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2013 Dakar Stage 1 Robby Gordon Notes & Quotes
DAKAR RALLY STAGE 1 - LIMA TO PISCO
Piscoe, Peru (January 5, 2013) – Today marked the start of the 2013 Dakar Rally and the first time that it has started in Peru since it moved to South America. The stage went from Lima to Pisco and was complied of a 250-km liaison leading to a very short Special where spectators were able to view the competitors quest to take a spot among the rankings of the elite. Even though the stage is short, the competitors must not forget that this is the start to the toughest off-road race in the world, and the battle has certainly begun.
Despite being very prepared for this year's Rally, the race did not begin as well as the SPEED Energy / Toyo Tires / MAPEI team had hoped. Robby Gordon would be taken by surprise on the first day as the stage was not as easy for him as most expected. Gordon got stuck in the sand and broke his transmission, losing valuable time to his competitors. Having no reverse gear made getting unstuck remarkably difficult.
Gordon talked about his misfortune shortly after diagnosing the SPEED Energy / Toyo Tires / MAPEI HUMMER in the bivouac. "I stopped at the top of a dune after Kellon told me to be careful since we could not see the other side, and I was being super conservative. We got stuck and lost the transmission trying to get out. We literally had to push the HUMMER out of the sand. I am down more than I ever was last year on day one, and I can not believe it. We are in bad shape but from here on out we will just have to fight, fight, fight!," said a disappointed Robby Gordon.
After nearly being stuck for 9 minutes, his rivals put him down even more time. Gordon trails leader, Carlos Saniz by 32 minutes overall, which is not the way that the team wanted to start the Rally. The SPEED Team and Gordon know that they cannot make any more mistakes if they want a podium finish when the Dakar Rally ends in Santiago, Chile. If there's a will which there most certainly is, Gordon will find a way.
Heading into Stage 2 tomorrow, the Rally competitors will head only 85-km outside the town of Pisco and head for the dunes, as there will be nothing but sand for a 242km Special. The stage will end back in the same bivouac from Stage 1 making Pisco a home to the competitors one more night before heading to Stage 3. This could be one of Gordon's best chances to gain time on what he has just lost.
Be sure to watch the 1st highlight show of the 2013 Dakar Rally beginning on January 6th on NBC Sports Network at 2:30AM EST/11:30 PM PST.
To follow Gordon and the SPEED Energy / Toyo Tires team throughout the legendary Dakar Rally, log onto www.speedenergy.com and www.toyotires.com for race team updates. Fans can also participate in the Dakar Rally experience by connecting on http://www.planetrobby.com and follow along with the team on Facebook and Twitter at: www.facebook.com/thespeedenergydrink, and www.facebook.com/toyotires, http://twitter.com/SPEED_ENERGY, http://twitter.com/ToyoTires.
Views: 1195
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by J.R. Sands on
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Wow, things can happen so fast. Tomorrow is another stage...
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Permalink Reply by pdxracefan on
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Knock it off JerrDog! That kind of talk does not go over well on this site.
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Permalink Reply by JerrDog on
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Sorry 'bout that, I let my emotions get the best of me..
...now go kick some ASS RG!!!
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Permalink Reply by MTG on
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Robby was driving. He got stuck. It's not Kellons fault and I don't think Robby was blaming him. I am sure they didn't want to run someone over flying through a dune with limited visibility.
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Permalink Reply by Bricoop on
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I agree MTG. Or the fact you have no idea if there is a 5 ft or 100ft+ drop In the sand in front of you. Anyone who has spent time in Glanis or Oceano has seen the dangers of blindly going over a dune.
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Permalink Reply by mj on
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Doesn't sound like he blames anyone
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iO7ZUJBOs6c&sns=em
Sent from my iPhone
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Permalink Reply by Bob on
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If you can find the video of his jump at the podium ramp before the start, where he backs up to get a run at the thing, it kind of looks like there were problems with the reverse gear to begin with.
He'll have to be both fast and careful to make up time, which is not always an easy balance to strike. And without a teammate to provide possible help as well. So time for seriousness and concentration for sure.
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