Desert training before the Dakar Rally

With a month to go before the start of the 40^th edition of the Dakar Rally, Rafał Sonik spent 5 days sharpening his skills on the desert around Dubai. “Since Peru entered the Dakar as a host country, training on sand dunes has become a vital part of my preparations”, admitted the acclaimed quad racer.

The Peruvian part of the Atacama Desert is not precisely the same as the picturesque dunes of the Emirates. The sand is less loose and many places are haunted by fesh fesh, a sticky dust that seriously limits the visibility and can put every driver in a grave danger. Nonetheless, the meaning of those five intensive days of an off-road practice around Dubai is hard to overestimate.

“I know this terrain very well since I practice there several times a year. However, that desert can still surprise me, so I learn new things every time. It’s especially important for honing my navigation skills, for example predicting the shape of a dune I’m about to face, whether it ends with a smooth slope or a dangerous cliff that I have to dodge. Such training provides new experiences in recognizing potential obstacles and allows me to get into the rhythm before the most important rally of the year”, said Sonik.

The Dakar Rally sets off in Lima on January 6, and ends two weeks later in Cordoba, Argentina. Rafał Sonik will be accompanied by another Polish quad rider, Kamil Wiśniewski.