MAN 8×8

Long before Big Boy came to us, he was already part of one of the most remarkable stories in Dakar Rally history. This is the tale of Race2Recovery — the team Big Boy served as a support truck — and how he came to carry their colours across some of toughest terrain on Earth.

Who Were Race2Recovery?

Race2Recovery was formed by injured servicemen recovering at Headley Court, the UK’s Defence Medical Rehabilitation Centre. The idea grew out of a conversation between Corporal Tom Neathway — a triple amputee who lost both legs and an arm in Afghanistan — and Captain Tony Harris, who went on to become the first amputee driver to enter the Dakar Rally, using a specially adapted clutch pedal.

What started as an ambition between two men grew, in around 18 months, into a 28-strong team of servicemen, veterans, and civilian volunteers, backed by Land Rover and racing under the motto: “Beyond Injury – Achieving The Extraordinary.”

The 2013 Dakar — Making History

In January 2013, Race2Recovery entered the Dakar Rally — often called the toughest race on Earth — and became the first ever disability team to complete it. The numbers alone are brutal: 8,570 km of racing across Peru, Argentina and Chile, through giant dunes and the Atacama Desert, with the longest single stage running 852 km.

The team ran four Land Rover Defender-based “Wildcat” race cars, each crewed by a driver and co-driver, at least one of whom was an amputee. Racing in pairs, the Wildcats supported each other across the course.

Behind them was a proper support convoy:

• Two 8×8 support trucks — one MAN, one DAF — providing the team’s mobile service areas
• A Renault Kerax 4×4 racing truck doubling as a mobile workshop
• Several Land Rover Discoverys, ferrying mechanics and team management

While the Wildcats and Kerax ran the race route itself, the 8x8s and Discoverys took a separate liaison route, arriving ahead to set up service areas so the race crews had support waiting at every stop.

The achievement earned Royal recognition too — Race2Recovery became the first ever recipient of a grant from the Endeavour Fund, set up by the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry, who sent the team a personal note of congratulations.

2014 and Beyond

The team returned for the 2014 Dakar, though that year’s campaign shifted focus — both Wildcat race cars were forced to retire, and the team concentrated its efforts on getting the race truck to the finish, chasing a second consecutive Dakar completion.