In the kickoff to the 2017 Dakar Rally from Paraguay to Argentina, all competitors have to go through technical inspection prior to starting the rally itself.
It gives the competitors one more day to prepare - or rest - before the two-week journey.
Here’s a roundup of some of the competitors’ advance posts on social media, plus some key posts from the event itself.
NBCSN’s Dakar Rally coverage starts on Tuesday at 5:30 p.m. ET (full times linked here).
★ OFFICIAL COMPETITORS LIST ★
— DAKAR RALLY (@dakar) January 1, 2017
318 vehicules
✅ 144 Bikes
✅ 37 Quads
✅ 87 Cars
✅ 10 Utv
✅ 50 Trucks#Dakar2017 pic.twitter.com/fgR7Ejgbc4
There's a 56-year age gap between the youngest (N. Amor, 19) and the oldest (Y. Sugawara, 75) racers of the #Dakar2017.
— DAKAR RALLY (@dakar) January 1, 2017
Love of a lifetime. pic.twitter.com/37PbVbcwdt
FAMILY PICTURE - Team @Peugeot @Total > 80 workers, 4 first class drivers & 4 top co-drivers, 4 brand new #3008DKR. #Dakar2017 pic.twitter.com/lqOqy5H5mO
— Peugeot Sport (@peugeotsport) January 1, 2017
Feliz año 🎉🍾🇵🇾 ! Besos de @SebastienLoeb ! #Dakar #WeLoveDust Cc @peugeotsport pic.twitter.com/4UdlI9rxnL
— Daniel Elena (@DanosElena) January 1, 2017
Let the 2017 @dakar begin, retweet to wish me luck! 🙌🏻#Dakar2017 pic.twitter.com/QO1VHJpy8r
— Toby Price (@tobyprice87) January 2, 2017
Esto veo!!! Os habéis fijado en la tele que llevó a la izquierda para no aburrirme!!! No, una cámara para ver atrás si viene alguino jajaja. pic.twitter.com/2wrn6703Xh
— Carlos Sainz (@CSainz_oficial) January 1, 2017
All the favorites have taken the start in motos, and some of them have already arrived. Ricky Brabec has the best time so far. #Dakar2017 pic.twitter.com/ls518JvLlT
— DAKAR RALLY (@dakar) January 2, 2017
Riders meeting 2017. pic.twitter.com/C4CMp6j7Ls
— #Pascal de baar (@pascaldebaar) January 1, 2017
Happines is dreams coming true. Don't stop believing. / Felicidad es ver los sueños realizarse. Nunca dejes de creer. #Dakar2017 pic.twitter.com/jWtIupOK8b
— DAKAR RALLY (@dakar) January 1, 2017
Presidential Palace, the most important building in Asuncion, can be seen from the Dakar Village. #DakarExplore #DakarParaguay pic.twitter.com/OvQZ6bY655
— DAKAR RALLY (@dakar) January 1, 2017
Fanáticos apoyando el #DakarParaguay #Dakar2017 pic.twitter.com/w7B0WSzcFk
— SENATUR (@Senatur_Py) January 1, 2017
First riders on the road and the crowd gets crazy. / Primeros Riders en la ruta y la gente grita de emción. #DakarFan #Dakar2017 pic.twitter.com/7j1ftgbGo3
— DAKAR RALLY (@dakar) January 1, 2017