UAE Desert Challenge 2009

[TeamSaluki]

Team Saluki : Desert Challenge 2009 D-Day -2 - Scrutineering

What I hear you cry - it can't be a year already since we last heard about the exploits of Team Saluki in the Desert Challenge. You'll be glad to know that your memory is indeed correct - it's only been six months since it last ran. The organisers have opted to bring it forward to stop it potentially clashing with a parade race when it comes to Abu Dhabi later on this year, commonly known as F1.

So here we are again - it's almost the end of March and Team Saluki have been feverishly working away with a shortened timescale to get things ready for the 2009 Challenge.

We have completed some major diagnosis, rectification and testing since last years event. The problems we had with the engine last year we believe we've got cracked for this year and our 2nd place result in the Hail Saudi Arabia Baja holds testament to this.

Today we all took the short trip (260Km round trip) from Dubai down to Abu Dhabi where the challenge is starting and finishing this year. The reason for the trip was for the scrutineering which confirms that the vehicle conforms to the FIA regulations and that the drivers are valid to race. You'll be glad to know that we're good to go and ready for the prologue event which takes place tomorrow also in Abu Dhabi.

We've attached a small map to give you an idea of what's happening and where.


This year we have a remapped engine and we also have a new driver. Our existing driver, Mark Powell, has had to take the back seat in a two seater car due to revised work commitments leaving Glen Reid to take the driving seat. Glen has competed in past Desert Challenges and originally comes from New Zealand but we won't hold that against him. Joining Glen up front in his normal seat as co-driver is Paul Richards.


After completing scrutineering the major players of the team pose with the Saluki in a rogues gallery kind of moment. Left to right we have Driver - Glen Reid, Team Principal - Mark Powell and Co-Driver - Paul Richards.


This year we're running with two on-board video cameras and as soon as time permits we'll get edited versions of the footage out to you. We already know that the major TV networks that are covering the event have in the past seen our on-board footage and are keen to receive it again to get the viewers closer to the action so yet again - Team Saluki will be coming to a TV screen near you shortly.

A brief look inside the Saluki from Paul's side of the Saluki. Two video capture devices, trip counters, satellite navigation and a host of other buttons to look after as well as advising Glen on where to go - no time for slacking here.



This years the "Team" compromises a small but dedicated group looking after the interests of the Saluki.

In alphabetical order we have :

Craig McAteer - Media Chief
Girish Kumar - Mechanic
James Thomas - Team Manager
Laurie Bridger - Webmaster
Lee Ashley - General Service
Mark Adams - Engine Management
Martin Double - General Service
Rick Galman - Chief Mechanic


We'll get another update out to you tomorrow after the prologue with our status.

Regards
Team Saluki

[beretta]

Keep the pics and updates coming!

I thought it seemed like "just yesterday" you were posting this up!

Good luck too!

[TeamSaluki]

Team Saluki - DC2009 D-DAY -1 The Prologue

The dog's out of the kennel and shows it is interested in going for a long walk in the dunes.

Today was the prologue, held on a piece of very rough waste land in Abu Dhabi as shown on the map yesterday. The track was tight and twisty and in places ran alongside the seawall leaving little room for mistakes unless you consider a side on impact with five feet of concrete made by one of our support sponsors - MBMix, at high speed nothing to worry about.

Starting the prologue in position eleven, the dog stretched it's legs and completed the stage with the Saluki finishing in a commendable 4th place with a time, 15 seconds behind the leader, Guerlain Chicherit in his BMW.




For Glen's first drive in anger at the wheels of the Saluki the team thought he did a cracking job on the slippery course where others found difficulty coping with the dusty and rock strewn surface.



At the end of the prologue one of the tyres was showing a drop in tyre pressure so that's been replaced and the suspect tyre taken away this evening for repair leaving the Castrol EDGE buggy at the Abu Dhabi Marine Club overnight ready for it's big walk in the desert tomorrow morning.

You can follow our progress in real-time by following this link and changing the dropdown box to read ETAPE 1 Abu Dhabi to Moreeb for tomorrows racing. We start at 9:30 (UAE Time) for the ceremonial start at the Emirates Palace hotel where the Saluki will leave to begin the race in the middle of nowhere heading for the Empty Quarter.

Follow our live progress while the race is on

Stage Timing and results for previous stages





Dog handlers, Glen and Paul, pleased with their progress at the prologue.

Ooops we did a round table yesterday evening to make sure that we had captured everyone who was part of the "Team" - and forgot a last minute stand-in who is assisting our team. We apologise and didn't mean to exclude you.


Dave Lowe - update distribution chief.


James, Martin and Lee have headed off early to establish Base Camp Saluki at Moreeb Hill ensuring that our beds, tents and living environment is ready for the rest of the teams arrival. We've had the on-site weather report from the camp and coming from someone who lives in Dubai and is acclimatised to the heat it's officially "Hot hot hot!"

Regards
Team Saluki

[TeamSaluki]

Team Saluki - DC2009 D-Day

Today's the official start of the Desert Challenge so it's up and out early and wheels are rolling at 5:30am. Rick, Girish and Mark are in the Duellie (the Saluki support truck), Craig and Glen take the Honda Pilot and we pick up Laurie en-route to Abu Dhabi. We arrive on-time in Abu Dhabi and take our places for the ceremonial start which takes place at the luxurious Emirates Palace Hotel.



Upon leaving the start the Castrol EDGE buggy heads out through rush hour traffic in Abu Dhabi and along with everyone else in the race becomes victim to a jack-knifed truck which has blocked three of the four lanes on the E11 highway slowing progress out of the city to a crawl. The end result was the the Saluki was two minutes late for the official start (along with many other competitors) but it was duly noted in the log and the race began in earnest.

A good day in the dunes was how Paul described it with one small niggling problem - the Saluki suffered a bit of a limp. About 80 Km from the finish the Saluki lost 3rd gear. This meant that for the last section of the race the guys were racing changing between 2nd and 4th gear. Glen commented that the downside to this is that when running in 2nd gear there's not enough airflow to keep cool in the car. Perhaps we should tell them that they are here to race, not to stay cool- If we're not careful the guys will be asking for ice-cream makers to be installed. Regardless of their need for cooling they did successfully manage to complete todays stage and given the current position (at time of writing) places them in 5th place.




In an attempt to bring you some more action shots Laurie and Craig headed into the dunes to get away from the madding crowd and to seek out some good locations. In the mid-day Sun Laurie managed to get himself stuck - he calls it parked but he was definitely stuck and required the assistance of tyre pressures being reduced as well as some muscle power from Craig. What did Craig get in thanks - a head and ear full of sand thanks to the spinning wheels. You be the judge - does Laurie look parked or stuck ?





We have all turned up at the camp, expertly arranged by James, Lee and Martin. We will get an overview shot of the camp so you've got a better understanding of the location.

The Saluki is currently going over a checkup and investigation into the failure of the 3rd gear in readiness for tomorrows race which sees the Saluki heading westward.



If you're interested in actually seeing how the Castrol EDGE buggy actually performs there is on our YouTube site a short edit of the Saluki in action at yesterdays prologue. You'll find the footage if you click here

Regards
Team Saluki


Team Saluki - Day 2 - We're in and then out for the day.


The gearbox that had lost 3rd gear was removed and replaced yesterday evening leaving the Saluki ready for todays race. It was a late night for the service crew given yesterdays early start and it shows on their faces this morning.



The Castrol EDGE buggy headed out to the start line, some 81Km from our camp all via road.



The Saluki started the stage but after two GPS waypoints, a suspect clutch which had caused them problems on the road section called and end to todays racing. The guys decided that it was wise to withdraw for the day. Glen when interviewed at the finish line where they ended their brief day in the dunes summed it up. "We got to the start line and actually started the stage, but the clutch had been playing up and the master cylinder seal had gone. We thought it better to come back and fix it, take a stage penalty and start tomorrow, rather than risk getting stuck in the dunes and lose two days." A wise choice I'm sure you'll agree.

At least five of the other competitors are in the same category as the Saluki - not being able to reach even as far as Checkpoint 1. It seems that the desert is taking no mercy today. The stage is still underway at the time of writing but it looks like there will be even more competitors fail to complete todays stage.

The rest of the team, scattered four ways to the wind to check the Saluki's progress at various received the bad news on the clutch failure via either SMS message or a phone call. It's not good news to receive - especially when you've been in the sun for two hours waiting on the Saluki to pass.

Looking forward, as we must, sees tomorrows stage head westward again and the weather forecast is for it only to get hotter. I'm sure our drivers are going to love it.





Regards
Team Saluki

[Busiboy]

Awsesome work guys, keep the updates coming, the youtube link and photos are very cool

[TeamSaluki]

Team Saluki - Abu Dhabi DC2009 - Day 3 - The dog stretches its legs.

It's been a hot day here in the Empty Quarter with temperatures outside reaching 41ºC, and as far as the race is concerned we've had transmission failures, suspension failures, vehicle fires and another failure to finish the stage. You'll be glad to know that none of these involved the Castrol EDGE Buggy.

The Saluki left the camp this morning wanting to stretch its legs after being laid up after clutch problems, the mechanics having worked their magic and fixed the issue yesterday evening.

In the morning the rest of the team members split up as always to ensure that the Saluki passes the control points and everyones kept informed of it's progress. Some of them established themselves at Passage Control (PC) One and settled in for the long wait given that the Saluki had began the day in 18th place.

They were amazed when they saw the Saluki racing up to the check point in 5th place.




Glen and Paul had managed to overtake 13 cars in the first 167Km of the race, an outstanding return to the race. Checks on the tracking system reveal that the Saluki had made it to PC2 and the Service point in 1st place - making it the fastest car on the route to that point.

Arriving at the service area - drinks were ready for all of them - water for the drivers and fuel for the Saluki, a minor top up of the gearbox oil (thanks Rick for getting your hands into an area that was adjacent to a very hot exhaust system in a very hot car).

The rest of the day seemed to be more of the same - the Saluki hunting down it's prey and showing it's return to full health in cracking style.





By the time the Castrol EDGE buggy had made it's way back to the finish line, the car is placed a provisional third place for the day (as always at time of writing).

The guys debriefed the mechanics on issues that they'd experienced during the day - minor things like small bodywork problems and a couple of warning lights for high temperature had cropped up during the day. Given that the vehicle was operating in 40ºC heat, the drivers reported it cooler inside than it was earlier in the week. Diagnostics on the engine management system has reported the following maximum temperatures for those with a technical mind. Water 104ºC, Air intake 59ºC, Gearbox oil 120ºC and Engine oil 120ºC.

Tomorrows stage sees the race head to the East of our camp, and the route is below for your information.




Don't forget that you can follow our progress at the following site Choose ETAPE 4 for tomorrows race.

We're looking forward to tomorrow. If this progress continues we may have to get that ice-cream maker installed for the guys as a treat.

Regards
Team Saluki

[v840]

Sweet. Thanks for sharing.

[Hekta]

That truck looks awesome man! I'm sorry I missed the previous thread. I'll have to go have a read

[bogged]

good stuff.. nice to see something different and high speed!

[mr_incredible]

awesome work guys any chance of some video footage????????????

[TeamSaluki]

Team Saluki - DC2009 - Day 4 - I don't think we've got a bonnet anymore.


A not so hot day in the Empty Quarter - the temperature barely reached above 40ºC, however the wind has picked up causing severe sand storms and the obvious issues that this causes. Items such as sleeping in your bed, inside your tent, waking up thinking you're dreaming of having a face massage only to realise that your face is getting blasted by sand as it blows under the edge of the tent and hits you square on. Not nice.



So we started the day with the Castrol EDGE Buggy in 14th place overall - very good considering we've got 24 hours of penalties for our earlier abandonment of the race on day two due to gearbox problems. None of that seemed to matter when the guys started the race in the position they finished yesterday - in 3rd place. The Saluki, eager to continue stretching its legs, headed off on the beginning of a 314Km section. For those that don't work in Euros that's 197 Miles.

Two minutes into the stage and the Saluki, eager to please it's masters leapt from the sand dunes and planted it's nose into the sand in dramatic style. The end result after a small delay whilst the Saluki regained it's composure was the front bonnet was no longer attached to the car. Luckily, Paul had remembered to switch on both the on-board videos so the "small" incident is captured and will be available shortly once we've got time to edit it together.

The Saluki, picked itself up and headed, once again on a charge through the dunes but without it's bonnet.



The minor reduction in bodywork failed to stop its progress and by the time it had finished the stage the guys had pulled up another place and finished in 2nd place for todays stage. Another impressive finish and one that's causing concern as we may actually have to fit that ice-cream maker they are wanting.



With the Castrol EDGE buggy finishing so high again, we all returned to the camp this afternoon delighted, only to discover that Mother Nature, having pounded us all day with her own version of a sand blaster, decided that she would have a further dig at Team Saluki. The tents that we've been sleeping in and orchestrating the event from have been blown down and filled with sand. The sand on our face this morning seemed to be the the least of our worries.



Tomorrows final stage sees the race head back towards Abu Dhabi towards the race finish.



It's going to be a late day tomorrow so were hoping to get the update out at the earliest opportunity however if you're really keen to see our progress follow this link here whilst the race is being run. If you want to see the overall positions, this is the link you need. The right hand column is the important one and we're car 211.

Regards
Team Saluki

[TeamSaluki]

Team Saluki - Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge - Day 5 - Dash to the finish.

We're still here and we haven't been blown away by the strong winds that destroyed our camp yesterday. The whole Team Saluki crew certainly got their priorities correct yesterday evening - the car was serviced and the detached bodywork from yesterdays nose dive was re-attached in a temporary/permanent fashion. Once the car was ready to roll - we then set about re-establishing base camp Saluki and sorting our where we were going to sleep. Plan A was to restore one of the tents that had collapsed due to the yesterdays wind and plan B was to use of several of the now vacant tents of other competitors who had not stayed the distance and had dropped out of the challenge. We chose plan A and glad to say that the tent was still erect in the morning despite Mother Natures attempts.

We were joined in the camp last night by Mark Powell (Team Principal), Tracie and Matt who have driven down from Dubai. Now if you want to know anything about Tracie - she needs her morning coffee. So at the alloted time (7am) we're wheels rolling with the idea that we'd stop at the nearest petrol station - pick up the much needed cappuccino and then head up to Passage Control (PC) One. In the 25Km from our camp to the nearest road (there's only one road in/out), Tracie manages to get lost. Attempts via the phone to get her to head in the right direction using the sun as a marker failed and we later find out that she's about 30Km North of where she should be. She was not a happy bunny having to do without her much needed coffee fix - we're glad that Tracie's not navigating the Saluki.

Paul however is and the guys start the race today where they finished yesterday, in 2nd place. The weather is yet again marginal with the sand storms reducing visibility leaving even the locals to adopt some alternative styles of dress to reduce the effects of the sand.




Standing at PC1 we await the arrival of the 1st place car hoping that the vehicle would be shortly followed by the Saluki. We were astonished when out of the sand and dust came the very distinctive sound and shape of the Castrol EDGE buggy. The guys had overtaken the first placed BMW (driven by Guerlain Chicherit and Tina Thorner)
and had pulled out a two minute lead in the first 53Km of the race arriving in first place at PC, one meaning it had made up four minutes in this time (two minute start intervals). 1st place at PC One - an outstanding start.




The charge continued and by the time the car had reached PC 2 we had pulled out an 11 minute lead on the now trailing BMW. Another section that we had come in 1st. The guys were certainly letting the dog stretch it's legs and seemed to be enjoying it's time in the dunes.

Between PC2 and PC3 was un-charted territory for the Challenge and the high winds and sand storms that we've had over the last couple of days had played havoc with the course and sadly the Saluki became bogged down in white soft sand in a bowl.

Mark who had joined us out on the course today rather than in the driving seat now experienced what the other team members experience whilst waiting out on the stage for the Castrol EDGE buggy to pass - long periods when the car is due, but doesn't appear. Firstly there were rumours of people checking online on the tracking system and seeing that the Saluki isn't moving - but we hadn't had a call from the team to say any problem they were having was terminal - which means that the guys were working on it. All we could do is wait for the dreaded call.

This did allow the group of Saluki supporters who were waiting just past PC3 to explore the delights of the desert and came across this little creature.




After working hard and deploying all the tactics of desert extraction the guys got themselves free but had lost approximately 48 minutes by the time they got to the next PC point. Bikers, quads and vehicles alike were all having serious problems with this section of the course.



They were so fast that even by the time the supporters had set off on the road and driven the 70 Km to the finish line - the guys had completed the stage and were parked up cooling off - a testament to the speed they were travelling. By the finish line they had lost no further time but had managed to lose the front wing section the crew had so carefully reconstructed yesterday evening.

We finished the race in 10th place and also won First in Class for the two wheel drive category - an excellent result given the problems we experienced. We might just have to compromise on getting the guys an ice-cream maker installed but they're certainly not getting a PA system for the ice-cream van music.






We do hope you've enjoyed following the exploits of Team Saluki during their participation of the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge. We'll get Mark / Glen / Paul to pull together a final summary note in the next couple of days when we've got time to reflect.

Regards
Team Saluki

[TeamSaluki]

Team Saluki - Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge 2009 Final writeup.



Five days of constant sandstorms – all during the race days - most unpleasant - and now we’ve had five days of constant rain in Dubai! Weather-wise we always knew what to expect when the UAE Desert Challenge took place in November.


The date change for the new-look Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge (ADDC) caught many out by surprise – not least the Dakar teams who couldn’t get their vehicles to the Emirates on time for the kick-off. This resulted in only 35 cars entering – the majority being made up of local vehicles. This is a real turning point for the local rally scene as more and more cars start to comply with the FIA regulations.

For me this was a strange experience – having to watch the race from the side-lines as Glen Reid and Paul Richards put the Castrol EDGE branded Saluki (as it how now become known) through its paces. Glen had always shown an interest in the buggy and when prior work commitments took precedence, I approached Glen with the idea that he compete in the Saluki with the very experienced Paul as his navigator.

Glen jumped at the chance and prior to the ADDC we managed to put in a couple of days of practice. The first day I was petrified as this was a new experience for me – letting someone else drive the buggy and I must admit to wondering whether this was a good idea or not. Don’t get me wrong, there was nothing wrong with Glens driving, it was just that I was sitting on the wrong side in my own car. The second day out I was much more relaxed and coached Glen with regards to crossing dune ranges in the 2WD buggy.

As the event unfolded, I watched the progress on the live tracking system and have to say that it was a harrowing experience. This was the first time to see the event from afar as opposed to sitting in the Saluki - I don’t know which was more stressful!

James Thomas headed off to the Liwa bivouac to set up the base camp assisted by two of his friends Lee Ashley and Martin Double who flew in from the UK. Once the camp was set up they then teamed up with Rick Galman and Girish Kumar from Carwise, and ran the service.





Since the engine self-destructed during last years Challenge, Mark Adams from Tornado Systems had completely remapped the engine and complemented the service team. It is testament to Mark’s work and the Castrol EDGE oil that the engine never missed a beat over the five days.

Craig McAteer also joined us from the UK for the 6th year running and drove the Honda Pilot 4x4 kindly provided by Trading Enterprises. Craig, as our media man, was responsible for all the photography and the daily updates, ably assisted by our web-master, Laurie Bridger. Laurie has been looking after our site for a number of years now and this was the first time he experienced a rally / raid. Dave Lowe shivered away in the UK and took care of the forum updates.

Gulf Agency Company (GAC) transported the gearbox to Sellholm Tuning in Sweden for a rebuild and brought it back again. Both Rick and Girish had the unenviable task of working late into the night to install it prior to the scrutineering. MBMix, Icon Precast and Serck Services also supported our entry into the ADDC.

With the 24 hour penalty we had incurred not completing Day 2 we had blown all our chances of a decent finish, so discussions were centred on achieving daily results in order to put Team Saluki on the map.

Glen and Paul put in a sterling effort on Day 3 – starting in 20th position, they raced up the leader board and finished the days stage in 3rd position, 44 minutes behind X-Raids’ BMW X3 driven by Guerlain Checherit and Tina Thorner.

Not satisfied with this result, they pushed harder on Day 4 and closed in on the BMW X3, finishing in 2nd position, a mere 12 minutes and 4 seconds behind them

On the final day, Glen and Paul had pulled a 4 minute lead on the BMW X3 by the time they had reached PC1.

I had driven down to the bivouac the night before and was waiting at PC2 which was the designated service point. To see the Saluki arrive first, not having to stop for service and roaring off into the distance was a real highlight. Oh, that and the fact that they now had a lead of 10 minutes 48 seconds was particularly satisfying!




The entire crew packed up the service vehicles and rushed off to the next viewing point on the main Hameem road and waited in anticipation to see the Saluki come through. This was the first time I had the dubious pleasure of standing in the desert waiting and not knowing what has happening – if only we had internet!

The first car was spotted after an inordinate length of time… it wasn’t the Saluki, but the now leading BMW X3. Glen and Paul were stuck in a nasty area which blew our chances for a stage win.

They finally arrived at PC3 in 8th position 48 minutes and 5 seconds behind the BMW X3. Soldiering on to the finish they maintained the 8th position for the day finishing exactly 48 minutes after the stage winning BMW X3. This resulted in a 10th overall finish at the podium and a class win.



So what happens after an event like this?

Guerlain Chicherit stated “Last week I was taking part in a World Cup competition in extreme skiing and this week I am winning a World Cup rally in the Middle East! All in the space of 10 days - from one extreme to the other!” Not one to be outdone, Paul has just departed for a 5 day break snowmobiling in Lapland and Glen will be RV’ing around the USA for 3 to 6 months.

And for the rest of us? Well, it’s back to our day jobs….




Thanks to the team, sponsors and all our supporters - in the words of Big Chris (played by Vinnie Jones) from Guy Ritchie’s ‘Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels’ … “It’s been emotional”!

See you next year!

Mark Powell
Team Saluki

[TeamSaluki]

A small video covering an incident that we had in the dunes. We promised that we would provide it in the updates above and we've left the in-car commentary on it to let you know how the guys felt about the incident.

By chance an international video crew were at the spot, two minutes into the first stage on day 4. Paul, (the navigator) had switched on both in-car cameras and provides his immediate assessment of the incident, Glen (the driver) takes a more laid back antipodean approach to the situation.

Enjoy.

clicky