3. Kenya Airways East African Safari Classic Rally 2007
25. 11. – 3. 12. 2007 • gravel 1380.26 km • Other years
Info
SS12
"The full story of our problems yesterday is that towards the end of the second stage both bolts fell out of the bottom of a front strut. We fixed it in the stage by taking one bolt out of the other strut and using it to fix the broken one. The sad part was that just a couple of kilometres after the finish of the stage we hit a massive drift and one bolt was not strong enough to hold the suspension. There was a bang and wheel and strut disappeared over the bushes. We had to wait there for our service car and lost a bundle of time before we got into Naivasha last night. Today I'm afraid that the engine has lost a couple of cylinders thanks to broken valve springs in a four cylinder 360Z. We've been driving a bit more slowly and in fact we stopped twice on the last long stage because we thought there might be someone behind us, but there wasn't".
"We broke the steering rack mountings of the Porsche in the first section this morning but managed to get out with hardly any loss of time. There wasn't much we could do in the short service so we just bodged the mountings and carried on into the second stage. Of course it didn't last long but again we got it out of the stage with only a few minutes lost but then we had to fix it properly and we took probably eleven minutes road section penalty before the last stage. This meant that we had a lot of cars in front of us and to add to our woes the gear lever broke. But this doesn't mean I'm not enjoying myself and I'm still pleasantly amazed at how well we're doing.
Last night the Datsun 260Z was reset on the original Riega suspension and going away from the start this morning they softened up the damper settings. The front end now seems about right and during the rest day the crew will concentrate on the rear end, probably using some of the suspension from Stefano Rocca's car. "We had no problems with the car", said Perez. "But we had to nurse the car a bit because of the suspension".
"That's the real Africa. Almost like the Nullabor but no kangaroos. We had a puncture in the first competitive section about half way through and then when we changed it, the Escort fell off the jack. We hadn't done our tyre change practice like we should have done. But the rest of the day was great. We got a bit if pace and we could get the car moving and passed a couple of cars, which always feels good. And the sandy stuff is always interesting - where you want to go doesn't have much relevance".
Lloyd suffered his first mechanical problem of the even in Mike Kirkland's Datsun 240Z About a third of the way into the last competitive section it seemed like a rear damper had blown a seal. We just had to nurse it the rest of the way through", said Lloyd. "But today all the stages were fantastic".
Having set fastest times in the first two competitive sections, Duncan broke his gearbox fifteen kilometres into the third section and is waiting retrieval by the service car.
We had one really phenomenal piece of luck, one of those things that happen so rarely on rallying. At the Corner Baridi service the two halves of the service crew each thought put eighty litres of petrol in but in fact neither had. I thought the gauge looked a pessimistic so I said stick another twenty litres in. In fact that was all we had and the car ran out of petrol approaching the end of the second section. We just mad it into control but then had to push it out of the control. We were so lucky.
There was a navigational error in the Belgian Porsche which caused a detour of about 32 kilometres which cost them just under 24 minutes on the last section. It was somewhat silent as the crew climbed out of the car at Amboseli. Marcy said "The car is still good and there should not be too much work tomorrow".
Blomqvist set fastest time on the last section by a minute and a half, and second fastest times on the other two sections. He and co-driver Ana Goni got out of the Ford Escort at Amboseli looking quite fresh and pleased "No punctures and no problems", said Blomqvist. "It's good to be here and moving up a few places".
Mr. Waldegard's first exclamation as he opened the Escort's door at Amboseli was "Fie Fahn": a Swedish expression which does not indicate the day went entirely well. He suffered problems in each of the three competitive sections: a broken steering ball joint, the loss of fourth gear and a puncture. "That is Safari", he said philosophically "One day is good and the next day is bad but this Safari is getting a little too unpredictable for my liking" Waldegard is still leading by nine and a half minutes despite these problems.
SS8
"I really liked the first section: fast and good to drive. The ignition problem we had from the first day now seems to be completely solved - and we had no punctures."
"We're really impressed with the tyres we've got from Silverstone which seem to be standing up to the punishment amazingly well. The only problems today was a few bolts came loose on the front suspension and now we stop after every stage and check them. Oh yes, and all our spotlights fell off the front".
"Another good day. We just had to change the damper bushes again".
