Rally fever hits Jeffreys Bay

With no antidote yet found, rally fever will once hit Jeffreys Bay this weekend as the Algoa Rally Club hosts rounds 3 & 4 of the National Rally Championship. The Algoa National Rally starts at Mentors Country Estate at noon today, 7 July, before moving into the iconic Longmore Forest, then returning for a spectator-friendly night stage at Mentors this evening. Rounds three and four of the local Algoa Club Championship are incorporated into the national rally. In the national championship, there is an even split of six 4-wheel drive and six 2-wheel drive cars, while 18 competitors will line up in the club championship.
Jono van Vyk and Nico Swartz, in their 4-wheel drive Gazoo Racing Toyota Starlet, are strong contenders for overall honours in the national championship as they are known to be forest specialists. However, it will be their first time in Longmore Forest with a 4-wheel drive car, so anything can happen. They will be up against the likes of 2021 national champion Theuns Joubert and his navigator Schalk van Heerden in their Salom Toyota Yaris S2000+, Chris Coertse and Greg Godrich in their Rally Technik Mazda 2, as well as the pair that lead the current season JJ Potgieter and Tommy du Toit in the very quick Hyundai I20. An optimistic Potgieter hopes his luck finally changes as he has not yet finished a rally in the Longmore Forest.

Neels Vosloo and Rikus Fourie in their VW Polo
Neels Vosloo & Rikus Fourie push their VW Polo to the limit
Image by Darryl Kukard

In the two-wheel drive category, firm favourites are Benjamin Habig and Barry White in their VW Polo 250 1000T, as they seem to have now overcome their gearbox issues and are starting to put in some impressive performances in the Just Tools 1 litre Polo. They will be up against newcomer Gustav Potgieter in a Ford Fiesta. He is a young man who is certainly set to shake the rally scene after his impressive debut at the previous round of the championship. Reading the notes for him in the navigator seat is Shaun Visser.

Local heroes in the national mix are Nick Davidson and Ashley Bezuidenhout in the four-wheel drive Stu Davidson & Sons sponsored Toyota Auris S2000, as well as Neels Vosloo and Rikus Fourie in the Herotel/Hella sponsored VW Polo 250 1600. Ingrid Jeacocks will swap from her normal navigator seat in the defending club champion Oliver de Man’s Toyota Corolla to make up a powerful all-women pairing alongside Magriet Potgieter in a Ford Fiesta R2.

Proceedings in Jeffreys Bay get underway at 11h30 today with a street parade through the town before the rally roars into life with the first stage alongside the Mentors rugby field. The competitors then head off into the daunting forest, where there will be four high-speed, adrenalin-filled stages, with sheer drop-offs being the order of the day before returning to Mentors for the night stage.

Day 2 on Saturday is a completely new event, with the action starting at Mentors once again before heading back to Longmore Forest for an extended 37km Culturama stage and another three forest stages before finishing back at Mentors, with the final stage starting at 16h20.

A comprehensive spectator guide can be found on the SA Rally website www.sarally.co.za.

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