Race the Dakar 2022 with Joan Lascorz

200% REACHED! YOU ARE THE BEST TEAM IN THE WORLD

Together we have achieved 200% of the financing. All this is not possible without you… thank you team! Let’s keep pushing full throttle in the Dakar and in Verkami too!

Joan Lascorz wants to become the first tetraplegic driver to contest the Dakar Rally, the toughest motor race in the world and one of the most mediatic and severe sporting events on the planet. And we want you to be part of the team for this historic milestone too!

Joan is a professional rally driver, competing in senior categories despite suffering from tetraplegia in the C6/C7 vertebrae after an accident as a motorcycle racer. His physical condition makes the costs associated with the competition higher: he needs controls specifically adapted to his mobility, special training, and physical trainers familiar with spinal cord injuries, as well as personal assistants both in the race and for training.

The Dakar Rally is the toughest test in motorsports, a mental and physical challenge of the first order that pushes those who participate to the limit. If contesting the Dakar Rally requires good preparation and equipment, doing so with a spinal cord injury forces us to require more means. A personal assistant, a specialized physiotherapist, or an adapted motorhome are some of the specific needs for Joan Lascorz's tetraplegia that we want to finance via this crowdfunding project.

Joan will face the Dakar 2022 in the side-by-side category (SSV T4), popularly known also as 'buggies'. A category on the rise, where the human factor is superior to mechanics, due to the great equality; with a medium structure, you can fight for victory.

The Buggy Masters Team, led by veteran Eudal Noé, with more than three decades of experience in the test, will take care of Joan's buggy and provide him with all the tools to perform at the highest level. His co-pilot will be Miguel Puertas, an institution of the Dakar: former motorcycle rider and former manager of the Himoinsa team, he is one of the best navigators in the desert. In the physical section, over the last months, Joan has carried out a specific training plan with the specialists of KOA Center.

Thanks to this and his talent for being fast, Joan aspires to go for it all and be competitive at the highest level. He has been preparing since 2014, when he made his debut in the world of TT rally after recovering from the serious accident during his stage as a motorcycle rider in the Superbike World Championship. It caused his tetraplegia (damage to vertebrae C6/C7) with loss of motor skills in the lower extremities, lack of mobility in hands and fingers (he can only move his wrists), and many derived consequences, such as reduced ability to control body temperature or spasticity in the muscles.

But this didn't stop Joan. In 2016, in his third year as a driver converted to four wheels, Lascorz was proclaimed Spanish TT Rally Champion in the buggies category, competing in the general category, not in a 'handycar' subcategory for adapted vehicles. He has also played great roles in the Merzouga Rally in Morocco or in the Dakar Series. His history, as well as the road to the Dakar is explained in the documentary 'Una carrera inaccesible', an inaccessible career) which will premiere on Movistar +.

Joan is a professional driver and all that that implies. An athlete who is used to the pressure of fighting for titles and getting on the podium. Now, the Dakar is more than just an ambition to cross the finish line. It is a personal goal to achieve victory, and in this 2022, together we lay the first stone.

We will dedicate the contributions of all the patrons to provide Joan with the facilities to make him more competitive during the rally.

The registration costs of each team member and all the equipment for the Dakar, which is held in Saudi Arabia, are high. Each extra represents a considerable amount in the cost of the expedition; with everyone’s collaboration, we hope to be able to take to the Dakar:
• Personal assistant -> up to € 15,000 raised
• Osteopath -> up to € 30,000 raised
• Adapted motorhome -> up to € 60,000 raised
• Reduction of the cost of the project and improvements in technical resources -> more than € 60,000 raised

Personal assistant

Personal assistants facilitate the day-to-day between stages. In order to rest, recover, and prepare for the day, a driver must manage everything from their basic needs to the details of the competition. With a personal assistant, Joan will be able to function better in the Dakar camp.

Osteopath

All Dakar riders receive assistance from a physiotherapist, but in Joan's case, he needs a osteopath with his tetraplegia. At the end of each stage, a rider needs a long physio session; it is a key point in long-term performance during the 15 days of competition.

Adapted motorhome

To be competitive, professional drivers who opt for good results sleep in motorhomes (campers). In the case of Joan, this vehicle would also need adaptations to his tetraplegia, with the great cost that this entails.

Extra costs

The total cost of participating in the Dakar is € 250,000 in total. If over € 60,000 is raised, the rest will go to pay for the project for Joan and all his circle of family and friends who are financing this Dakar.

This is your chance to join and form part of Dakar 2022.

20€ – Team poster

We will send you the team poster (printable pdf) in a thank you email.

30€ – Your name in the credits of the documentary

Pre-release access to the documentary Una carrera inaccesible 2, (an inaccesible career 2) recorded during the Dakar 2022, as well as your name in the credits.

And receive the previous reward as well.

50€ – Official team shirt

Official 'Joan Lascorz Dakar 2022' T-shirt.

And receive the previous rewards as well.

59€ – Video blog from the Dakar (early bird)

Limited to the first 99 registered

Access to Joan's personal video blog, where he narrates daily each stage

And receive the previous rewards as well.

70€ – Video blog from the Dakar

Access to Joan's personal video blog, where he narrates each stage daily.

And receive the previous rewards as well.

100€ – Your name on the buggy (early bird)

Limited the first 99 registered

Your name on Joan's buggy! And receive the previous rewards as well.

200€ – Your name on the buggy

Your name on Joan's buggy. And receive the previous rewards as well.

500€ – Come to a training session + BBQ!

Attend one of Joan’s training sessions and come and meet the whole team, including barbecue and beers!

Also, your name on Joan's buggy. And receive the previous rewards as well.

2,000€ – Take a co-pilot lap!

Experience: Take a lap as Joan's co-pilot in his training. Come and meet the whole team; includes barbecue and beers.

Also, your name on Joan's buggy. And receive the previous rewards as well.

5,000€ – Drive the buggy!

Experience: Drive Joan's buggy in a training. Come and meet the whole team; includes barbecue and beers.

Also, your name on Joan's buggy. And receive the previous rewards as well.

150,000€ – The buggy is yours!

Keep Joan's buggy after the Dakar.

And get all the previous experiences as a patron.

Some rewards will be made before and during the celebration of the Dakar Rally 2022 (2 to 14 January). The rest will take place between the end of the Dakar until spring 2022.

Joan Lascorz also has one more reason to race in the Dakar 2022. Through the 17 Foundation, the Dakar 2022 will be a test bed to develop technology that helps Joan reach the finish line, such as adapted seats, vehicle controls, catheters for physiological needs, among others.

The 17 Foundation was born with the aim of promoting any project that seeks to improve the mobility and quality of life of people with spinal cord injury. Through activities or technical innovations, the 17 Foundation seeks to reactivate their lives and illusions; Joan's Dakar 2022 will be a good example of this. If you want to be part of the project, you can get in touch via [email protected] to make your contribution via the foundation.

We also have the collaboration of KOA Center, who have helped Joan Lascorz in his physical preparation plan. Thanks to their involvement in the Dakar 2022, the professionals of this centre will be able to develop a study on physical behaviour in spinal cord injuries when they perform sports at the highest level.