From co-driver Jurgen Berti "Just 700 metres before the end of the second stage we were brought to a half because the right rear wheel wouldn't turn. I got out of the car and it was just possible to move it forward under power so I had to run the last part of the stage. When we got the car jacked up we found that not only was the suspension arm broken but it had lost all its bolts. We fixed a couple of new ones in and got it into Naivasha where we can now replaced the whole arm".
The 260Z left this morning and missed the first competitive section to try and get the rear cross member and differential fixed. They did the second section but the cross member must have broken again as they arrived at Naivasha with the wheel hanging out of the wheel arch.
The brakes on the 260Z developed a problem in the second section. The pedal box rod had worked loose and the pedal became longer and longer. "We've gone through a set of tyres" said Harland. "But otherwise alright".
The Datsun 180B has pulled up six places to tenth place ahead of the car's preparer Roddy Sachs in another 180B. "We had a very good day. There were a couple of overshoots in the first section but it wasn't a navigational error - just me driving too fast in the dust. The car's great. It's really nimble in the twisty sections and we caught the Savages in their 260Z. I'd like to do more competitive sections. I used to navigate for Vic Preston Junior in the Alfas (with Sachs as the manager) and I even remember some of the roads.
Yesterday the Escort had several problems. They had a "misundertanding" with one of the corners in the first section, which was much tighter than they thought and burst two tyres and wrote off the rims. In the second section they got stuck in the same waterhole as their team mates Bennett/Chesser and had to dry out their electrics. In the same section the back brake pipe was ripped out and they had to do the last section with no rear brakes. "I didn't tell my co-driver until after the section", said McGrigor. "But today was fantastic although we now have some problems with the clutch. We took it relatively easily but we're very pleased".
"We've been a bit lucky today. We had two punctures, one was in the parc ferme overnight and the other was on the road section between the two stages but we did have a self-inflicted problem after the second stage. In service we checked the suspension and unfortunately one rear wheel didn't have its nuts tightened up. We almost lost it on the main road and, in fact, we're still one wheel nut missing".
"We finished - that's the main thing. We were quick on the first section but took it carefully on God's Bridge".
The good new is that the air conditioning is working perfectly. The bad news is that we broke a rear spring twenty kilometres before the end of the second stage just before the ford. We kept going and it all hung together and we had it changed at service".
"We've had no power all day. We've been pushed up hills and it's very frustrating. We're going to look at the engine now but we have no real idea whet it is. We think it maybe a fuel supply to the carburettors. We also had a broken rear suspension arm but that's changed now so it's just the engine we have to sort out before the morning."
Unfortunately the Datsun 180B hit a rock five kilometres into the first section. It broke the track rod, bent the camber arm and generally deranged the steering. "I made a mistake", said Sachs. "We tried to fix it but it wasn't right in the second section either".
"After yesterday's disaster today was great. It was challenging but a lot of fun. I'm looking forward to tomorrow after a long shower".
Yesterday the Escort damaged a rose joint when they hit a rock. They had no spare and the service vehicle couldn't come into the section until the other cars had finished. They had a very late return to Naivasha. "We had a much better day today. We drove very safely and soundly without any risks".
The ex-Collinge 260Z (which won the 2003 and 2005 Safari Classics) unfortunately rolled on the first section. The crew are fine but the rollcage is too damaged for them to continue. "I made a mistake" said Rocca. "I was going too fast in the dust and hit a rock. I was one slow roll but it was enough. I should have slowed down but it's so difficult when you're racing.
We had a broken throttle cable spring before the second section but we fixed it before we had to start.
This is a farm built rally car using Stuart Wilkin's parts from Australia and built by John's son Lee, who has been Kenya national rally champion and Mike Mwangi. "We did a really good first section but then we had a puncture on the second on the descent into Kerio valley. The Callinans came past us but were really nice to let us back through when we caught them later. Our final problem today was from the fuel pumps that could not, for some reason, pull the petrol through the filters, which we had to bypass. We lost ten minutes on the road".
"It was quite tough today. We had a good first section but I think we broke a strut on the back in the second section because we hit something and we've got a badly bent rim so we had to back off for the rest of the section. It was an amazing drive down into Kerio - there were some serious drops.
We broke a rim three kilometres before the end of the first section and it cost us at least four minutes as we had to stop and change the wheel. The worst thing today, like yesterday, has been the main road diversions which are really bad.
