Sidi Ali, where the gazelles come to drink
PARTNER SPOTLIGHT
Around the rally
Think of it. The Rallye Aïcha des Gazelles du Maroc means 750 people living in a mobile bivouac in the middle of the desert (Gazelles and organizers from France and Morocco). It is 37 degrees on this fall day in September 2021. The event’s medical officer, Julien Lorber, recommends drinking 4 L of water per day per person. How many 1.5 L bottles of water do you think are needed to keep everyone hydrated in the heart of the Moroccan desert?
Need a few hints?
- 6 bottles of water per pack (and also the number of years that Sidi Ali has been an official partner of the Rallye Aïcha des Gazelles du Maroc.
- 10 pallets of 112 packs per truck.
- 5 delivery trucks.
Have you got it?
33,600: that’s how many bottles of natural mineral water are provided by Sidi Ali, official partner of this 30th edition of the Rallye Aïcha des Gazelles du Maroc.
That is quite the challenge for Amid, Mohamed, Saïd and Ouzi, drivers for Sidi Ali, who are responsible for distributing water to the Gazelles and organizers at the bivouac, from the back of their truck, every day from 5 a.m. until 10 p.m.
To keep the water flowing, they closely monitor the number of bottles distributed to avoid any shortages and try to keep the bottles as cool as possible. Above all, they make themselves entirely available, and always have a kind or funny word for the teams: “But you’ve just stocked up on several packs, when will we see you again?”
Each day, the Gazelles stop off to pick up a pack of water from this cheerful, well-organized team. Inside the Sidi Ali truck, the 4 colleagues form a human chain to deliver water into the hands of the Gazelles.
Once consumed, the empty bottles and their caps are sorted for recycling. The Sidi Ali trucks then transport them from the bivouac to Casablanca, where they are delivered to Ressourc’in, a non-profit dedicated to providing jobs for people in precarious situations. There the bottles are recycled into products such as stools and tables, which are sold under the Koun brand in their Casablanca store.
Based in the capital, most of the members of the Sidi Ali team are discovering their country’s desert for the first time. For Amid, a veteran of the team who has been part of the Rallye since the beginning of the partnership between Sidi Ali and the Rallye Aïcha des Gazelles du Maroc, it is the joy of meeting people and the desire to return every year that keep him motivated: “When the Gazelles come back from their leg, they tell us about their day, what they went through; this creates moments that we will remember forever”. So when asked about his favourite part of the rally, he answers without hesitating: “…being a Gazelle!”
