Interview with Aleš Loprais

STYLE INTERVIEW Aleš Loprais, závodník Rallye Dakar a synovec Karla Lopraise Racer of the Dakar Rallye and nephew of Karel Loprais, Interview with Aleš Loprais Aleš Loprais follows his uncle’s example. He got behind the wheel of a racing Tatra truck for the first time when he was seven, and joined his first Dakar Rally in 2006 as a navigator/co-driver with his uncle, Karel Loprais. As a driver, he first went to the rally one year later, coming in third in trucks. Aleš, in early 2020, you started the Dakar Rally for the fifteenth time. You have driven the truck across Africa, South America, and Saudi Arabia. Where did you enjoy racing the best, and what are the key differences among the races in length, severity, and safety? I have enjoyed racing in Africa the best. That is where we won our first medal the first time I drove the racing truck. I still feel Africa as being very special, because it was my first new and beautiful experience in the rally. You see the vast plains of sand where a few trucks go speeding alongside each other. Of course, there are locations which do not allow this arrangement, such as the rocky routes in Morocco, but still, Africa offers some of the most fascinating sandy plains. Just a small audience, amazing desserts, sleeping out in tents and a shower only once or twice a fortnight. That was Africa. The landscapes in Saudi Arabia look a bit similar. We will see what the organizers have in store for us in 2021. South America, with its fantastic, kind people, always willing to help. Wonderful scenery, unexpected changes of terrain and weather…it was a different Dakar, yet as original as ever. In truck racing, you are considered the heir of the glory that comes with the name Loprais. Do you feel the responsibility, some obligation, to succeed? This has been haunting me for some time, yet I do not feel the pressure any more. I admit that, with another name, I might feel more relaxed and comfortable, but then I must ask myself: would I have ever even driven a Dakar racing truck at all…? Now you drive a new truck. Can you summarize how the racing trucks have changed during your career from a technical point of view? I feel I have been present at Dakar from childhood and have driven the greatest range of competitor brands of Dakar models amongst all the Dakar drivers. To make a long story short, Dakar trucks are GREAT rally vehicles with a truck body. I am not sure if the development is positive or negative, it is just the way it is. Thank you for the interview. POSITIV 4/2020 ǀ 115