Found at: http://www.rallystar.co.za/article/articleprint/2115/-1/199/
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"Dr de Villiers I presume?...........
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DAKAR 2004 to 2006 NEWS
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Author: Leon Botha
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Publishing date: 11.01.2004 11:00
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This morning, still tired of the continuous tension of the first nine days of the Dakar, I wondered how my old friend and navigator, Francois Jordaan was.
He went into the Dakar without any previous Dakar experience in a car that has the potential to win. Potential – yes, but not the ability at the moment, not when you analyse what the Mitsubishis achieved up to now.
When you take one step further and compare what you have in the Mitsubishi team with what you have in the Nissan team, you will find the first hour difference between the two teams. Stéphane Peterhansel’s experience as a bike rider, Hiroshi Masuoka’s previous winning experience on the Dakar, combined with that of their respective navigator’s and you’ll understand why I say “potential”.
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"just drive the bloody car" - Francois Jordaan
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Not knowing Giniel so well, but Francois inside-out, I know that there will be some serious self analyses inside that vehicle. Francois could never stand making a mistake, of hesitating at an instruction, and boy could he talk to himself if ever he made a navigational error.
I will never forget, I think it was on the Sasol rally where we did the same stage twice. The instruction was fork right and about 50m 90 left before house (which incidentally was a hut). That specific “Pizza Hut” class B Golf was not exactly the slowest car on the circuit, and nothing, not even the Skyline’s sounded sweeter than that car through the forests. It sounded like a very, very pissed off bee, and with that excellent ratio’s we had in the differential, the rev’s stayed between 7 and 8000 most of the time. Pity the gearbox could never handle the power of that magnificent 16valve machine.
Anyway, back to that instruction, as you hit the fork right, you at the same time, if you had enough speed, launched the car, four wheels in the air, and needless to say, landing about 20 meters further, you did not stand a chance to turn left at the 90. As we overshot, I made a handbrake turn, trying to get back to the turn-off, but Francois spotted a route through the yard of the poor guy living in the hut. When he saw this red monstrosity coming, he jumped form his chair and started collecting chickens and pigs. We missed all the inhabitants, the hut, and NOT a beat, getting back to the road. Francois apologised by saying “are you bloody mad not to tap of for that fork?”
Next time through the stage at the same fork, going through the air, he shouted – “well this time around you know where to go!” and once again we did not miss a beat. The same guy sat on the same chair in the same place, and this time he simply waved as we went past him about a metre from where he was seated.
Cool – both the new spectator, and my navigator. This is one of the many, many incidents I think about, feeling sorry for him in that Nissan. I know he had one thing in mind, both him and Giniel - to win the Dakar. The frustration when they got to some vague instruction on especially day 8 where more than half the field got lost, must have been awesome, minutes feeling like hours, hours like days, while you simply could not find the right road. The frustration not getting the flat wheel off the car in the same stage, and then to get stuck because of that – seeing McRae disappearing over the dunes, after they refused for him to come to their assistance in the soft sand.
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Sand surfing
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I could hardly stand the tension when they did not pitch up on day 8, and then even later on day nine. Hitting the “refresh” button 70 000 times, seeing Giniel’s profile coming up, but no time for them at CP2, let alone the finish line. Then eventually after 72 000 clicks, like when you reach an oasis in the desert, suddenly there it was – a time appeared on the screen. The Lord must have grown tired of my repetition leaving out the daily bread, an replacing that with “Giniel and Francois’ Nissan”. I left out the “Hardbody” part, just in case He may think it was an army thingy, and also the “proudly South African” in case He was not overly impressed with the way things were going in our beloved, but brittle country. I know that “number 208” was also shorter, but with my luck an angel who died because his calculations was not so good, were put on this case. So I stuck to “Giniel and Francois’ Nissan” adding “that red one – but remember it does not look exactly like last year’s that came 5th”.
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....and once again the Nissan stands up from the floor on the count of 8.
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When they eventually hit the finish line for Special Stage 9 I almost woke you all up by sending out the appropriate sms! Luckily I knew that Tania Steenkamp of Nissan would shoot me early on Saturday morning, for waking up some of the VIP’s – not from Nissan as I knew they were also still awake.
A mixed reaction of relieve combined with disappointment – thank goodness they are there, but hell, they are in 11th position trailing by miles.
I can just hear Francois in that car on their way to the finish. “Don’t worry mate, just get this bloody thing to the finish” and if Giniel would ask him “how far still” he would either give the kilometres immediately or simply say, “don’t worry about how far it is, just keep the car going!”
Alfie Cox I must add and Cornel de Villiers were the other two factors who kept me from shooting myself through the leg, I would have saved the head for after the Dakar.
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Nissan Motorsport Release
"Dr. de Villiers I presume?" Alfie Cox meeting Giniel after SS9
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Then I can simply imagine Francois at the end of that stage informing Giniel that stages 10 and 11 were cancelled, both of them realising that whatever was wrong on the car could be fixed.
The whole Nissan effort will now, with the sad demise of the Vatanen and McRae Nissans, be concentrated on that bakkie I, and I know you as well have been praying for, and they may also help number 214 the privateer Nissan of de Lavergne and Anquetil. So if you have a late maths teacher or professor up there, remember 208 is the number and add 214 for their effort.
Cox and Cornel de Villiers – 10 and 910!
Let’s hold thumbs – not your breath please, because this bloody rally takes a long, long time, before things happen. I only realised that I was not breathing when I fell off my chair hyperventilating!
Thank goodness it ends on the 19th of January 2004!
…………..but then in a couple of days it will be Monte Carlo time – hope we survive the year.
By the way we are looking for a “sms sponsor” for the Monte Carlo – so if you want you company name in the news for a few Rand, let me know
We would be interested