DAKAR Stage 8 : le Renault Duster 25é au scratch

#RenaultDusterTeam ; Emiliano Spataro et Benjamín Lozada ont terminé la huitième étape en 44e position et sont 25° au général. "Nos guerriers continuent à combattre dans la compétition plus sévère au monde." se félicite Renault Argentine

DAKAR stage 8 : ALRAJDI dans la cour des grands

Impressionnant depuis le début de son premier Dakar, Yazeed Alrajhi aura finalement dû attendre la huitième étape pour décrocher son premier succès sur le plus exigeant des rallye-raids. Une victoire de prestige qui confirme le talent du pilote Saoudien, encore en course pour la victoire finale.

Vainqueur du rallye d'Egypte devant l'actuel leader du général Nasser Al-Attiyah, Yazeed Alrajhi n'est pas un inconnu des spécialistes de la discipline. Mais pour son tout premier Dakar, le Saoudien abordait ce nouveau challenge avec humilité et des ambitions de Top 10. Il ne s'attendait en tout cas certainement pas à remporter sa première victoire dès la fin de la première semaine sur l'étape prestigieuse traversant le majestueux Salar d'Uyuni. Mais plus qu'un nouveau vainqueur d'étape sur le Dakar, Alrajhi a également pris une nouvelle dimension aujourd'hui en rappelant qu'à 18 minutes d'Al-Attiyah au général, il reste tout à fait en lice pour remporter la timbale dès son premier Dakar.

Il offre en tout cas à Toyota son premier succès depuis le départ, une tâche qui paraissait dévolue à Giniel de Villiers, en avance sur le reste de ses adversaires après 746 km de spéciale. Mais le Sud-africain a finalement perdu de précieuses minutes dans les dernières dunes menant à Iquique et laisse échapper quelques secondes de plus à Al-Attiyah. Pas concerné par ce duel pour le leadership du classement général, Orlando Terranova confirme pour sa part sa bonne forme du moment après sa victoire de la veille avec une deuxième place à 1'12'' du vainqueur du jour. Krzysztof Holowczyc cède lui 3'12'', mais profite de la mauvaise journée de Bernhard Ten Brinke pour conforter sa quatrième place au classement général.

En camion, avec déjà cinq victoires en huit étapes disputées, Eduard Nikolaev a encore démontré à Iquique qu'il était sans conteste le plus rapide en piste au volant de son Kamaz. Un cinquième succès obtenu avec plus de onze minutes d'avance sur Gerard De Rooy à l'arrivée qui lui permet de remonter ce soir au troisième rang du classement général derrière ses coéquipiers Airat Mardeev et Andrey Karginov, sous pression.

Yazeed Al-Rajhi has been impressive since the start of his maiden Dakar, but he had to wait until the eighth stage to claim his first win in the toughest rally raid in the world. This prestigious triumph confirms the talent of the Saudi driver, still very much in the running for overall glory.

Yazeed Al-Rajhi, who won the Rally of Egypt ahead of current leader Nasser Al-Attiyah, is not an unfamiliar name among fans of the sport. However, the Saudi tackled the challenge of his maiden Dakar humbly, with his sights set on a top 10 finish. What is for sure is that he did not expect to claim his first win at the end of the first stage of the prestigious stage through the jaw-dropping Salar de Uyuni. Al-Rajhi has become more than just a new Dakar stage winner, taking on a new dimension today by moving up to within 18 minutes of Al-Attiyah in the general classification and keeping his chances open to win the Dakar in his first attempt.
He also netted Toyota its first win this year, an honour that seemed to have Giniel de Villiers' name on it after he outperformed the rest of the field in the first 746 km of today's special. However, the South African lost a few precious minutes on the last dunes before Iquique and conceded a few more seconds to Al-Attiyah. Orlando Terranova, no longer concerned about the general classification, followed up on yesterday's victory with a second place in today's stage, 1′12″ behind the winner. Krzysztof Hołowczyc lost 3′12″ but capitalised on Bernhard ten Brinke's bad day at the office to consolidate his hold on fourth place overall.
Meanwhile, in the truck category, with five stages out of eight under his belt, Eduard Nikolaev and his Kamaz were once again head and shoulders above the rest in Iquique. His fifth win came with the added bonus of putting over eleven minutes into Gerard de Rooy on the finish line, pushing the Russian driver up to third overall behind teammates Ayrat Mardeev and Andrey Karginov and piling the pressure on them.

The Zadig Motorcyles Salander Model

The Zadig Motorcyles Salander Model from Zadig Motorcycles on Vimeo.

Cushman Scooter with Harley Davidson Sportster Power

You know you want it and it's for sale

BY PAUL CROWE

Harley Sportster powered Cushman scooter

We've written this scooter up before, it's a 1961 Cushman with a Harley Sportster 1200cc engine in place of the little single the factory mounted in there. What is there to say? It's very cool, looks great, lots of awards in shows, goes over 100 mph and you'll be the only guy in town that has one.

Harley Sportster powered Cushman scooter

Link: Harley Powered Cushman on eBay

Spot your dream car at the London Classic Car Show 2015

The inaugural London Classic Car Show got off to a fine start yesterday evening, with a diverse array of dream classics – many of which are currently for sale – completing their maiden parade laps around the Grand Avenue…

Catwalk stars included a pre-production Range Rover and a stunning Ferrari Cal’ Spider, with the dynamic display adding a new dimension to the normal car-show formula. First to take to the stage was a Lotus Elan Sprint formerly owned by Adrian Newey’s father, with which the F1 mastermind was unexpectedly reunited after many years. Elsewhere, he and James May’s self-curated exhibitions proved popular, with the Top Gear host selecting the Corgi model of James Bond’s Aston Martin DB5 (complete with ejector seat) as his most significant car ever produced.

Numerous dealers also put on a show of their own. Nicholas Mee & Co. and Eagle E-Types were particularly well-represented, the former showing one of only 22 Prince of Wales-spec Aston Martin V8 Vantage Volantes produced, and the latter displaying its Speedster and Low-Drag Coupé specials. Whether you’re in the market for a dream car or merely want to revel in the sights, sounds and smells of the 20th Century’s finest, the London Classic Car Show runs until Sunday 11 January and comes highly recommended; you can read our series of preview articles here.