‘I was ready for something different’ - Kim de Rycker & Thibaut Lemahieu

It wasn’t a very pleasant goodbye of MDC 2017 for Kim de Rycker. A broken leg forced the Belgian to withdraw. It was then already he announced he would be back in the ssv class instead of the bikes; a category he won twice. “I’ve always said I would change to the ssv’s after winning the bikes category three times. I didn’t make to three times, but I was ready for something different anyway.”

So this time Kim de Rycker entered in the ssv’s and left the bike for his brother Tom. “Although it is the first time on four wheels I think we do have a chance of finishing in the top 5. I’ve never been to the desert in a car or a buggy, but I suppose the feeling I have with the sand is more or less the same and I could benefit from that experience.”

Copilot Thibaut Lemahieu is new to MDC but gained experience as a navigator in the Merzouga and Serres Rally. “It’s a good mix like this”, De Rycker believes. “We’re going to give it our very best to get the most out of it.”