[capableweb]

> In the truck class, the surprise winners [in the 1986 rally] were Giacomo Vismara and Giulio Minelli in the Mercedes support truck for the Honda of Italy bike team.

The Dakar Rally is such a crazy event, and that a support team can also win, even if the team they were supported didn't, or even had to retire before reaching the finish line.

What others sports could you even achieve something like that?

[dmurray]

Cycling is the obvious example - it's completely reasonable to go into a race as a support rider but end up, say, in a breakaway group that was successful while the team captain stayed with the main peloton.

It's not possible to win a whole tour that way, but if you build up a lead over your captain in the first few stages, your director might decide to switch tactics and have the team support you after that.

[mpol]

The Vuelta of Spain was supposed to be a win for Bradley Wiggins, but his support Chris Froome faired much better. After Kobo lost, at the jury table, the win was awarded to Froome, then a support cyclist.

[wjnc]

Long distance running! Sometimes hares get impatient. [1]

[1] https://www.archyde.com/a-hare-wins-a-marathon-and-qualifies...

[slim]

Also Mercedes unimog is a beast

[dsfyu404ed]

<eyes roll loop in head>

It's a road capable tractor (for generous definitions of road capable, nobody who actually gushes over them would consider them fit for road use) that has an internet following.

If the vehicle type were widely useful outside of very few very specific niches it would be prolific and more OEMs would make them.

[culopatin]

I don’t understand why you’d reply in such a pedantic way and yet not say anything that expands, refutes or seems associated with what the comment you’re replying to said. OP said it’s a beast, not “what a great road truck to take the family on a trip”.

People buy Humvees to drive around by the way.

[dsfyu404ed]

I just thought the inherent tradeoffs between "do tractor stuff" and "be nice on the road" were obvious enough.

These vehicles top out at about 55 after 1/4mi of flat road with your foot on the floor. This kind of performance is fine for a convoy but is a really un-fun time in modern traffic.

The torsional flexing that makes them want to keep tires planted for working on less than even terrain makes them handle like poo even compared to other vehicles on similar sized tires.

These things make humvees look good, not fast, but good.

[culopatin]

Do those things not make it a beast? I still don’t get your point. No one said they were good road vehicles. Just that they were a beast, which they are. Are beasts light nimble and quiet in general?

[dsfyu404ed]

>What others sports could you even achieve something like that?

Pretty much every off road race where the organizers choose the course so that most of of the finishers podium winds up with crazy upsets like that.