Rallye du Maroc 2023
After a summer break it is time to get rolling again for the 2023 edition of the Rally Du Maroc.
We are using the new 2024 model bikes that have been build up from scratch again to fully function up to our standards. To give the new bikes a good shakedown and give the riders te opportunity to test the bike and get the feeling with riding and navigation back before the start of the race.
To ensure the best quality of riding and navigation we teamed up with Lyndon Poskitt. He organizes rally training schools and we were very pleased to be able to join in on one of his weeks to do our shakedown.
the quality of the roadbooks and overall organization and safety aspects of his rally school are top tier and blend in very well with the our vision on how it should be.
After completing the training the team left Spain to head to Morocco. We attended the race with 5 riders.
Axel Mustad (NOR), Ganzorig Chuluun (MON), John Spelier (NLD), Fabian Von Thuengen (PRY) and Wes Carr (USA).
10 March 2023
Recap Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge 2023
After a week of rest the team got going again to prepare for the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge.
In the UAE, HT Rally Raid teams up with SRG Motorsport. We can use their facilities and equipment to provide the best service possible.
The bikes had been transported straight from Saudi Arabia to the workshop of SRG where we could tear the bikes down and prepare them again for the upcoming race.
While the mechanics were working hard on the bikes, the riders got the opportunity to train in the dunes of Dubai under the guidance of one of SRG’s guides.
This edition we had 4 riders at the start.
Pierre Saeys (BE), Ganzorig Chuluun (MO), Alissa Harkin (CAN) and Wes Carr (USA)
For Pierre it was his second race with us but the other 3 were going into their first experience in the World Championship. Luckily they had already build up some confidence riding in Dubai.
All 4 riders rode an excellent race, improving each day and showing that they were learning from the difficult and tough stages in the dunes of Abu Dhabi.
after 5 very warm and long days the whole team made it back into downtown Abu Dhabi where they crossed the finish podium and earned their points for their qualification for the 2024 Dakar Rally.
24 January 2023
Big succes in Dakar 2023!
In this years edition of the Dakar rally we cross through the kingdom of Saudi Arabia covering almost 9000km of desert.
The HT team consisted of 8 riders from all over the world:
6 December 2022
HT Rider Mirjam Pol dual world champion
HT team rider Mirjam pol has managed to make it to the top step of the podium in the world championship Rally women’s after a season long battle with close racing in all races. With a final decision in the Rallye du Maroc Mirjam managed to put the title to her name!
But that is not all! She has also got the title of world champion Baja in her class after a good performance in the Baja Dubai.
Congratulations on this performance Mirjam! Now on to the Dakar 2023.
21 October 2022
Recap Rally du Maroc 2022
For this years edition of the Rallye du Maroc we headed to Morocco to assist 8 riders.
Before the race we went to Lyndon Poskitt training camp with the team to break in the bikes, let the riders get a feel for the bike and also give the riders the opportunity to get very good advice and tips from Lyndon on all aspects of rally racing.
after 3 very good but already tough days of riding the team and riders headed to Morocco for the rally.
The race took off with the prologue in Agadir. Stage 1 took the rally from Agadir to the first desert bivouac in Tan-Tan. All riders made it through showing good speed and navigation.
Stage 2 Tan-tan to Laayoune already took out our first rider. after struggling with the heat in the large dunes he was taken out of the race by the race control.
For stage 3 the team could stay in the bivouac of Laayoune as the stage was a loop around the bivouac. Today the riders faced a lot of big dangers in the roadbook and unfortunately another team rider had to give up after a big crash. Luckily he was not severely injured and could stay with the team to support the rest.
Stage 4 took the riders back along the coast from Laayoune to Tan-tan. With a long and tough stage all riders were in for a challenge. With the tricky moroccan desert it was bad luck again with another crashed rider having to pull out of the rally with a shoulder injury.
The final stage was the last pull to make it back to Agadir. Even with being the last stage this was nothing close to an easy one. 379KM made it a very long way to the finish line!
With 6 of our 8 riders on the finish line and luckily no big injuries we are very proud of all riders and of course team members for making this happen.
20 January 2022
Rally Schedule 2022
2021 is coming to an end. We are a few days before the start of the Dakar Rally and finalized our 2022 calender. All rallies are part of the World Championship.
Our rally schedule:
Dakar Rally: 1-14th January 2022
Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge: 5-10 March 2022
Kazachstan: 26-30 April 2022 (optional)
Andalucia Rally: 8-12 June 2022 (optional)
Rallye du Maroc: 6-12 October 2022
31 December 2021
Heading to Dakar with 7 riders
With only a few days to the start of the rally, the team is counting down the days. With 8375km of which 4258 km of SS in 12 specials it will be a tough one again. The Dakar Rally will be hosted in Saudi Arabia for the third time and with the astonishing landscapes over there, it is something to look forward to. With seven riders in the team, one bike in malle-moto and 8 people in the assistance crew, HT Rally Raid will jump into the plan next Monday. Hereby, we proudly introduce the 7 riders in our team for Dakar 2022.
