Colombian drivers were preparing Friday for a 1,100 km rally from Bogota to Puerto Carreño in the eastern Vichada department. The motor enthusiasts are hoping to reach their destination on the July 20, the 200th anniversary of Colombian independence.
Almost 130 four-by-four all-terrain vehicles and pick-up trucks , as well as 42 quad bikes, were revving their engines before start of the “Heroes of the Orinoco rally.” The vehicles will leave the Plaza de Bolivar in Bogota Saturday, July 17.
Fernando Jaramillo, president of the “Fundacion Rueda Libre,” an organisation promoting rally racing in Colombia, told El Tiempo newspaper that the difficulty of the terrain and recent heavy rain made this the “hardest all-terrain challenge ever done in Colombia”.
Vehicles from the Colombian army will be participating in the event, the lion’s share of which lies in the Orinoquia region of eastern Colombia. Lieutenant Colonel Juan Ricardo Silva told El Tiempo that he hoped the military’s participation would allow more Colombians to “get to know the Orinoquia region which is extremely beautiful, the home of the Parque del Tuparro, and extremely rich in biodiversity.”
