Today the prizewinning ceremony was held in a crowded Buenos Aires. Tomorrow, all the vehicles will be left at the harbour. Slowly everybody starts to understand that the Dakar 2009 is over. 113 bikes have finished, 52% of the original field. Last year when the organisation scouted the area for the roadbook they had no idea what the weather conditions would be in Argentine and Chile. Some of the problems the ASO has faced can be attributed to the weather, which made the route much tougher than expected. Most of the specials were changed or shortened, as the terrain was too heavy for the Dakar. In that respect ASO has some chances for improvement for 2010. Both Chile and Argentinia have invested a lot in Dakar, and will not let go easily. Dakarsport / Team Honda Europe is satisfied with the results. 6 out of 8 riders have finished. Also, a 10th place for Paulo Gonçalves, who has also won the superproduction class and is second in the 450 class. And a 12th place for Zse Helio. Both use the Honda CRF 450-X with the Team Honda Europe Dakar kit.

Some images don't need a lot of words. Enjoy the pictures of today's ceremony.

Dakar is in the hearts and minds of the Argentine. Hundredthousands gathered along the route today to cheer their hero's on their way to Buenos Aires. Even in the last kilomters the competitors had to be very carefull: three bikes did not finish today!

The teamphysiotherapist Wolter van Tarel has finished his working life on the first of january this year, to start with Dakar 2009! So far, being a pensioner isn't boring for him at all. "This is an interesting start of my new life, and it is really cool to be part of something like this. Each day the bikers visit me. Especially neck and shoulders are sensitive in rallys, and of course the muscles in the arms. I loosen their muscles and make sure everything can move freely.

Almost all the teammembers have been interviewed for our website, as we try to give you an idea of what happens behind the scenes of Team Honda Europe. The one person you have not seen is Hans Polsvoort. He drives the GINAF 6x6 servicetruck, and is a true motorsportsfanatic. Born in a familie with a motorsport heritage, his father was F.I.M. representative for sidecar-cross and competed on the bike for many years, Hans participated in the world championsship Motocross. Now his son has picked up the trail and takes part in the EU-championship Enduro.

A thick fog this morning caused the start to be delayed for almost 3 hours. Only when the helicopters were able to take off, the start was given free. All that time the bikers were waiting at the start. The stage was very fast. Fast mountain tracks which could be ridden full throttle. After the last fuel stop the route changed to sand dunes. 70 tough kilometers long. Just before the finish there was a waypoint which wasn’t mentioned in the roadbook. To find it you really had to get off the route. A number of competitors noticed it in time and turned back. To get to the waypoint, you had to go over a really big dune with big rocks, which was quite a challenge. A number of competitors found out at the finish, but wasn’t allowed by the organization to turn back. It’s not allowed (and not very smart) to ride back in the wrong direction into the traffic, especially with the risk of racecars coming your way.