Deus Swank Rally di Sardegna Classic

May 29, 2019

The Deus Swank Rally project has taken flight and reached heights that we never could have imagined. Now, here we are talking about the mythical Rally of Sardinia. Four days, 700 km for feeding hungry off-road wheels and many people with whom to share the stories of these adventures. From the sea to the mountains and from the mountains to the sea, through rain, fog, dust… and a few rocks. When we launched the project, the feedback was incredibly fast and enthusiastic. Registration was closed one month in advance with people coming from all around the world: Hong Kong to the USA, all ready to play in the gentleman’s way – The Swank Rally way. no rival to overtake, No trophy, no glory at stake, just pure fun fun fun. In the spotlight, the main characters: vintage motorbikes, spit-shined for the occasion. 'Cause yes, we are talking about the Swank Rally of Sardinia Classic. Along the track, surrounded by the Sardinia's country, you could see a parade of Yamaha XT and TT, Honda XL and XR, KTM GS, Aprilia Tuareg and old BMW Parigi Dakar. Then, there she was, the queen of the ride, the Deus Swak Rally 700, built on the base of a Yamaha XSR, customized specifically for this adventure. Old glories that took to the field for the last act of their epic careers. Those are the ladies that bring that ever-present touch of style to every Swank Rally. The helter-skelter of such different landscapes and grounds makes this journey seem one month long, and what a month! Behind every corner stretches of crop fields becoming granite rock formations or century-old dusty dirt roads. Where can you find so many different panoramas within a few kilometers of each other? For many, this was their very first rally, for others their very first navigation experience, for some – crazy ones – one of their first off-road experiences. This gave the general atmosphere a sensation of virginal euphoria, and for us, that excitement in the eyes of the riders has been the most precious prize. The rule is, never back down: all the rides bravely fought until the end, they crossed rivers and climbed over stony grounds, fixing breakdowns and standing up after falls. We even assisted in open-heart surgery - because if you start a rally, you have to finish it. Due to a broken ignition coil, there is one rider who bought a whole bike in Olbia for parts to fix his XT. With the help of the fellow travelers who assisted in performing the open-heart (bike) surgery during the night, the bike made a full recovery. We can’t thank enough our friends at Adventure Riding who made this jump possible, Yamaha, Acerbis, and Metzeler for their essential support, Pakelo, Volkswagen and Leica for believing in the project, and as every good adventure, we are left only with the exciting question “what’s next?” Foto: Filippo Maffei, Marco Renieri ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Il progetto Deus Swank Rally ha spiccato il volo arrivando dove non si sarebbe neppure potuto immaginare, culminando nel Rally di Sardegna e riportandone alla luce il mito. Quattro giorni di Rally, un totale di 700 km da dare in pasto a tasselli e un sacco di persone con cui condividere i racconti di quest’avventura. Dal mare alle montagne e dalle montagne al mare, tra pioggia, nebbia, polvere... e molte pietre. Quando è stato lanciato il progetto, la risposta è stata incredibilmente tanto pronta quanto entusiasta. Sono state chiuse le iscrizioni con un mese di anticipo e persone da tutto il mondo vi hanno preso parte: da Hong Kong agli USA, tutti pronti a giocare alla gentleman way dello Swank Rally: in palio non ci sono trofei, gloria o rivali da sopraffare, solo tanto tanto divertimento nel suo stato più puro. Sotto i riflettori le vere protagoniste: splendide moto vintage tirate a lucido per l’occasione. Perché si, stiamo parlando dello Swank Rally di Sardegna Classic. In mezzo alla campagna sarda lungo il tracciato, hanno sfilato Yamaha XT e TT, Honda XL e XR, KTM GS, Aprilia Tuareg e vecchi BMW Parigi Dakar, e lei, la signora dell’isola, la Yamaha Deus Swank Rally 700, su base XSR, costruita e personalizzata appositamente per questa avventura. Vecchie glorie scese in campo per un ultimo atto nella loro epica carriera. Sono queste protagoniste che danno quel tocco di stile immancabile negli Swank Rally. L’alternarsi di paesaggi totalmente differenti l’uno dall’altro ha fatto sembrare questo viaggio lungo un mese, e che mese! Dietro ogni curva si alternavano distese di campi di grano a perdita d’occhio, granitici monumenti naturali o polverose carrate dalla memoria secolare spesso attraversate e rallentate da immensi gregge di pecore, dove altro si possono trovare tanti scenari a così pochi chilometri? Per molti è stato il primo rally, per alcuni la prima esperienza di navigazione, per altri – folli - addirittura una delle prime esperienze in fuoristrada, più o meno nascosti dietro a grandi campioni che hanno fatto la storia di rally internazionali. Questo ha regalato all’atmosfera generale una speciale sensazione di virginale euforia e per noi l’esaltazione negli occhi dei partecipanti è stato il vero grande regalo di questo Rally ed il premio più prezioso. Crederci sempre non arrendersi mai: tutti piloti coraggiosi e intrepidi che hanno lottato fino alla fine, attraversando guadi e arrampicandosi su pietraie, affrontando guasti meccanici e cadute. Fino ad assistere ad un’operazione a cuore aperto, perché il rally se si inizia, bisogna finirlo. E così per una bobina rotta c’è chi ha comprato una moto intera a Olbia per trapiantare durante la notte e con la solidarietà di tutti i compagni di viaggi, il pezzo guasto sulla sua XT. Non finiremo mai di ringraziare Adventure Riding che ha reso possibile la concretizzazione di questo grande salto, Yamaha, Acerbis e Metzeler per il supporto essenziale, Pakelo, Volkswagen e Leica per aver creduto subito nel progetto e, come ogni avventura che si rispetti, concludiamo con “a quando la prossima?” Foto: Filippo Maffei, Marco Renieri

