By the Numbers: Dakar 2010

There are plenty of races and rallies in the world, but only one Dakar. The fact that Al Qaeda threats moved it from North Africa to South America in 2009 hardly seems to matter. For 99 percent of the riders and drivers who put the rest of their lives on hold for two weeks every January, the goal is beyond winning. In the Dakar, staying alive is a victory in itself. No one appreciates that fact more than Cyril Despres, the 36-year-old former French Enduro Champion who won Dakar for the third time this year.