In exile

After the 2009 success the entries for the 2010 edition were booming. No less than 160 pilots, co-pilots and mechanics were eager to join. Everything was set and ready until only three weeks to the start Libya closed the borders for all inhabitants of the Schengen countries. With huge effort the organisers managed to move the rally to Tunisia in just two weeks’ time.

In 2011 it was the ‘Arab Spring’ that put a spoke in the wheels. Returning to Libya was out of the question and the next edition of the Libya Rally was postponed to 2012, in Tunisia once more. The roadbooks, made by the new race director Jean-Claude Kaket were perfect, over 180 pilots and mechanics made a wonderful competition and the atmosphere was better than ever. After seven days of competition and fun all competitors made a vow to come back if the organisers would find a new destination. On that day ‘Libya rally goes Morocco – 2013’ was born.

A new home

The huge variety of landscapes and tracks made the first Libya Rally in Morocco a success. The new host had a lot to offer: technical mountain tracks, long untouched beaches, vast desert, and of course high, golden dunes. The enthusiasm was overwhelming and the wonderful reactions  of the competitors helped us to a new record: 300 entries for the 2014 edition, in which race trucks made their appearance as well.

In the 2015 edition – with 400 entries – the organisation made the next logical big step in professionalization of the event by collaborating with the French company ERTF and the introduction of GPS UNIK 2 and Sentinel. Again it turned out a successful cross country, this time with its finish line in magical Marrakesh. More and more former and future competitors of the Dakar Rally found their way to the ‘Moroccan Libya Rally’ and highly appreciated the event.

A real cross country

In 2016 the rally was the first of its kind to literally cross all of Morocco, starting from Agadir’s Atlantic coast to finish at the Mediterranean coast.

A new name & ZERO KM Liaison

In 2017 the name Libya Rally was finally replaced by the more appropriate Morocco Desert Challenge. And also a new trend was introduced: we took away the one thing which everybody dislikes in rallies: the liaisons, the road sections were reduced to zero. Every start and every arrival of the special stage was in the bivouac. This unique concept made the number of participants grow with another 20%.

What once started in Libya as a small rally with 50 competitors, mostly ordinary 4×4’s and a few endure bikes, had grown into an internationally respected rally raid, the biggest in Africa, with over 700 people in the bivouac.

A growing event

We continued this growing trend in 2018 with a spectacular 10-year anniversary edition and an even bigger one in 2019 with more than 1000 participants and 200 strong crew. 2020 was supposed to become equally epic, until COVID-19 hit. 3 weeks before the start, the entire world went into lockdown and stayed that way for the better part of the year. The restrictions still in place in spring 2022 made us decide to postpone the rally another year. But in April 2023 we were back with our biggest edition yet! More than 300 vehicles in competition and over 1300 people in the bivouac.

2009​​​​​​​

Mainly thanks to positive review on a few rally-websites and the wild stories of the participants about the breathtakingly beautiful Libyan nature, the rally started to be known. The number of participants rose to 120 and pilots from Italy, France, UK, Belgium and Holland found their way to the new rally paradise. Thanks to the campaign our local partner Hadi Bkai (Fessano Tours) the Libyan authorities decided to sponsor the event with petrol, military and and Agusta helicopter. Especially that machine was very important on day 1. An unforeseen and incredibly high temperature, in combination with bad visibility lead to 13 medical interventions on day 1. A massive job for our extensive medical team, consisting of 8 doctors. On the fourth day the rally had its first (and luckily so far only) fatal accident. The experienced Belgian quad rider Alex Debot lost his life after making a crucial navigation error.

Winners of the 2009 edition:

4×4’s:

1. Mario Moro & Franco Gallegiole (Italy)
2. David Giovanetti & Dario Faverro (Italy)
3. Salim Alsawi & Tofek Alshref (Libya)

Motorbikes:

1. Willem Jacquet (Holland)
2. Alberto Rosa (Italy)
3. Elio Moro (Italy)

Quads:

1. Jean-Michel Redal (France)
2. Pietro Fogliano (Italy)
3. Daniël Trotzier (France)

2012​​​​​​​

Nobody saw it coming. The “Arab Spring” hit the whole of Northern-Africa and the rest of the Arab world in 2011. First the regime fell in Tunisia, followed by Egypt and thirdly the country that lays in between them: Libya. Aided by the West, that was of course interested in the enormous oil supplies, Libyan rebels were armed and won the battle against Khadafi. Because of the war there was no rally in 2011 and the hope to return to the highest dunes of the Sahara, was set on 2012.

