.OFF-ROAD' Nevada Rally
By Anne and Tom Van Beveren
Photos by Tom Van Beveren
and Joe Bonnello
LAS VEGAS, NY, AUG. 13-20
here were 67 entries in this
year's Nevada Rally and almost
as many reasons for being there.
Rally aces from France and
Italy came to add another notch to their
international belts. U .5. factory racers
turned out to prove their mounts over
six days and 2000 miles of treacherous
desert, and privateers from all over the
country set out to test their riding ability
and rub elbows with a who's who of offroad competition.
American Honda's racers arrived
with just one goal in mind. They wanted
to win the prestigious event organized
by Acerbis Adventures and, in an
incredible display of preparation, training and teamwork, they dominated the
third running of the Nevada Rally from
the moment the knobbies hit the desert.
Honda XR628-mounted Johnny
Campbell and Davide Troill raced neck
and neck at the head of the pack for the
first five days, swapping first and second over 1300 miles of special test
stages with less than three and a half _
minutes between them. When the checkered flag.Jinally dropped at the end of
day six after more than 33 hours of
back-and-forth racing, Campbell took
the win by eight minutes over Trolli,
and the Honda duo was a full hour and
a half ahead of pre-race favorite
5tephane Peterhansel on a 600cc Yamaha.
And Honda's domination did not
stop there. The red rout continued when
Jimmy Lewis and Frenchman Richard
Sainct brought a pair of stock Honda
XR400Rs home in fourth and fifth overall to give Honda a four-for-five record
in what most racers described as the
toughest event they had ever tackled.
"It's really good to beat the Euro-
T
(Left) The Nevada Rally begin. with.
ceremonial start at the Showboat Hotel In
Le. Vegas. Rider. have a pollee escort to
the first special teat - a 284-mlle stint to
Tonopah.
(Left) Overall
winner
Johnny
C8mpbe1l
traded the
leader'. gold
bib
throughout
the 2000-miJe
journey with
teammate
andaecond
overall
Davlde Trolll
(right).
