Did you get to see the footage from the start last time?
Nobody could say what kind of challenge this would become, gathered with friends from all around the world!
Nobody could have known — and we set off less in tension than in a cheerful mood.
Day one of the Sahara Challenge 2022 — 4,600 km, twelve days — from Málaga, Spain,we cross the border by ship, together with the cars we are competing alongside.
Starting around eight in the morning, we did not reach the ferry terminal until past four in the afternoon. With no time for lunch or any stop along the way, hunger was already a real fight (laughs).
Twelve days still ahead of us, and even this stretch had already run over unpaved dirt track,
so both car and crew were already worn out.
From the start it was mostly just us and the other entrants — overtaking each other, being overtaken, waving on the way pastwith no real chance to stop and talk, so we were genuinely glad to see familiar faces again.
These two had come from France; between their broken English and French, and my ownJapanese, somehow we hit it off, having spent the first day in each other’s company.
This Sahara Challenge, aimed at Peking to Paris as its warm-up, had everyone showing up with cars wrapped in livery.
We had no room for anything like that ourselves (laughs).
A two-hour wait — after driving more than half a day since the start, then standing about waiting on top of it.
Hunger, above everything.
Finally, the cars were loaded onto the ship.
In a hurry, I filmed a “here we go” video to live-stream back to everyone in Japan!
The sun sets late in Spain, but it was gradually going down by now.
Tickets and passports for both car and people.
First, exiting Spain — the checks were surprisingly strict, with baggage inspections too.
Loading onto the ferry looked like this.
And of course, an exit stamp.
Finally getting the car loaded and getting aboard ourselves — a brief moment of rest! First, food (laughs).
There was a snack bar, so a slice of pizza (drink included, a fair €6!).
And — surprisingly good, though maybe that was just how hungry I was.
That relief lasted only a moment — the crossing from Spain to Morocco takes about two and a half hours, and once we arrived there was a careful route check waiting.
This still counted as part of the competition. Everyone around us was less resting their tired bodies than
staring hard at their route maps.
Daisy, another entrant I met on day one, came from England but was actually born in
Cuba! With all the energy and warmth you would expect, and lovely fashion sense too — we couldn’t understand each other’s words, but I had a feelingwe would get along fine💓
By the time we reached Morocco it was already pitch dark.
The last stretch of day one ran this route — 88.3 km.
I could not film our arrival, too focused on not missing the route.
For night one we stayed at a hotel in a Moroccan town.
Even in town, night here means genuinely dark, so lights were essential.
And that’s day one, done!
Day two, at last, the real Moroccan journey begins!
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