In the Dakar everyone lives their race, fighting against themselves and their circumstances. Javi Vega y Lorenzo SantolinoPont Grup drivers, today start their eighth participation in the rally of their lives, for which they live the rest of the year, preparing so that the desert surprises them as little as possible. They both ride motorcycles, although their objectives are very different. Vega participates in the Original category, in which the rider goes without assistance and has to manage to repair the motorcycle every night.
«In this category you are the mechanic, and do the daily maintenance, well I think everyone knows. But if later there are bigger problems, you have to know a little more,” he tells LA RAZÓN before leaving for Arabia. «These are my weeks to myselfto rest, my vacations and to be with myself in the desert and without anyone. The truth is that I really like this race,” he says about what the Dakar has to make you always want to come back despite the danger. «I am not a professional pilot. I also have my job, so it’s almost my vacation. I’m lucky that I don’t have to ask the boss for permission. I am self-employed and everything I don’t work for, I don’t get paid,” explains this dentist who is completing his second year on a Kovea Chinese motorcycle that has its best virtue in reliability.
In search of triumph in Original
Javi aims to win in his category, where he has already been second and the ability to resist is more important than speed. “In the end, more and more of those who participate run, but it is true that you have to keep a pace that you can maintain so as not to break the bike, which is the important thing.” He has to carry the luggage and reveals what is never missing from his backpack in the desert. «I usually carry a boot dryer. Not so much for the boots, but to keep me warm at night inside the jacket. Always wet wipes, because you don’t know when the shower is. And for my hair, a dry shampoo in case I can’t wash it,” he says about daily hygiene, which becomes complicated during the race. “If it starts to get dark, I prefer to sleep half an hour more than take a shower,” confesses Javi Vega.
Santolino wants another stage
Lorenzo Santolino performs with Sherco in the absolute category, in GP rally, in search of his second stage victory, after debuting last year, and with the goal of the “top 5″ in the general classification, despite the fact that he arrives somewhat affected by an injury to his big toe. «We will have to start the prologue with caution, without taking too many risks, and from there see how it goes. You can’t go a month without riding a motorcycle and leave the first day at 100%. You have to gain confidence, because in the end the pace of the race is what confidence gives you,” says this man from Salamanca from Guijuelo, one of the most visited at dinner time in the camp. «A little bit of ham and loin I always takethat never fails. “Everyone comes around my store, in case something falls,” he jokes.
He doesn’t know much about the route, because the organization keeps it to itself and gives few clues, but it is said that it will be a tougher edition, with a lot of rock and perhaps fewer dunes. Good news for him, because those conditions are better suited to his driving. Don’t go through the dreaded this time Empty Quarter, another reason for Santolino’s optimism. «A priori it is a very good year in terms of route for me. Because I like dunes and sand, but I don’t read them as well as other pilots who live in the desert. “I’m not as confident or as fluid as on rockier terrain or with more navigation, which a priori is what they seem to have prepared this year.”
A Spaniard among the motorcycle favorites
As for the favorites for the final motorcycle victory, Santolino points out two names. «Tosha Schareina and Daniel Sanderscurrent winner, are the two drivers who are a little above the rest along with Ricky Brabec, who in Arabia always gives a plus. For the great Spanish promise, Edgar Canetasks for time, because experience is important and he is only 20 years old. «He has a lot of desire and a very great talent. The only thing you need is a little time to get to know this career. “He is a clear candidate to win the Dakar in the future,” he assumes.
He acknowledges that he does not have any specific date marked in red to go for the stage victory, which would be the second for him in the Dakar, because that is seen as we go. «In the end you don’t know until you are on that day and the circumstances come together. Yes, it is true that you can foresee where you can perform more, but it has to be that you have a good day and that everything aligns a little,” he concludes.
