They are preparing to travel hundreds of kilometers in the Moroccan desert, with a map and a compass as their only guides. Laure Larroudé, a 39-year-old Heugaise, and Harmonie Joseph, a 34-year-old Rionnaise, will participate in the Aïcha des Gazelles rally, an exclusively female orienteering race which will take place from April 11 to 26, 2025 (1).
Created in 1990, the Aïcha des Gazelles rally challenges women of all ages and nationalities. The objective: to reach several obligatory checkpoints by covering the shortest distance possible. A principle which allows the rally to be the only automotive event in the world to benefit from ISO 14001 environmental certification.
For the two friends, this rally is above all a personal challenge. “As women, we want to show that we can be ambitious and that we should not be afraid to step out of our comfort zone,” says Laure Larroudé. The race is also an opportunity to rally around a good cause.
Finding your way in the dunes
The crew of the Désert de l’invisible – this is the name that the two women chose – decided to compete for the Valentin Haüy association. A natural choice since Laure’s mother has been, since 2019, the president of the Dacquois committee of this structure which acts for the autonomy of visually impaired people. The young woman hopes to collect at least 1,000 euros for her mother’s association.
Such a race leaves little room for improvisation, Harmonie and Laure have been preparing for months. Seduced by their project, the Lesperon firefighters offered to give them some basics to better understand driving in the dunes. “In a few weeks, we will also have a compulsory training course to learn how to better navigate uneven roads,” explains Laure Larroudé.
At the same time, the two adventurers took care to approach numerous local structures that could be interested in their project. “We ask them for a sum of money in return for advertising on our social networks as well as on our 4×4,” explains Heugaise. They hope to raise at least 15,000 euros before the end of 2024, a sum which would only cover the registration fees for the race.
(1) Saturday November 23, 2024, they are organizing a toy fair in the Rion-des-Landes village hall in order to raise funds for and best prepare for this adventure.
