Focused Meeke is ‘ready as can be’ for Dakar desert debut
“NEVER ready for your first Dakar Rally… but we are ready as can be. Shakedown done — only 7,646km to go. Let the adventure begin,” tweeted Kris Meeke ahead of tomorrow’s start to the two-week desert marathon.
He and Dutch navigator Wouter Rosegaar will head out into the sand dunes of Saudi Arabia in a lightweight Zephyr buggy which has been designed and built by the French PH Sport team, with Meeke insisting his only goals are to gain experience and try to reach the finish.
The winner of five World Championship rallies and renowned for his flat-out attacking style, the Dungannon driver says Dakar demands a different approach.
“The WRC is all about ultimate speed; it is a sprint from start to finish. This is the complete opposite, and navigation plays such a big role in terms of finding your way through and over the dunes. The co-driver is very important, and that is why I have been lucky in getting Wouter on board. He has loads of Dakar experience and will be a big help in reading the terrain,” he said.
“I’m used to relying on my pacenotes but here it is about using your eyes and your instincts.
“The drivers who have done this rally multiple times before are the guys who can see the obstacles coming. As a rookie, that’s the huge challenge for me.
“I have no great expectations this year other than to enjoy being part of this incredible event and learn for the future.”
Meeke’s participation in the rally was only confirmed last weekend when the Saudi authorities — who had closed their borders to all sea and air visitors as the coronavirus spiked across Europe and beyond — gave the go-ahead.
But they imposed strict conditions and it was only after he had a negative Covid-19 test that Meeke was able to leave his Andorra base and fly to Paris, where a fleet of over 20 planes had been arranged to airlift the crews, support teams and officials to Jeddah.
Even there they faced more Covid-19 tests and 48 hours in quarantine before they were allowed to join the ‘ bivouac bubble’ where they have to remain for the entirety of the rally or until they retire.
“It was pretty t ense over Christmas, not knowing whether we would be allowed into Saudi,” he said.
“Myself and so many others have been building up to this since the early part of 2020, and then came the coronavirus and so many things, including my plans to dip my toe in desert rallying in Abu Dhabi, had to be scrapped.
“But we’re here now. The shakedown yesterday went pretty well I think and now I can’t wait to get started and see what it is all about.”
Meeke will be taking part in the T3 division as he learns the Dakar ropes, but his team boss at PH Sport, Barnard Piallat, has said he expects to see him eventually move up to the top category where many of his former World Championship compatriots like Sebastien Loeb, Carlos Sainz and Nasser Al-attiyah will be challenging for victory .