Peru : (Grand Start + 5 Stages)

The discovery of Peru thrilled everybody who reached this stage of the rally in 2012. This time, all the riders, drivers and crews will be able to test their mettle on the largest chains of dunes crossed on the continent since 2009. The Dakar has never before started in the middle of the desert in its history. Whilst the dosage of difficulties will decide just how and when the pressure rises, there will be no room for improvisation in 2013.

Argentina : (5 Stages + Rest Day)

Once it crosses the Andes Mountains, after a first visit to Chile, the rally will encounter a different face of South America: one that guarantees a broad range of terrains which smile primarily upon flexibility. In Argentina, the capacity to adapt will be vital to switch from one type of riding and driving to another and between different methods of managing the race. Although the ration of sand will be less dense, the visit to Gaucho country will nevertheless finish with a major test in which only genuine experts in desert riding and driving will be at ease.

Chile : (4 Stages + Finish)

Two distinct sequences will be played out in Chile and each of them will be decisive. The return to the Atacama corresponds with the phase of the Dakar where competitors navigate in the domain of extreme endurance. As a challenge of ultimate resistance, the sessions in the dunes will continue up to the day before the finish. Before reaching Santiago, the competitors will have to tame difficulties of the highest order right up to the end.

Peru : Another face of the desert (4 Stages +Finish)
Au niveau de la mer, le passage de la frontière est cette-fois-ci indolore, mais le contraste est bien réel. Avant de rejoindre Lima, les plus anciens du rallye peuvent se préparer à réviser leurs classiques. Les secteurs de dunes péruviens peuvent paraître interminables, sauf à ceux qui maîtrisent le mauritanien. Là où la diversité des territoires et des modes de vie s’impose comme évidente, celle des sables exigera un apprentissage délicat.

Route information kindly supplied by www.dakar.com