PHOTOGRAPHY MAX EDLESTON/MERCEDES-BENZ ARCHIVE
Catastrophic mechanical failure, complete mental disorientation, or becoming victim to local criminals were the more likely outcomes of entering the Paris-Dakar endurance rally than even finishing, let alone winning. Yet La Grande Aventure Africaine summoned adventurers and spectators in their droves, inspired to tackle the 10,000km, 20-day overland run from the French capital, across the Sahara to Senegal, West Africa, with motorcycles, cars and trucks.
Its creator, Thierry Sabine, was the archetype for this breed of adventurers. A successful racing driver with a decade-long career, which included stints in the World Rally Championship, the Tour de France Automobile and the 24 Hours of Le Mans (where he placed 13th overall in a Porsche 911 Carrera RSR), he became fascinated with desert motorsport. While attempting the 1977 Rallye Côte-Côte, an event running from the French Riviera to the Ivory Coast, on a motorbike, he was stranded in the endless sand for three days.