Adventure
Lots of sand, lots of 1980s trail bikes and lots of laughter. David Marvier heads for a week of adventure with the Sandraiders desert raid
We’re right back in the 1980s. The Sandraiders is a ‘Dakar Revival’ desert raid inspired by the legendary Thierry Sabine years. Outfits, bikes, spirit: for a whole week, we recreate a real African raid of the era using only period-correct motorcycles – from the Honda XR600, famous Dominator and Suzuki DRs, to the forefathers of today’s adventure bikes.
Sandraiders has been going since 2014 and it’s clear that year after year the participants are getting more and more into the game, and the paddock is filled with ever-more superbly-prepared machines. And plenty of glorious period clobber.
I’m heading to explore the Moroccan trails with some friends, some of whom I’ve met on previous editions, others from the motorcycle scene in Europe. All are driven by the same passion, full of energy and goodwill.
There’s Yannick Granieri, the former Red Bull mountain bike champion, and Julien ‘The American’ Stephan, an experienced rider and XR enthusiast. And there’s Julien the mechanic, Vianney the sharp guy, Jean the poet, Vahan the hyper-solid rugby player, and Matéo the eternal teenager (though you could say that about all of us). We’re a small band within the larger band of 120 riders who set off from Marrakesh towards Erfoud, to be covered in seven long stages.
Organisation for this epic adventure is headed by Pep Segura, a former Catalan rally driver. His outfit takes care of logistics, safety and the route to offer riders a truly immersive rally-raid experience. His determined team collect everyone’s bikes in Europe a few weeks before the start, then manage the long drive to the departure point and the arduous customs formalities. All each rider had to do was take a flight (without the faff of luggage) and pick up their bike and trunk of equipment on arrival.
Hotels are included in the overall package. These are large establishments that can accommodate the huge team and numerous vehicles. What you miss is the charm of the small, family-run accommodations; those often very old, traditional, and truly authentic establishments. But with 120 riders plus 30 or so staff we require a serious welcome capacity. And in addition to all the bikes there must be room for two buggies, the assistance 4x4s, the doctors’ 4x4s, a heavy-duty truck, and the two enormous rally-raid assistance trucks mounted on their huge wheels.
In the evenings, one of these imposing trucks will be transformed into a mobile garage at the end of the stage. The two sides of the trailer open to create a temporary mechanical repair shop, a generator providing the energy to power the soldering station, li
