The former National Navigator champion, Piers Daykin is the new leader of the Mini Classic Rally after stewards Saturday penalised a couple of drivers due to technical faults.
Daykin, who has held on to the second position for the most of the time, is now the clear leader of the competition which is expected to end Sunday in Eldoret. He is driving a Datsun 280Z with Tariq Malik as his navigator.
Baldev Chager, who has won the Mini Classic Rally on four different occasions, is now lying second place with Gareth Dawe as his navigator.
Remon Vos of Holland has proved to be the best foreign driver as he claims third place at the end of the second day of the Mini Classic Rally.
The Porsche 911 driver, who is navigated by Stephane Prevot, has maintained the top five position since the beginning of the rally two days ago.
Raaji Bharij and Ravi Soni were part of several crews who were penalised by the Stewards for missing a turning in one of the sections.
The crew which was leading the group at one stage are now lying in fourth place in their Ford Escort MK1.
Earlier on, the crew had suffered mechanical damage earlier on with their Ford Escort.
“We got stuck in the opening stage of the rally before we were rescued. That incident was followed by another mechanical problem when one of the arms broke. It was a tough day,’’ Bharij told Nation Sport.
Other crews like Chager, Remon Vos, Rajay Sehmi and Asad Anwar also faced technical problems but the Stewards decided not to take action after lengthy deliberation.
The father and son crew of Arshad Khan and Farhaaz Khan are celebrating a special occasion in this Classic Rally. Arshad is celebrating his 50th year in the sport of rallying. The crew is currently lying in the top-10.
Arshad has been a regular navigator of his brother Aslam Khan in the past events but this year he has opted to navigate his son Farhaaz in the same Porsche 911. Aslam is a mere spectator this year watching the action from the sidelines.
Asad Anwar, who was forced out on the first day after his car was found not to be fully compliant with the safety rules, returns to action in another friend’s car.
His friend Tariq Khan pulled out of the event at the last minute and instead decided to give back the car to Asad to drive in the remaining two days of the competition. The car is a Toyota Levine 1600.
The rules governing the Mini Classic Rally are almost the same as those of Kenya National Rally Championship series.
For example, drivers are not allowed to work on their cars within the Start/Finish Control Zones as per the rules.
Robert Calder and his navigator, Gavin Lawrence were penalised six minutes on Day One by the Stewards of the Meeting of the Classic Rally after they were found to be replacing one of the flat tyres at a Time Control Zone during the competition.
The Stewards considered their offence as a matter on safety grounds, though such an offence can lead the crew to being disqualified from the competition.
Any crew reporting later 60 minutes above their allowed time to the Service Park at the end of the Day, will be considered as time barred.
Victoria Commercial Bank and Kenya Breweries are the official sponsors of this year’s Mini Classic Rally which is organised by the East African Safari Rally Classic Rally.
With the tradition of the East African Safari Classic Rally, route details are kept secret until the day of the start.
Every car in the rally has to be fitted with the Tracking equipment which keeps track of movement of the car and records exact timing once it crosses the bar at each and every Time Control.
Scrutineers have to check each and every car to make sure the Tracking System is fitted in the rally car at a special fee.
Sunday’s final day of action will be flagged off at 8am from the Ecya Hotel in Eldoret. First car is expected back at the finish from 1.30pm onwards.
Saturday's action: TC7-TC8 - Competitive 62.80kms, Transport 64.50kms, TC8-TC9 - Competitive 59.78kms, Transport - 14.50kms, Total Competitive 243.62kms, Transport 182.10kms, Total mileage 42572km.
Provisional Standings at end of Day Two
