Omroep BrabantJan de Rooy
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Broadcasting Brabant
NOS Nieuws•gisteren, 22:27
Former rally driver and Paris-Dakar winner Jan de Rooy has died at the age of 80. He died after a short illness in his hometown of Middelbeers, writes Omroep Brabant.
In 1987, truck driver De Rooy was the first Dutchman to win the famous desert rally in a DAF, which was first held in 1979.
He participated in the rally thirteen times, recorded several stage victories and was also on the podium in Dakar in 1982 and 1983 (third) and in 1985 (second).
The bear
The transport entrepreneur participated in motocross competitions as a teenager and started rallycrossing in 1969. De Rooy managed to win several Dutch titles and international podium finishes until he switched to trucks in 1982.
DAF wanted the Brabander to participate in the Paris-Dakar, the rally that then sailed from the French capital to the Senegalese capital. He was nicknamed ‘The bear or ‘The Bear’, partly because of his large build and fearless attitude.
In later years, De Rooy built special trucks for the desert rally. In 1984, for example, he made one truck from two trucks, but with two engines and two cabins: the double head. In 1986 he introduced the Turbo Twin II: a truck with two engines that together delivered more than a thousand horsepower. In 1987 he became the winner of the truck classification with a fourteen-hour lead over the number two.
Tragic accident
Jan de Rooy was given a free hand by DAF in 1988 for a victory in the general classification. The result was the 1200 hp X1. De Rooy also deployed a second truck, but it overturned. The accident claimed the life of Kees van Loevezijn and driver Theo van de Rijt was injured. DAF withdrew from the rally and Jan de Rooy would not appear again in Paris-Dakar for years. Omroep Brabant made a documentary about the disastrous ride in 2014.
His son Gerard (Dakar winner in 2012 and 2016) convinced him to participate again from 2002. In 2009, Jan de Rooy finally stopped participating in the Dakar. According to Omroep Brabant, he found it unethical towards his employees to have such an expensive hobby during the economic crisis. He also disagreed with the move of the rally from Africa to South America.
2024-01-30 21:27:15
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