24^th OPTIC 2000 RALLY – TUNISIA 2005

Total: 2,784 kms        Liaisons: 767 kms
Special Stages: 2,017 kms

Click here to see a presentation of the 2005 Optic 2000 Rallye De Tunisie for the 2005 Off Road World Rally Championship.  To view the presentation click on the slide numbers at the left of the screen.  Some of the slides are large video clips.  Click on their slide images to watch them (some will take a long time to load).  The race stages are described below.

Sunday 3^rdApril NICE / LEVENS / NICE

Liaison 42 kms – Special Stage 4 kms – Liaison 21 kms – Total 67 kms

The route followed is the same as in 2004. It is in fact a mountainside firebreak trail, which crosses a small pass before heading back down towards the finish. The track is narrow and technical (although not damaging) and held a few surprises last year. As is often the case with these initial stages, competitors making mistakes have more to lose than to win, so care is needed!

Monday 4^th April TUNIS / LE KEF

Transfer  207 kms

Arriving from the port of La Goulette, the Rally caravan will travel by road to the first bivouac set up fairly near to town of Le Kef in the north of the country, near to the Algerian border.

Tuesday 5^th April LE KEF / TAMERZA

 

Transfer 5 kms – Special Stage 279 kms – Liaison 1 km

 

From the start to the end of the stage, competitors will follow the Algerian border. This will be the only special stage of the Tunisian week to offer such a variety of scenery, ranging from pine forests to crop fields, deserts and mountains… One of the event’s most magical moments will be when the track passes the foot of Jugurtha’s Table. This special stage will also be one of the most technical stages of the Rally, with a few entertaining mountain passes on the agenda. On the navigation side, the road book should be followed carefully, firstly because there is no GPS point (in fact, there are none throughout the entire event) and secondly because of the many changes in direction. A large oued is crossed towards the end of the stage. Competitors will again see a few border posts, reminders that Algeria is close by, before arriving at the Tamerza bivouac set up in the heart of the mountains.

Wednesday 6^th April  TAMERZA / SABRIA

 

Transfer 19 kms – Special Stage 240 kms – Liaison 32 kms

 

At the start of the special stage, the track offers very good going on sandy ground. Then it becomes narrow and bumpy before reaching the assistance point. Competitors will then cross the El Jerid chott, where they should make sure they stick to the ideal path if they wish to avoid the many hazards this type of terrain can hold. Leaving the chott, the first white dunes will remind all competitors to keep a close eye on their bearings (and tyre pressures too, if they want to avoid having to use the shovel!). The end of the special stage will be very fast as the competitors again cross the El Jerid chott before the finish line. A 32-kilometre liaison will then take them to the bivouac set up in the dunes, near to a stretch of water where the largest colony of dromedaries in Tunisia comes to drink.

Thursday 7^th April SABRIA  / SABRIA

 

Transfer 52 kms – Special Stage 315 kms – Liaison 41 kms

 

This first loop is totally new. At the start of the special stage, an off-track section over the only camel grass of the Rally will certainly conjure up happy memories for some! Next, the first small dunes will appear on either side of the route, which runs down an old oil track covered by drifts of sand. The competitors will cross the famous “pipeline track”, before beginning a section that will require all the drivers’ skills, taking them to the foothills of the Anti-Atlas mountains to the south of Tataouine. They will then bear west to reach KSAR GHILANE on tracks of varying quality. From KSAR, an off-track section over sandy terrain will take the vehicles to the BIDANE pass, before they continue on to the old well of BIRHAJ BRAHIM and end up on a fast track leading to DOUZ.

 

Friday 8^th April     SABRIA / EL BORMA

 

Transfer 9 kms – Special Stage 299 kms – Liaison 76 kms

 

Competitors will first head south on one of the most demanding stages of the Rally. The first 60 kilometres are far from easy, crossing as they do rather soft, white dunes (trouble in store for anyone who does not follow their directions properly!). Then, heading towards KSAR GHILANE, the vehicles will follow the previous day’s track for 40 kms, returning to the BIDANE pass (easier to find when crossed for the second time). Once they reach KSAR GHILANE, they will take a track periodically covered by drifts of sand, heading due south alongside the Great Eastern Erg and leading the competitors to the pipeline running from EL BORMA. There are no particular navigation problems to speak of since the Great Erg initially provides an obvious landmark to the right of the trail, and subsequently, the track runs alongside the pipeline until the finish line. After a liaison of 76 kms on the track, the bivouac set up in the heart of the superb El Borma palm grove will offer comfort for our tired heroes.

 

Saturday 9^th April    EL BORMA / EL BORMA

 

Liaison 11 kms – Special Stage 290 kms – Liaison 3 kms

 

More than ever, this now legendary stage will be the judge of the event. 100 % off-track and 100 % over sand, the 5^th special stage consists of two loops. The 1^st, 223 kms long, should not present many problems, but the second, 70-km loop will be much trickier, especially with 6 ridges of dunes to be found and crossed. After successfully scaling dunes as high as cathedrals, the slopes on the far sides will look like giant slides. While this second loop will naturally be great fun for the regulars, it will be optional for those competitors who have already experienced difficulties in the first. A sort of joker for those who want to see the event through to the end, since it is better to incur a heavy penalty than to finish the Rally among the dunes. As always, it is strongly recommended to keep an eye on tyre pressures.

 

Sunday 10^th April    EL BORMA / DJERBA

 

Transfer 45 kms – Special Stage 326 kms – Liaison 70 kms

 

After spending their last night under the marvellous starry sky of the Tunisian desert, the competitors will head off towards the Mediterranean. At 442 kms, this is the longest stage of the Rally. After the first 10 kilometres, heading due south off-track, the competitors will turn east on a large, fast track leading to FORT JNEIEN. After a superb oued, they will cross a big Western-style canyon on a fast, technical track, then the tarmac at NEKRIF at the assistance point. The second part of the stage will be fast until the fort of KSAR JEDID. Then up until the finish line at NEFATIA, the drivers will have a great time, but navigation will be trickier, because of the many changes of direction at the end of the special stage. Once they have crossed the finish line and completed the 70-km liaison, survivors will be able to shake off the dust in Djerba’s comfortable seaside hotels before the final encounter the following day.

 

Monday 11^th April    DJERBA / DJERBA

 

Transfer 91 kms – Special Stage 264 kms – Liaison 37 kms

 

The last day of racing on Tunisian soil will begin with a 91-km transfer. The first part of this third loop, a sandy track marked out by the many border posts on the frontier with Libya, will call on all the drivers’ skills for the last time in the event. Then from kilometre 142 to kilometre 212, vehicles will follow part of the previous day’s track, but heading the other way. After driving a few kilometres down a road open to traffic, the competitors will cross a chott before reaching a seaside track that takes them to the finish line, judged on the beach. Relief at last for some, but the hour of glory for others, who will be suitably honoured by the many VIPs present.