1. herefordshire.greatbritishlife.co.uk26 HEREFORDSHIRE & WYE VALLEY LIFE May 2013
Major Matthew O’Hare
from Herefordshire and his
team-mate Corporal Phillip
Gillespie who was seriously
injured in Afghanistan are
record-breakers after
winning their race to
recovery in the Dakar Rally
By: Debbie Graham
Driving force
of twointrepid soldiers
O
ut in the Argentinian plains,
thousands of miles from
home, Major Matthew
O’Hare from Weston, near
Pembridge did not expect
to see anything reminding him of his
home county. But then through his
windscreen came a sight that would
gladden the heart of any Herefordian far
away from home, a herd of Hereford
cattle. For one moment, Argentina with its
heat and dust ceased to exist and Matt
was back in rural Herefordshire.
“It lifted my morale. It was a really nice
to see them out there,” he says. “I chatted
to the landowner about them and it was a
totally surreal moment.”
Matt, of the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers
was competing in the world’s toughest car
rally, the Dakar Rally as part of the team
Race2Recovery, a group of predominantly
injured servicemen determined to
become the first disabled team to
complete the rally.
It all began when his friend Captain
Tony Harris from Newport in Shropshire,
who had his leg amputated below the
knee as a result of injuries suffered in
Afghanistan, tried disabled motorsport
and asked him to be his co-driver in the
Dakar. “Dakar regulations require that for
for every disabled competitor in a vehicle
you have to have an able-bodied guy too,”
explains Matt, aged 33.
From there more people became
involved and in the New Year a 28-strong
team, with four Land Rover Defender-
based Wildcat race vehicles and a 4x4
support truck, headed out to South
America.
Matt was partnered with Corporal
Phillip Gillespie from Ballymena in
Northern Ireland, who had his leg
amputated as a result of injuries in
Afghanistan. Together they navigated
9,000 kilometres, from Lima in Peru
through Argentina to Santiago in Chile
and crossed desert, mountains, rivers and
rocks. “The Dakar is the hardest and
biggest rally race. If you are into rallying
this is the race you want to do and it’s the
race you want to finish,” says Matt. And
the crucial word is finish. It is a true test of
toughness, stamina, navigation and

2. herefordshire.greatbritishlife.co.uk HEREFORDSHIRE & WYE VALLEY LIFE May 2013 27
Above and below right: Corporal Phillip
Gillespie and Major Matt O’Hare Left: Matt and
Phillip on the road Below:
The Race2Recovery team celebrate as their car
approaches the finishing line
Race to Recovery
The official book of the race,
Race2Recovery: Beyond Injury,
Achieving the Extraordinary, is
published by Haynes and
FireStep Publishing and and £2
from every copy will be donated
to Help For Heroes
(www.haynes.co.uk/
race2recovery)
Donations to the Race2Recovery
fundraising campaign for
Tedworth House Personnel
Recovery Centre can be made at
www.race2recovery.com
endurance, with only the best surviving
the course. “If Phillip’s concentration had
lapsed we would have got horrendously
lost and if I had lapsed we probably would
have crashed,” says Matt. “For sheer
mental effort it is the hardest thing I have
ever done by a country mile.”
When they saw the Hereford cattle the
race wasn’t going well. The team had
started with four cars, yet one by one they
failed and Matt and Phillip remained the
only ones still on course, but their success
looked doubtful.
“We had huge mechanical problems.
We felt there was a bit of inevitability to
not finishing the race. We knew we were
not going to quit but we thought the car
would quit on us. That was a very low and
dark moment.”
Despite the odds they made it and Matt
and Phillip became the first disability
team to complete the race. “It’s a
wonderful story of guys proving they have
not been beaten. I think it’s a beautiful
and very inspiring thing to be a part of. I
couldn’t be happier with how things have
turned out,” says Matt. “I am really lucky
Tony gave me a call that day.
“We have found out first-hand why they
call the Dakar Rally the hardest race in the
world. The support we’ve received from
everyone – our sponsors, supporters,
families, friends, the military and
complete strangers – has been amazing
and is testament to the ability and
dedication of this team,” says Phillip.
There were two strands to the project –
one proving those with disabilities are
able to take on the world and compete
with them on an equal footing at the very
highest level and, secondly, raise money
for Tedworth House Personnel Recovery
Centre run by Help for Heroes. The centre
offers members of the armed services,
who have suffered life-changing injuries
and illnesses, on-going support to help
them adapt to their new life.
The team received sponsorship from
organisations including Land Rover,
Google, Bosch, Orange Plant, MIS
Motorsport, the Peter Harrison
Foundation and the Royal Foundation of
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and
Prince Harry. The royals were quick to
send their congratulatations: Prince
William wrote: “Catherine and I have
heard the wonderful news about your
success. Many, many congratulations.
You have become true record-holders as
the first disability team to complete one of
the world’s toughest challenges.
“What you have achieved was a triumph
of perseverance and teamwork, and you
have shown the world what true valour
looks like. We hope you get some rest
now, and, please, no driving like that on
our roads when you’re back.” n
people
“Together they navigated 9,000 kilometres, from Lima
in Peru through Argentina to Santiago in Chile and
crossed desert, mountains, rivers and rocks
”