A Decade of Cars: A Passenger's Perspective on Dakar Rally

I've spent a decade driving cars, and my friend has spent one too - yeah why don't we put an engine for the Decker brilliant our drive oh no no obviously I will drive no no obviously I'll drive I'm always a passenger but I'm taller no but I'm better you should be better at digging sand castles I won't be digging I can't believe it's him that was painful to watch do what it's done to your wing mirrors every time if it's done that to the wing mirrors you want to have a look at the Bonnet it's all that working done in an instant right.

Recently, my friend decided to take on the challenge of driving in a Dakar Rally car for just a short period of time. I must say, he was excited to get behind the wheel and experience what it's like to drive one of these powerful vehicles. He had spent years watching professionals like Janelle de Villiers drive these cars with ease, and now it was his turn to give it a try.

As he settled into the driver's seat, I couldn't help but notice that he seemed a bit apprehensive. It's understandable, really - driving a car at high speeds in challenging terrain can be intimidating. But as soon as he put his foot down and accelerated, all of his worries disappeared. He was in his element, and it showed.

One thing that struck me about Tiff's driving style was his tendency to hold onto the brake pedal for dear life. I remember when I first got behind the wheel of my car years ago, I used to struggle with this same issue. It's all too easy to get caught up in the moment and forget how to properly use the brakes. But as Tiff continued to drive, he began to relax a bit more and started using the throttle more effectively.

It was also interesting to see how quickly Tiff had picked up the skills of driving a Dakar Rally car. He had only been in the car for a short period of time, but it seemed like he had already gotten the hang of things. His speed and agility behind the wheel were impressive, and I found myself cheering him on as he zoomed through the desert terrain.

As Tiff approached the end of his lap, I was glued to the stopwatch, watching as he took down a blistering 1:52.53. It was clear that he had learned a thing or two from Janelle de Villiers, and it showed in his driving style. But more than anything, it was clear that Tiff was having the time of his life.

Driving a Dakar Rally car is not for the faint of heart. The speeds are fast, the terrain is challenging, and the physical demands are intense. But when you're behind the wheel, it's an exhilarating experience like no other. And for Tiff, who had only just gotten started with driving, it was a truly unforgettable ride.

To put things into perspective, I've driven a Mini X-Ray in Dakar competitions before which was fun but it also requires focus and mental toughness as you're physically demanding to drive them and can get really hot in there especially when racing down rocky roads.

