African Dust – Rally du Moroc – part 9

I wake up a bit early.  I get up and assess my condition.  I feel better!  I take a shower.  I feel good.  The aches and pains are gone!  The demon has left my body!  I can race today!  Wow!  I get suited up.  Hold on there big fella – I’m not ok -but better.  I think I can do it.  I take the dramamine and the diarrhea meds early.  I go to breakfast.  They are excited to see me.  It’s on!

I learned that because I started yesterday but didn’t finish, I’m still in the rally.  I just got a huge penalty – something like 16 hours.  So now I just want to see how I can do today and just finish the rally.  In Dakar, I’d be out.  But here the rules are different and I am still in!

We start near last at 11:54am since we did not finish the day before.  But the liason is only 40 km today and the special (dirt race part) is 309 km, or 192 miles.  The course was fast and we never stopped.  We made some passes.  Lots of guys broke their cars – but not us.  This is where we’d be catching up in the overall standings if we had not missed a day. 

We finish 19^th of 38!  Consistent and getting better.  I feel even better at the end of the race day than at the beginning.  I am reborn!  I eat a big meal.  Rokas won the championship yesterday, but broke his car today.  So did the factory Can Am team.  They fixed them and finished. 

Day ten of the trip was the last Stage – Stage 5.  We had a 120 km liaison and a 279 km special.  One hour before we had to get in the car I start feeling sick again.  I was sweating and really worried.  I got in the car.  The whole process was getting routine now.  Less stress. 

The course was very fast today.  We were at 100 km an hour for much of it.  Only one car passed us all day.  Rokas broke his car again today.  We passed about 12 UTV’s that were broken.  Often they miss a rain rut and go in hard and break a wheel or suspension part.  70 km from the finish we hear a bang in the front end.  Bruno thinks it’s the front wheel drive.  We switch to two-wheel drive and go on. 

Today we finish 18^th – our best yet!  We cross the finish line at the bivouac and, to my relief, they award us finisher medals.  I felt like I earned that one. 

Bruno and I sit down at the South Racing tent and crack our first beer of the trip.  But I couldn’t finish it.  I was exhausted and my stomach was still not right.

Many thanks to Bruno – I couldn’t do it without him.  And I gratefully acknowledge South Racing and the entire team.  It was one of the most impressive businesses I’ve ever experienced.  They truly went out of their way to give a stranger and great experience in the wilds of Northeast Africa.  Also thanks to Braulio, Tomas, Francisco, AnnMarie, Anna, and the rest of the team.

My stomach has PTSD when I hear the word “Morocco”.  The effects lasted for ten more days after I got home.  I think it was food poisoning. 

Who would have thought a poor kid from Bridgeport Connecticut would wind up finishing this epic race in this epic place?  Nobody.  Except the kid – and that’s all that matters.

Who would think you would ________________________________ ?

You?

Rally du Moroc.  It wasn’t easy.  But I did it, and I have the memory the rest of my life – or at least as long as I have my memory!