Antonio Ramos Martinez: “I don’t care where I finish”
The first time he took part in the Dakar, Antonio Ramos didn’t see the desert, not even Africa. It was in 1996 and in this year, he didn’t make it to Lake Rose. But he followed the adventure. With this same credo: not to do things too fast in favour of the environment; that of the bivouacs and the countries that they crossed. Antonio’s motto is simple: don’t be something you are not. To take part in a race to score a result is not what counts despite the fact he finished 26th overall in 1998. On the other hand, give it all you have each day and at the end of each leg in order to not lose time. For Antonio the race itself determines the overall standings. There are circumstances and luck that can make the difference between finishing in the top 30 or at the bottom of the order. Antonio prefers to stay among the people on site. “I want to assure you that I really don’t care about the overall standings”, he insists. Molina de Segura’s mechanic is taking something from the father of modern sport. Like Coubertin, Antonio just wants to participate.