Martin Kolomý Still Taking Seventh Place after Drama and Trouble!
The piste surface and profile had been supposed to be tailor-made for both Tatra and Martin Kolomý. The first section of the Special Stage indicated that, indeed! However, soon petty problems occurred; Martin was finally happy to retain the seventh place in the overall rankings before tackling Van Vliet.
Prior to the start of the Special Stage was nearly 400-km liasion from the bivouac site in Calama, at an altitude of nearly 5,000m, in temperatures below zero! During the SS, 371km in length, truck crews climbed to altitude of 4,500m. The extreme conditions did not affect Martin Kolomý's perfect start, and he would set the pace in the first kilometres.
Nevertheless, soon the problems with steering gear came up taking two repairs, each of them would be twenty minutes in length. Martin Kolomý, therefore, is happy to take no better but twenty-fourth place today. Yet, he is still taking the seventh place in the rankings after Stage 10 due to slim margins and the superb finish.
"I still have a lot to learn, it's clear. What's a shame I learnt a lesson just in the stage that should have been perfect for us. We'd trusted ourselves, so we did feel bad about this failure. We must analyse that with the Tatra Buggyra Racing team, and use the experience we've paid dearly for in next stages," Martin Kolomý said bitterly.
David Vršecký, who had come to the Dakar as an expert on chassis adjustment, commented on the trouble: "We've tested a lot this year, we've covered thousands of kilometres, and checked every component out. However, it is only here, in the Dakar, when we can compare testing with real conditions that are impossible to simulate anywhere, like pebbled riverbed, altitudes of 4,500m, and the like. We know, we must practise more in dunes; what we've learnt today is that we must also simulate burden on some parts at high altitudes and in below-zero temperatures. Nevertheless, it's the second time we've been here, to the Dakar, and made gear up our race special, Tatra, at the very high level. We believe we're able to face competition, and we know that we can't notch up great success here, in the world's hardest rally, right off."
Results - Stage 10 (359 km): 1st Nikolaev (RUS), Kamaz, 4:18:17; 2nd Mardeev (RUS), Kamaz, +0:49; 3rd Viazovich (BLR), Maz + 1:19; 4th Loprais (CZE), MAN, 4:42; 19th Vrátný (CZE), Tatra, +30:00; 25th Kolomý (CZE), Tatra, +43:19
Rankings after Stage 10: 1st Mardeev (RUS), Kamaz, 36:11:56; 2nd Nikolaev (RUS), Kamaz, +13:21; 3rd Karginov (RUS), Kamaz, +42:46; 4th Loprais (CZE), MAN, +1:22:10; 7th Kolomý (CZE), Tatra, + 4:05:08; 14th Vrátný (CZE), Tatra, +9:14:50
For ÈSMS Miroslav Forman, Calama Chile
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