“Every ride is different”

It was back in the 1970s and 1980s that David McBride developed his passion for offroad racing. Born in Belfast, the 56-year-old moved to Australia as a baby and was encouraged to ride a motorbike by his father Bill, a former road racer. The family then moved to Dubai in 1978, meaning that an adolescent David got to discover the delights of desert riding. After taking up motocross at 15, he started doing longer desert runs on the weekends and developing his endurance skills. He has remained in the United Arab Emirates ever since, becoming a regular at events like the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge, but for many years the Dakar was out of reach due to financial constraints. That changed when the rally came to neighbouring Saudi Arabia in 2020. Along with his old comrade-in-arms David Mabbs, David decided to finally give the world's toughest rally a whirl, but things ended badly: Mabbs broke his leg on day three, while David retired due to fork failure on Stage 6. The two veterans were determined to tame the beast, though, and managed to reach the finish line on their second appearance in 2022 -a moment David describes as “once in a lifetime”. He and Mabbs are both part of the private Vendetta Racing UAE team set up by Alan Boyter in 2007. David came on board in 2015, while his son William has also raced for the Dubai-based outfit. The team will be looking to the future at Dakar 2024, as 30-year-old Oran O’Kelly makes his debut in Saudi Arabia. David used to ride with Oran’s father, and no doubt has plenty of advice for the young Irishman as the Vendetta trio look to make it another successful outing and get through to that finishing podium in Yanbu.

“Dakar 2022 was quite good. It was a great route with lots of variety; not so many rocks or as much dust as in 2020. The bike held up really well. Only a few minor issues, which helped the crew get through things relatively quickly each evening. That meant more sleep and rest, which is key to performance the next day. Finishing your first Dakar is probably a feeling you will only get once in a lifetime. A lot of emotions all at once, but then we had a long road section at the end to let it all sink in. By the time you met up with the team, you had already expelled most of them, which is unfortunate. We decided we would give it another go in 2024 as we weren’t getting any younger, and we have a novice coming with us to learn the ropes. Sometimes getting on your bike can be a bit ‘same old’, but for the most part, every ride is different. Especially in the desert, as it changes every time you go out. Also, it’s good craic with all the people I ride and race with. The Vendetta Racing team was built on that ethos; a group of mates that just wanted to have fun and go racing. I’m just lucky my son also had the same interests and wanted to race with us. It’s fantastic that he competes with us, and he has all that experience to draw from.”