For nearly a decade, Ludwig Messager was one of France’s finest mountain soldiers as a member of the elite Chasseurs Alpins (Alpine Hunters). After leaving the army at the turn of the decade, his ventures into the unknown are now in the opposite climate as a desert rally raider.

Come 2026, Messager hopes to tackle the Saudi desert in the Dakar Rally. If accepted, he plans to compete in the Original by Motul (Malle Moto) subclass without assistance from teams.

“Lacking a challenge, I told myself: ‘What if I embarked on the dream of my life? Doing the Dakar on a motorcycle, without assistance, in the old-fashioned way like the good old rustic Alpine hunter who likes to push his limits,’” he wrote on his LinkedIn in October.

“So there I went, looking for people who could help me for over a year. Sure, I am not Stéphane Peterhansel or Sébastien Loeb, just a passionate guy with his strength of character and his unfailing motivation, driven by a motto: ‘Who dares wins.’

“I’ve had many rejections and some successes with people who believe in me and to whom today I was able to demonstrate that they were right!”

Appropriately, Messager’s credo is the slogan of the British Special Air Service and is also used by the French Army’s 1st Marine Infantry Parachute Regiment. While the Chasseurs Alpins are not paratroopers like the 1er RPIMa, they’re one of the toughest mountain infantry units in the world.

Messager joined the Alpine Hunters in 2012 as an NCO after graduating from the National Active Non-Commissioned Officers School. He was initially stationed in Bourg-Saint-Maurice before being assigned to the 7th Battalion at Varces-Allières-et-Risset, meeting his future partner Barbara who was working as an Army nurse.

Following his discharge in 2020, Messager earned his degree in logistical management and became a branch manager for XPO.

In an October 2024 interview with Le Dauphiné libéré, he explained he had followed the Dakar as a child alongside his father, but was inspired to race it himself after Barbara returned from field training in Chad.

“I told her, ‘I have to chase my dream. Do you want to follow me?’ She said yes,” Messager recalled.

He formed LB Racing Team Baujue in 2023. His World Rally-Raid Championship debut came the following year at the Rallye du Maroc, where he finished 79th in Rally2 despite a damaged clutch. Later in February, Messager will enter the W2RC’s Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge as a Malle Moto rider. Completing Morocco and Abu Dhabi earns him points to bolster his credentials and improve his chances of being accepted for Dakar.

“This is what self-improvement is to me: a value that is the basis of everything, whether in the workplace or at home,” he wrote.

Featured image credit: Julien Delfosse / DPPI