Just Deserts

Whether held in Africa or South America, the Dakar Rally, first run in 1978, offers an enduring challenge for the adventurous.

- Justin Stanton

The Dakar Rally: the greatest test of man and machine? It certainly tested Mark Thatcher and his Peugeot 504 in 1982, when he got lost and wasn’t heard of for six days, but the Dakar is much more than a footnote in the life of a prime minister’s son.

Getting lost on the Dakar is not so much a rite of passage as a daily occurrence for even the most experienced and best-prepared teams. First run in 1978, the Dakar attracts those on a quest for perilous adventure. If the Monte Carlo Rally is a 100m sprint, then the Dakar is a marathon.

The Dakar was created not for the glory-chasers of Formula 1 or the Monte Carlo Rally: it was one man’s attempt to share his would-be spiritual awakening, to foster the realisation that the human race is one team and that as much unites us as divides us from those of different cultures. When faced with nature at its most unfettered, we see ourselves in a new light.

One man: Thierry Sabine

The ‘one man’ in question was Frenchman Thierry Sabine: while competing aboard a motorbike in the Abidjan-Nice Rally in 1977, he got lost in the Libyan desert with no compass, food or water. Fortunately he was found after three days, but he was now in thrall to the silence of the desert and wanted to share his new obsession with as many people as possible – and thus was the idea of the ParisDakar Rally conceived.

His idea attracted at least 170 competitors to the start line (differing but official Dakar histories list both 170 and 182 starters!) in Paris on Boxing Day 1978. The phalanx of cars, motorbikes and trucks faced a 10,000km challenge, their pilots having to navigate their way through Algeria, Niger, Mali, Upper Volta and Senegal.

A total of 74 competitors made it to the finish on 14 January 1979, with Cyril Neveu the victor aboard his Yamaha. The best-placed car was a Range Rover, in fourth position.