considered a legend of rally and the Dakar , the leading female rider for many years and someone who many thought would be an overall winner one day .
“ We helped each other for a few stages then she had enough of me and just rode away ,” Michael laughed as he described Sanz as a machine . These stories ease the students into the realisation that rallying and the navigation that goes with it , is not an exact science . For a motorcyclist it ’ s a solo occupation that often requires a team effort , Destination Dakar Roadbook Adventures encourages that , and although roadbook navigation is directed at a competitive sport , Michael ensures that everyone knows this is NOT a race , slow often comes first .
With the backstory and basics out of the way the handful of riding students are led to the starting point and encouraged to find the initial direction to head , with a guiding nod everyone rides off .
This initial ‘ stage ’ is just 21 kilometres long , a combination of suburban streets , gravel roads , and the occasionally bush track . Guided by 40 waypoints , the steps that dictate that course , it ’ s a relatively easy path to follow , and although the time flies by with a presumed pace , we all find that we are slower than expected , and even a little mentally fatigued . So , this roadbook navigation is a little harder than first thought .
Day one , is broken by lunch and a classroom challenge of deciphering the many acronyms and codes used in roadbook creation . Amongst the many laughs Michael explains what was right and wrong , it ’ s interesting to see how six individuals came to the same conclusions and then were so far apart it became a challenge to see how some won ’ t be lost in the bush .
Following a more challenging 112 kilometres , 164 waypoints , that lead into the bushland around the central Victorian town of Bendigo , everyone settles in for the night with pizza and a few beers , while stories of the days ( mis ) adventures encourage a comradery that is somehow
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