A year later the war was over, but we were still waiting for disarmament and stability. So yes, we did organise Libya Rally, but again in Tunisia. Libya Rally had become a “rally in excile”, with a new host country every 2-3 years.

Nevertheless the success of the rally continued. The road books were for the first time written by the new race director Jean-Claude Kaket (a true rally veteran with a.o. 14 Dakars on his record of achievements) and were perfect, the 140 pilots and mecanics had a fantastic competition and the athmosphere in the bivouac was better than ever before. After 7 days of racing all participants made a promise to register again for the next edition on the condition that the organisation would choose a new destination. That day “Libya Rally goes Morocco 2013” was born.

2014

Libya Rally 2014 is over. After 6 months of preparations and 7 days of intensive racing we can evaluate the 6th edition of our event. Based on our own experiences and the feedback we received from the nearly 300 racers and their assistance crews, we can state that it has been a fantastic week. Also I have enjoyed it 200%.
Libya Rally 2014 was a tough one, with often very long stages for the participants. In every sense of the word it was a true cross-country rally which started in the north-Moroccan royal city of Fez. Via the plains of the Rekkam, the dunes of Merzouga, the mountains around Zagora, the Erg Chigaga, Lac Iriki and the riverbeds of the Oued Draa, everybody drove through a constantly changing but always breathtakingly beautiful Moroccan scenery. Not only did all racers have to face the fatigue, typical for a long rally, but also the high temperatures (sometimes up to 40°C) and even two sand storms, limiting visibility to less than 50 meters. As a result the final stage on the beach of the Atlantic Ocean and the arrival at “Plage Blanche”, between TanTan and Agadir, were an unforgettable moment for those still in the race.

For a moment the event was overshadowed by a few accidents, luckily not lethal ones. Willem Kien (NL, Wrangler Jeep), winner of the past two editions, and Rik van Hoorebeke (B, Mercedes Race truck) were flown to hospital by helicopter with a few broken vertebrae. Also motor bikers Alex Van Ginkel (NL), Pietro Pasti (IT) and Chris Corke (UK) had a serious crash. Luckily all these injuries were not life-threatening and all of them are doing well today. A sincere “thank you” to the 9 emergency doctors and nurses of our medical staff.
Also for the assistance teams and the organisation the 2014 edition was a true challenge. Being sandblasted while doing the maintenance on the vehicles at night or trying to serve a barbecue for nearly 400 people in the middle of a sand storm was not simple. Nevertheless they all found creative solutions, every day again. I therefor thank my crew from the bottom of my heart for their unconditional support and their eternal smiles with which they performed 8 days and 8 nights.

2016

Congratulations to the winners of Libya Rally 2016

Cars & Buggies / SSV’s (General Ranking)
1° Jérome Renaud & Gabriel Péméant – Sadev Springbok
2° Vincent Thijs & Serge Bruynkens – Mitsubishi Pajero Mivec
3° Michiel Becx & Edwin Kuijpers – Yamaha YXZ

Cars & Buggies
1° Jérome Renaud & Gabriel Péméant  – Sadev Springbok
2° Vincent Thijs & Serge Bruynkens – Mitsubishi Pajero Mivec
3° Erik Loomans & Hans De Pauw  – Bowler Wildcat

SSV’s:
1° Michiel Becx & Edwin Kuijpers  – Yamaha YXZ
2° Thierry Gerome & Geoffroy Noël de Burlin (Polaris RZR – Turbo)
3° Pascal Mercier & François Beguin (Polaris RZR – Turbo)

Trucks:
1° Martin Van den Brink / Wouter De Graaff / Daniel Kozlovsky (Renault)
2° Igor Bouwens / Marc Lauwers / Dave Bergmans (Iveco)
3° Aart Schoones / Gertjan Schoones / Jarno Van Wijk (Daf)

Motorbikes:
1° Michael Lundberg (SWE)
2° Gilles Vanderweyen (LUX)
3° Max Hunt (UK)

Quads:
1° Gerben Lieverdink (HOL)
2° Joey  Van den Outenaar (HOL)
3° René Van Eerd (HOL)

2018

The 2018 edition was epic! For our 10th anniversary edition, we went the extra mile. And by the looks of it, our participants loved it!

Check out the winners of the 2018 edition: