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Dakar: Husqvarna’s Fretigne Withdraws

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December 22, 2011

2012 Dakar Rally

In August, the Frenchman David Fretigne suffered a crash at the Rally dos Sertoes that injured his vertebrae.

He continued to recover, and was hoping to race on the all-new Speedbrain Husqvarna team in 2012 Dakar. But medical reports show that he’s still not fully recovered to compete 2012 Dakar, the toughest rally race in the world.

David Fretigne says: "I am very sad that I can finally not start, after all the good hopes and the hard work to come back. I wish my team all the best at the race, and will be with them with my thoughts. I will continue to work hard on my physical condition, it was just a little bit too early to risk a start, but I will be back soon in full strength."

Husqvarna Rallye Team by Speedbrain announced Jose Manuel Pellicer as short notice new team rider, in order not to leave the starting spot of rider number twelve empty.

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Welcome to the Motos and Friends Podcast. This episode is brought to you by Insta360, the leader in 360-degree action camera technology. This episode is also brought to you by the 33rd annual Biketoberfest® rally that takes place in the Daytona Beach and Volusia County areas, Florida; on Oct. 16-19.

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In our first segment, Don Williams gives us the low down on the another of the new Harley-Davidson Softails… this one is the Street Bob. The Street Bob can sometimes be overlooked as it’s a slightly simpler motorcycle than some of its Softail siblings, but it’s definitely worth a look as it still has that amazing 117-inch Milwaukee-8 motor, and it’s a really easy-riding motorcycle with bags of charisma.

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We’ve been talking excitedly for the past few weeks about the upcoming Biketoberfest rally in Daytona Beach, Florida on October 16th through the 19th. So this episode we take a few minutes to chat with Lori Campbell-Baker, Brian Bentley, and Andrew Booth, from the Daytona Beach Area Convention & Visitors Bureau. Biketoberfest is all about the beautiful Florida weather, live music, the industry’s top vendors, bike shows, and motorcycle racing at Daytona International Speedway. But especially, there are miles of scenic rides along the famous A1A, historic Main Street and the Ormond Beach Scenic Loop. Besides the riding, places like thenewrainforest part of the Daytona Aquarium & Rainforest Adventure and it features multiple species of mammals and exotic birds including Toucans, Sloths, Otters, and Tamarins. Also, the Marine Science Center in Ponce Inlet has reopened after a multi-million dollar renovation, and there are several new exhibits on the campus of the Smithsonian-affiliated Museum of Arts & Sciences. You should also know about the Harley Dream Giveaway… Tickets are available to win a Harley-Davidson Road Glide ST and a Ford F-250 Harley-Davidson edition from Teddy Morse’s Daytona Harley-Davidson. There really is something for everyone here, even families, and almost every event and attraction is free to attend. So if you want a fun few days out in the Florida sunshine, Biketoberfest really is the place to be. Download the Biketoberfest mobile App from Apple or Google Play or visit www.biketoberfest.orgfor more details.

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“I’m no superhero” says Vanessa Ruck aka “The Girl on a Bike”, who is our guest for this episode. But… actually, I think she’s wrong, I’d say she is every bit a superhero. Teejay chats with Vanessa about that time she took on one of the most difficult and prestigious off-road races in the history of Motorsports: the original and real Dakar Rally; now known as The Africa Eco Race. This is the legendary desert race which covers 13 days and 6,000 kilometers, sometimes in over 120-degree heat. It runs from Monaco, Europe, through Morocco, Western Sahara, and Mauritania, eventually to Dakar in Senegal, West Africa. This is the race where 54% of the entrants didn’t finish; and yet Vanessa on her trusty KTM became the first British female—and only the second female ever—to actually finish this crazy test of human endurance and spirit. Check out Vanessa’s YouTube channel and her Instagram

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