Not only has the route been changed but so has the name. Now it will be called the Dakar Series which will take place in three stages. The first stage will start on April 11th in Budapest and finish in Hungary and Romania. The second stage will begin in Portugal in September and then they race through Spain and Portugal from Buenos Aries Argentina to Chile and then return to Buenos Aries for the finish.

This video is a bit unsettling in more ways than one. We’ve all heard that it’s not safe for a US military vehicle to come to a stop in downtown Baghdad, and this video shows how these guys must drive to stay alive. Clearly the US Army sends their drivers to the Robby Gordon Baja school of traffic avoidance. It’s a bit scary to think how many pedestrians get caught out by the fast moving monsters, but I guess this falls into the you gotta do what you gotta do category.

Thanks to Autoblog for opening our eyes.

Dakar is done for another year. The Mitsubishi team won in the car division, capitalizing on their reliability, rather than outright speed. That is not to say they were slow by any means, but reliability is king in any endurance event. The HUMMER of Robby Gordon and Team Dakar USA finished a well deserved 8th. Reliability and bad luck prevented a better finish, but they cranked off a stage win and a number of top 5 stage finishes. The team did a great job overall.

So why is it that the Monster Energy HUMMER crew received such poor coverage in the televised coverage?
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With Dakar now over, we all know the final results, thanks to the speed of the internet, but editing still takes time. Here we have the Team Dakar USA video from the second last day. Robby Gordon has the look of someone who feels a bit disappointed. Don’t be. In only your second season, you’ve won a stage and finished in the top ten in a 2 wheel drive truck as compared to the killer 4 wheel drives from VW and Mitsubishi. Job well done, and don’t you forget it!

Days press release after the break

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Between the layover day in Africa, and the weekend we’ve missed a day’s Dakar news, so today we get a double dose of Dakar from Team Dakar USA.

Press releases for stage 12 & 13 and stage 13 video after the break
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What can we say about today? Well, today proves that no matter how much money you have, how well prepared you are or how professional your team is, there is always a learning curve leading up to a win. The Monster HUMMER was the fastest beast on the road today, but fell victim to a kinked fuel hose. Once again, the giant is felled by a mouse of a problem. They managed to keep their 8th place position overall though, and the confidence level is high that they will win the remaining stages.

Be sure to visit the Team Dakar USA site, and visit their corporate partners. Without their support, the team likely wouldn’t be publishing these great videos.

Team Dakar USA press release after the break

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As the 2007 Dakar gets closer to the end, Team Dakar USA continues to move up the scoreboard. A strong performance on Stage 9, along with failures from 2 of the VW powerhouse have moved the HUMMER up to 8th place overall in the cars. If all keeps going their way, a top 5 finish could be a real possibility. Today’s video includes more killer in car.

Today’s Team Dakar USA press release after the break
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The longest stage so far, and Robby Gordon had to baby the HUMMER to conserve fuel. A 589 Km special stage! Until you’ve driven a stage rally, you can’t begin to comprehend how tough this must be. Years ago, at the Tall Pines Rally, we ran a stage that was about 37 or so Km long. At the time, it was the longest stage in Canada and it was exhausting. I just can’t imagine a stage of almost 600 km. Continued strong finishes and Team Dakar USA has broken into the top ten.

Team Dakar USA press release after the break

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A stage win and a couple of good finishes have moved Robby Gordon back up into 10th place overall. Really, the team has done a great job. In the televised show of stage 7, it was funny to see the VW’s gingerly picking their way over some train tracks. Suddenly, there was the Monster HUMMER flying through the air over the tracks, leaving the VW’s in it’s dust. Very cool.

In today’s video from team Dakar USA, wartch near the end for the helicopter on the left. Well over 100 mph, 20 or 30 feet off the desert sand. Wild.

Team Dakar USA press release after the break
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We knew he could do it. Robby Gordon is the first American to win a stage on the Dakar. With rain damping the dust, Gordon took advantage of the conditions to take the win on stage 6. This moved him up to 19th position overall.

Team Dakar USA press release after the break
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