Dakar Dazed - countdown to bankruptcy!

Jenny,

You can do it. Here is a photo of my brother Dave, who broke his leg on Stage 7 of the 2005 Dakar. He's not so tough, but we finished together 8 days later. It only hurts when you stop.

I'm in for some dosh, so long as I get at least at sticker out of it.

fun fun
Charlie

Jeez Charlie - that is nasty looking! - and I thought mine was purple!

I'm hoping to tie up a few loose ends next week regarding the sponsorship/supports pack stuff - I'll let you know asap!

SDH - thanks so much for the link - I went to see Brian Simpson last week (not least on your recommendation) and it seems that pretty much everyone who's ever raced a bike and crashed in the UK has been to him (judging by the photos and thank you cards in his waiting room) - including Patsy Quick, who also recommended him!

So, I've had a couple of treatments so far (electromagnetic and lazer - the stuff is voodoo, but it seems to work!), and am going back again on Tuesday for a third and hopefully final blast... with any luck, it should significantly speed up the heeling* process, and I hope to be back on my feet by/before the end of this month...

*see what I did there?!

I also picked up my bike last week for GMX (who are wizards with aluminium fabrication) - pix to follow of my new tanks (fuel and water)...

Toot toot!

J xx

Ok, a few snaps - apologies if they are blurry, I was standing on one leg at the time x

So, bike before I went to the USA:


The intention is to try and keep all the [liquid] weight between the wheels - GMX built a 5.05 litre aluminium auxiliary tank to fit between the twin JVO front tanks, and under the stock seat... this way, I could remove the 5 litre Safari Tank from the rear fender I used in Tunisa, and still have the same range.

However, having spoken to Tamsin Jones recently (who finished the Dakar this year on a WR450 with a 15 litre front and and 10 litre rear tank), she said she ran out of fuel a few times, or at least got dangerously close to doing so... so I think the best policy will be to fit the Safari tank back on, but not necessarily fill it except for the longer/est days?

The reason for removing the Safari tank in the first place was to make the back of the bike as slim and as light as possible - saving the subframe from additional stress, and basically, looking like the enduro from the rear...

However, the 5L Safari tank together with a Kreiga Cube bag as a tool pack works very well on the rear fender, and for Dakar, I reckon the 'safety' of that set up is a wise precaution...

So, once I got back from the US, I went to pick up the bike and this is what Dave had produced:


The guy is a wizard when it comes to welding intricate shapes (their main business is Radiator fabrication, and indeed he made the one on my Tenere Rally bike for Heroes' last year), and he managed to fit a pair of tanks either side of the Flatland Racing bashplate:


I had designed the basic shape (out of cereal packets, of course!), and Dave fabbed them up in a combination of 3mm and 2mm alloy... the capacity of each tank is actually 1.7 litres, so comfortably providing the requisite 3 litres the regulations require.

The design of the water tanks follows the line of the fairing/tanks as closely as possible, and of course also protects my tootsies from nasty rocks... which based on recent experience, is probably a wise precaution!


I can't wait to get on the thing and ride it again!

Toot toot!

J xx

wow! that is some beautiful work on those tanks! Looking really nice so far.

+1 to this. Good luck with the mend!!!!

Nice water tanks!!

Just saw this thread, probably the first time I wish I was in a woman's shoes (minus the broken leg that is)...

Hope your injury heals properly before the start of the race, thank you for documenting your race prep for us mere mortals who will never get letters as the one on your first post...

The bike looks sweet, too bad you won't have the chance to fine tune it, but still you will get to ride it in the Dakar...

Best of luck and congratulations again, you're living the dream of many crazy people!

Hope I didn't miss it, but it seems that you have not made any progress regarding the website, I don't have the time to design anything (all by myself), but I would be willing to host you for free on my server, if we have any other volunteers we could start building it right off...

Hi tserts - that is a lovely offer, thank you!

The main reason I've not got any further with the dedicated website is having been away [in the USA] until last week, and the leg incident, I haven't had a moment to spare... compounded by the fact I've also just bought a house that needs totally renovating (like I haven't enough on my plate already?!) so have been trying to sort stuff out with that too!

I have another appointment with the bone doctor tomorrow, then heading home and will get on the case regarding the sponsor/supports packs, and a dedicated website - although, other than hosting photos and providing a link to buy the supports packs, using ADVrider as a blog actually works very well anyway?

I plan to assemble the website myself in iWeb, and then look at hosting options - so I may well be in touch!

J xx

Let us know when there's a way for us mortals to donate.

+ 1

I need a new t-shirt or two!

Can't believe how long it can take to find such a thread when you suddenly can't lurk as much!
I suppose, with the boo-boo, it's fortunate you had a bike pretty much already prepped. Hopefully the rest of the prep goes smoothly...or at least as smoothly as doing the Dakar can go anyway


FYI, Patricia Watson-Miller (Schek) is German and married an Englishman.

OK, time to bump this thread up - fortunately I have a few juicy tit-bits, although there is a danger this is going to start sounding like a blog!

Right, busy week this week - paid my final payment to ASO (the Dakar organization for those unfamiliar) which is due on 1st November... (got to be early for something, right?!) - so that is a huge expenditure out of the way...

Now I just have to find the rest of the service fee for Desert Rose Racing, plus get all my consumables together - tyres, mousses, chain&sprockets, oil and filters... oh, and chain slippers, as I understand the WR can be hungry with those (although in Tunisia my original one was fine for the duration).

