Coma: "Where'd everybody go?"

A Spanish rider on a KTM is ahead after two special stages of the 2009 Dakar and a Canadian is back in 176th place.

Marc Coma crossed the finish line of the first stage after riding 371 kilometres from Buenos Aires to Santa Rosa in Argentina.

Coma rides for KTM Repsol and finished 22 minutes ahead of second place rider Jacek Czachor. Tire problems slowed many riders in this first stage.

Coma lost some time to second stage winner Frans Verhoeven, also a KTM rider, in the second stage, but still held a 13.47 second lead at the end of it. Stage two went from Santa Rosa to Puerto Madryn and was 237 km long.

Canadian competitor Don Hatton was in 176th place at the end of stage two. That puts the Canuck ahead of 16 others. He rides a KTM.

The Dakar rally moved from Africa, where terrorism was feared, to South America, where it was not so much feared, for the 2009 race.

Users' Comments (4)

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Can a map be shown of each day's leg along with the story? Posted by me 2009-01-5 11:50 Go to the Dakar 2009 web site (http://www.dakar.com/2009/ DAK/LIVE/us/300/index.html) and select Live -> The Day's Route.    If you want to see how Don is doing select Live -> Tracking. Click on one of the follow the stage links, the "select a participant". You want #116 Hatton, D. Posted by wilfred 2009-01-5 13:25 Hope all is well, Mssr Hatton, is listed as the first withdrawl in the 4th stage.     http://www.dakar.com/2009/DAK/ LIVE/us/400/abandon/ABM.html Posted by Chris in T.O. 2009-01-6 12:11 Don's a trooper and we're all so proud of him! He'll pull through this and be racing again in no time! Posted by Rishona Elzinga 2009-01-6 17:37