Chinese drivers living the dream of Dakar

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Thursday, February 05, 2004

Chinese drivers living the dream of Dakar

'Tang Gong', which means the palace of Tang Dynasty, is also the name of a Chinese-owned hotel in downtown Dakar, capital city of the West Africa nation of Senegal.

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'Tang Gong', which means the palace of Tang Dynasty, is also the name of a Chinese-owned hotel in downtown Dakar, capital city of the West Africa nation of Senegal.

As terminus of the world famous Paris to Dakar rally for the past quarter century, the beautiful city and its many international hotels have seen thousands of racers come and go.

But it wasn't until this year that the owners of Tang Gong got to greet a Chinese driver.

January 18 was the red letter day when two Chinese competitors crossed the finish line of one of the world's most grueling endurance races.

Lu Ningjun, a 46-year-old veteran driving a Chinese-built Paladin, made his debut at this year's rally and conquered the course, as did Luo Ding, who drives a Mitsubishi Pajero.

Luo finished 47th with the Mitsubishi Ralliart Team, the best ever result by the Chinese in the Dakar Rally.

"When I entered the last stage there was only 27 km left. The plain in Africa is straight. I couldn't wait to drive toward the horizon and leave all the 11,000 km long journey behind me," said Lu.

"When I saw the sunset, I knew it was over. We had won, we had arrived in Dakar. We had reached paradise."

A tough journey

Reflecting on the tortuous nine days and nights, Lu said he could have given up several times but for strong will and confidence.

"Dakar is a paradise to us. But you have to drive on hellish roads to reach the final destination," he said.

Lu's father operated a tank during the Korean War, and his passion for driving was passed on to his son.

Lu said it's true there are numerous beautiful sand stages during the rally. The sandy track course runs over some small dunes in the first few kilometres. These small dunes become denser as the course heads northwards. But he never had time to really enjoy the view.

With a less powerful car than most other competitors, Lu faced a huge challenge in crossing the dunes.

"Due to the lack of power I had to repeatedly drive up and down in order to cross one dune. It really taxed my will. The thought of giving up crossed my mind several times," he said.

Lu's pilot, under great pressure, wanted to give up in the 9th stage, a desert-surrounded road extending for over 700 km.

"He surrendered to the desert at the toughest moment. He said he wanted to drive back home and asked me to give up and come back next year."

But Lu held on and fought through.

It's a symbol of spirit. All competitors challenge the cruel environment and their individual volitions, but hard work and strong will are eventually rewarded.

Burning ambition

Lu finished in 57th place, 60 hours behind the top driver, and was moderately pleased with his debut performance.

But with 19 years of driving experience and nine national crowns, the two-time "Asian Best Driver" aims to do better next time.

"As long as you offer me a good car, a good pilot and a strong maintenance team, I can bridge the 60-hour gap," he said.

Even as a child Lu was an enthusiastic driver, often risking a scolding from his father for trying to handle the steering wheel in the family's shabby jeep.

"My driving skill is ahead of many drivers, but they have cars with 280 to 300 horsepower engines, while my car is only 170," he said.

Because of that, Lu had to come to a halt before crossing 100m high dunes while others easily drove over them.

Lu also had a problem communicating with his pilot. A number of accidents took place due to the failure of timely and precise communication.

"If we can understand each other, the pilot will tell me what we should do next and in which direction we should go. But no one told me in the competition."

When asked what would happen if he could drive the same car as champion Stephane Peterhansel of France, Lu was emphatic: "Of course, I could beat him."

It is an ambition which is greatly needed for a driver, especially for Lu, who has long been known China's "king of drivers."

"Driving through the whole journey is not a miracle; Chinese drivers have the capability to conquer the Dakar Rally," he said.

"Now I am going to help those in China who want to fulfill that dream."

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