Tales From The Bivouac, Dakar 2012

TOTALLY F'N SUBSCRIBED!!!! I better see your big mug on the TV!!!!

Dear Ted,,,,, I mean this when I say....... you lucky SOB.... but on the good side.... I'll get a autographed book, picture... and no shipping charges...

I wish Pan Am a great race, Charlie and crew couldn't of picked a more dedicated crew/team member. They will not be disappointed bringing a nice big Canuck along.... After all we are the nicest of people don't you know....


looking forward to this thread over the next 3 months...





dirty dog.......

Sounds great.
Try included lots of behind the scenes pics

Now that's a great intro to a great story!

Where can I pre-order the limited edition autographed copy of your book the comes sprinkled with dust/sand fresh from the Dakar ?

Congrats Ted. I look forward to your views of the race and its community from a non-racers perspective as well as how the race impacts on the participants as it goes along. And remember - the pesco apertif is a health drink...

And I'll need my book signed with some special heart felt message...

Thanks for the positive feedback
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The book will be in an 8x11 magazine style with glossy pages and a square backed spine to it. Initial thoughts are somewhere in the vicinity of 200 pages. This should provide ample room for photos and writing.
I don&#8217;t pretend to be a professional photographer but I&#8217;m learning quickly. I just picked up a new camera, a Nikon AW100. This was based on the recommendation of a friend who makes a living taking photo&#8217;s. He has been tutoring me in the &#8220;art of photography&#8221; and with constant practise my skills are getting better by the day. I&#8217;m no stranger to taking photos but taking good photos seems to require a real talent, I&#8217;ll be doing my best to get photos from the bivouac and the transits between
I have been in touch with a company called Maindru and it looks like we will reach an agreement where I can use their photos for the book. This is a real bonus as I won&#8217;t be on the course to take photos of the riders. They have a long history of photographing the Dakar and from what I have seen the images they produce are top quality and are sure to add to the finished product in a positive way.
From my end of things I believe I have the bulk of my details are sorted out. Airline tickets are purchased; it&#8217;s a very long way from where I live to Mar del Plata. Three flights with one of them being 15 hours. Good practise for the long days in the support truck I suppose. Payments have been made, work has been booked off, a checklist of what I need to bring has been made, etc.

The truck has been prepped in Europe and has been sent to SA. The bivouac gear ships out of the US tomorrow. The bikes get shipped this week (I believe). From the email chains it would appear as if Ned and Bill have been extremely busy dealing with all the small details.
&#8220;Is there time to change fork seals?&#8221; Nope, bring extra forks.
&#8220;Does the truck have a chain tool?&#8221; Maybe but not sure if it&#8217;s a rivet or clip, best bring one with you.
&#8220;Where are we staying in Mar del Plata?&#8221; We&#8217;ve rented a house for the team with parking and a garage.
It is becoming very obvious that the details involved go far beyond what I had anticipated. Of course I knew there were many details involved with what to bring and what&#8217;s needed but a few of these emails have shown me that there are WAY more things to consider. The experience that RPA bring to the table is really starting to show, I can&#8217;t imagine what a rider without an experienced support team must go through trying to figure out all of these details. The stress it must add would certainly deter a racers mind from being 100% on the race.
ASO have been sending emails with some cool details about the race. The support truck will be fitted with a Trippy (computerized road book).
<o></o>
Assistance vehicules of Dakar 2011 will be fit with a &#8220;Tripy&#8221; GPS electronical Roadbook.

Tripy Roadmaster is a qualified GPS based navigation roadbook offering to the crews: <o></o>
· - the automatic display of the roadbook notes (including instantaneous km countdown),<o></o>
· - a Tripmaster function,<o></o>
· - a warning for overspeed or upcoming itinerary danger,<o></o>
· - a warning for quitting the itinerary and a navigation assistance help to rejoin it.<o></o>

The navigation system warns the driver as soon as he quits the planned itinerary. In this instance, a compass arrow shows up and displays the straight line direction to follow, to reach the next WayPoint.
As soon as the track is rejoined, the roadbook resets and resumes at that point. Tripy RoadMaster, initially developed for motorbikers, offers an optimum passive safety and provides unequalled driving comfort<o></o>

In.

Do your co-workers have any idea what this is all about?
Or is it just considered another motorcycle ride in January?
"KTM v-twin huh. That's like a Harley, right"?

I look forward to "Getting Caught up in the Mystic of Dakar" with you.

Subscribed!

Ditto

Deadly99

I have always thought there was some profit to be had from being behind the scenes of a rally race. I can't wait to get a copy of your book.

me too

Make sure to only take pictures of my good side.

Now I just need to find one.

In.

2012 Entry lists are posted...

Bikes: http://www.rallymaniacs.nl/images/stories/dakar/2012/deelnemers/Dakar2012_motoren.pdf

The entries list shows 189 bikes....

From ASO earlier this year

The dunes of the Atacama or the Argentinean canyons which have graced TV screens during each month of January for the last three years are attracting more and more adventurers from the four corners of the earth. In the space of several weeks, 310 enrolment applications for bikes and quads have been received by the Dakar organising teams, who have decided to restrict the category to 220 vehicles for reasons of safety and comfort.

Lots of folks turned back this year due to the category being full.......Am I missing something >?