Buggy forces Brit out of Dakar

British Dakar rally entrant Chris Emerson has been knocked out of the race at the end of the fourth stage after being run off the road by one of the leading buggies.

Disaster struck just 5km from the end of stage four when Emerson was caught up by a buggy. In its attempt to get past, it managed to knock him of the course and straight into a barbed wire fence. Emerson was uninjured but the bike’s engine casing was holed.

Emerson, who was competing in his first rally and riding a private BMW F650GS Rallye, finished the first stage in 128th place out of 192 bikes, but on the second stage he crashed and bruised his ribs, leaving him in last place.

Starting a stage in last place is always dangerous, as the cars are started not long after the last bike has left and are much quicker in the slippery conditions.

With the help of one of the truck competitors he managed to seal the hole and limp to the finish but the rest of the field had already left for the next stage so he was forced to retire.

Emerson, who only started riding two years ago and has limited off-road experience, was taking part in the rally to raise funds for the Helen House children’s hospice and Douglas House home for people with life-threatening illnesses. He hopes all his sponsors will still make their pledges to the charities despite his early retirement from the race.

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