Rallye des Papillons 2009 - overview

Cars lined up for the first leg of the TSD rally in Tozeur.A royal send-off from the local primary school at the hotel !The technical assistance lorry was always on hand to distribute water and help pull those who got stuck out of the sand and mud. ( fortunately we didn’t need them !!)Passing camel trains on the desert roads - a frequent sight. Arriving in Douz after a day of scaling the big dunes at Star Wars Relieved to arrive at the camp in Timbaine in one piece. Still haven’t figured out at this point how to do the calculations and still hang on to the roadbook, chronometer and scan the horizen for hidden check points. The car lit up at night using Nanolight technology for DeltaLight and MarvalWay An evening run up the dunes for a view of the camp and a welcome moment of solitude. The battery was leaking acid ! Thankfully Joel noticed and carried out the necessary repairs before we set off for Ksar Ghilene. More bumpy terrain would have reeked havoc.A beautiful sunset over the fortress at Ksar Ghislene. 150km south of Douz into the heart of the Sahara. The camp at Tsar Ghislane - no creature comforts just the sand and make shift tents to protect us from the bitterly cold night.Christine and Mrs Mohammed Gammoudi (Nadia’s mother) at the camp in Tsar GhislaneDiscussing the whereabouts of one missing car over dinner at the camp. Thankfully the army found them in good shape after a 6 hour search.Early morning stillness in the desert. A magical moment.Our car stuck in sand just after arrival at the final check point. So we laughed and let the men tow us out.A welcome cup of sweet green tea after a bumpy ride and complicated navigation over dunes and gravel tracks. Last photo of the Tea Time Girls and our Toyota Landcruiser before joining the convoy for a 500km drive north to Hammamet.Winners of the 2009 rally receiving their trophy at the Gala dinner in Hammamet - Nathalie Chamard and Jean-Marc Chennivesse (also from Lyon).