From co-driver Lofty Drews: "The head gasket we fitted yesterday is behaving itself and we had - for us - a relatively trouble free day. We were plagued my a misfire for both competitive sections, which turned out to be thanks to the distributor wires not being properly refitted. We only discovered it by the purest chance before Naivasha."
They had noise from a driveshaft when they went to start the first section this morning and they changed both after the section. "It was a bit narrow in the grass sections of that first section", said Troman. "On the second section we broke the top of one of the rear dampers and that had to be fixed at service. We also had a puncture but that was on the road section. Martin (Rowe) was great and is doing a lot to keep me in check and up to scratch.
No punctures today but some starter motor problems on the last road section "I've never driven on such a rough road and over such rocks as on that approach to the first competitive section. It was even worse than the old Liege when it went into Yugoslavia after the Skopje earthquake".
"I had a slightly loose steering arm which we fixed after the first section. There was a lot of dust from the other cars. It seems to be a pattern with us: we drive then we break something, we drive then we break something but what will be, will be". Without their considerable road penalties incurred for service their Escort would be a lot better placed in results.
The clutch went on the Escort and they didn't complete the second section.
The extremely competitive Australian Datsun 260Z was apparently caught out by a large car-size hole shortly after the end of the second section. The impact ripped a lot of the front suspension out.
"The car is fantastic and we had a nice day". said Fielding still with a slight air of amazement after discovering they were now lying fifth in their Porsche 911. "There's actually more dust on the road sections that on the competitive sections".
"We had a rear differential cross member come loose towards the end of the second section and that slowed us a bit". The suspension on the 260Z was proving troublesome and Perez was last seen negotiating with the service crew of Rocca to try and acquire his complete spare set.
"Today was just wonderful. It's been our first day without drama and we've found a pace we're happy with. Unfortunately we were in really bad dust on the first section but the Escort was great and not even the wheel alignment was out".
The 240Z has pulled up from ninth to sixth place, just in front of Ian Dyncan. They lost a service car this morning but it has now been replaced. "This is the third day in a row there's been no punctures and nothing broken. We had a clean run and I think we pulled up some placed. It's taken me a couple of days to get into my pace but when you've got Duncan behind you tend to put your foot down".
The Mustang had a puncture on the first section when they hit a rock hidden in the grass. They stopped and changed it. The car arrived at Naivasha with no starter motor. "Something clicks down there", said Duncan "But nothing turns".
The clutch cable of the Porsche 911 failed in the first section but they were second fastest in the second section. "We lost a lot of time", said Dor, "And we only had second and fourth gear for those passage controls on the Delamere Estate. But we fixed it and it was fine for the second section. I think we did a good time".
"No problems and no punctures. Anyway, this was better than the other two days".
They made a navigational error on the second section and lost about ten minutes. The car was first on the road and there were no tracks to follow and co-driver Lopes reported there were two junctions that exactly corresponded with the tulip within 100m of each other. They unfortunately took the second and it wasn't until 6km later they realised the mistake and then had to retrace their steps, making a 12km detour in all. Alain Lopes said: "It's a shame because this is my last competitive rally. After this I will only be doing regularity events.
"We had a left front puncture seven kilometres from the end of the last section but we drove out on it. The sections were brilliant and we were clean apart from the puncture. It was very difficult for the navigator but Mathias was spot on. He hurst his back slightly on the transport section but it's fine now". On taking the lead from Marcy he said: "The safaris is an event that always levels things out. It has its ups and downs. You can't use any tactic except to play it safe".
SS6
The rear left wheel came off in the first section and took the brake calliper with it. "The wheel passed us and went off way into the distance", said Sagoo. "We put the spare on but we had no spare calliper so we had a missing brake for the rest of the day".
"We broke one rim and buckled another. Part of the problem may be that we dropped the tyre pressures to try and save the dampers from overheating". From co-driver Adrian Grinstead: "We're jumping around so much I can't tick the notes off in the roadbook and I'm strapped into the seat so tight that my bum has gone completely numb".
They missed the last section yesterday because of a broken oil pipe but today was clean. "Today's been fine", they said, "Some interesting roads and very rocky".
"It was exhausting but very good. I had a couple of close calls in the first stage going sideways and the car stalled again but I had a lot of fun".
