2014 Dakar Will Start On January 4, 2014

The 2014 Dakar will be starting on January 4, 2014.  This is one of the world’s great motoring events.  This year the route will go through Argentina, Bolivia, and Chile.  Peru will not be involved this year.  The 2014 route map is shown below.

2014 Dakar Route Map

One major change in the details of the route for the 2014 Dakar will be that for approximately 40% of the competitive stage distance, the motorcycles and the quads will take a different route than the cars and the trucks.  It appears that the daily start and end points are similar for all competitors.  There are safety reasons for this as we have seen dangerous passing situations when cars and trucks catch up with the motorcycles in some very narrow locations.  It will also mean that the cars will not be able to use the tracks from the motorcycle competitors as a guide for their navigation.  The cars and trucks will have to find their own way.

The schedule for the 2014 Dakar is as follows:

DATE	START	FINISH
05/01/2014	Rosario	San Luis
06/01/2014	San Luis	San Rafael
07/01/2014	San Rafael	San Juan
08/01/2014	San Juan	Chilecito
09/01/2014	Chilecito	Tucumán
10/01/2014	Tucumán	Salta
11/01/2014	Rest day
12/01/2014	Salta	Salta/Uyuni
13/01/2014	Salta/Uyuni	Calama
14/01/2014	Calama	Iquique
15/01/2014	Iquique	Antofagasta
16/01/2014	Antofagasta	El Salvador
17/01/2014	El Salvador	La Serena
18/01/2014	La Serena	Valparaíso

As they did last year, the 2014 Dakar will be shown on television in the USA on the NBC Sports Network.  Apparently, according to a tweet by Leigh Diffey, the first show will be on January 4, 2014.  I expect that the daily TV schedule will be the same as last year with an early morning daily summary, about 2:00AM on the east coast, then a daily re-air at about 4:00PM on the east coast.  Check your TV listing for details.

I looked at the 2014 Dakar entry list and it appears that all of the usual suspects will be competing this year.  I am pleased that once again Robby Gordon will be competing in his Hummer.  Frankly, I would like to see him win the Dakar.  He certainly has paid his Dakar dues over the years.  However it is very difficult to win the Dakar as a one-car team.

Robby Gordon And His Hummer Will Be Back For The 2014 Dakar

There will be a substantial Mini team with a number of experienced drivers.  The Mini competitors will be hard to beat.

I will have more details about this event as it approaches .  If you have a chance to watch this event, then I would advise you to do so.  The scenes from the Dakar are always spectacular.