Showcasing pics and videos of the cool cars, bikes and trucks competing is the 2012 Dakar Rally. The world’s top adventure riders are currently battling it out in this amazing 5,000+ mile grueling race. The rally takes riders through the countries of Argentina, Chile and Peru. Starting in Mar del Plata, Buenos Aires, Argentina, the race includes hostile sand dunes, rocks, mud, camel grass and other treacherous terrain. The rally finishes in the Peruvian capital, Lima.
Dakar 2012 Route map
What a cool adventure this would be….but dangerous as we find out below.
The Dakar Rally has 3 main competitive classes:
1. Truck Class (vehicles weighing more than 3,500 kg)
2. Car Class (vehicles weighing less than 3,500 kg)
3. Moto / Motorcycle Class (including a sub-class for quads)
The current leader of the moto (motorcycle) class is 2010 winner Cyril Despres. The French rider holds the narrowest of leads over reigning Dakar champion Marc Coma. The Red Bull riders, both 3-time winners are set for an epic battle over the remaining stages. Follow the closing stages and find out if Despres can hold onto his slender lead via his blog on the official Red Bull Dakar site.
On the Red Bull official site for the rally, you’ll find daily updates from the front runners, fan favourites and interviews with the big personalities (Cyril Despres, Giniel De Villiers and Marc Coma being a few) who make the 34th Dakar Rally 2012, one of the world’s most intense and dangerous races.
Tragically, the Dakar Rally has already claimed its first victim with the death of motorcyclist Jorge Boero. Boero, a 38-year-old rider from Argentina was just a few miles away from the end of the first stage when he crashed his Beta motorcycle. Boero suffered a heart attack after the crash and could not be revived. The Dakar Rally has seen 21 riders, including Boero, perish since its inception in 1979. Another 38 people, 20 of whom were spectators, have died during the Dakar Rally.
To catch up with all things Dakar Rally related, Red Bull has setup a cool webite bringing you daily updates direct from the front line. Visit Dakar Rally 2012. On the website you’ll see up-to-date coverage of the Dakar rally 2012 , along with lots of cool video highlights and pictures like these:
Dakar Rally 2012 Pictures
Here we feature a collection of recent cool photographs taken of the rally. Many of these photos are featured on Boston Big Picture
Cool Dakar Rally 2012 Videos
One of our favorite stages so far was Stage 9 are here is a video of the highlights: