Another Dakar for Ingo

By: STAFF REPORTER

THE Dakar Rally organisers have accepted Ingo Waldschmidt’s entry for next year’s race.

An ecstatic Waldschmidt yesterday confirmed his third participation in the gruelling off-road challenge.
“With great relief I would like to let you all know that my entry for the Dakar 2013 has been accepted! This was a rather nerve-wracking experience and finally I have got clarity and the official go-ahead,” he said in a statement.
Waldschmidt decided to sign up for the epic rally after being offered a brand new KTM 450cc Rally Replica by Brain Enslin of Square Cafe in Windhoek.
Waldschmidt used a 690cc Rally Replica in the previous two Dakars where he placed 52nd out of 235 entrants in 2009 and 38th  out of 200 last year in Chile.
“I have dropped proposals with numerous sponsors of the past, but with my new budget being somewhat higher than in the past, I need to go see a lot more potential sponsors to wrap this up. I basically got five months left, and that is really pushing the limit.” he said.
He has already teamed up with Zambian national Dave Reeve, who is attempting to become the first from his country to conquer the Dakar.
“Dave is an old friend of mine, we race each other at least once every year, and he is normally the faster out of us two. He is a crop and game farmer back in Zambia, so the two of us make a good combination as team mates.
The nice part is that we are good friends and that we can help each other out if need be at the Dakar, and obviously with all the preparation that goes into a long-distance rally like the Dakar,” Waldschmidt said.

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