Rosa Romero Font (Sant Hipòlit de Voltregà, Barcelona, 53) is already very close to the finish line of her tenth Dakar Rally, where she is already a legend – the organization gives this award to all drivers when they reach this number. “I was very amused, give ten for many adventures and that’s something I now share with Nani,” he comments. Her husband Nani Roma, the third rider in history to win the race on motorcycles and cars, is not with her on this occasion. Bladder cancer shook the family shortly after the 2022 edition and disrupted their usual schedule. “It was a difficult year. When he was diagnosed, we put everything aside. They called me to race the Dakar but at home there was only one priority. There are more important things than the race,” says the telecommunications technician from her Team Store, which she recruited in September, four months after the trip to Saudi Arabia.
Their tenth participation is very different because Rosa and Nani were used to sharing their adventures and misadventures at camp. “That strikes me as very strange. I used to ride a motorbike and that was very physically demanding, very tired. When I arrived at the bivouac, since he had more resources in an official team, even though it was very late, he had a plate of hot food ready for me. It was almost like home, that’s how I felt,” he recalls. His three dogs and three children stayed in Spain, who this year spent the first new year of their lives with their father. “Don’t worry, I’m staying at the castle,” said her husband, who hadn’t spent New Year’s Eve at home since 1994. “I know they are fine at home and that Nani is distracted by the TV [participa en el programa resumen diario en Teledeporte]’ he calms down.
Thousands of miles away in the two and a half weeks, mobile news is the best resource for comfort. “If I have time during the connection, I’ll send him something, but he’s busy and with the time difference, it’s difficult for us,” he admits. The only video call he was able to make during the rest day in Riyadh on the 9th, when he also took the opportunity to talk to the little ones: “In the race you are absorbed. It’s pure adrenaline, stress… you don’t have time for anything at that intensity.” Co-pilot in his fourth year, Romero is taking part with Pedro Peñate Muñoz (Valsequillo, Las Palmas, 53 years old), a good friend and experienced travel companion who made him a motorcycle backpacker in 2012. They are 34th in T4 after an An electronic problem forced them to abandon the two stages of the Rub’ al Khali desert crossing. With the wild cards given out by the competition since 2020, they can cross the finish line in Dammam this Sunday and achieve their best result.
“We found a lot of rocks along the way, but we solve them every day,” he recalls. It’s the other side of the Dakar, that of the less competitive cars. You cross the streets destroyed by the front group and it mostly gets dark, although that has its advantages. “We arrive late, but we also leave later and can sleep a little longer in the morning,” he smiles. The TH-Trucks Canarias team has teamed up with the Pequeño Valiente Association, which supports the families of minors with cancer on the islands, a coincidence that ultimately convinced Rosa to bet on the project: “With children it is even longer. I thought it was a great idea to be able to contribute.”
Despite the good company and the fact that her husband has recovered from the illness, she still suffers from the distance: “I feel sorry for him, it’s difficult to be so far away.” For the 2024 edition, he only asks to be able to share the nights in the bivouac again. “I hope he’s 100% recovered and has a cool project. In the end, when this happens to you, your priorities in life change. The first thing is to be good and to improve, so let’s go step by step, ”he concludes. Tomorrow she will once again hug Nani, the children and the dogs who have become a Dakar legend.
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