ENGLISH TEXT BELOW

Sabtu pagi, 17 Juni 2023, menjadi hari yang ditunggu-tunggu oleh 250 peserta reli sepeda motor dan 80 kontestan flat track race di Bali. Itu merupakan acara Rally & Camp Tasik Adventure keempat yang diselenggarakan oleh komunitas pecinta motor trail vintage yang lebih dari sekadar menggemari motor dual purpose era 80-90-an. Dikenal sebagai Trail Asik Adventurer, AKA… Tasik Adventure yang telah menunggu setahun untuk merencanakan dan mengerjakan nya demi tidak mengecewakan siapapun yang ikut berpartisipasi.

Coba kamu bayangkan , ada dua sisi koin berbeda pada event kali ini. Yang pertama adalah Reli. Mereka memberi nama Challenge "Tantangan", menjadikan setiap peserta sebagai "Penantang" Challenger. Jadi, di tempat parkir Sangeh Monkey Forest, sambil menikmati keteduhan pohon jati raksasa yang awet muda, 250 Penantang parkir untuk menerima kode QR untuk etape pertama rute reli. Seluruh perjalanan adalah 3 etape dengan 3 titik pemberhentian. 4 jika Anda menghitung tujuan.

Ada beberapa motor keren di sana, Honda XR, Yamaha DT, Suzuki TS, Suzuki DR, dan beberapa custom modern, motocross dan scrambler. Sekitar sepuluh atau lebih, mereka berbaris di titik start dan memulai rally dari sana. Misi setiap orang adalah menyelesaikan setiap tahap dan berhenti di 3 titik pemberhentian untuk mendapatkan kode QR untuk bagian berikutnya. Keindahan Bali selalu menjadi pendamping, saat kami terbang di sepanjang kombinasi jalan aspal, jalan pedesaan, dan jalan tanah di daerah Tabanan. Kami perlahan-lahan terbang tinggi dan semakin tinggi ke perbukitan dan pemandangan sawah dan hutan akhirnya habis, sebenarnya lebih seperti perlahan menjadi satu ketika kami sampai di tujuan. Bali Outbound Farmstay (BOF) yang juga menjadi tempat berkemah semalam. Jika Anda mengumpulkan semua kode QR Anda, Anda mendapat medali Rally sebagai bentuk penghargaan.

Sisi lain dari koin yang disebutkan sebelumnya, atau event kedua, adalah balap jalur datar (flat track). Atau dalam hal ini jalur dengan landasan yang tidak rata karena tempat mereka membangun jalur itu berada di atas tempat yang dulunya terdapat dua sawah terasering. Jadi titik start finish lebih tinggi dari jalur lurus pertama dengan penurunan pada tikungan pertama dan sedikit menanjak pada tikungan kedua. Saat kami masuk ke BOF, kami sudah bisa mendengar suara motor flat track dan sorakan penonton yang berkumpul. Kami parkir dan membuat jalur jalur seperti lebah.

Keseruan seutuhnya pada acara, disaat tingkat kesulitan tambahan dimasukkan ke dalam jadwal sore hari menarik perhatian yang sangat luar biasa. Mereka berhasil menarik sekitar delapan puluh peserta, terbagi dalam 4 kelas: Kelas Mesin Horizontal, Kelas FFA 4T Max 250cc, Kelas FFA 2T Max 250cc Flat Track, dan Kelas FFA Big Bore.

Antusiasme untuk balapan flat track sangat terasa. Kegembiraan tumbuh saat kami melewati babak penyisihan dan membangun sesuatu yang luar biasa untuk final setiap kelas. Tidak ada kata menahan, mereka hadir untuk memenangkannya. Pembalap dari setiap komunitas bersaing sengit di setiap kelas. Nama-nama seperti Maulana Sandi, Dewa Dimas, Harris Manasi Ride, Nova Rider Sing Mebekel, Ferry Rider Sing Mebekel, Bontok Giga MX, dan lain-lain tak main-main, sebagian besar dari memamerkan skill mereka tanpa mengesampingkan sportifitas dan keselamatan.

Trek dengan permukaan tanah liat merah keras yang kering memberikan tantangan. Di awal, para pembalap disuguhkan dengan bagian menurun pada tikungan pertama, setelah itu mereka memeras gas di bagian trek lurus sebelum berputar ke kiri lagi tapi kali ini menjadi bagian menanjak pada tikungan kedua. Itu memaksa mereka untuk menggabungkan keterampilan balap trek datar mereka dengan banyak teknik motocross. Pada akhirnya, semua pembalap bersenang-senang dengan debu tanah liat merah yang menutupi segalanya dan semua orang.

Saat matahari terbenam ke arah cakrawala, saudara dan sahabat motoran kami meraih pecahan cahaya terakhir untuk mendirikan tenda mereka dan dalam persiapan untuk berkemah malam. Matahari menghilang di balik Gunung Batukaru memberi semua orang pemandangan yang menakjubkan, tetapi segera menyelimuti kami dengan udara yang jauh lebih sejuk dari dataran tinggi di Baturiti Tabanan ini.

Percakapan tentang rute reli dan balapan flat track mengalir dari pintu tenda semua orang yang berkemah, yang lain membaringkan tubuh mereka yang lelah untuk mengantisipasi perjalanan keesokan harinya, perjalanan yang relatif santai ke Pantai Pasut.

Dengan begitu, acara Rally & Camp Tasik Adventure 2023 pun berakhir. Sampai bertemu lagi tahun depan, salam untuk semua penantang, pengalaman yang luar biasa.

Berikut daftar pemenang Kelas Flat Track:

Flat Rack Horizontal Engine Class Winners:
1. Chiko GTT Bali
2. Panduk Pisaga Delodan
3. Andika Monkey Brothers

Flat Rack FFA 4T Max 250cc Class Winners:
1. Nova Rider Sing Mebekel
2. Ferry Rider Sing Mebekel
3. Bontok Giga MX

Flat Rack FFA 2T Max 250cc Class Winners:
1. Sandi Maulana
2. Dewa Dita
3. Eponk Road Country

Flat Rack FFA Big Bore Class Winners:
1. Dewa Dimas
2. Haris Manasi Ride
3. Sandi Maulana

Saturday morning, June 17, 2023, was a highly anticipated day for 250 motorcycle rally participants and 80 flat track race contestants in Bali. It was the Fourth Rally & Camp Tasik Adventure event organized by a community of vintage trail motorcycle enthusiasts who love more than fanging about on their dual-purpose motorcycles from the 80s and 90s. Known as the Trail Asik Adventure Community, AKA… Tasik Adventure people had waited a year for the follow up and none were disappointed.

