Harith Noah is the only other privateer at this year's Dakar (along with Ashish Raorane) and as it appears, his rigorous practice runs in France before his Dakar campaign held him in good stead for the second stage of the Dakar. Most of the competitors found the 685km stretch from Bisha to Wadi Ad-Dawasir (including the 457km special stage), especially the vast sands dunes, difficult to maintain a good enough clip to ensure a steady pace. Noah, meanwhile, was of almost the opposite opinion, remarking on his instagram that he found the stage ‘long but fast, which was fun.’
That said, the second stage was nowhere near a cakewalk for the Sherco Racing-sponsored rider from Kerala, as he lost valuable time due to a small navigation error. Additionally, his bike also seems to harbouring what he calls ‘a technical mystery’ which he is yet to rectify. And despite all this, Harith managed to hold onto his place in the standings, his P32 in stage 2 not impacting his overall P31 spot.
Stage 3 now involves a circuit route around the dunes of Wadi Ad-Dawasir, a total distance of 629km with a 403km special. However, judging by Harith’s upbeat attitude, it may be less of a challenge for him!