January 2010
20 posts
January 23 - Manly, Australia
It’s a week since I wept in San Carlos de Bolivar. Rather than sweltering in the desert, I’m now sweltering by the beach. It’s funny returning to some sort of normality after the intensity of the preparations and then the race itself. Yes it is nice to be home and to spend time with my wife and children, but I’d be lying if i said that a small part of me (at least)...
January 16 - Santa Rosa - St Carlos de Bolivar -...
I have no words today, just tears and photos. Two men, one bike, five cameras. Against all odds, WE DID IT.
More coming in the next few days when I recover some composure.
January 15 – San Rafael – Santa Rosa
The Dakar is a race against time. For the drivers, assistance teams, mechanics, the press – for anyone involved, the clock starts the minute the hint of a thought of possible involvement in the race crystallises into a “yes I’m going”, and it doesn’t stop until you hit the finish line. We’re not quite there yet, and the relentless “tick” of the Dakar clock still keeps me up long after the sun has...
January 14 – San Juan - San Rafael
I am writing this under siege, in a service station, about 100km from San Rafael, Argentina. Although we are clearly not driving in the race – merely reporting on it, we were mobbed as we pulled up. I signed autograph after autograph before finally stumbling into this air-conditioned haven. Right now we are holed up with two confused looking American drivers from the Monster Hummer team. The crowd...
january 13 – Santiago – San Juan
The conventions that govern movies in the western world are so entrenched in our consciousness that we can almost sense when a crux event is about to take place.
Not so real life.
The day began early. Guido, the Argentine photographer now joining us in the Fiat awoke me at 2.30 am. We were in the car, winding our way up through the Andes by 3.00am. by 5.00, we had stopped and I was hiking up an...
January 12 – La Serena - Santiago
Last full day in Chile. I’m afraid I’m writing this in a huge hurry, about to hop in the car and drive 500km to San Juan in Argentina. So no waxing lyrical today. Suffice to say it was a long very hot day. Christophe is in, safe and sound but with a very sore back. I speak for us both when I say we’re looking forward to getting home. Even terminal positive thinker Christophe...
January 11 – Capiapo – La Serena - Demons be gone!
I used practically every camera I have today, gradually downsizing as batteries ran flat or SD cards filled up. Started with the JVC HM100E and ended up filming Christophe eating dinner using my little pocket FLIP HD camera. I’m now sitting in the media tent at 10.00pm with hours of recharging and data transfer ahead of me.
My day started with a hitch up to the starting line of the special...
The footage you see below was shot using a POV 1.5 helmet camera provided by our good friends at www.sportscamera.com.au
Jan 10 – Afogasta – Capiopa. Homeward bound (sort...
On a homeward track now! Started before daybreak. Stopped to film some desert shots in the dawn light. Beautiful. Also stopped for a swim at a little beach on the edge of the desert. Incredible, swimming and looking back at mountains of dust and sand.
Pulled into the bivouac around 2.00pm and immediately hopped out and began what was to become a pretty full on climb up a mountain sized sand dune...
January 9 - Antofogasta. Rest Day!
We’re half way through. Wow! There were zero guarantees that we would get this far but we have done, and Christophe, the bike, and most importantly the Fiat, are all doing well.
I’ve spent most of the day filming desert shots, doing laundry, backing up files and regaining some energy to get through the week that remains of the race. I’m not going to write a full entry today....
January 8 – Iquique - Antofagasta
The desert doesn’t care if you’re hurt. The desert doesn’t care if you’re tired. The desert will be here, implacably indifferent - just here - long after you’re end has come. Whether that be today round the next bend, tomorrow on the side of a mountainous dune or in 30, 40 years time at home surrounded by the memories of a life that is nothing but a grain in the interminable desert of time.
For...
Jan 7 - Antofagasta - Iquique - the day the dream...
I awoke late. About 7.00am. As I sat and stared at my bivouac breakfast, styrofoam coffee in hand, I was thinking about the film. One of the difficulties of making a documentary like this is that you really don’t know what will happen. I am very much aware of the elements required to build a compelling story, but this story is very much in the hands of the gods. So my concern this morning...
Jan 6 – Copiapo – Antofagasta
A mighty 558 km driven today. Passed the time singing along to a radio station that seemed perfectly tuned to the period of my life in which music really mattered. Recorded my own versions of Jamiroquai’s “Space Cowboy”, Depeche Mode’s “just can’t get enough” and many other greasy long hair favourites. Am certain these audio treats will make the final cut of the movie – probably as a comic...
Jan 5 – Fiambala – Copiapo – Bienvenido en Chile
505 km driven today; up over the Andes and down into the Atacama desert on the Chilean side. Landscape ranged from surreal to stunningly beautiful to downright unsettling as we rolled into the stark aridity of the Atacama. Dubbed the driest place on earth, it hasn’t rained in this place for 300 years; and it shows. Huge gritty sand dunes the size of mountains dwarf anything before them. I was...
January 4 – La Rioja – Fiambola. Dust Storm...
Incredible day on the Dakar today. Christophe described it as the hardest Dakar stage he has ever ridden. Another ozzie rider, Rob Pollard echoed Christophe’s sentiments, saying “at times I wondered why the xxxx I was out there”.
The special took place in the midst of a sandstorm in the foothills to the Andes. Big dunes made it extremely hard for the riders.
I was moved almost to tears by...
January 03 – Cordoba – La Rioja
Que puta calor! Left Cordoba at 11.00pm last night in an attempt to get to the end of today’s special. Got most of the way before tiredness stopped us. Pitched my tent in a dusty abandoned childrens playground and slept the sleep of the very fricken tired.
Our cunning plan paid off and we found our way down a long dusty track to the end of the special. I suspect you’re asking what the hell the...
January 2 - Cordoba - "que calor!"
Blogging from a Wi - Fi equipped cafe that’s about to close. Bloody hot here today. First day of racing. Christophe got through fine. Bike going great. Helmet cams bringing us some great images. Have driven 800km in the past 24 hours. About 200 or so more to go today. Not sleeping at the bivouac; going ahead instead to the end of tomorrow’s special to get some shots of Christophe...
December 31 - Buenos Aires
A big day today. Started at 5.00am and still going, now quarter to one on New Year’s day.
Christophe had to put his bike through all the stringent technical checks as well as go through more of the administrative fun I mentioned yesterday. I shot some beautiful images - this whole setup lends itself to it - beautiful location, beautiful machines, beautiful weather, beautiful people....
December 2009
7 posts
Hola Buenos Aires
This is it! I am finally here. After a fretful 13 hour flight worrying about whether we’d be able to find a car we could take to Chile as well as Argentina (the internet showed everything booked out), we landed and immediately picked up a Fiat something or another from Hertz. It seems like a trivial concern, but not scoring a car could have seriously jeopardised the whole project and...
Sunday Dec 27 - Manly
2 days until the off. Christophe flew on Christmas Day. I couldn’t tear myself away from Anoushka and Philomena, my two baby daughters and so am flying on Wednesday morning. It’s been a crazy two weeks trying to pull together all the final preparations – sorting camera and data storage equipment, making hotel bookings, trying to score a car in Argentina and Chile after our previous booking fell...
Happy Christmas
Happy Christmas from the Dream Racer team. Thank you to channel 7’s Today Tonight for featuring Christophe on Christmas eve. You can view the story here:
http://au.todaytonight.yahoo.com/latest
We Love JVC →
Just picked up the awesome JVC GY-HM100 that JVC are very kindly providing us with to shoot the race. Wow! What a camera. Perfect for this kind of project. Check out the link.
Christophe and Simon interviewed on Monday Morning...
November 2009
4 posts
4 tags
Welcome to Dream Racer
On December 27 2009, French Australian Business Consultant Christophe Barriere Varju will be heading to Buenos Aires to realise his dream - take part in the 2010 Dakar Rally. It’s a 10,000km odyssey through some of the harshest terrain on earth. It is for good reason that the Dakar is known as the most dangerous motor race in the world. Alongside Christophe will be film maker Simon Lee...
5 tags
Be part of the Dream Racer adventure
We are looking for companies/brands to sponsor Christophe’s incredible endeavour. The Dakar rally attracts over a billion spectators around the world. This is a great opportunity for exposure to a worldwide audience. In addition, the Dream Racer team will feature on pre and post race interviews on SBS and Fox Sports - another great opportunity for your brand to be seen.
To find out more...