A new chapter will be written in Malta’s motorsport scene in the coming few days when the renowned Heroes Legend Rally from Paris to Dakar will welcome Malta’s first ever participants.

In fact, Azure Resorts Malta Project Director, Perry Newton and Kevin Camilleri -Memberships General Manager, will soon be leaving Malta to participate in the Heroes Legend Rally, which attracts competitors from all over the world.

Newton and Camilleri are currently training with the Desert Rose Racing Team, owned by Patsy Quick, who was the first British woman to complete ‘The Dakar’ Rally in 2006.

The duo from Malta will form part of the team under the support of Desert Rose Racing. Accompanying them will be a support truck and four mechanics that will service the bikes; enabling the riders to eat and sleep so that they may have the best start to be able to handle the desert’s unforgiving conditions.

Commenting on these gruelling conditions, Kevin Camilleri said “whilst training previously in Morocco, we encountered a number of sand dunes almost as large as Malta! These sand dunes cause drivers some problems and could prove to be more dangerous than driving on the roads. Travelling across such environments can be problematic as your bike can easily sink in to the sand. Pulling it back out took as long as 30 minutes which, at 45°C, fully kitted, was the most exhausting thing I’ve ever done”.

John Mitchinson, owner of Rally Raid Products, is overseeing the building of Perry and Kevin’s bikes. Equipped with a 35-litre fuel tank, 3 litres of survival water and a host of systems, gadgets and other special equipment, the two KTM 690r enduro bikes are expected to weigh over 210kg.

Newton commented “The bikes are massive but they are comfortable as long as you stay on them and never have to pick them up! They are modified rally bikes and therefore one enjoys driving them. But one has to be very careful as well.”

He added that David Hoare, a cameraman who works closely with British TV presenter Ms Anne Davies, will be accompanying the team, “We are planning on doing a mini-series of maybe five one-hour episodes which, when combined, will make a complete video which will hopefully be transmitted on local and English TV stations”.

Malta Motorsport Federation President, Tonio Cini said that the Heroes Legend Rally has evolved into one of the world’s toughest endurance rallies that test the world’s very best riders and equipment.

“It requires fitness, skill, support and a bike fully prepared to race across some of the world’s harshest terrain including rolling and fast tracks, mountains, twisty sections, oasis crossing, sandy tracks and vast areas of sand dunes.

“Kevin and Perry will need to drive no less than 500km each day starting on 29 September from the Eiffel Tower in Paris and travel 6,500km in total crossing five countries - France, Spain, Morocco, Mauritania and Senegal to finish at the Lac Rose in Dakar, where the story of the Dakar rally has been written for over 30 years - on 14 October 2012.

Challenging such extreme terrain is certainly no mean feat and demands top preparation as they will have to endure high levels of stress physically and psychologically” concuded Mr Cini.

Camilleri said the duo had been training very hard in preparation for their participation in this famous rally. “We have endured a tough time. Our major hope is to finish the event. We hope we are not forced to quit. We know it will be tough there as well. The heat will be our No. 1 enemy, apart from sleeping in a tent without any airconditioning and with no shower available,” he said.

MJoe Caruana Curran, Director at the Kunsill Malti għall-iSport, wished the duo from Malta, the best of luck and also on behalf of the Parliamentary Secretary for Youth and Sport, Clyde Puli and the KMS chairman Bernard Vassallo who could not be present for the press conference due to official duties abroad.

Caruana Curran said that this will be another string in the bow of charitable sport initiatives. “We can name Thomas Cremona, who rowed across the Atlantic Ocean, The Life Cycle Challenge that will be taking place during the same period and now Kevin and Perry, challenging the Heroes Legend Rally, following the footprints of the legendary Dakar Rally,” he said.

Finally he appealed to all to support this daring feat by contributing that little in aid to those institutions who will be benefitting from this event.

Newton said that after nine years living in Malta, he was proud to consider himself a ‘local’. The two drivers are hoping to be waving the Maltese flag at the end of it in Dakar”.

President Dr George Abela also sent a message to the Malta team, wishing them success in this gruelling event. “I am sure it will not be easy. The terrain is very difficult, but I am sure you will be doing your very best for charity. Good luck,”he said.

Both competitors agreed that none of this would be possible without the support of their families and, of course, the aid of sponsors.

They both extended their gratitude to ATTRANS, Bluebird, Baselayer, Connex UK, Drifter Car Hire, Electric Hummingbird, Gauci Automobiles, Interval International, H20 Divers, Island Hotels Group, Jolly, J.S Dimech, Klim, La Valette Club, Mountain Fuel, Myoka, Peter Borg Watersports , Rally Raid, Remax Blue Harbour, RCI, Supreme, Silverpoint, Transport Malta, Tarragon, Tastees, Il-Veduta, Vascas and of course their main sponsors Azure Services Ltd who offer exclusive membership opportunities at the prestigious Radisson Blu Resort & Spa, Golden Sands in Malta, for their support”

The duo are doing it for charity hoping to raise a considerable amount of money for the Malta Community Chest Fund, UNICEF UK and Cancer Research UK. 

They are hoping to raise at least euro 5,000 for each charity.

Donations can be made through the Charities page within the website www.kevinandperrygodakar.com or by sending an sms to the following numbers :

50616134 - €1.16; 50617387 - €2.33; 50618064 - €4.66; 50618936 - €6.99; 50619231- €11.64.