It is a tough task to present challenges in tomorrow’s Carter’s PitStop September Safari of the Barbados Rally Club’s (BRC) Chefette MudDogs Safari Championship.
And route-setters Kirk Watkins and Ben Norris may have to settle for “spectator points” in the event which is slated to start at 8 a.m. at Carter’s Complex, Wildey.
The lunch stop-over between routes one and two is at about 11:30 a.m. to noon in Conset Bay, St John, with the finish slated for around 4 p.m. in Foul Bay, St Philip.
Addressing the briefing meeting at the Barbados Clay Target Shooting Association clubhouse, Searles, Christ Church, co-route-setter Watkins said the difficulity was as a result of the dry spell being experienced in Barbados over the past several months.
“Although there has been some rain over the past few weeks, it has not been enough to find places where challenges could be set up.
“There is not enough water around and we may have to create places to set up challenges, but we are hoping for some more rain,” he told the crews.
However, he still expects the safari to be interesting and not easy, as he and Norris have included things to compensate for the problems faced with regards to challenges in the safari.
The safari will be run along the BRC, Straight-line and Tulip system forms of navigation, and with just four points separating the top two crews overall, and a tie at the top of the Novices table, the battle lines are drawn.
The pair of Derek Gill and Andrew Croney, in the Insurance Solutions/Sweet Temptations Mitsubishi Pajero, lead with 178 points, four ahead of Leslie Alleyne and Chris O’Neal, who will compete in the Simpson Motors/Shell Spirax/Shell Rimula/Maxxis Isuzu D-Max), each crew having won one event so far this year.
In the Chefette MudDogs Novice Championship, Damien and Brandon Johnson, in the Western Union Suzuki Samurai, are tied with Julian Kirton and Dominic Straker in the Kirt’s Connection Jeep Wrangler on 174 points.
The running order
Novice Class
1. Damien Johnson/Brandon Johnson (Western Union Suzuki Samurai)
4. Nicholas Pinto/tba (Power King Jeep Grand Cherokee)
7. Julian Kirton/Dominic Straker (Kirts Connection Jeep Wrangler)
13. Richard Hinkson/Nicola Clarke (No More Turns Racing/Eastern Veterinary Clinic Suzuki Samurai)
Pro Class
2. Wayne Manning/Willie Hinds (Zephirin’s Bakeries Suzuki Samurai)
3. George Mendes/Gary Mendes (G&G Sales & Service/Lunatics Inc Mitsubishi L200)
5. John Pinto/Nicholas Branson (Amsoil/Paints Plus GMC Sonoma)
6. Nicholas Lorde/Brett Barber (Comfeet/NL Engineering/Sam Lorde’s Enterprises Land Rover Discovery)
8. Derek Gill/Andrew Croney (Insurance Solutions/Sweet Temptations Mitsubishi Pajero)
9. Warrick Eastmond/Trina Griffith (Daihatsu Feroza)
10. Audley Croney/Paul Marshall (CC Motor Sports & Friends Suzuki Vitara)
11. Chris Armstrong/Wayne Clarke (Toyota Hilux)
12. Leslie Alleyne/Chris O’Neal (Simpson Motors/Shell Spirax/Shell Rimula/Maxxis Isuzu D-Max)
14. Gregory Dickenson/Andre Murrell (Toyota Hilux)
