The Desert Mouse

Matt “Hollywood” Smith talks local Off-road, Enduro and Adventure and a little tarmac

- Matt Smith

For the off-road racing fraternity of South Africa, it’s always a question of where the road leads. Many of the top cross country and off-road racers consider the National series and title of National Champion the pinnacle of the sport but for the few with broader horizons and greater vision it’s the draw of the desert that calls them the loudest. Dakar.

The list of South Africans that have headed over to the Ultimate challenge and triumphed is slim, but even though our entries may be small, our quality is high. From Alfie Cox, to Daryl Curtis, Ross Branch and Kenny Gilbert to name but a few, the results are more often impressive.

In recent years it’s become more accessible to enter and compete in the Dakar that has found its home for years now in South America. Riders have either developed machines locally and shipped them over or, which has been the case most recently, rent a ride from one of the many companies that cater for Dakar participants and offer race rental deals. The announcement came early this year that the Dakar was on the move to Saudi Arabia where it will be housed for at least the next five years. That means one really big change as far as the events terrain goes. Sand.

The Dakar has gone back to the Desert where an estimated 70% of the event will be fought out in the sands and dunes of Saudi Arabia. For one hopefully rider this was nothing but good news.