Pic: GasGas
Pic: F. Flamand
when the Portuguese veteran, Paulo Goncalves lost
over 6 hours after having to wait for his support crew,
then change the engine on his Hero. Instantly he be-
came a crowd favourite and repaid the fans with a 4th
place the following day, he’d never be in contention for
an outright result. It mattered little to his countrymen
and Dakar followers.
“It was a tough day,” the Dakar veteran grinned.
“Having to change an engine during a special comes
as something new to me, but we're here to race, to
attack.”
“After all these efforts, what really matters now is to
make it to the finish,” prophetic words as Goncalves
took the chance to speak with the media. A few days
later the rally would take his life and cement him for-
ever as a legend of the Dakar.
The following days saw tough riding in the dunes
and Empty Quarter of Saudi Arabia. Stage victories
were traded between Jose Ignacio Cornejo Florimo
(Monster Energy Honda), Price and Brabec; the Honda
riding continually at the top of the overall standings.
As the front runners came into the bivouac at the
end of stage 7 all spoke of it being one of the fastest
they have ever raced. They had no knowledge of what
was transpiring behind them; Goncalves had fallen,
Price was the first on scene.
TRAVERSE 12