Dakar 2013 – South Africa Toyota Dakar Rally Update

January 14, 2013

Yesterday Giniel De Villiers and Dirk von Zitzewitz lost some valuable time in their Dakar 2013 Rally when the road literally closed in front of them and cutting them off from the riders in front.

According to Giniel De Villiers See the Dakar 2013 video of Giniel De Villiers on day 8. They were driving and came to a place where they needed to cross a river. In a matter of seconds the water level of the river have risen so rapidly that it became impossible for the Toyota Dakar 2013 South African team to cross the river.

Giniel de Villiers described it as a Tsunami coming down the river, and that the river have risen almost 1 meter in a matter of minutes, cutting them off from the riders in front who were able to cross the river earlier. According to Giniel De Villiers they have lost almost an hour, while they have waited for the river to become accessible again.

If they have crossed the river they would have likely damaged the Toyota Hilux in such a way that they would not have been able to complete the rest of the rally. Hopefully the organizers of the Dakar 2013 rally will look into the incident and consider the circumstances carefully.

The Route between Salta and Tucuman have become so inaccessible that the Dakar Organizers have cancelled the Trucks from going onto the same route, and had shortened the day to avoid the flash floods.

Dakar 2013 Videos YouTube

Here are some videos of the Toyota Dakar 2013 Rally in South America. In this short videos the rally drivers talks about there race, and you can view some highlights from the day.

Giniel De Villiers on the Dakar 2013 Rally

Giniel De Villiers talks about his previous day at the Dakar 2013 Rally today Giniel De Villiers and Dirk von Zitzewitz are resting and there is no driving at the Dakar 2013 today. The Toyota Mechanics will have a look at the Toyota Hilux and make sure that everything is running smoothly and in order with the Toyota Hilux pick-ups.

https://youtu.be/H4zai-RcM1c

Giniel De Villiers talks about the flash floods that have separated him from the leaders and how it became impossible to cross one of the rivers when the water level increased rapidly within minutes after the front riders crossed it! The stage for the Truck Drivers were later cancelled as a result of these Flash Floods!

https://youtu.be/yssKG-Cf3aI

Dakar 2013 Celebrations Day 9

Today the drivers will have the whole day to relax and to build their strenght for the last part of the Dakar 2013 Rally. In this short video you can see some of the atmosphere at the Dakar 2013 Rally, entertainment and celebrations for the day…

https://youtu.be/YShX_T4XpQk