Navigating the desert in the Dakar Rally
Spanish motorcyclist Sara Garcia searches for a tool inside a red metallic box during one of the world's toughest races, gazing at pictures and support messages from family and friends.
Garcia and her Yamaha are taking part in the Dakar Rally, an annual event being covered by The Associated Press.
"I'm tired," Garcia said with a smile, adding: "She is tired," referring to her motorbike.
In the same division, Spanish rider Julian Jose García Merino fine-tunes his loyal partner, a blue Yamaha.
"At the end, it is all about finding time to rest," said García Merino, who is riding in the race for the fifth time and competing in a category that cannot accept external help. "Me and my machine go together on this adventure. I can't be on one side and the machine on the other."
The race started on Jan. 5 with 560 drivers and co-drivers, some on motorbikes, others in cars or in trucks. Only 41 are taking part in the Original category.
"Original is the concept that is closest to the first Dakar," rally director David Castera said.
Formerly known as the Paris-Dakar Rally, the race was created by Thierry Sabine after he got lost in the Libyan desert in 1977. Until 2008, the rallies raced across Africa, but threats in Mauritania led organizers to cancel that year's event and move it to South America.
It has now shifted to Saudi Arabia.
Jose Ignacio Cornejo Florino of Chile rides his Honda motorbike during stage eleven of the Dakar Rally between Shubaytah and Haradh, Saudi Arabia, Jan. 16, 2020. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
"Our intention is also to expand the Dakar to the border countries: Oman, Jordan, United Arab Emirates," Castera said. "The Dakar is a nomadic race whose vocation is to explore the deserts in the world."
Today's Dakar Rally is a well-oiled machine with millions of followers on social media and thousands of hours broadcast in more than 100 countries. Over two weeks, the competitors speed through breathtaking landscapes and end each night at the bivouac, the heart of the race and a landscape of camping tents with clothes hanging from dismantled vehicles, co-pilots checking the road book while eating dinner, staffers playing pétanque, and pilots queuing for a hopefully not-so-cold shower.
"The way of living here is a little wild. It's not the comfort you may have in the circuit or in the Formula One environment," said two-time F1 champion Fernando Alonso, who is competing his first Dakar Rally. “It's a personal challenge.”
Driver Erik Van Loon, of Netherlands, and co-driver SÈbastien Delaunay, of France, race their Toyota during stage two of the Dakar Rally, between Al Wajh and Neom, Saudi Arabia, Jan. 6, 2020. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
The body of Paulo Goncalves of Portugal is covered with a blanket after a deadly fall during stage seven of the Dakar Rally between Riyadh and Wadi Al Dawasir, Saudi Arabia, Jan. 12, 2020. Goncalves, 40, died after an accident with his Hero motorbike. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
Driver Jakub Przygonski, of Poland, and co-driver Timo Gottschalk, of Germany, race their Mini during stage eight of the Dakar Rally in Wadi Al Dawasir, Saudi Arabia, Jan. 13, 2020. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
Driver Carlos Sainz, of Spain, drinks water during stage eleven of the Dakar Rally between Shubaytah and Haradh, Saudi Arabia, Jan. 16, 2020. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
Ross Branch of Botswana rides his KTM motorbike during stage one of the Dakar Rally, between Jiddah and Al Wajh, Saudi Arabia, Jan. 5, 2020. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
Matthew Tisdall of Australia rides his KTM motorbike during stage six of the Dakar Rally between Hail and Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Jan. 10, 2020. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
A tail of dust from a race car is seen during stage two of the Dakar Rally, between Al Wajh and Neom, Saudi Arabia, Jan. 6, 2020. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
Kevin Benavides of Argentina rides his Honda motorbike during stage eleven of the Dakar Rally between Shubaytah and Haradh, Saudi Arabia, Jan. 16, 2020. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
A competitor washes a Can-Am SSV after stage five of the Dakar Rally in Hail, Saudi Arabia, Jan. 9, 2020. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
A team member of driver Camelia Liparoti, of Italy, and co-driver Annett Fischer, of Germany, does the laundry after stage eight of the Dakar Rally in Wadi Al Dawasir, Saudi Arabia, Jan. 13, 2020. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
Dakar rally staffers play petanque after stage eight in Wadi Al Dawasir, Saudi Arabia, Jan. 13, 2020. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
Saudi Arabia security forces pray while a care races during stage seven of the Dakar Rally between Riyadh and Wadi Al Dawasir, Saudi Arabia on Jan. 12, 2020. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
Dakar motorbike riders compete during stage one of the Dakar Rally, between Jiddah and Al Wajh, Saudi Arabia, Jan. 5, 2020. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
Driver Mohamad Altwijri, of Saudi Arabia, left, and co-driver Khalid Almarshood, of Saudi Arabia, pray after the stage ten of the Dakar Rally between Haradh and Shubaytah, Saudi Arabia, Jan. 15, 2020. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
Driver Fernando Alonso, of Spain, center, and co-driver Marc Coma, of Spain, right, repair their Toyota after rolling over during the stage ten of the Dakar Rally between Haradh and Shubaytah, Saudi Arabia,, Jan. 5, 2020 photo. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
Dakar rally competitors attend a minute of silence in memory of motorbike Paulo Goncalves of Portugal in Al Dawasir, Saudi Arabia, Jan. 12, 2020. Portuguese motorbike rider Paulo GonÁalves, 40, died on the Dakar Rally after crashing in the Saudi Arabia desert on Sunday. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
This photo shows the overview of the stage four of the Dakar Rally between Neom and Al Ula, in Saudi Arabia, Jan. 8, 2020. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
Charlie Herbst of France rides his KTM motorbike next a herd of camels during stage two of the Dakar Rally, between Al Wajh and Neom, Saudi Arabia, Jan. 6, 2020. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
Driver Stephane Peterhansel, of France, and co-driver Paulo Fiuza, of Portugal, race their Mini during stage eleven of the Dakar Rally between Shubaytah and Haradh, Saudi Arabia, Jan. 16, 2020. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
Driver Carlos Sainz, of Spain, center, is lifted by Driver St»phane Peterhansel, of France, center and left, and driver Nasser Al-Attiyah, of Qatar, center and right, at the end of stage twelve of the Dakar Rally between Haradh and Qiddiya, Saudi Arabia, Jan. 17, 2020. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
Text from AP News story AP Photos: Navigating the desert in the Dakar Rally by Bernat Armangue.