction and also began to swing in the direction of the slope - they say, well, dude, you're there:

And then Alex realized that his finest hour came - with a camera and a tripod at the ready rushed to help motogonu:

Hero!

Extreme enough for today. Back down:

On the way to the hotel took off their city. From the east it is surrounded by huge sand dune: