Titled “Autolife Team”, a project that started as a myth is now part of reality and is ready to embark on The Odyssey through the deserts, mountains, salt lakes and other un-hospitable terrains of Argentina, Bolivia and Paraguay during The Dakar 2017.
The team will be supported by an experienced crew of mechanics, management and press.
The Dakar Rally takes place on the yearly basis and is organised by the Amauri Sport Organistation (ASO), the very same entity that stands behind many prestigious sporting events, including Tour De France and Marathon de Paris.
Although it is not held under the umbrella of Fédération Internationale de l‘Automobile (FIA), the Dakar is still ran according to the FIA regulations. The FIA is the governing body of the world’s motorsport and the federation of the world’s leading motoring associations. Thus, the safety of the cars and participants is maintained at the highest standard.
The race itself lasts two weeks and is apprixmately 10,000 km long. The participants are expected to cruise through perilous and hostile off-road terrain with no gPs coordinates or any other electronic means of navigation. The only tools that can be utilized in order to remain on course are hard copy road books with very limited indications of the route, and tripmeters to measure the distance between the instructions.
No participant is allowed to receive any external help with the exception of that coming from other competitors.
Thus, every year the highest degree of complexity propels the interest to Dakar further and further.
| Name: | Roman Starikovich |
| Born: | 23 October 1973, Smolensk, USSR |
| Profession: | CEO Orpheus Group |
| Offroad experience: | - Cross African Expedition Port Said - Mombasa 2008 - Trans African Expedition Alexandria - Capetown 2009 - Transmediterranean Expedition 2010 - Australian Round Expedition 2011 - East Safari Rally 2016 - Palmtree Rally 2016 - Nicosia Rally Sprint 2016 - Limassol Sprint Rally 2016 - Famagusta Rally 2016 - Hungarian Baja 2016 |
| Total: | Off Road desert trainings in Morocco, Tunisia and Libya since 2010. Overall more than 60.000 off road kilometers in Europe, Australia, and Africa |
| Name: | Bert Heskes |
| Born: | 21 June 1962, Amsterdam, Netherlands |
| Profession: | Interim Manager |
| Offroad experience: | - Expedition style off road travel since 1998 - Off Road driving instructor since 2003 - Off Road racing since 2008 - Dutch National Championships T1.1 and T1.2 - German Baja 300 - Libya Rally (5th overall) - Dakar support in 2007 - Dakar co pilot 2016 - Hungarian Baja 2016 |
| Total: | In total more than 70.000 off road kilometers in Europe, Caribbean, Latin America, Australia, and Africa. |
| Engine: | BMW 3 litre Turbo Diesel 250 bhp (Dakar ECU mapping for extreme reliabilty) |
| Construction type: | Tubular space frame chassis and roll cage with FIA homologation |
| Gearbox: | ZF close ratio gearbox |
| Transfer box: | LT230 Transfer box with competition centre diff |
| Axles: | Modified and strengthened Land Rover Discovery mk2 heavy duty front and rear axles |
| Suspension: | Fox ‚piggy-back‘ coil over dampers 2 per wheel with maximum allowed FIA 12” front and rear suspension travel |
| Fuel system: | Twin fuel pumps and separate fuel systems for redundancy |
| Trip meter: | Trip Master 303 plus with dual probes |
| Engine: | V6, 12.7 Ltr, 280kw, Twin-turbo |
| Mileage: | 450.000 km |
| Extras: | Fully rebuilt in 2014 (engine, turbo, gear box, transfer case, steering rack, diffs) 2x spare wheels Ladder to the top + safety fence. Roll cage in the cabin + rally seats 1000 ltr fuel tank 400 ltr water tank 6kw generator, compressed air system + pipes Folding sides Working table + hutches. |
| Engine: | 2.8 Ltr, 67kw |
| Mileage: | 900.000 km |
| Extras: | Fully rebuilt in 2016 (engine, gear box, body) 2x spare wheels |