Xavier de Soultrait #12
He experienced the rare privilege of leading the Dakar general classification. Last season, Xavier de Soultrait transformed. After leaving the professional Yamaha team with whom he has seven participations in the rally-raid, the native of Moulins took on a new challenge by becoming a “privateer” with HT Rally Raid. The change was a positive one. He was in the top 10 of the general classification after six stages and even led at the end of day four. Xavier was surprised by his ease and ability to resist everything as well as not make any mistakes. But on stage eight, he fell and broke a vertebra and was forced to retire. It was the fourth time in eight Dakars that Xavier didn’t finish. However, the Husqvarna rider knows that he has to go through this, too, to have the luxury of excelling and one day winning overall. While he has been offered the challenge of competing in a car, he prefers to stay with the bike. He welcomed his second child this year and knows that he will have to deal with the discomfort that can sometimes arise in his neck after a long day on the bike. It was notably the case in October at the Morocco rally (14th). But this doesn’t mean that he is less motivated: Xavier is ready to give it his all, once again, to get back to the top.
Mirjam Pol #40
Since she was a toddler at the age of 4 Mirjam Pol, our Dutch woman in the team, is riding motorbikes. In 2006 she took part in the Dakar Rally for the first time at the age of 22. After starting 8 Dakars and finishing 7 of them (on all 3 continents!) this experienced rider will take the start in 2022 again. With the victory in the women’s class in the World Cup Baja 2021, she is ready for the Dakar!
Walter Roelants #67
Walter, from Belgium, will join the team again for his second Dakar. Living on adrenaline from morning to night, riding his motorcycle through the most incredibale landscapes and toughest terrain, meeting other people… he would like to experience that again. Good luck in your second Dakar Walter!
Jack Lundin #107
Jack Lundin’s journey to the Dakar rally actually started as soon as the early 2000s. At the time, the young Canadian boy was following with passion the exploits of his dad Lukas who managed to finish the event twice in four attempts (43rd in 2000 and 35th in 2002). Jack was only 11 when his father battled it out on the tracks of Africa but already his dream was to participate himself. Years went by and from motocross, he turned to desert racing, even working for the Baja 1000 when he was only 13. His first appearance on the Dakar came in 2018. At the time he was working for the family gold mining company in Ecuador so the trip to Peru wasn’t a long one. He managed to finish the event in 77th position. Two years later, he had the clear ambition to return to the race and discover Saudi Arabia. Sadly a crash during the Merzouga Rally and a broken femur and arm forced him to postpone his quest to discover a new territory. Based in Guatemala for professional reasons, he is now fit enough to return to the rally of his dreams. After competing in the Baja 250 and Baja 1000, Jack will be part of our team and his goal remains to finish, hopefully doing better than his first attempt.
Diego Noras: #122
This Argentinian rider has an extreme passion for motorsports. As a dedicated rider he participated in many competitions, and even represented his country in the International Six Days Enduros in the junior category. As a dad of two children, husband and civil engineer by profession, he now ventures into rally-raid. After participating and finishing the Rally du Maroc, he will make his debute in the Dakar Rally with the goal of finishing the toughest race in the world.
Stephan Preuss #151
‘Together we are strong!’ Stephan is the older brother of the two “Preuss Brothers” in our team. It took a long time to prepare this family trip. Stephan made his first steps into the rally business in the Marlboro Adventure Team in 1997 in Canada and Utah, but it became finally serious in the Tuareg Rallye in Morocco on the old playground of the Dakar Rally. Gaining Cross Country World Cup know-how and skills by competing in the 2012 Pharaons Rallye in Egypt and many editions of the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge, Stephan is now ready for the biggest adventure of his life, so far…
Thomas Preuss #152
‘Brothers are the best team players!’ Thomas “Tommy” is the young gun of the “Preuss Brothers”. This venture capital investor is a talented german enduro rider. Two and a half years younger, he learned the necessary rally navigation skills from his brother. Thomas’ great riding skills with the high quality of his navigation are a perfect setup for the upcoming Dakar Rally in Saudi Arabia. His wife Katja and his sons Leo ( 8 ) and Max (4) will follow the race in Hamburg on every channel. Thomas: “One of my biggest dreams become true – since I was in the age of my boys, I was following the Dakar on TV, but never thought that I will be there one day” Thomas can´t wait to start the race!
18 June 2020
New schedule due to the corona virus
Due to the corona virus, a lot has happened in the rally world over the last few weeks.
– Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge has been postponed
– Merzouga Rally is cancelled
So far, Rally Kazachstan will go on from 24-29 may 2020. We will be there.
Besides that, we also join the Silk Way Rally from the 3rd of july untill the 11th of july.
Our schedule, after those modifications:
Rally Kazakstan: 24-29 May 2020
Silk Way Rally: 3-11 July 2020
Rally du Maroc: 8-14 October 2020
The postponed ADDC and Baja Dubai??
Dakar Rally: January 2021
Do you join us on one of those rallies?
05 Januari 2021
First succes in Dakar
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