Cyril Despres has nothing left to prove on a motorcycle. He’s got five Dakar Rally victories under his belt, plus wins at hell-on-earth events like the Red Bull Romaniacs and the Erzberg Rodeo.
These days, Despres leaves his highly-strung race bikes in the garage. When he heads out on two wheels, he’s more likely to take his Yamaha XSR700 daily runner, his Ural sidecar, or his classic DT125.
The French rally great lives in motorcycling nirvana: Andorra. The tiny microstate is high up in the Pyrénées Mountains, sandwiched between France and Spain, and it's loaded with endless, well-groomed mountain passes.
It's also where, in less than two weeks, Despres will host the second edition of the Andorra 500: a regularity rally with a classic spin.
“My career on two wheels stopped when I decided to jump in the car category with the Peugeot team, for the Dakar,” Despres tells us. “But I wanted to keep going a little bit in the motorcycle world, so this was the idea...”
“My mechanic loved classic bikes and was working on them, so it was easy to say 'we have some nice roads, we are in Andorra, in the mountains, and we have the chance to close the road to have some special stages without traffic'.”
“As I became a bit too old to race motocross or enduro, riding a bike on the road—a classic one—was the best solution.”
To keep the retro feel of the Andorra 500, you're given a choice of three classes to enter. The 'classic' class is open to pre-1980 models, the 'neoclassic' class is for modern classics, and the 'custom' class covers everything from cafe racers to bobbers.
If you're not sure if your ride is eligible, just email the crew a photo of your bike and they'll let you know.
And if you're not up to competing, there's even a 'tourist' class that follows the day's route, without timing.
The rally is spread over three days, starting on June 3. There's a surprise-packed prologue on the Friday, followed by a total of 215 km and 210 km of riding on the Saturday and Sunday respectively. Each stage averages between 10 and 25 km, with 12 'special' stages spread throughout the day.
Special stages are where the race is won or lost, but the emphasis is not on outright speed. Since this is a regularity rally, riders are scored on their ability to maintain a consistent average speed.
To regulate this, Despres & Co. have turned to modern GPS technology. Each bike is outfitted with a Tripy electronic road book during scrutineering. At the end of each day, the Tripy units are handed in, the data extracted, and the route for the next day loaded up.
It gives the event the rally spirit that Despres was looking for when he first conceived it, while still keeping things accessible.
“This is why we call it a classic motorcycle rally. Because when you start in the morning from the hotel, you don't know where to go, you don't know where the special stages are and you don't know where the refueling points are.
"But everything is in your road book."
In between riding, the vibe is laid back and the emphasis on having a good time. There are numerous coffee and lunch stops—with just the kind of cuisine you'd expect from the region. And each bivouac is kept lively with sideshows, from live music to trials bike demos.
But more than anything, Cyril Despres wants the Andorra 500 to be a rider's event. And so far, he's pulled it off spectacularly. Many of last year's entrants enjoyed it so much, they've returned for a second helping.
This time around they can look forward to more mileage, and even better road surfaces. (Some of the roads have been prepped for the Tour de France, which is passing through later this year).
A bit of fun's been worked in too: “There's one stage which is in the middle of the mountain, where it's easy to find some good downhill,” Despres tells us.
“So we decided to make a special stage where you need to make the fastest time, without the engine. It's a few kilometers going down the road with just the weight of yourself and your bike.”
“For me, it's the most important that people are really enjoying what we are doing, and the way we are doing it—pure pleasure.”
Despres will be following the race in his Peugeot, to make sure things run smoothly. He's got some mates flying the flag on two wheels though—most notably fellow Dakar winner Stéphane Peterhansel. He rode a Yamaha XT600 in last year's event (pictured below), but will be aboard a customized Yamaha XS650 this time. “It's a crazy bike,” says Despres, “and he enjoyed the race so much last year that he wanted to come back.”
Despite a warm invitation from M. Despres, we're thousands of miles away from Europe and unable to attend. But if you’re within riding range...maybe it's time to book that Friday off work?
Facebook | Instagram | Images courtesy of the Andorra 500 and Web Factory Andorra
UPDATE The 2016 event was a huge success. Here's a great little clip showing the highlights.
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