Home » Anja, Ben, and Jan start strong in the dunes, Erik and Hein continue solid performances

Anja, Ben, and Jan start strong in the dunes, Erik and Hein continue solid performances

The tenth stage of the Dakar Rally finally brought the dunes of the Empty Quarter into play. In a short stage filled entirely with sand and dunes, Anja van Loon, Ben, and Jan van de Laar delivered a strong performance, finishing sixth in their Iveco Powerstar. Meanwhile, Erik van Loon and Hein Verschuuren had another excellent day in the Audi Quattro, impressing in the regularity tests with just seven penalty points.

The gaps among the trucks in the dunes were relatively small. Anja, Ben, and Jan secured sixth place, just 16 minutes behind stage winner and teammate Ales Loprais with Jan behind the wheel. In the overall standings, they remain in ninth place. With two more days of dunes ahead, their focus is on maintaining consistency.

Erik and Hein once again demonstrated their strength in the regularity tests. They scored just seven points in both tests, finishing fourth and fifteenth, respectively. The navigation challenges were particularly tough, as Erik and Hein were the first to tackle the stage. The points are awarded based on the efficiency with which waypoints are reached, and the duo performed well today. In the H4 class, Erik and Hein continue to lead by a wide margin. The coming days will shift the rally’s emphasis slightly from regularity tests to navigation tests, adding to the challenge.

The eleventh stage will be a loop around Shubaytah, featuring only sand and dunes, interspersed with a plateau. The motorbikes, cars, and trucks will each follow their own route. The truck stage will cover 126 kilometers, while Classic competitors will complete over 200 kilometers of tests.

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