Just so you can get it straight in your head, there’s two very different sides to this coin. The first one was the Rally. They hung it under the banner of “Challenge”, making each partaker a “Challenger”. So, in the carpark of Sangeh Monkey Forest, which enjoys the shade of giant ageless teak trees, 250 Challengers parked up to receive the QR code for the first leg of the rally route. The entire ride was 3 stages with 3 stop points. 4 if you count the destination.

There were some amazing bikes there, Honda XR’s, Yamaha DT’s, Suzuki TS’s, Suzuki DR’s, and some custom modern motocross and scrambler bikes. In lots of ten or so, they lined up at the starting point then let them out for the event. Everyone’s mission was to complete each stage and stop at the 3 stop points to get the QR code for the next bit. Bali’s beauty was the constant companion, as we flew along a combination of asphalt roads, rural roads and dirt tracks in the Tabanan area. We slowly winded up high and higher into the hills and the views of rice fields and forests finally ran out, actually, it was more like blurred into one when we reached our destination. Bali Outbound Farmstay (BOF), which was also to be the overnight camping spot. If you collected all your QR codes you got a Rally medal as a form of appreciation.

The other side of the aforementioned coin, or second event, was the flat track. Or in this case staggered track because where they had built the track it was over a spot that had once held two rice terraces. So the Start finish straight sat higher than the return straight with a drop on the first turn and an uphill bit on the second. As we were pulling into BOF we could already hear the flat track bikes and the assembled crowd cheering. We parked up and made a bee line track side.

What an absolute corker of an event, the added degree of difficulty jammed into the afternoons schedule made for the most marvelous distraction. They’d managed to attract around eighty participants, split over 4 classes: Horizontal Engine Class, FFA 4T Max 250cc Class, Flat Track FFA 2T Max 250cc Class, and FFA Big Bore Class.

The enthusiasm for the flat track races was palpable. The excitement growing as we whittled down through the heats and building to something of a crescendo for the finals of each class. There was no holding back, they were in it to win it. Racers from each community fiercely competed in each class. Names like Maulana Sandi, Dewa Dimas, Harris Manasi Ride, Nova Rider Sing Mebekel, Ferry Rider Sing Mebekel, Bontok Giga MX, and others were letting nothing slip, flaunting their skills without compromising sportsmanship and safety. Mostly.

The track, with its dry hard red clay surface, presented challenges. Off the start, the racers were presented with a downhill section on the first turn, they hit the gas on the bottom straight before spinning left again but this time into an uphill section on the second turn. It forced them to combine their flat track racing skills with a slew of motocross techniques. In the end, all the racers had fun with the red clay dust lay across everything and everyone.

As the sun dipped towards the horizon, our compadres and accomplices grabbed the last shards of light to set up their tents in readiness for a night of camping. The sun disappeared behind Mount Batukaru affording everyone a magnificent view, but immediately enveloping us in the much cooler air of these high grounds here in Baturiti Tabanan.

Conversations about the rally route and the flat track race flowed out of the tent flaps of all those who camped others bedded their weary bodies down in anticipation for the next day's ride, a comparatively leisurely meander down to Pasut Beach.

With that, the Rally & Camp Tasik Adventure 2023 event came to an end. Until we meet again next year, greetings to all challengers, what an amazing time.

Here is the list of the days winners:

Flat Rack Horizontal Engine Class Winners:
1. Chiko GTT Bali
2. Panduk Pisaga Delodan
3. Andika Monkey Brothers

Flat Rack FFA 4T Max 250cc Class Winners:
1. Nova Rider Sing Mebekel
2. Ferry Rider Sing Mebekel
3. Bontok Giga MX

Flat Rack FFA 2T Max 250cc Class Winners:
1. Sandi Maulana
2. Dewa Dita
3. Eponk Road Country

Flat Rack FFA Big Bore Class Winners:
1. Dewa Dimas
2. Haris Manasi Ride
3. Sandi Maulana