Zoom Ronan Chabot and Gilles Pillot.

Over the years, Ronan Chabot has achieved a great deal in rally raids. A talented pilot and CEO of Toys Motors (a group of 10 Toyota dealers) in the Sables d'Olonne (Pays de la Loire), Ronan Chabot was the winner of the 2005 All-Terrain Rallies World Cup in the Production category (T2). Now an essential competitor in any raid, the Chabot-Pillot crew excelled recently on the other side of the planet by finishing 6th overall and first in T2 in the Transoriental, from Saint Petersburg to Beijing. Determination, passion and pleasure are the leitmotivs of this pilot, experienced on the Moroccan tracks.

“Taking part in an NPO rally is always a great pleasure and I really enjoy this event very much. And this year, Morocco is the ideal place to prepare for our next Dakar Rally. It's almost the last possible date on the calendar as the vehicles will be setting off early for South America. We haven't driven that much this season and Morocco is a rich terrain where there is always lots of work to be done and progress to be made. Our totally new Land Cruiser was ready in January 2008 and on the technical side we have made few changes. We improved a few things in the suspension but nothing major because our car is pretty reliable and accurate. In any case, in the T2 category, developments are quite limited. I really like this category and that's why I'm going to go after a win for Production again. I would describe our participation in the AMV Shamrock - Morocco Rally as half pleasure and half preparation.”

Ken Wortman: a biker from the New World …
One of the competitors to come rather a long way is Ken Wortman, 46 years old, a Canadian bike rider who lives in Vancouver, British Columbia. This is a first for this bike enthusiast who is burning up with excitement to discover the African terrain.

“It'll be my first rally of this particular type. I've done lots of bike races in my life, motocross, endurance, all-terrain…but never a rally either in Africa or elsewhere. All-terrain has always been my passion but I have never had the opportunity or the privilege to take part in a race like this one. I ride for pleasure and my only African experience has been in South Africa so I don't know North Africa at all. I chose the AMV Shamrock - Morocco Rally because I'd heard so many positive things about the Tunisia Rally and seeing as it's the same organiser, I thought it would be a great idea to try out Morocco.