Nascar.com > Gordon upset how Dakar cancellation was handled

[klaus]

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- The race trucks cost more than a $1 million each, their lightweight, off-road bodies fashioned completely out of carbon fiber and Kevlar. They had been packed and shipped to Lisbon, Portugal, where 26 members of Robby Gordon Motorsports were waiting for them. They had paid $360,000 in entry fees, bought thousands of dollars more worth of spare parts, and were ready to beat the desert. They were in line for technical inspection on the day before the start of the Dakar Rally when they learned the entire 5,760-mile endurance event had been cancelled because of terrorism concerns.....[Read the entire story] (http://www.nascar.com/2008/news/headlines/cup/01/07/rgordon.dakar.rally.canceled/)

[NicksTrix]

good article. that's a BIG loss to swallow. i don't care who you are.

[hangten33]

I'd be pissed too!!:( :(

[FlyHiFlyLo]

On his site it has the whole Q&A

http://www.robbygordon.com/cms/publish/article_998.shtml

[NIKAL]

On his site it has the whole Q&A

http://www.robbygordon.com/cms/publish/article_998.shtml

Geat Q/A article!

[the squirrel]

I believe he should be pretty upset. He is correct in the standpoint that they should've had backup plans in place as its not like the Dakar has ever had security issues before. Yeah right. It seems like every year there are a few issues with carjackings by the desert insurgents. I believe last year they bypassed two stages and it took the organizers a day to transport all the equipment by plane over an area that had some trouble going on.

After all he and his company have been working on this since last year and travelled a long way not to race. Its not like he is french and moved his equipment only a little bit comaparitevely speaking.

[CharlieIII]

Good article. 10 gear boxes @ $40k each...yikes..

[Ramsey_ElWardani]

"I can’t believe they gave up that easy.” No joke!

[Big Hock]

"I can’t believe they gave up that easy.” No joke!

They ARE French, after all.:rolleyes:;)

[harleys dad]

They ARE French, after all.:rolleyes:;)
Full blown fact there

[bajafox]

On his site it has the whole Q&A

http://www.robbygordon.com/cms/publish/article_998.shtml

NOOOOOO!!! F U terrorists!!!:mad: :mad: :mad:

"YOUR BUDGET IS BASED ON YOUR SPONSORSHIP? “Yeah, and for us we had a bunch of things in place – what if. If we win, this happens, this happens and this happens. That’s where we make our money. We were working on a deal with Microsoft, where people could race the rally next year via the internet with X-Box, and now that’s out the window. There are so many other side programs that are messed up because of this.” "

[michael_loomis]

No biggie.. talk to the guys at Sony, the will do it next year! ;)

oh.. and anyone wanna make any bets that RGM has its own sanctioning body in place for next year to continue the rally in the event the ASO cops out again?

[Bricoop]

NOOOOOO!!! F U terrorists!!!:mad: :mad: :mad:

"YOUR BUDGET IS BASED ON YOUR SPONSORSHIP? “Yeah, and for us we had a bunch of things in place – what if. If we win, this happens, this happens and this happens. That’s where we make our money. We were working on a deal with Microsoft, where people could race the rally next year via the internet with X-Box, and now that’s out the window. There are so many other side programs that are messed up because of this.” "

Yeah, this was going to be a HUGE announcement after the race. Now it's in the garbage.

I hope they saved the receipts for those gear boxes ;)

[Ferrari333SP]

"Us racers, we love to race. Get creative. Right there in Portugal they have a Formula One track down the street. Go run us a day on the Formula One track. Get creative. Do something to keep the show in place and save face. Not only does it put us in a situation, it puts them in a situation too. I can’t believe they gave up that easy.”


Now THAT would have been awesome! :D

[WickedGravityVideo]

The Nascar.com article was reprinted, atleast in part, in USA TODAY, today. There is a photo of Robbie getting a parking ticket in Lisbon on Jan4.

[FlyHiFlyLo]

Here is a blurb from USA Today.... LOL

But Gordon still can't understand why event organizers canceled the race last week after terrorist threats and the Dec. 24 slayings of French tourists by al-Qaeda-linked militants in Mauritania.

"Let's put this in perspective: I'm pretty sure in L.A. we kill 11 a night on the streets — stabbed, shot, beat up, murdered," said Gordon, who expected to miss Monday's test at Daytona International Speedway but returned to the cockpit of his No. 7 Ford. "This is a couple of kids in the back of a pickup with AK-47s that shot a couple people. I'm sorry to say that, but that's the reality. It's not like this big setup and bombings or whatever. I feel sorry obviously for the families and the people that it happened to, but I don't get it."

Gordon's team spent about $4.5 million preparing two Hummers for the grueling race, shipping 10 gearboxes and 20 sets of axles overseas. The two trucks were being inspected when the Amaury Sport Organization called off the event for the first time in its 30-year history.

"I'm mad (the organizers) didn't have a backup plan," said Gordon, who suggested rerouting through Portugal or using an alternate venue. An ASO representative said the risks still would have been great.

[DirtDiva]

The Nascar.com article was reprinted, atleast in part, in USA TODAY, today. There is a photo of Robbie getting a parking ticket in Lisbon on Jan4.
So he did get something out of the debacle? This could be a mastercard commercial.

[Bricoop]

For everyone who would like to see the cheapest part of Robby's Dakar effort:

http://i12.tinypic.com/7xihefs.jpg

http://i5.tinypic.com/6krtx10.jpg