"It was a long dusty day but there were no problems except the steering box became loose. But that was nothing compared to yesterday when the steering wheel became loose in the Taitas".
"We had an average day which was spoilt by losing second gear in the first section which meant we had to drive all day in a rather conservative fashion. We will change the box tonight".
"We have had two problems today. One is the front spring seats on the bottom wishbones which are collapsing despite being highly strengthened. And the other was the rear mounting for the gearbox, which bent and we had to take it off and straighten it. All this meant we had to miss the third section and go straight to Naivasha. My goodness, I used to think that the old RAC rally was the roughest thing I had done but I've had to revise my opinion."
"We got stuck in a mud hole in the first section. The locals helped to push it out and we opened the bonnet to let the electrics dry out in the Kenyan sun - it only took about ten minutes. We ran out of petrol on the road section just as we drove into a petrol station but they were closed so we filled it up with Jerry cans."
The connection between the end of the Capri's steering rack and the steering arm came off in the first section. "We came off the road and went straight into the bushes said Rayner "We fixed it but then it happened again later in the section".
"It was an excellent day. It was very rough in the second section. They weren't even rocks - they were boulders. We changed the bushes on the shocks. It was a good day and we hope we can keep it that way". This is the same BMW 2002 driven by Simon Sharpe and Denis Burnett drove to tenth place in the 2005 East African Safari Classic except it's now white instead of orange!
The clutch centre in the Volvo pulled out on the first section so the service crew came in and towed it straight to service in Naivasha. It will hopefully start again tomorrow morning "We made a lot of friends with the local tribesmen," said Val. "And gave them all the baseball caps from the rallies we've done in the past. You take the good with the bad and tomorrow is another day".
In the second section the clutch failed when the 260Z got stuck in a river crossing. They managed to finish the section, competed the next but were very late into Naivasha. The team will not compete in today's sections in order for the clutch and a general rebuild of the car and they will hopefully restart tomorrow.
They had suspension problems in the Escort in the second section and took maximum penalties for the last section.
"There were no problems for us. We even had time to stop and wash the car at service. The second section was the toughest I've seen in all my time living in Kenya. I've competed in three modern Safaris in the 1900's and this is definitely much tougher".
"We had a puncture on the first section ten kilometres from the end. Some places were rough - not even an Austrian farmer would drive over this in their tractor - but we're hear for the Safari". Amazingly, Pointinger recalled that on the 2003 Safari classic, he broke a rear leaf spring on this Escort and was given a second had replacement by Iain Freestone, "And it's the same one that is on the car today".
"Not a brilliant day, we had one puncture per section and stopped and changed them each time. The worst was on the first puncture the rim broke and the car went down so that we couldn't get the jack under. Fortunately a group of Masai helped us lift the car and we got going again. I'm driving like my grandmother to save punctures but we have to find some solution because I can not go any slower".
The water pump on the Escort failed yesterday and the car did not continue today due to a broken engine.
They broke the rear suspension on the first section and are taking maximum penalties for the other sections today.
"We had one puncture on the first section and two punctures on the second section. Happily this pattern did not repeat itself for the third section. The Porsche is good and seems to like this kind of rallying".
"It was a good day but there were a couple of trucks in the competitive section". When asked about some damage to the Porsche's roo-bar: "We hit a rock which was a bit off the road".
The front suspension of the Mustang came apart twenty kilometres before the end of the section section so they took Maximum penalties on the last two sections.
Head gasket number three when on the 260Z on the way out of Nairobi on day w. They missed the first competitive section but finished the other two. They are starting again today and hoping for no more head gasket changes, or indeed other problems as their service crew had their hands full with the service lorry, stuck in the service park and needing a new clutch.
We have tripled our rally experience in a single day. We hit a culvert on the first section and shot four feet in the air and spun as we landed. This was a self inflicted error, which we are trying not to repeat. We did break a rear damper in the third section but generally the Porsche 911 is OK and we haven't had any punctures.
"We popped a front shock absorber on the first section and it lost all its oil so we had to change the insert at the first service. Apart from that no problems except some nice person threw a rock and broke our screen while we were trying to negotiate that horrible diversion between Nakuru and Naivasha".
