2007 FIA CROSS-COUNTRY RALLY WORLD CUP - Round 3 - POR LAS PAMPAS RALLY (AUGUST 26-SEPTEMBER 5)
REPSOL MITSUBISHI RALLIART FACE AN EXTREMELY VARIED CHALLENGE ON THE LATIN AMERICAN MARATHON
The FIA Cross-Country Rally World Cup calendar continues with the international Por Las Pampas Rally which takes Repsol Mitsubishi Ralliart to South America for the third round of the 2007 series. Mitsubishi Motors Corporation (MMC) and its motorsport unit MMSP will be represented on this 4,116km marathon - which runs from Bariloche in the south of Argentina to Iquique at the northern tip of Chile - by a single Pajero/Montero Evolution MPR13 shared by last year's winner Luc Alphand (France) and his co-driver Gilles Picard (France).
The nine-day event features a total competitive distance of 2,315km divided into nine special stages ranging in length from 31 to 503 kilometres, plus a short 3km spectator showpiece on the beach at Vina del Mar, near the Chilean capital, Santiago. Competitors face a unique cocktail of conditions that will take them across high mountain passes in the Andes, over rocky forest tracks, along the sandy Pacific seaboard and into the ultra-dry Atacama Desert close to the Tropic of Capricorn.
"This Por las Pampas Rally is very important for the team," says Repsol Mitsubishi Ralliart Team Director Dominique Serieys. "Argentina and Chile are both key markets for Mitsubishi, for our sponsor Repsol and Valeo which has several factories in the region. It also offers the season's broadest spectrum of conditions, from fast-flowing gravel and rougher, rock-strewn stages to the towering dunes of grey sand that are a feature of the Atacama. It will also be the back-end of winter in this part of the world, so there is a real possibility of snow and/or ice high in the Andes Mountains, while rain could well lead to deep mud elsewhere, notably in the south. Make no mistake: this is no stroll. The car will need to be extremely reliable and versatile. In terms of stage distance, it's about half a Dakar and the task faced by Luc and Gilles will be further complicated by the frequently complex navigation. They won't be able to count on taped-off junctions to keep them on the right route over the criss-cross network of trails in the many remote regions they will visit!"
Luc Alphand and Gilles Picard won the Por Las Pampas Rally for Mitsubishi at their first attempt in 2006 and returned from South America enthralled with the experience. "It's a magnificent event," enthuses the French driver for whom it is a chance to keep match fit as the countdown to next year's Dakar ticks by relentlessly. "The landscapes are simply stunning - I couldn't believe the huge dunes we came across - and the route is also varied from the driving point of view, with extreme cold and hot temperatures, plus some very delicate stages. And I'm not expecting the shortest tests to be the easiest either! I found it quite demanding physically last year. Although it will be slightly shorter this time round, the stages can be very twisty with few straights. Thankfully, the organisers often include mid-stage neutralisations that allow you to catch your breath. I live at 1,600 metres, so the altitude shouldn't be a problem for me, but the navigation calls for concentration and good team-work with Gilles; there's a good chance we will be running first on the road quite a lot, so we will be blazing the trail. That said, we found last year's roadbook very good."
Meanwhile, Repsol Mitsubishi Ralliart's preparations for the Dakar continue with more testing in Morocco scheduled for early October, "Our three-week test in Morocco earlier in the summer went very well," reports Dominique Serieys. "Our work took in a very useful variety of typical Dakar conditions in temperatures of up to and beyond 45°C. We completed more than 7,500km - equivalent to two Dakars - which allowed us to undertake extensive work on the suspension, as well as on the powertrain configuration changes, including engine mapping, differential and gearbox ratios, necessitated by the new regulations that dictate a five-speed 'box and a smaller air restrictor. "
SCHEDULEAugust, Sunday 26 and Monday 27Administrative checks and scrutineering: Bariloche (Argentina) 22:00hrs Starting Ramp at the Civic Centre Square in Bariloche
Tuesday August 281st Leg: Bariloche (Argentina) - Valdivia (Chile) Road section: 279km - Special: 182km - Road section: 20km - Total: 481km
Wednesday, August 292nd Leg: Valdivia - ConcepciónRoad section: 38km - Special: 439km +27km are in neutralization - Road section: 200km - Total: 704km
Thursday, August 303rd Leg: Concepción - PichilemuRoad section: 91km - Special: 3376km + 19km are in neutralization - Road section: 3km - Total: 483km
Friday, August 314th Leg: Pichilemu - Viña del MarRoad section: 23km - special: 93km - Road section: 176km- Total: 292km
Saturday, September 15th Leg: Viña del Mar - La SerenaRoad section: 19km - Special: 31km - Road section 388km - Total: 438km
Sunday, September 26th Leg: La Serena - Bahía InglesaRoad section: 41km - Special: 417km + 2km are in neutralization - Road section: 1km - Total: 459km
Monday, September 37th Leg: Bahía Inglesa - Bahía InglesaRoad section: 1km - Special: 228km - Road section: 1km - Total: 230km
Tuesday, Setember 48th Leg: Bahía Inglesa - AntofagastaRoad section: 57km - Special: 503km +1km is in neutralization - Road section: 21km - Total: 582km
Wednesday, September 59th Leg: Antofagasta - IquiqueRoad section: 368km - special: 48km - Road section: 25km - Total: 441km
Road section: 1752kmSpecial stage: 2315kmNeutralization: 49kmTotal: 4116km
