PR 9 – STAGE 6 – AFRICA ECO RACE 2020
PAOLO CAPRIONI ENTERS THE TOP TEN
“Paolo closed the special initially in eighth position today after a test that seemed tailor-made for him, but then when the drivers who started further back and who mainly followed the dust of the opponents arrived, he slipped into 14th position.
“I didn’t do anything wrong – he says happily – no navigation errors. And this was truly the right special for Frusta ”he adds immediately.
Quite flat and fast in fact, it was one of the special ones where you can unload all the power of the 790 engine on the ground, but always with a certain attention.
“Navigating was not easy and I traveled alone first and then I occasionally met some pilots with whom I traveled a few kilometers. But despite the strong wind that had erased tracks and above all the poorly visible tracks that our road book told us to follow, I managed to do everything in the best possible way “.
He wants to chat on arrival, despite on the bivouac of Chami, a real white spot in the middle of absolute nothing, a wind of sand blows that certainly does not give the best welcome in Mauritania to the Africa Eco Race caravan.
“It is the first day since we left that I can finally say that I played a stage without any problem. And this makes me immensely happy. Even in terms of setting everything went very well and I controlled the bike well. ”
The satisfaction that Paolo gives off quickly infects everyone and both Fabio Zanone and Paolo’s brother, Stefano, smile as they ask the rider what there is to fix on the KTM, as happens at each end of the stage.
“Little or nothing” says Paolo as he takes off his helmet because the bike is fine, just the curiosity to see how consumption went since today they have almost always traveled against the wind.
In the standings Paolo is 14th at 8’03 ”from the winner of today’s special. Caprioni goes up a few positions even in the absolute classification – currently it is 18th – and obviously maintains the first position in the classification reserved for twin-cylinders.
Tomorrow seventh stage and promises to be one of those that could make the ranking, as they say in jargon.”
@Credit kapriony.com