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Issue #5:January 5, 2023
January 4 is the first day for the loop courses starting in Ha’il. Yesterday’s route to Ha’il was cancelled due to inclement weather so there was no racing in the Ha’il area, but today, weather conditions have recovered and the 425km competition stage was held as planned.
TLC has been demonstrating steady driving with both debuting rally spec Land Cruiser 300 cars. Akira Miura and Laurent Lichtleuchter in car #246 are in 100th place overall in the car category and 1st place in the production car category. Car #250 with Ronald Basso and Jean-Michel Polato are in 101st place overall and 2nd in the production car category. This brings the team to the following cumulative rankings: Car #250 is in 116th place overall and 1st in the production car category, and car #246 is in 118th overall and 2nd in the production car category.
Today’s SS started off with crossing the dunes followed by mountainous terrain and scree slopes, and at the end, a dune descent. Thanks to yesterday’s rain, the sand was firm, creating relatively easy driving conditions.
Car #250 was first to start the stage. At the 270km mark, they damaged their rear left shock absorber after hitting a rock on the road surface, but they got through the stage without any punctures. Car #246 was also careful to avoid punctures, and despite getting stuck on a dune at one point, they made it without any punctures or other trouble. Just before the finish, they overtook car #250 and were first to the finish.
Miura (driver): I’ve had many punctures in this rally. If that continues, we’ll run out of tires. So, I’ve been controlling our pace and driving carefully to minimize punctures. I’m relieved and happy to say that things are going very well now. I’ll be careful again tomorrow.
Basso (driver): We damaged a shock absorber, but other than that it was a good day. Thanks to yesterday’s rain, dust was kept under control and the firm sand made it easier to drive.