Officially the Dakar Rally is over for Maurik van den Heuvel, but the driver from Boekel is doing everything he can to be able to drive the second week. On Wednesday his truck broke down and he had to give up. On Thursday he and his entire team will try to repair the truck. And if that works, Van den Heuvel will be there next week.
This year it had to work for Van den Heuvel. In 2021 and 2022 he crashed, which ended his rally earlier. He returned this year after a two-year absence. Determined to complete the Rally this time. But on Wednesday the technology did him in. “It’s shit. It’s really shit,” he said plainly on Wednesday.
On Thursday he was able to laugh again, but not yet wholeheartedly. “You still feel a bit down,” Van den Heuvel said on Thursday after a short night. Around midnight, his team had picked up the stranded truck from the course and arrived at the bivouac around 5 am. After a few hours of sleep, everyone was already standing next to their beds to repair the cracked gearbox.
“It’s Dakar, isn’t it! Never give up!”
“We have spare parts for everything that is broken. That is why we expect to be able to start again after Friday’s rest day.” It indicates the mentality of the Brabander. “It’s Dakar, isn’t it! Never give up!”
Back to Wednesday for a moment. Halfway through the stage, disaster struck and Van den Heuvel came to a standstill. Fellow provincial William de Groot came to Van den Heuvel’s aid. “We told him to drive on, but after a few minutes my navigator Wilco said ‘Is there a truck coming in the opposite direction?’ That was William. He didn’t have the heart to leave us here.”
Partly thanks to the help of the local from Den Bosch, the truck will be at the bivouac in Ha’il on Thursday morning. “Once we have made the truck, we will just enjoy the adventure. We should be happy that we can still participate in stages. That was different in the past.”
Besides the fact that he likes to work for his team and sponsors, there is another important reason to be in the so-called ‘Experience class‘ to go further. “We can always help others if they have a breakdown.”
“We go for the adventure.”
The driver from Boekel does not blame himself. “We are just an amateur team. We cannot test for a whole year like other teams do. We drive with our own engine and equipment. Then things like this can happen.”
For now, he mainly hopes that the truck can be repaired, so that there is still a nice week ahead. “Then we go for the adventure instead of a top ranking. There are still beautiful stages with dunes to come and the daily classifications still count. On Wednesday we were fourth when we dropped out. So the pace is good.”
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This year, Omroep Brabant is also closely following the Dakar Rally. Watch a new episode of Bivak Brabant Dakar every evening on YouTube and in the morning on TV and don’t miss any of the adventures of the Brabant participants in the desert.
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Trucker Van den Heuvel dropped out again at the Dakar Rally