FAT BOY Running in Slovakia, Who Drove It?
Senica - Buggyra has started the extensive testing programme for Dakar 2015. Under the rough conditions of the military premises of Senica, Slovakia, the first live tests of the racing technology were performed after the first adaptations following this year ´s most difficult long-distance race of the world. The aim is clear: To develop an even more resistant and quicker racing special for the long-distance rally.
The Záhorie military exercising ground offers simulation of really extreme conditions. "Senica is a big vehicle breaker but the worse the conditions at the exercising ground then better the actual battlefield position. In this case this saying applies literally. The technology suffers here really extremely but if it endures this the better for us," said pilot Martin Kolomý adding that the actual Dakar race stages represent hardly 3% of the difficulty of the exercising ground in Slovakia.
The TATRA BUGGYRA Racing team had to face a number of complications at this year ´s Dakar and that is why as soon as the technology returned home the Technology Centre at Roudnice nad Labem started two-shift operation to prevent this scenario from repeating in the following years. Although the racing special Fat Boy faces a total refurbishment, according to the technical director of the team Robin Dolejš it is now necessary to perform stress tests even before implementation of the new technological elements and to map the life cycles of the individual components. "We have a lot of data from Dakar but we want to test them and mainly have something to compare with before we deploy them in the race. That is why we need to test them before the refurbishment. Now we will analyse all the data to more a step forward in building new racing specials," were the comments on the testing by Ing. Robin Dolejš.
David Vršecký, who will start the first race truck testing for his own racing career in Most in late March, contributes as constructor to the Dakar vehicle building. But his participation at the testing was threatened. "I did not feel very well but I am glad I could arrive in the end. Of course this is completely different from circuit racing but the standards and professional approach to technology and to testing nearly matches my circuit racing experience. We are going in the right direction and that is important. I believe in the same development in the circuit truck racing. That will be proved soon anyway," smiled David Vršecký.
In Senica the racing Tatra was driven by other pilots in addition to Martin Kolomý and David Vršecký, but the team does not wish them to be named yet. "It is no secret that we are building the second racing special for Dakar 2015. But the post of the pilot is business secret until the contract execution. In addition building more than one racing special may be needed. You will have to wait for further information at least till early April," commented on the future pilots of the Tatra-Buggyra team the team manager Jan Kalivoda. In this context he referred to the published video preview from the testing which promises more information on 7 April 2014.
The preview see: http://youtu.be/84VGLcqevzs