So I'm basically looking for a dealer/supplier who can provide the service consumables to top up what I have already - I have approached a couple of companies so far and am waiting for their decision - the shopping list is as follows:

4 x front tyres (Michelin Desert)
4 x rear tyres (Michelin Desert)
3 x front mousse (Michelin BIB)
3 x rear mousse (Michelin BIB)

2 x drive chain (DID 520VM 114 links)
2 x rear sprockets (Supersprox 48T)
2 x front sprockets (Renthal, 14T)

10 x oil filters
10/12 x litres of oil (10W40 - Putoline off-road 4 synthetic or similar)

4 x air filters (TwinAir)
3 x chain slippers (OEM or Polisport)

If anyone can help, or knows someone/a company who can help, please do get in touch and I can forward my sponsorship proposal (basically what I can offer in return) to those concerned.

I am also still looking for a key sponsor to help cover my service assistance costs - there are three packages available, for €10K, €5K and €2K.

There is also the possibility of 2 spare seats in a follow truck with UK rider Tamsin Jones and her sponsor from Dakar last year - at a cost of around €2,500 per person (which includes travel and camping for the duration, but you'll need to get yourself to and from Buenos Aires independently). Note: this is NOT a Bivouac pass, but they will be following the rally as spectators in a dedicated 4x4. Again, if you are interested, please get in touch via PM initially.

Right, some good news at least - I also picked up my new WR450F which Yamaha UK were very generous in helping out cost-wise - I got a cracking deal, cheaper than I could have bought a decent secondhand one for...

Although buying a complete spare bike may seem extravagant for a privateer on a limited budget, let me explain the thinking...

Having spoken to a number of past Dakar riders, the problem with buying spares 'you might need', even on a sale-or-return (SOR) basis, is that a) you never know what you might need, and typically it will be the one thing you didn't bother to get; and b) even if you do get everything on SOR, it is likely that the packaging will be damaged on your return from the Dakar (remember everything get's stuffed into a metal trunk for the duration), and indeed to save space, you often have to forfeit the oem packaging anyway.

This means that typically, on your return, you have a bunch of unused but unreturnable spares, that either kick around indefinitely, or you sell at a loss on ebay...

By buying a complete spare bike there are a number of benefits - firstly, you know everything works, because you can ride the bike before you strip it down... secondly, on you return, you can build the spare bike back up and sell it on, and only have to buy replacement parts for those you actually used... or in my case, this way I will hopefully still have a brand new 2010 model WR that I can transfer the rally kit onto, and essentially have a brand new race bike for next season - then either sell the original bike, or keep that one as my spare parts package for future events...

Shiny!


I still need to do the PDI prep (and derestrict it!), get it road-registered and get it run in (and first service/valves checked) as soon as possible...

Fortunately, this week I have at last been able to stand and walk around without my crutches, even if I still look a little ungainly! So fingers crossed by the weekend, I'll be fit enough and the bike will be ready to put some miles on - then it will be into the workshop asap to complete the strip down and package everything ready for shipping around the 20th November... yikes! - that's only three weeks away!

Once stripped, I will have a complete (and fully assembled) engine, so it's an easy swap if things are looking dodgy... I'll also have a replacement carb, all cables, ignition (CDI) unit, bar controls, pedals, calipers, hoses, discs, wiring loom and even the fork legs should there be space (although as Patsy suggested, if you've crashed hard enough to bend a fork, you're probably not in any shape to continue yourself!)

Now this might sound like overkill to some people, but the difference with Dakar is that you often don't have time to repair things, and you can't miss a day (and take a time penalty like you can in the FIM championship for example) - if you don't make your start time the next morning, you are out, and on a plane home...

Therefore, by having a direct replacement part available, the service crew can simply replace that part quickly, then spend the following day fixing your original broken part (if that is possible) so you still have a spare, while you continue racing... this is the main reason why the Dakar is so expensive and daunting compared to any other rally...

In the meantime, I have also been chasing sponsors and those who [initially] offered to help, and hope to have some more good news shortly regarding final bike prep and riding gear etc. and I even found time to write my first monthly column for TBM magazine too - look out for it the first week of next month!

I'm also hoping the bike will be graphic'd up and pretty much ready to go by next weekend, and should have some nice photos by then too!

So don't go changing that channel now!

Toot toot!

Jenny xx

Keep us posted, Jenny, and as you get closer, I bet we can help with whatever part of your shopping list remains open. I for one kind of like knowing that I bought a tire, for instance, instead of a just a general contribution!



PS: Buy a house before the race ruins your credit?

Ha! You know I just did that - picked up the keys when I got back from the US at the beginning of this month!

Problem is, it's a real 'fixer-upper' as you guys say... it needs totally rewiring and replumbing, and most of the rooms plastering too... never mind the work required outside to get it looking good again...

In between sorting the WR and all my Dakar prep, I've made a start on the place - most of this week I've in a sleeping bag on an air mattress, in the freezing cold (no heating in the place), and breathing in dust from all the demolition work... still, all good Dakar training eh?!

As for help with the incidentals - thank you for your generous offer, I may well be tapping you guys up for stuff like that!

In the meantime, I must just say that this evening I got confirmation from the UK distributor for GPR steering dampers (which as you may well be aware is my brand of choice as fitted to the Tenere, and the XR650R before that), that they are going to help out with a damper kit for the WR... pics and details to follow once it's all fitted up!

J x

Well I just bought a lottery ticket and I'm certain that I'll win the $40,000,000 on saturday. As soon as I do I'll just go ahead and cover your expenses so you can worry about healing up and racing.

Great news on the sponsorship! And the house! And your good spirits!!

Keep it up and keep us posted!!

Great to hear you're recovering, hope you resume training soon!

3 weeks huh?

Very glad to hear that Yamaha is helping you out a bit. They should since you certainly are helping them sell bikes through your build-up threads. I know that had some effect on why I went for a WR250F for my enduro bike!