The “shipping” launch held at the Broadlink Head Office in Johannesburg 15th November 2011.
From the left: Darryl Curtis (Broadlink KTM), Alex Letter (GM, Broadlink), Derek Watts (Carte Blanche/M-Net), John Walland (Jacaranda FM) and Fransizka Brandl (KTM SA), Mike Brown (CEO Broadlink).

The idea for the Dakar began back in 1977, when Thierry Sabine got lost on his motorbike in the Libyan Desert during the Abidjan-Nice rally. The first Paris-Dakar was held in 1979, a unique event sparked by the spirit of adventure, open to all riders and carrying a message of friendship between all men. Over the course of almost thirty years it has never failed to challenge, surprise, excite and has generated innumerable sporting and human stories.

In recent years (since 2009), the “Dakar” as it has become known moved location to South America, but its roots remain firmly African and motorcycling in origin.

“A challenge for those who go. A dream for those who stay behind.” is a motto coined by the race founder which best describes the spirit of the Dakar and is a great testament for Broadlink's involvement in the 2012 Dakar.

The idea for Broadlink’s involvement in the Dakar has two roots. The first was the involvement in a sponsorship for the Brother Broadlink KTM team which is used to leverage the business network capabilities of the Broadlink product range. The second was the expansion of the Broadlink satellite business communication platform into Africa. Off Road racing has many synergies with satellite communication technology (if it works out there it can work anywhere) where even rural hard to reach places can be reached by the Broadlink brand and its technology.

Mike Brown CEO of Broadlink says of Dakar, “Racing the Dakar was a logical business decision for Broadlink. Our Metronet architecture for wireless business communication works very well in national business centre environments and our local related sporting sponsorships leverage this perfectly. However through BroadSat – our International satellite offering we can truly enhance our service levels to our clients by offering wireless communication throughout Africa, and the Dakar is an natural extension of this through sport. Of course, it has the added benefit of being screened not only to the whole of Africa but also to the entire world. That represents great exposure for our brand, product range and also for South Africa in general.”

The man selected to represent Broadlink in the 2012 edition of the Dakar is Darryl Curtis. Darryl is a multiple South African Off Road and Enduro Champion, successful business owner and team leader for the Brother Broadlink KTM team. He brings a combination of knowledge tempered through experience as well as professionalism to what is a very daunting challenge.

The race will be held in South America from 1-15 January 2012, and is 9000km long. Starting in the east coast town of Mar del Plata in Argentina and finishing two weeks later in Lima Peru.

Mike Brown; “Darryl is one of the most professional sportsmen in South Africa and he does our country and company proud by lining up for the start of the Dakar. I’m sure I speak for the whole country as well as the many followers and supporters of Darryl all over the world in wishing him the very best for the Dakar 2012 edition.”

Please join us in following Broadlink and Darryl Curtis’s progress on the following channels;

Web:

www.darrylcurtis.co.za
www.broadlink.co.za

Television: Supersport and Supersport Blitz between 1-15 January 2012.