The dream of rally raid driver Paul Spierings
Despite a broken vertebra, Paul remains Spierings fighting for his big dream: participating in the most famous of all rally raids, the Dakar! Geert Gelaude takes you into the adventure of this remarkable motor sportsman.
Some people may know that Sint-Michielsgestel is a municipality in the province of North Brabant. But the fact that the more than 28.600 residents near 's-Hertogenbosch have more to offer than cyclo-cross may sound less familiar to many. One man wants to put his own municipality on the world map this year by participating in the most talked about and legendary rally of all time, the Dakar. Previously, this was the Paris-Dakar rally that starts every year at the beginning of January. Since 2009, they have moved to the countries of Argentina, Chile, Peru and Bolivia to keep the raid out of areas where there were regular skirmishes due to political tensions that endangered participants.
The 30-year-old Paul Spierings, wants to finally see his boyhood dream come true by starting in this prestigious rally. After all, Paul is no longer an unknown person for motorsport insiders, but rather a passionate athlete through and through! Already at the young age of barely 4 years old you can already see the little man making rounds. It was a fact that he got the hang of it and Paul soon started competing, in other words, having gone through all the classes. This has earned him the Dutch title three times, and he won it in 3 IMBA two-stroke champion. The following year lays Spierings raised the bar a little higher and switched to the Royal Dutch Motorcyclists' Association, where things went terribly wrong during the first competition in Rhenen. The injury was so serious and could seriously disrupt the family's future plans that Paul decided to stop racing. He wants to focus fully on his own all-round construction company, which he started after obtaining his VMBO diploma.
But once bitten by the bug, it is almost impossible to cure, they say. This is also the case with Paul, and at the insistence of some friends he participates in some rides for fun. As a result, he got a taste for it again and decided to start in enduro. Miraculously, Paul ends his first year as... Dutch Champion in the N2 class and still looks back on it with great pride today! After what was essentially a year of learning, he is so driven to do even better. In this second year you learn Spierings a lot and has to deal with all kinds of circumstances, but also enjoy the long ride and not the stressful motocross where everything has to be completed in a shorter time. The logical step would be the transition to the inters, until a hematoma threw a spanner in the works and the rider could no longer start in the last races of the year.
But the Brabander was determined and skipped the step to the internationals and went straight to his boyhood dream, namely focusing all his efforts on the Dakar! Paul has now received support from Aelber's staff and thanks to this great support, he is even more determined to succeed. Paul makes plans to gain experience in real rally competitions. He makes his debut in Greece, during the Greenhouse Rally where other obstacles await him. Driving in temperatures of around forty degrees, with the surface in some places extremely slippery and full of dust, was once again a reason for the man from Sint-Michielsgestel to get the most out of himself. He succeeds in his aim and can finish this rally fifth in the R3 class and eighth overall, which makes him realize even more that he can certainly handle the bigger job. The decision has therefore been made and Paul will start in the Abu Dhabi rally, which entitles him to start in the most coveted rally of all time.
In the run-up to this coveted starting place, Paul spends some time with his Belgian friend Wim De Cramer, from the Wim Motors Academy in sun-drenched Portugal. Once again he gains a lot of extra experience and decides to start in the Portuguese Enduro Championship. The first race is one where driving the road book is very important. He ends this first competition in sixth place, which is very good. It's for the sober Spierings a very fast countdown to March 24 where Abu Dhabi and its ticket to fame await. In the run-up to this rally, several important people have joined and are motivating him to even better performances. The Dakar team goes the day before the start Spierings rider practiced for another two hours in the dunes because some adjustments had been made to the bike. After an hour in the dunes, things went very smoothly and it doesn't seem like this is the only and last participation for the resident of Sint-Michielsgestel.
Ultimately brings Paul Spierings his first participation in the Abu Dhabi Rally came to a more than successful conclusion. Although things looked bad for a moment on the penultimate day when the Promax-supported rider got stuck while riding down a dune. Paul did everything but couldn't get the engine out either way. Until help came from an unexpected source, this is also rally driving at the highest level, you help where you can, an experienced Australian hand comes to Paul's aid and releases the engine in just three short steps... Our tired rider can lose after fifteen minutes to continue its journey and continue at the start and finish. With the last day in mind, all in all it looked quite good and Paul was able to show once again that he is indeed made from the perfect Dakar cloth. The two groups started with an interval of fifteen minutes. Our man really wanted to show that he really belongs to the perfect group of Dakar riders and started very well in the second group. Smart, calculated and down-to-earth as he is, the rider ended up in an immense cloud of dust after a few kilometers, which made him decide to slow down a bit but keep everything in sight.
Finally, Paul knew Spierings finishing at 17.40 minutes from the winner Matthias walkner (winner Dakar 2018)!!!! I don't think anything else needs to be said. Knowing that Paul himself says that he does not want to compete with the factory drivers because he wants and will start several times in the Dakar Rally. Many people drive here with blinders on and do not shy away from the dangers. Paul is a family man with dreams and desires, but he stands with both feet on the ground, that much is clear. In his first participation he finished this rally in fifteenth place overall, which can be called an extraordinary achievement!
Yet there is also a downside to this satisfying rally with the ticket for the one and only raid of raids in your pocket. After finishing the rally and upon returning home, Paul continues to suffer from back pain. A visit to the doctors and scans make it clear that L2 is broken and the Aelbers staff rider must rest for at least six weeks. Something that is barely comprehensible for a super motivated rider, yet the rider has to adapt and it is a postponement until he can start competing again to make his big dream come true.
If you wish to support Paul, please contact us info@mxps.nl If you are not yet completely convinced, then definitely take a look at www.mxps.nl of www.dakarteamspierings.nl and make sure your name is part of this super talented rider. He desperately needs your support, but you will get a lot of media and other things in return that you cannot gather in any other way. So don't hesitate and support Paul Spierings in his big dream!
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