J-Rod, Santosh improve their positions
UYUNI, BOLIVIA : It was a good day for Hero MotoSports Team Rally co-riders Joaquim Rodrigues and CS Santosh as both moved up the standings --- J-Rod making it to the top-10 in his maiden Dakar.
Santosh too gained a few places in overall classification. It was another good show by the Indian biker who had endured two problematic stages --- struggling with a wrong road book and damaged oil seal.
As has been the norm in this edition of the Dakar, the stage from Uyuni to Salta was once again modified because it was impossible to cross an overflowing river. As a result, the original special stage of 392 km was split in two and shortened by 68 km. Even as more rain rendered the tracks slippery and treacherous, Rodrigues attacked the course to finish the special stage in 4:44.57 sec, just 16 minutes and 36 seconds behind the stage winner. Rodrigues finished the day in 16th place, which helped him move into 10th spot in the provisional overall classifications.
Santosh, who started the special stage placed 38th, also came up with a good ride despite the challenging conditions that forced many frontrunners to stop in the middle of the stage to change their goggles and gloves. He completed the timed section in 47th position in 5:14.01 sec. His performance in this special stage helped him climb to 62nd place in the provisional overall general classifications, up from his overnight 67th.
It was also an action-packed day for crew members, who were travelling from La Paz to Salta. A landslide 200km north of Salta forced the assistance crews and the participants to take a detour of about 150km.
The ninth stage, from Salta to Chilecito, will test the riders with a 977km stretch. of which 406 km make up the special stage. With almost 1000 km on the agenda, the “Super Belen” stage as it’s being called, will put a heavy premium on the navigation skills of the riders.