Handbrakes & Hairpins Issue 178

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Issue 178 • 14 Apr 2011 • Page 16 Ready, set and go: Sasol Rally 2011 Words: Staff Writer Pictures: Evan Rothman Judging by the results of the Total Tour Natal Rally on 25 - 26 March, the South African rally championship could see a changing of the guard in 2011. Although it might be a little early to write off the more experienced and older competitors after just one round of the eightevent series, youth prevailed in what was a sizzling season-opener on the South Coast of KwaZulu- Natal. Zimbabwean privateer Conrad Rautenbach (G-Fuel Ford Fiesta S2000) heads the overall Championship as well as the premier S2000 Class with 25 points after upstaging the factory teams in the Total Tour Natal Rally to score his second victory in South Africa since joining the Championship last year. The 26-year-old’s previous win was in Round Two of the 2010 series in the Toyota Dealer Rally in the Western Cape. The next three places in the Championship points standings are fi lled by three of the four factory Volkswagen drivers, who between them have won the last six Championships. Veteran Jan Habig, six times a champion, is second with 21 points after coming so close in KwaZulu-Natal to winning the opening round in his BP VW Polo. Third is reining champion Enzo Kuun, who also won the title in 2006, with 19 points. Hergen Fekken, champion in 2008 and 2009, is fourth with 17 points in another two-litre four-wheel drive BP VW Polo. Privateer Jean-Pierre Damseaux (Team Total Toyota RunX) is fi fth with 16 points after a solid if unspectacular outing in KwaZulu-Natal. Former circuit racing superstar and Dakar Rally winner Giniel de Villiers scored a useful 13 points in his rally debut in the fourth factory VW and currently lies 10th. A lot is expected of him and he is unlikely to let his supporters down. Notably out of the top 10 at this early stage of the season are the two factory Castrol Toyota Auris S2000 drivers, Johnny Gemmell and Leeroy Poulter, and Charl Wilken (Basil Read/Bizhub Ford Fiesta S2000). Both Toyota drivers experienced problems in KwaZulu-Natal. Gemmell is 12th with 11 points while Poulter, in his fi rst full season of S2000 after winning the S1600 class last year, is yet to score after accident damage put him out of the opening round. Wilken suffered electrical problems on the Ford on the Friday, but recovered from 24th overnight to 11th at the fi nish, winning a stage and signalling that he too will be a force to be reckoned with this season. Other prominent drivers who failed to score in KZN, but who will undoubtedly make their mark on the Championship this year are Mark Cronje (Sasol Ford Fiesta S2000) and Hein Lategan (Pirtek Peugeot 207 S2000). Cronje made a sensational debut in the new Ford with co-driver Robin Houghton, winning all fi ve of the fi rst day’s stages on the Total Tour Natal Rally and leading after the fi rst four stages on Saturday before accident damage ruled him out. Lategan did not make it past the fi rst stage after an engine problem caused by a faulty alternator on the brand new Peugeot. Leading the new Super 1600 Class with 12 points after the opening round is young Ashley Haigh Smith (React Ford Fiesta R2 S1600), one of the future stars of South African rallying, ahead of the experienced Tjaart Conradie (Silverton Engineering Toyota Auris S1600) with ten points and Christoff Snyders (VW Polo S1600) with eight points. Megan Verlaque leads the Super 1400 Class in a BP VW Polo with three points (full class points were not awarded due to only three starters in the class) after an impressive debut in a factory car. No points were awarded in Class A7, where the only two entries, Gugu Zulu/Carl Peskin (BP VW Polo A7) and Rocky Reyneke/Christo Ackerman (VW Polo A7) both failed to complete the rally. With Rautenbach’s French co-driver not eligible for points, the overall co-drivers’ championship is led by Habig’s co-driver Robert Paisley (25 points) from Kuun’s co-driver Guy Hodgson (21 points) and Fekken’s co-driver Pierre Arries (19 points). Damseaux’s co-driver, Carolyn Swan, is fourth with 17 points. Haigh Smith’s co-driver Hilton Auffray leads the S1600 Class standings with 12 points from Conradie’s co-driver Kes Naidoo (10 points). Verlaque’s codriver, Lirene du Plessis, leads the S1400 Class with three points. The next round of the championship is the Sasol Rally in Mpumalanga this weekend. It is also a round of the African Rally Championship and the event seems some 25 Class S2000 entries. H&H
Gran Canaria to showcase IRC rallying at its best once more Words: Staff Writer Picture: IRC Media The waiting is over. Less than three months since Rallye Monte- Carlo hosted the thrilling start to Intercontinental Rally Challenge (IRC) season fi ve, the all-action series resumes with Rally Islas Canarias El Corte Ingles this weekend. Based on the island of Gran Canaria, the third largest of the seven Canary Islands, the asphalt contest joined the IRC for the fi rst time in 2010 and proved a hit with drivers and fans alike. For its second appearance in the Eurosport-backed competition, event organisers have made a number of alterations to the competitive route with new stages, a return to the Gran Karting track in the south of the island for the fi rst time since 2001, plus two tests run at night. Including stages after dark has resulted in a more compact itinerary with the competitive action contained within a 24-hour period. This intensity will place a huge onus on driver fi tness levels and car preparation and reliability, particularly as the island’s stages are renowned for their demanding nature. Although some of the new stages for 2011 are more tight and twisty, the fast and undulating roads that characterise the bulk of the route mean drivers will experience signifi cant g-forces. At the same time they are often exerting tremendous strain on their cars as signifi cant time can be gained braking as late as possible and accelerating out of the corners as early as possible. With the stages frequently climbing and descending, drivers have to pay close attention to the speed they carry and the line they take for each corner to ensure optimum momentum is maintained at all times. That also makes precise car set-up and pacenote accuracy vital. Ambient temperatures are high thanks to the Canary Islands being 100km off the coast of Morocco with a peak of 23˚C expected. And with drivers not due to return to the overnight halt in Las Palmas until the early hours of Saturday morning prior to the restart at 07h30, there is little opportunity for rest and recuperation. One of the other notable features of the stages is the abrasive surface, which is partly constructed from a volcanic laver. It means grip levels are high and in the event of rain will remain constant, although tyre wear can be at a premium as a result. However, because there is little opportunity to take ‘cuts’ through corners, the road surface remains relatively clean and consistent and the risk of punctures is Issue 178 • 14 Apr 2011 • Page 17 also reduced. Following a ceremonial start at the service park in Las Palmas on Thursday evening, crews will tackle eight stages on Friday starting with the 1.50km blast at the Gran Karting track and including the Santa Lucia stage, which at 24.57km is the longest of the rally. The day’s action draws to a close with two night stages run to the south west of the service park. The fi rst gets underway at 22h16 with the second following at 22h49. Saturday consists of two stages, each run twice with the fi rst driver due to start the 23.42km San Mateo stage at 08h35 before arriving at the fi nal service control in Las Palmas at 13h57. Event: Rally Islas Canarias El Corte Ingles Base: Las Palmas Starts: Las Palmas, Thursday 14 April Finishes: Las Palmas, Saturday 16 April Entries received: 35 IRC appearances: One (2010) 2010 winners: Jan Kopecky (CZE)/Petr Stary (CZE) Skoda Fabia S2000 Surface: Asphalt Number of stages: 12 Special stage distance: 190.59 kilometres Liaison distance: 477.69 kilometres Total distance: 668.28 kilometres H&H
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Handbrakes & Hairpins Issue 178

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