We had a very good run through today. We hit a rock on the second section and bent the rim but it didn't puncture. However just three kilometres from the end of the third section we did have a puncture. We had a odometer problem and thought it was only a couple of kilometres to the end of the section so decided to drive on which was a big mistake as it was quite a bit further.
Retired the Escort in first section with a broken rear axle. From Mark Solloway "I have never seen anything like it before in my life. The inner end of the half shaft broke inside the differential and then exploded. It's broke the differential casing and the axle tube. We have spares and we shall try to get the new axle in it this evening but first I need to find a bearing press".
"The event is beyond my expectations. And to make it even better, I'm lying sixth. If I finish in the top ten it will be like winning the rally for me!"
The Escort rolled in the first competitive section and though retrieved and found to still be in working condition, after examination by the scrutineers, it has been mutually decided it will not re-start. Iain Frenstone "We gave it a good reason to roll. It was a fast bend slightly downhill and we went in far too fast. The pile of rocks on the outside didn't help at all. My back hurts but the doctor says I will just be stiff.
Unfortunately co-driver, Mike Stuart had turned over two pages of the road book in the first section and they got lost. They turned round and passed another car so they turned again only to find the other car stopped with a puncture. But they were able to confirm that this was the right road. They also had the front suspension break on that first section - compression strut broke away from main body. On the third section they think they have broken a bar, which helps to retain the differential and rear axle.
Unfortunately we made a navigational error going out to the first section and got stuck on a highway and couldn't turn around so we missed that section. We made the second and really enjoyed the third - it had nice flowing fast bits you could actually drive. The Escort's been great and there's no problems.
The first section was good for us but then we had two rear punctures on the second. We had the second just five kilometres after the first. The rim was damaged and the car dropped off the jack and somehow loosened the rear brake connection thus we had to finish the section without much in the way of brakes. And then work like hell in service to get the car mobile again. I nearly finished the rally going away from service when a rally car in front of me slowed up for some goats and I discovered my brakes were not yet one hundred per cent.
There we no real problems. The way to go fast today was to avoid the punctures. The steering became loose on the Porsche 911 during the last section so I had to go slow. There was still a problem from yesterday with its fixing. The stages are great. Luckily I have Marcy clearing the road for us.
From co-drive Ana Goni: "Not a good day. We had two punctures on different stages and the first puncture split the rim and cut the brake pipe so we were really slow and then of course we lost time with the other puncture as well".
Of course, after the first section we were leading on the road as well as leading the rally so we had the job of meeting all the hazards first. We hit two goats and a sheep and finally a taxi that was coming the other way. No big damage but Alain's foot is worn out from pressing the horn button. We had no punctures and I am driving at ninety per cent to try and keep it that way.
We had a puncture on the first section then Marcy passed us so we were in his dust. We then tried to take something back in the second competitive section but we had another puncture - on the front this time. But we were bloody too quick to change them - my son is a good mechanic. I think we lost about five to six minutes in all.
SS3
On the first competitive section they punched out one of the rear suspension mounts from the body shell on their Australian Ford Falcon and were last seen trying to get the car fixed for Monday's restart.
The mounting for the rear differential broke in their 260Z in the second competitive section. After welding it in Vol they went straight to the night stop at Nairobi.
Following a clutch change in their Peugeot 504 Coupe before the start they ran into problems when they could only use reverse. The had to therefore reverse out of the first competitive section for 30 kilometres to reach the end of the stage and link up with their service crew.
They had to change two cylinder head gaskets on their 260Z. In 2003 they had to change eight on their Datsun 180B - are they going for the record this year?
The engine blew in their Mercedes 450SLC 35 km into first competitive section and they decided to retire.
"The day was fun! We've been swapping the driving. It's Wayne's first time in a rally car but he drove the first section. Unfortunately we got lost on the last section".
"It's quite tough! We got lost going into the last section because we lost the last page of the supplementary road book and we got a two minute road penalty which was a shame but we're really enjoying it and the Mexico has been brilliant".
"I'm a bit speechless really. It's quite an experience but a good one".
"It's been quite a day. Three steering arm ball joints failed on the Volvo (two on the first section) and we broke the rear windscreen. On the second section the Panhard rod broke which wrecked the back shocks. It was a bit like being on a pogo stick. We had to weld the Panhard so we were late on the road section. But we're still smiling - just".
