Video: Insane weather causes Dakar carnage
You could never describe the Dakar as boring or predictable but for this year’s event, the Saudi Arabian sands are really throwing a few curveballs. A word not often synonymous with deserts: flooding.
That’s right, extreme local weather events have meant Dakar competitors have had flash flooding to contend with – rivers have appeared in places that were once bone dry. Combine fast-flowing water with relatively loose sand and you get extremely difficult points to pass, as we can see in the above video. We observe from a helicopter’s eye view, as Kamaz trucks work to help free Can Am buggies, sunk in the surging water.
With a camera down on the ground, we get a proper view of just how fast-flowing the floodwater is, meaning the buggies must be seriously dug in to not be swept away. Of course, the wet sand on the banks means the trucks are having grip issues of their own. Only in the Dakar…
Dakar
Dakar 2023
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