Rider survives deadly Dakar
EASY RIDER: Lyndon Poskitt, formerly of Selby, competed in the Dakar Rally - a 5,600-mile race in which three people died this year.
AN adrenaline junkie has completed the notoriously gruelling Dakar Rally - which has this year seen three people die during the 5,600-mile race.
Lyndon Poskitt remortaged his house and appealed for sponsors to raise £70,000 to compete in the 2013 South American trek, finishing an incredible 46th out of 220 riders - a quarter of which failed to finish.
The 34-year-old was also the second British rider ever to have a top 10 stage result.
The former Wistow resident also had to overcome a horrifying crash on day ten which left him battered and bruised.
The rally - held over 15 days covering Peru, Argentina and Chile - is known as one of the hardest events in the world with competitors experiencing sub-zero temperatures to 40-degree heat travelling along intense and challenging desert tracks.
The BAE systems engineer said: “It was an incredible experience, absolutely fantastic and something I have always wanted to do.
“I went through every emotion going during the rally, there were times when you were 15,000ft in the Andes then having to ride through 47-degree heat in Argentina, it was just incredible.
“I suffered so badly with altitude sickness, I was really ill so I was riding with a huge headache and was out of sorts but I just had to keep going.
“Then when I had my crash, my heart just sank. I thought I’d ruined my chance. Luckily I didn’t break anything but it was a frightening experience.
“You’d spend your nights in a sleeping bag and working out your routes for the next day on the laptop, there’s so much that goes into the preparation.
“Even on our rest day I spent most of it sorting my bike out with my dad Robin who is a mechanic and came with me to help with navigation and everything.
“It was fantastic to have him there, my dad was the first person to meet me when I came ninth. He was so happy, that was a really special moment.”
However, the former Selby College student, who now lives in Lancashire, very nearly had to pull out of the race when he broke his foot after skidding on diesel whilst out on his bike 11 weeks before the rally.
“I was devastated when that happened. I was in a cast four weeks before the race, it really was touch and go,” he said.
“But I’m so glad I did it. It was something that will stay with me for a very long time. I can’t thank people enough for all the support too, they kept me going.
“I would love to do it again and beat my placing I think, but for now I’ll just stick with finding another race to compete in.”
For more on his rally experience and sponsorship opportunities, visit www.lyndonposkittracing.com
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Weather for Selby
Thursday 20 June 2013
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