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Rosario, Argentina.  With more than thirty years of history, the Dakar Rally (formerly, Paris-Dakar) landed on South American soil in 2009 to bring competitors new, beautiful and risky journeys.  The event, with global impact, brings a total of 200 competitors together from a variety of nationalities, broken into four categories: motocross, ATV, car, and truck.

The 2014 event took place with expected success between January 4 and 18, the day the competitors came together in Valparaiso after completing all the difficult stages.  Before the start, Vizcayan Txomin Arana, the only Basque representative in the motocross category, was received by representatives of the Basque community of Rosario with whom he shared a roast in the Basque Club bar.  Also, a few hours before the start, he chatted with Luis Maria Barrandeguy and Cristina Aguirre, two of the voices of the radio show Palabra de Vasco.

One thing that stood out from the show was that “the participation of Txomin Arana Cobeaga in the Dakar caught the attention of the Basque community of the Rosario area,” which includes a large number of Basque descendants.  “Txomin shared with us the little free time he had since he arrived on New Year's Day, 2014.  We were able to meet with him, his mechanic Roberto, and the head of Gernika Off-Road, Juanjo Bilbao, and included them in the interview (Listen to the interview here). 

On the night of January 4^th, racing against the clock because he had to leave for San Luis at 4:30am on the 5^th for the first stage, he ate a typical Argentinian steak together with some folks at the bar Zazpi.  This was not only the start of the Rally, but also a warm and cordial relationship we expect to continue over time.  These Basques by right have and will always have our support in all instances, regardless of the result,” expressed the Basque Club.

[The young rider on the course, overcoming the obstacles of the Dakar 2014 (photoTA)]

Let us remember that Txomin Arana, who hails from Ereño, belongs to the Gernika Off-Road club and this is his first time participating in the Dakar.  With #174 on his Yamaha, Arana finished in 56^th place. He was not the first Basque competitor in the Dakar, but he is the first to complete it.