VW Dakar blog: Day 5
06.01.2011
U nten in the valley, in the northern Argentine provincial capital San Salvador de Jujuy, an incredible crowd of spectators prepared a triumphant reception for the Dakar Rally.
Argentinian fans are marked by beef and cerveza
As almost everywhere in Argentina, there are hundreds of thousands on the access roads of the cities who are almost overwhelmed by enthusiasm. Almost all of them wave something with wildly spinning arms, so that one has to be afraid that they will dislocate their shoulders: Many take the national flag, the others simply tear off their T-shirts. From an aesthetic point of view, this is to be rejected, because it often turns out that the excessive consumption of beef (and cerveza) leaves clear traces on the equator of the body.
Dakar Rally: Schalke 04 in a square
The extremely hot temperatures - up to 40 degrees in the shade - got the blood of the already very enthusiastic South Americans going tremendously. When the rally comes, it's like the Cologne Carnival (without a fool's hat) or a mountain stage of the Tour de France. Small gag on the side: The Velo-Qual, also known by some as Tour die Pharmacie, and the Dakar rally are organized by the same organizer. The French publisher Amaury is behind both major events.
'Desert rally' - So far a day without rain
Strange at the 2011 Dakar Rally: So far there has only been one day when it was NOT raining. When the caravan from San Salvador Jujuy climbed to the 4,860 meter high Paso de Jama, the motorcyclists were welcomed with a cold shower at 5am. Then a thick foggy soup waited between 2,500 and 3,800 meters before the meteorological unpleasantness from 4,000 meters above sea level with sleet showers and six degrees reached its peak. For an upright biker, it was all just a pill. 'No problem,' waves the Hamburg motorcyclist Tina Meier when stopping for fuel.
Alpacas andFlamigos line the edge of the path
Suddenly the curtain of fog tears open and reveals a first-class Andean panorama. Greetings at the roadside - no, not the marmot, but a horde of alpacas, a kind of mini-llama. And later, when the rally team rushes past a couple of small salt lakes, a flock of pink flamingos can even be seen. Up in the plateau it suddenly looks like in the opening credits of Miami Vice, at least almost.
From the 4,860 meter high Paso de Jama we go down towards Atacama, the driest desert in the world. One of the participants has absolutely no eyes for this wonderful panorama: Robby Gordon is already fighting on the roadside with the technique of the signal orange lobster. This time the front right wheel bearing is over. Gordon does not despair and waits for help.
Welcome to Chile, in the Germany of South America
The reception in the mining town of Calama, the first stage destination in Chile, is not quite as funny and cheerful as it is in Argentina. The Chileans are much more reserved than their neighbors from the Gaucho Republic in the east. Some even say: The Chileans are the Germans of South America.
