N° 056 - TEAM JIM BEAM TURKISH TEAM
 - BESNIER
- Arnaud
- FRA
- 04/04/1974
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Arnaud Besnier: “I did the 20th Dakar, I’m back for the 30th”
Two stages in a row, in other words 39h and 1700 km non-stop on a bike, with four broken shock-absorbers and a wheel several times “stuck in the mudguard”... Arnaud Besnier’s first Dakar, in 1998 wasn’t exactly easy. Finally reaching the Senegalese capital despite all his problems he was awarded the “prize for merit and courage” to have persevered in his crazy race.
At the time, the young man had started in a professional team. The 1995 French Enduro champion, Arnaud Besnier was able to live several years from his passion. “I was an official rider for 5 years and then I had to stop because of a knee injury”.
Far from the sand tracks, Arnaud Besnier had enough to worry about with the building company he started. “In the world of biking, we are actually really independent. I wouldn’t have liked ending up as an employee”. To get back on the bike is a whole new challenge. The man from the Pyrenees took it on without stumbling last year. “I trained a lot even though it was difficult”. Once the obstacle of getting back on the bike was cleared Arnaud Besnier wasn’t going to let the opportunity of renewing with the Dakar go by. “It’s a type of magic that you want to live again. I did the 20th Dakar, I’m back for the 30th”, he adds with satisfaction.
This year, Alain Duclos asked him to be his water-carrier. A role that suits this experienced biker perfectly well. “I’m not ready to take any risks just to be in front. I feel comfortable in this position”. Not forgetting that “Alain is a friend and is used to the Dakar”…