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07 July 2017, 15:49

Silk Way Rally to kick off in Moscow on 7 July

MINSK, 7 July (BelTA) – The seventh Silk Way Rally that will feature Belarusian MAZ race trucks will set off from Moscow's Red Square on 7 July, BelTA has learned.

One of the longest and toughest off-road races, Silk Way Rally will kick off at 5pm. The first stage will take the vehicles from the Russian capital to Cheboksary. The route will run through 15 Russian cities and the plains of Kazakhstan to wrap up at Xi'an in China on 22 July.

Belarus will be represented by three trucks. Pilot Sergei Vyazovich, the team's leader, will be joined by navigator Pavel Garanin and mechanic Andrei Zhigulin. The second truck will be driven by experienced pilot Alexander Vasilevsky accompanied by navigator Dmitry Vikhrenko and mechanic Anton Zaporoshchenko. Aleksei Vishnevsky will drive the third truck joined by navigator Maksim Novikov and mechanic Andrei Neverovich.

The MAZ-SPORTavto team will test Belarus-made vehicles in extreme conditions. Some 85% of the components used to make the MAZ race trucks are regular vehicle parts used in production at Minsk Automobile Plant (MAZ trademark).

“We try to use regular parts to test them in extreme conditions with a view to improving the quality of MAZ vehicles. Of course, we need a more powerful engine, a sport suspension, and special dampers for the race, but most of the parts are regular components used at the plant to manufacture vehicles. In this way, we demonstrate that Belarusian trucks are mobile, enduring, and low-maintenance,” Sergei Vyazovich stressed.

The fourteen stages of this year's Silk Way Rally will run through Russia, Kazakhstan and China. The racers will travel a total of 9608km, with special sections making up 4089km. The rally will feature mountainous roads, gravel sections, and shifting sands.

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