"The day's gone smoothly and absolutely according to plan".
"The alternator is working intermittently but otherwise the Escort is OK. There's much more to come".
"The fuel has been vaporising in the pups when we slow down and the engine starts to misfire". Nevertheless the Rose/Borrisow Datsun 240Z has climbed to sixth place from a starting place of 25.
"The Datsun 180B has been fantastic. You can see by the smile on my face".
"We had four rear punctures but luckily they were all on the road sections".
"There were no problems. The stages were good although the second one was rough".
"The stages were good but unfortunately the alternator fell off so we incurred some penalties on the road. I blame myself - we insisted that a new one was fitted before the rally. It's quite rough out there: the rear window popped out on the third section".
"We were stuck behind a car on the first section and the second section was tight and twisty so not good for the Mustang. We also managed to get an oil leak after the second section but we're not certain yet what the cause is".
"It's not like anything we've ever done before. I think I might have to invent another description other than ruff (the shorthand in the road book for "rough") as it doesn't always seem quite substantial enough.
"It was exhausting but a great experience. This is only our third rally and we're raising money for charity as well, the Samantha Dickson Brain Tumour Trust in the UK". Anyone wishing to donate can visit the website at http://www.braintumourtrust.co.uk.
The Volvo 122S had alternator trouble the night before the start and for a while it looked as if they would not be able to get a replacement. "Then, all of a sudden, we seemed to have sixteen alternators and so that is no problem any more. It was a hard day but a good day, but the pace here on Safari is not like classic events in Europe.
"We had to cope with Nairobi traffic with no clutch". After the third section, the Escort's clutch refused to disengage so that it had to be driven to the final control practically non-stop. "It was sometimes a bit narrow but we made it and didn't upset too many people".
"We are both in the deep end here (his co-driver is ex-Production World Rally Champion, Martin Rowe, reading the maps for the first time) but really enjoying it immensely. Today alone we have driven more than a whole British national rally" They did have one incident when the Porsche 911 went off briefly in the Taita Hills but with friendly help, they were soon back on the road. Martin Rowe commented that "If that had been my Group N 4WD car, we would still be there".
"The Perana has been well behaved and only a rear puncture three kilometres from the end of the first section gave us any worries. But then we put new brake pads for the Taitas and I had to drive the last part of the descent with less brakes than I would have liked".
"The car was fantastic and the stages were great - exactly what I expected. The East African Safaris Classic is exactly what it says on the packet. We thought we had gone wrong in the last section so we turned around and met Iain Frenstone coming the other way. We then met another 240Z. We lost quite a lot of time". One problem that did not lose Geoff a lot of time was a broken drive shaft as this occurred on a road section where service was authorised to change it.
"We're still here and we haven't broken anything. It's the best car I've driven round the Taitas".
"I'd like a bit more power especially to pull up the hills in the second section. In the first section I felt I was being too cautious". First time on Safari, in fact first drive in Africa for Steven, so caution is probably a good thing, especially at this stage and especially since the 260Z has run without fault so far.
"A good day but unrewarding". Translation. Iain caught Steven Perez on both the first section and had to suffer a little in his dust and then they took a wrong turning on the short Athi River section losing our minutes. They are currently classified thirteenth which sort of says it all.
"Pleasantly surprised by today. The car's not handy but actually it dealt with the Taitas quite well between the bends. It was short of testing and funnily enough it feels like it's short of power. It's only a four-speed gearbox of course but a big V8 tends to get round that with its torque".
"The day was good apart from we broke the steering rack in the second section and lost about six minutes. It was really hard to get the car to come out those last few kilometres as the front wheels were pointing out and we had to shuffle round some tight corners".
"I'm not completely happy" which from a naturally taciturn ex-World Rally Champion means that he likes being third but would prefer to be leading! To be fair, Stig chose wider tyres for the first section which proved to be more than twenty seconds slower than Waldegard on narrower Pirellis and then a bent steering arm in the Taitas did not help his cause.
"Perhaps we could do with a little more power". Initially the crew appeared in the provisional results with a one minute lateness penalty for checking in before CS2 but after a quick check of the time card, this was removed.
So far it has gone very well. We bent a steering arm in the Taitas but changed it in the service afterwards. It was lovely to see the Taita's again. I haven't seen them since 1992. The section was beautiful.