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enforeign took a passenger ride beside Dakar Rally Legend Janelle de Villiers in his Toyota Hilux that finished second in this year's event it's fair to say Tiff had an interesting experience but as he'd now be trying to beat Janelle's lap time the question was had he learned anything from the master or just spent the whole time grumbling where rubric is it which way is first first is just one bag yep I think that's answered the question feels very unnatural have you ever been a passenger in your own car Janelle not really the time Tiff had to beat was one minute 55.26 but it seemed only fair to allow him a few cytolapse before starting the clock at this point Tiff would just be wondering you know what gears to be in and how to push the car a bit more because after all it has never been an engineer's done thousands of miles it's not very natural straight away got my left foot on the brake it just feels the right thing to do uh sounds fantastic though and it sounds like this will really get me hang of it quite quickly as I should have hoped I really thought the steering would be kicking in my hands but it's lovely it's like a little swing racing car I can't believe how much I'm enjoying this so quickly but that's what it's dangerous so don't worry engineer we won't get too opening confidence I drove a mini x-rayed Dakar which was which competed against this car actually in this year's Dakar Rally so I know what fun they can be they're fantastically agile and you can get them sideways really easily really quickly and they are an amazing piece of Kit to drive because they're so they're so alive but they're also quite difficult because you have to focus mentally they're physically demanding and it gets really hot in there rocky roads I mean what's the most enjoyable but I enjoy the dunes a lot but I don't want to just drive in the news you know you want that's the mix of everything you get is is actually the enjoyment with his brief practice over it was time to find out just how fast Tiff could go let's just crossed the start line clock's ticking see how he does no pressure he's literally tearing chunks out the grass at all sorts oh my words he's on it it's a torquier talk is what you want in the desert you know because you're driving blind that you know you know when don't know where you're going you want the engine to respond and have the talk and especially in the sand as well I can really I can hear him using the throttle now properly it's lovely tip otherwise I tell you what it's nice but you've got a steering wheel to hold on to yeah sometimes in their car you can have stuff like this for 40K and that's really tiring you know physically and mentally clock sticking but how good Tiff was now nearing the end of the lap and I was glued to the stopwatch a minute 52 53 54. here we go again so had our man done enough 159.65 he had to beat a 155.26 so that's just over four and a half seconds slower than Janelle Janelle's just come second in the Dakar Rally Tiff's only got into the car a few moments ago that is awesome glad you enjoyed it oh we're back a neck foreign because they look so sort of scary in a way and they sound so awesome but to drive they're really user friendly it's fantastic I tell you what I've done a decade car you've done a decade car yeah why don't we put an engine for the Decker brilliant our drive oh no no obviously I will drive no no obviously I'll drive I'm always a passenger but I'm taller no but I'm better you should be better at digging sand castles I won't be digging I can't believe it's him that was painful to watch do what it's done to your wing mirrors every time if it's done that to the wing mirrors you want to have a look at the Bonnet it's all that working done in an instant rightforeign took a passenger ride beside Dakar Rally Legend Janelle de Villiers in his Toyota Hilux that finished second in this year's event it's fair to say Tiff had an interesting experience but as he'd now be trying to beat Janelle's lap time the question was had he learned anything from the master or just spent the whole time grumbling where rubric is it which way is first first is just one bag yep I think that's answered the question feels very unnatural have you ever been a passenger in your own car Janelle not really the time Tiff had to beat was one minute 55.26 but it seemed only fair to allow him a few cytolapse before starting the clock at this point Tiff would just be wondering you know what gears to be in and how to push the car a bit more because after all it has never been an engineer's done thousands of miles it's not very natural straight away got my left foot on the brake it just feels the right thing to do uh sounds fantastic though and it sounds like this will really get me hang of it quite quickly as I should have hoped I really thought the steering would be kicking in my hands but it's lovely it's like a little swing racing car I can't believe how much I'm enjoying this so quickly but that's what it's dangerous so don't worry engineer we won't get too opening confidence I drove a mini x-rayed Dakar which was which competed against this car actually in this year's Dakar Rally so I know what fun they can be they're fantastically agile and you can get them sideways really easily really quickly and they are an amazing piece of Kit to drive because they're so they're so alive but they're also quite difficult because you have to focus mentally they're physically demanding and it gets really hot in there rocky roads I mean what's the most enjoyable but I enjoy the dunes a lot but I don't want to just drive in the news you know you want that's the mix of everything you get is is actually the enjoyment with his brief practice over it was time to find out just how fast Tiff could go let's just crossed the start line clock's ticking see how he does no pressure he's literally tearing chunks out the grass at all sorts oh my words he's on it it's a torquier talk is what you want in the desert you know because you're driving blind that you know you know when don't know where you're going you want the engine to respond and have the talk and especially in the sand as well I can really I can hear him using the throttle now properly it's lovely tip otherwise I tell you what it's nice but you've got a steering wheel to hold on to yeah sometimes in their car you can have stuff like this for 40K and that's really tiring you know physically and mentally clock sticking but how good Tiff was now nearing the end of the lap and I was glued to the stopwatch a minute 52 53 54. here we go again so had our man done enough 159.65 he had to beat a 155.26 so that's just over four and a half seconds slower than Janelle Janelle's just come second in the Dakar Rally Tiff's only got into the car a few moments ago that is awesome glad you enjoyed it oh we're back a neck foreign because they look so sort of scary in a way and they sound so awesome but to drive they're really user friendly it's fantastic I tell you what I've done a decade car you've done a decade car yeah why don't we put an engine for the Decker brilliant our drive oh no no obviously I will drive no no obviously I'll drive I'm always a passenger but I'm taller no but I'm better you should be better at digging sand castles I won't be digging I can't believe it's him that was painful to watch do what it's done to your wing mirrors every time if it's done that to the wing mirrors you want to have a look at the Bonnet it's all that working done in an instant rightforeign took a passenger ride beside Dakar Rally Legend Janelle de Villiers in his Toyota Hilux that finished second in this year's event it's fair to say Tiff had an interesting experience but as he'd now be trying to beat Janelle's lap time the question was had he learned anything from the master or just spent the whole time grumbling where rubric is it which way is first first is just one bag yep I think that's answered the question feels very unnatural have you ever been a passenger in your own car Janelle not really the time Tiff had to beat was one minute 55.26 but it seemed only fair to allow him a few cytolapse before starting the clock at this point Tiff would just be wondering you know what gears to be in and how to push the car a bit more because after all it has never been an engineer's done thousands of miles it's not very natural straight away got my left foot on the brake it just feels the right thing to do uh sounds fantastic though and it sounds like this will really get me hang of it quite quickly as I should have hoped I really thought the steering would be kicking in my hands but it's lovely it's like a little swing racing car I can't believe how much I'm enjoying this so quickly but that's what it's dangerous so don't worry engineer we won't get too opening confidence I drove a mini x-rayed Dakar which was which competed against this car actually in this year's Dakar Rally so I know what fun they can be they're fantastically agile and you can get them sideways really easily really quickly and they are an amazing piece of Kit to drive because they're so they're so alive but they're also quite difficult because you have to focus mentally they're physically demanding and it gets really hot in there rocky roads I mean what's the most enjoyable but I enjoy the dunes a lot but I don't want to just drive in the news you know you want that's the mix of everything you get is is actually the enjoyment with his brief practice over it was time to find out just how fast Tiff could go let's just crossed the start line clock's ticking see how he does no pressure he's literally tearing chunks out the grass at all sorts oh my words he's on it it's a torquier talk is what you want in the desert you know because you're driving blind that you know you know when don't know where you're going you want the engine to respond and have the talk and especially in the sand as well I can really I can hear him using the throttle now properly it's lovely tip otherwise I tell you what it's nice but you've got a steering wheel to hold on to yeah sometimes in their car you can have stuff like this for 40K and that's really tiring you know physically and mentally clock sticking but how good Tiff was now nearing the end of the lap and I was glued to the stopwatch a minute 52 53 54. here we go again so had our man done enough 159.65 he had to beat a 155.26 so that's just over four and a half seconds slower than Janelle Janelle's just come second in the Dakar Rally Tiff's only got into the car a few moments ago that is awesome glad you enjoyed it oh we're back a neck foreign because they look so sort of scary in a way and they sound so awesome but to drive they're really user friendly it's fantastic I tell you what I've done a decade car you've done a decade car yeah why don't we put an engine for the Decker brilliant our drive oh no no obviously I will drive no no obviously I'll drive I'm always a passenger but I'm taller no but I'm better you should be better at digging sand castles I won't be digging I can't believe it's him that was painful to watch do what it's done to your wing mirrors every time if it's done that to the wing mirrors you want to have a look at the Bonnet it's all that working done in an instant right\n"