On Stage Five of the 2023 Dakar Rally, we got an extremely clear demonstration of both the perks and the pitfalls of being one of the first riders to tackle a given stage. Back in late 2022, when Dakar organizers were busy preparing for the start of the 2023 event, they announced rule changes that would award time bonuses to the first three riders to open a track on any given stage.
For those unfamiliar, riders who come after the first riders get the benefit of being able to follow in the lead riders’ tracks. When you’re navigating a rally, it’s pretty easy to see how that could be incredibly helpful in setting a better time for yourself—as well as potentially helping trailing riders to avoid problems. The latter is exactly what happened to Adrian Van Beveren, who eventually went on to win Stage Five once all the timing (including any bonuses and penalties) was figured out.
