… the decision has been made!

Even though it was extremely difficult for me to cancel the 2025 rally, unfortunately no other decision was possible.

The deadline for this had been known for a long time. And let’s be honest: With 15 or 16 of the 20 registrations required for the competition by March 31, 2025, we probably would have started the pre-tour anyway. I would have prepared and printed the roadbooks anyway. And in October, we would have traveled to Tunisia with 18 or 20 competition teams – another very small rally, but a rally nonetheless.

But to date, only a single motorcyclist has registered for the competition. Given the experiences of recent years, even the most optimistics can’t believe they’ll persuade at least 19 teams to participate.

Conclusion for 2025:

During the announced period, we will organize a tourist tour through southern Tunisia for all those who, like us, have been infected with the “Sahara virus.” In addition to visiting well-known sights, we will also cover an extended route through the fascinating dune landscape of the Grand Erg Oriental, with overnight stay(s) under Africa’s unique starry sky.

I will publish the planned process in the next few days – for sure a plan, not a law.

Ultimately, we’ll decide as a group what and how much we want to experience. And, as in previous years, everyone will also have the opportunity to spend some days of the trip individually.

Conclusion for the future:

For 2026 – for the anniversary “45 years of Rallye El Chott” – I will announce once more a Sahara Rallye de Tunisie – definitely the last “El Chott”

… from Monday, 15/12/2024 0:00 a.m. 

Here you will find the online registration forms (please make correct selection): -> click here

The ElChott 2024 is behind us.

With only 12 vehicles in the classification, we had in 2024 the smallest participants field since the rally was founded. Nevertheless, we as ORGA-team have done everything to offer a well-organized and sportingly challenging event even for these few participants.

The feedback from the participants confirms this. As in previous years, there was praise for good road books, precise adherence to the schedule and an always approachable and helpful ORGA team. But despite it the number of competitors decreases from year to year.

If this trend is not reversed, we will unfortunately no longer be able to host the rally in its current form. Without a sufficient number of competitors, there is no sporting challenge, not enough competition and therefore no fun for the few remaining teams, not to mention the fact that such an event is of course no longer economically viable

But whatever, it won’t be our fault, we are ready – the date for 2025 is fixed.

October 19 – 27, 2025

 Since 2010 I have been organizing the ElChott rally. And since then, year after year, I hear what needs to be changed to get more participants again. And the arguments of the ones are always the opposite of the arguments of the others. With some changes we have tried over the years to find a good mix for everyone – apparently in vain.

There are now almost a dozen amateur rallies in North Africa, plus the well-known off-road events in Southern and Eastern Europe. So everyone should find, or have already found, what suits their needs.

But for all those who want to experience their limits on a real desert rally and actually cross dunes in the Sahara and not just race at high speed over gravel roads, and for those who are interested in real adventure as well as in sporting demands, and of course for all those who have the will to win as well as the willingness to help each other, the “Sahararallye de Tunisie” will offer exactly that also in the future.

The ElChott remains what it is – a well-organized, sporticly demanding desert rally, by appropriate route planning and exit options to be mastered by rookies also – almost family-run by an ORGA team with many years of experience – and always with a litle adventure like in its early days almost 45 years ago.

In order to be able to organize the rally in the usual way in 2025, we need at least 25 participants in the competition. Due to this fact, we will only start the second phase of rally preparation, starting with a pre-tour, if at least 20 vehicles have been bindingly registered by the deadline of 31/03/2025.

With the exception of the handling charge, all participation fees are only due after this deadline. Any processing fees already paid will of course be refunded immediately if the required number of participants is not reached.