Speedster Chager looks to extend healthy lead on final day of Heather Hayes Memorial Rally

Veteran driver Baldev Chager and navigator Gareth Dawe will look to extend their lead in the Jim Heather Hayes Memorial Rally on Saturday when the competition, organised in honour of one of Kenya's most popular rallying figures, enters its second day in Nanyuki.

On Friday, Baldev Chager and Gareth Dawe were in a class of their own at the end of the first day of competition on the vast Laikipia plains, leading by a massive eight minutes 46.6 seconds.

Second on the day were Carl Tundo and Tim Jessop in a Triumph TR7. They had a combined time of two hours 53 minutes 46 seconds and will be hoping to tackle the route through the vast Laikipia region and return to the finish in Nanyuki town on Saturday evening.

Chager and Dawe stunned the field in the final section of the day at Nishun 1 Stage to move into second place, almost matching Charger's time over the 79 kilometres.

On Friday, Piers Dayton was third, some 34.3 seconds behind Tundo, followed by Briton Geof Bell in a Datsun 240Z (3:47.3) and Ian Duncan in another 240Z (14:58.7). 

But it was Mike Kirkland, 77, and Frank Tundo, 75, who showed that age is just a number as they kept up with the leaders, showing no signs of fatigue. Instead, they were quick and alert.

In between were younger drivers, including Hamza Anwar, 25, who prepares Kirkland's Datsun 160J car at Africa Eco Motorsport, the model that dominated the Safari between 1979-82 when he won four consecutive Safari titles. 

"Well, I'm 77 years old, so let's see how my body reacts, as my last rally in Kenya was in 1991," said Kirkland, who will be navigated in a Datsun 1600SS by long-time co-driver Anthon Levitan.

Kirkland was driving the same car he drove in his first Safari Rally in 1971 at the end of the Nishun 1 stage.

"I am really proud to see that the classic rally culture has really caught up in Kenya as it has in other parts of the world where such events attract up to 350 entries but only 150 can be accommodated."

 Kirkland said the Kenya National Rally Championship (KNRC) can be saved through sponsorship to make the entry fee manageable for most drivers with less expenses. He also applauds former Safari Rally and World Champion Juha Kankkunen for volunteering to help young Kenyan drivers make the transition to world class drivers like those of his own generation.

Frank Tundo, who is also one of the organisers of the rally, failed to finish the first two legs of the day, but returned to competition on the third and set the 14th fastest time in a Triumph TR7 car. 

The competition rules are flexible and allow competitors who have suffered mechanical problems to rejoin the rally on the next stage. 

The competition is held in memory of Jim Heather Hayes, a former Safari Rally driver, works team chase car driver, pilot and motorsport enthusiast.

It starts on Friday and finishes on Saturday. It is a 1,000km marathon event organised by the Rift Valley Motors and Sports Club. Now in its second edition, it has attracted 52 cars, the highest in a local competition since the 2021 WRC Safari Rally, but it is meant for classic cars. Most of the entries came from abroad. 

Kirkland last competed in a local rally in the 1991 Marlboro Safari Rally when he finished seventh overall in a Nissan Pulsar GTI Rally car. He was entered by the Nissan Europe factory team and driven by Surinder Thatthi.

Although he competes in classic events internationally, his last competitive event being the Carrera Sudamericana in 2006, driven by Chrispin Sasson in a Datsun 240Z, Kirkland has competed in the annual Eifel Rally Festival in Germany for the past three years in a Nissan 240RS, which he drove in the 1985 Safari Rally.
 

Summarised results from Friday:

1. Baldev Chager/ Gareth Dawe, Porsche 911, 02:44:59.7 
2 Flash Tundo/Tim Jessop, Triumph TR7 ,02:53:46.3 
3 Piers Daykin/TBA, Datsun HLS 30, 02:54:20.6
4 Geoff Bell/Tim Cullen, 240Z, 02:58:07.9 
5 Ian Duncan/Jas Matharu, Datsun 280Z 02:59:58.4 
6 Anthony Neilsen/Riyaz Ismail, Ford Escort MK II, 03:09:54.6 
7 Rajesh Maini/Devan Bhundia, Ford Escort MK1, 03:11:47.2
8 Farhaaz Khan/Alfier Khan, Porsche 911, 03:17:08.7
9 Richard Arrowsmith/Roger Norris, Ford Escort MK1, 03:18:40.2
10 Geoff Page-Morris/ Dez Page Morris,  Datsun 260Z, 03:19:53.6