CAIRO: Seven Egyptian teams raced the highly competitive 3,000-km course against some of the best teams in the world, in the 2008 Pharaons Rally. Four of them, although without sponsors, reached the finish line on Oct. 11. Euphoria marked the return of the Pharaons Rally 2008 from the depths of the Egyptian Western Desert. Media coverage in Egypt was at its optimum level, not only promoting the event but also continuously calling Cairo residents to go cheer the national teams. As a result, no less than 1,000 people attended the send-off and the final at the Great Pyramids of Giza. The final was associated with a festival of local bands. The award ceremony and celebrations that ensued shimmered with the feeling of success among 21 nations that had participated in the Rally. There were races within races and champagne celebrations for winners of each of the seven categories. The route taken was Cairo-Bahareya-Sitra-Siwa-Bahareya-Cairo. There were boucle races around Bahareya on the way out, and around Siwa. Categories varied in length and endurance level. Federation International de Moto (FIM) World Cup prizes were also given to motorcycle victors. JVD International organized the 11th edition of the event, in collaboration with TRAVCO and under the auspices of the Ministry of Tourism. Despite avid preparation and sponsorship, the event had its share of misfortunes. Accidents, injuries, and technical faults were some of this year s obstacles. Nevertheless, the general consensus was: Hey, that s part of the challenge. One such case was Abdelhamid Abouyoussef, ranked 4th in the overall races of the 2007 Rally. His Toyota Buggy Cotel brakes failed on the penultimate stage of Siwa-Bahareya. I had a great flight but a bad landing, he said. The German co-pilot Thomas Holzknecht had to be airlifted to JVD physicians in Bahareya, and then to a Cairo hospital. Abouyoussef quit the race in order to take care of his co-pilot. The victor of the Auto race 2008, Christian Lavieille (France Prototype Dessoude 05), was helped in the final stage by the two Egyptian teams of Rally Raid Egypt, namely Ahmed El Sirgany and Alain Besancon (10th overall) and Karim El Zanaty and Hany Madbouly (9th overall, 1st in the prototype/diesel category and 1st among the Egyptian teams). Lavieille was quoted by JVD press as saying, A hole in the muffler ... opened up and because of the heat, the electrical system started melting. ...We repaired the damage with the assistance of some Egyptian drivers. The above mentioned two Rally Raid Egypt Teams raised the bar in Motorcar racing in Egypt this year by reaching the top 10. This is a first for us. We are looking for sponsors and a bigger support team for the future, said Alain Besancon. Meanwhile, Mohamed Antably and Mohamed El Khattib (Toyota Hilux) made a great debut by finishing the rally third in the Prototype/Diesel Category. They had graduated from a Rally School Course founded by Abouyoussef this year in Egypt. There were many veterans in the race. Despite a back injury, Azzam El Farouky sailed through on the final leg with his usual verve and elegance with his co-pilot Ahmad Badr to be the third Egyptian team to finish the Rally. The Pharaons' International Cross Country Rally attracts global amateur racers (Cars and trucks, motorcycles and quads) especially due to the varied terrain that provides a good training ground for the more arduous Dakar Rally. Annie Seal, a female motorcyclist with the Vectra team, said upon receiving her prize for third place in Extreme (XT) Open race, Egypt has been very good to me.
