For the seventh time in his career, Skyler Howes will participate in the Dakar Rally. The driver who finished third in 2023 aims to go even better in 2025, although it won’t be easy after suffering a serious injury in August.
During the Vegas to Reno race, the Monster Energy Honda rider crashed at high speed, resulting in a complex ankle fracture. He described the incident to the official Dakar website:
– My Vegas crash in Reno was probably the biggest crash I’ve ever had in my life. I was going 90 miles per hour on this road and there was a large river crossing, but no physical danger signs. I hit it at 90 mph and had a big G-out, completely compressed, then fell straight onto the handlebars. My left foot got stuck in the rear tire, so when I hit the ground, the bike went one way and my foot went the other. It looked really traumatic, much worse than it actually was. I was taken to the hospital in Reno and they basically said, your foot is disconnected so we just need to put it back in place. And that was it. It was really disappointing to miss Morocco though. The competition is strong and above all, you can test the bike, check that all the settings are correct for the big event in January.
Regarding his participation in the 2025 Dakar, Howes said: ‘This will be my second Dakar with Honda. They care about us a lot. The difficulty of being a pilot is that things change quickly. In preparation for my Dakar podium in ’23, I was almost undefeated, I was in very good momentum. But since then I’ve had a few tough years with injuries and mechanical problems. However, you have to keep a certain perspective. I try not to get frustrated. I just focus on what is to come and learn from the past. Having a bad Dakar is frustrating, but even getting there and racing is a dream come true. Luck is preparation meeting opportunity, so you have to be as prepared as possible. In the Dakar, a lot of it has to do with luck. You do your best and you should be happy with the result, whatever it is’.
The American also noted: ‘Navigation is now much more difficult than it was in South America. There is so much information that interpreting the roadbook is much more complicated. In the past, each turn was noted in the roadbook. Now there are three or four notes in one note. You have to slow down to make sure you’re reading correctly or you’re going in the wrong direction. We know that we can push to the maximum, survive, return to the bivouac and recover. The level is so high now that you can’t make a mistake. If you make a mistake, you’re out of the game! We have to be perfect and 100% all the time’.
Senegal
