Landwind X6 Outmatched All Competitors To Win The Championship Of The Cross Country Challenge Around Taklamakan Desert 2006

2006.12

The Cross Country Challenge Around Taklimakan Desert 2006, which started on April 29th, finished its last racing section at 8:00pm on May 8th. Landwind’s Li Jicheng and his No. 229 racing automobile passed the finish line, easily claiming the championship of this challenge with a score that was almost an hour less than the second place. The No. 229 racing automobile was Landwind X6, the 2006 racing model that Landwind released in Guangzhou on April 18th. Landwind X6 has received much attention since then. And it did not disappoint everybody, proving its performance with a championship.

“dream• conquer• challenge” is the slogan of The Cross Country Challenge Around Taklamakan Desert, the same purpose as the Dakar rally’s. It is to spread the spirit of courage, endurance and perseverance through challenging and conquering severe natural environments. In the overall 4,000km race, nearly a thousand kilometers were extreme sections. The vehicles and drivers had to conquer complex conditions of roads such as sands, Gobi, desert, rive beach, riverbed and drifting sand. After a successful game in 2005, the Cross Country Challenge Around Taklamakan Desert 2006 had attracted more participators all over the country and professional SUV manufacturers such as Mitsubishi, Liebao, Great Wall, Landwind and so on. 70 racing automobiles (including the high value Mitsbishi EVO model and BMW X5), 60 racing motorcycles, nearly 100 vehicles for the backup work as well as the total nearly 400 racing drivers and team workers all showed how large its scale was. The race had sections like Turban, Lop Nur, Kumtagh desert, the north part of Alkin Mountain, Hotan river and Taklimakan desert. There are always danger and risks hidden behind attraction.

Looking back upon the race, we still have all the difficulties and hardship vivid in mind. The excitement at the first racing section lasted only a few hours on April 29th, then the sandstorm weather cast it away from all the participators and the organizers. In the wilderness, the cloth on the tents could only cry in the fierce wind, and even the tents could not stop the sand blowing in the wind from coming in. That night in Dikaner No.1 encampment was the beginning of sleepless nights which last for some days. The 430 kilometer section from Dikaner to Haluo highway and the 350 kilometer section from Ruoqiang to Qiemo were canceled because of the severe sandstorm. Accidents happened in some racing section for the low visibility. In addition, the solid food was the only thing they can eat in many days and they had to suffer from the endless bumping…Abundant energy, healthy physique, a persevering will were all indispensable elements for winning in the hard race.

Despite the hard race there are still exciting moments that worth aftertaste: though there were some vehicles overturned in the 90km section from Luobei No.2 encampment to Hongliujing, the native driver in the Legendary Four Wheel Drive knew the road well and reached the destination first, followed by three Landwind racing cars, No.228, No.229 and No.230. The first section was just a little trial. In the 230km second section they had to drive through Lop Nur depopulated area, as they could see the Alkin Mountain from distance. And the 350km third section from Qiemo to Minfeng was the real racing section around Taklimakan desert. Sand, rocks, Gobi, long distance began to test in full range the overall strength including the mechanical performance, equipment and the driver’s judgment. With the advantages of Landwind X6’s excellent performance, careful refitting, outstanding maintenance and logistical support, and famous domestic off-road drivers as well as the successful experience of crossing Lop Nur and Tengger desert in 2005, the Landwind team led in these two sections and claimed the championships separately by No.228 racing car’s driver Zhang Luowei and No.229’s Li Jicheng. By the time, nearly half of the competitors had regrettably quitted the race for various reasons. The final section that ended on May 8th was a traditional Hotan river section. Riverbeds, drifting sand, unnoticeable gaps were all hidden dangers for the drivers. Any careless mistake could end their race, thus no one dare to appreciate the riverbank sights, neither anything other than their concern.

With the great performance of the new car and good cooperation of whole team, Landwind perfectly finished The Cross Country Challenge Around Taklimakan Desert 2006 with the championship title. The correspondent made a first time interview with Landwind’ team leader and main driver Mr. Zhang Luowei right after the race. He said the Landwind team had successfully accomplished the two tasks they set before the race, which were training the team and testing the vehicle. And Landwind X6’s great performance had brought the whole team more confidence.

We are looking forward to the Second China Cross Country Championship in September, hoping that Landwind will bring us another good performance.