instead of the deserts of north africa, cars will be motoring across the deserts of south america in 2009 after it was announced that the famous dakar rally, once the paris dakar, will move to the south american continent next year. terrorism fears in mauritania caused the cancellation of this year's event, the first time in the rally's 30-year history it's been called off. and so organisers have decided to move the race across the atlantic to argentina and chile. race director etienne lavigne explaining this week that 2009 dakar competitors will begin in buenos aires and travel through the argentinian plains and the chilean desert. organisers also stress this new version will boast scenery as stunning and conditions as testing as the former route through north africa - expect to see competitors taking in the foothills of the andes and the harsh flats of the catamarca desert. it's not yet clear if the rally will return to africa in 2010, or indeed if the 2009 version will be...