Carla Scaglioni shares her thoughts on racing Rally du Maroc in bike category – October 4 – 11. Following a long-held passion for Rally where her home-land, South America hosted The Dakar Rally for 11 editions (2009 – 2019), the Argentine rider embraces her first opportunity to race in the Rally-Raid World Championship Final Round on the sands and rocks of Morocco.
With a diverse career portfilio, from competing in ISDE Women’s World Trophy with Team Argentina, to racing Women’s Enduro World Championship in Europe, Carla has developed strength of mind to further her racing ambitions when opportunity knocks. As Carala states, her schedule for 2024 was severely disrupted, due to a knee injury early in the season, but when an offer arrived to race Rally du Maroc with Fantic Racing Rally Team – Carla did not hesitate to accept.
Carla: ”Well, to be honest, the Rally was not something I had planned to do at this time and especially this year, which has been quite complicated for me. Everything started at the beginning of the year with the proposal to join an Italian team in which I did not hesitate to say yes. Since being part of this Rally world means something very special for me and my family, as we have lived the Dakar Spirit very closely in the past editions in South America. For the last two years I have been following the Morocco Rally through the web, and being part of it today is an opportunity that I did not want to miss, so I am very excited to race it”‘.
If preparation, experience, and knowledge are key elements for competing in Rally du Maroc, Carla has developed the necessary stamina and mental fortitude to race over 6 days – competing in ISDE in 2018, 2022, and 2023. Add in, the physically demanding schedule of competing in Enduro Championships, switching from technical sections to Cross sections at speed – and the Argentine rider based in Italy for the past 2 years has the skills to face the challenges ahead in Morocco.
Carla: “‘In the last two years I have been racing the FIM Enduro, in which we walked more than 30km of specials before the race and spent between 6 and 8 hours each race day on the bike. Although the days are long, in the rally it seems to be much longer, so I have tried to ride many hours on my bike and in recent times train on motocross tracks in the sand, to improve resistance and speed. I have also worked mentally, taking into account that the rally is not just driving a motorcycle. I have practiced visualization and focus exercises, memory exercises, speed in decision making and some more”‘.
All of which confirms that decisions made during a racing career are the consequence of focusing on the passion which motivates a rider to race. As Carla explains, pursuing her love of racing Enduro has provided a foundation of physical, technical, and mental skills from which she can further develop in Rally. Such a positive and forward thinking mind-set, proves invaluable for steering her racing career on upward trajectory, while staying true to her love of racing Off-Road.
Carla: ”Well, I could say that I have had a hard time and at the same time, very valuable moments from which I have learned and I believe they have given me the tools to face each challenge that I have set for myself and this will not be distinct. It was a difficult road to get to Morocco and I am ready to live my first experience in the Rally, to see what this edition offers us and face it every day”.
Rally du Maroc October 4 – 11. Header photo: Carla Scaglioni Image: @florm.fotografia
Words: Sharon Cox.
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