The green flag falls on 2011...and Robby Gordon is on the pole -- in the Dakar

  Robby Gordon, pondering not only the Dakar but also his racing future (Photo: Robby Gordon)
  

   By Mike Mulhern
   mikemulhern.net

  

   This time, Gordon insists, it's not just for the adventure: "We're here to win."
   Saturday's Jan. 1st run, some 235 miles, is a media showcase event; the first sprint is set for Sunday, up through the mountains, from Victoria to Cordoba, 360 miles.
   The final stage is Saturday Jan. 15th.    http://www.dakar.com/index_DAKus.html
   TV coverage? It appears to be limited. Versus is to carry a highlights package daily but apparently two days afterwards. The first show is expected at midnight Sunday night ET.
  

    Gordon's whole racing career -- NASCAR, Indy-car, off-road -- is in transition. Key to what happens next for the transplanted Southern California racer could be two things: what Detroit car maker steps up to provide engineering support for his Cup operation, and how well his new side venture -- his Speed energy drink.
    And key to Gordon's future may well be how well he does in this Dakar. If he wins, Gordon would like to pitch a Gordon-logoed street vehicle. (He runs an off-road speed shop in Los Angeles.)
     Gordon just launched his new glow-in-the-dark energy punch in November (it's in grocery stores now, in North Carolina at least). And after years of promoting Red Bull and Monster energy drinks, Gordon has seen the amazing profit margins possible. If he can tap into that, his racing ventures could get a new burst of, ah, speed. Sponsorship has been an issue for just about everyone in racing, even Jeff Gordon and Richard Petty.
   Off-road racing -- and Gordon is so well known after his 20 years of racing  in the Baja that he could probably run for governor -- is a two-man project inside the vehicle, with a navigator (hopefully fearless). Kellon Walsh is Gordon's navigator for this run; Steve La Roza will work with Salazar.
    And of course there is the crucial support truck crews, which race ahead and prepare nightly bivouacs and any needed pit stops.
   This time Gordon has two Hummer's entered, with Chilean Eliseo Salazar in the second vehicle. The tricky desert sands of this Dakar course are likely key, particularly the Atacama.
   Salazar has been racing 30 years, in Formula One, Le Mans, Indianapolis, the Daytona 24, and Dakar.