Yahoo Autos Dakar Rally 2024: Check out spectacular scenes on video and in pics
Friday, January 19 welcoms the final leg of the 2024 Dakar Rally. Here are some words that attempt to convey the scale of the 15-day grind through the Arabian peninsula: The race is 4,903 miles long including the public roads and trails used to reach the timed special stages. The timed stages total 2,937 miles — a few dozen miles short of driving from Boston to Los Angeles. Stages 5 and 6 are 451.7 miles apiece. Stage 7 is longer. Competitors have to fix their own vehicles on some stages, and usually only get a couple hours to do it. If competitors break down when team assistance is allowed, they have to wait in the desert for the mechanics to show — a fate only for lucky riders and drivers with in-stage support, which isn't all of them. Red Bull's video team has done it's usual excellent work putting moving pictures to this description, almost four minutes of racing, breakdowns, bogging, and a touch of blood and stitches. In the video above, the scene at 3:38 is sensational.
For those who prefer static pictures, Reuters posted a gallery of gorgeous helicopter shots. We've put together a gallery of shots that show just how beautiful and dangerous the Dakar Rally can be. There are more than 100 images in the gallery for your viewing pleasure, if you're so inclined.
