Baragwanath sees his Dakar Rally disappointment as hard lesson
"Unfortunately my Dakar Rally came to an early end. It was the result of really soft tyres that we had not tested properly and it did not hold up at high racing speeds.
THE 2015 Dakar Rally finished on Sunday with local quad bike champion Brian Baragwanath and teammate Hannes Saaijman experiencing their first taste of this world famous gruelling motorsport rally.
Sadly, Baragwanath’s participation came to a premature end on the second day in stage two.
“Unfortunately my Dakar Rally came to an early end. It was the result of really soft tyres that we had not tested properly and it did not hold up at high racing speeds.
“What was rated as a six ply tyre turned out to be so much weaker rubber than we expected. This caused the tyres to disintegrate completely. This does not happen with our regular Maxxis Razr2 tyres that we use in South African races,” he said.
“I am still learning a lot about this type of endurance race and it was still a blessing to have been there as part of Team Rhide’s support team.
“At least I was still able to learn from the best teams in the world that compete in the Dakar Rally every year,” said Baragwanath after his disappointment.
“This was surely an expensive school fee to be considered as a learning curve. Other than that, it was a perfect experience to learn all the ins and outs of the Dakar Rally. Thanks to all my sponsors, family, friends and supporters for making it all possible.
“I surely hope I can give it another shot next year and well done to my team mate, Saaijman, once again for finishing this race in a top ten position, ninth overall in the quads category, I am super proud of you,” said Baragwanath.
“I am super proud of my teammate Hannes Saaijman, who kept soldiering on with so many challenges ahead.
“We hoped Giniel De Villiers would win in the car division for South Africa. He did it before and I know he can do it again.”
Driver Nasser Al-Attiyah and navigator Matthieu Baumel won the car division.
