Let's not give away our revered Safari Rally to foreigners 

There is a difference between being excited and being delighted. I learned that as I was catching up with news of the Safari Rally last weekend. It lived up to its billing as the world's meanest and most beautiful auto rally, with dare-death drivers bringing the sorcery of motors to this third round of the 2024 World Rally Championship. 

About 28 crews set out to cover a total competitive distance of 355.92 kilometres, most of it dust and gravel, of the world’s meanest but loveliest continent, in a mere three days (why not longer?) and over 19 stages. Though a terrible spectator sport, because you’ll miss most of the action unless you're on a drone or helicopter, rallying makes up by being among the very few places where speed is not a threat, but an item for fun. 

Anyway, back to the action. I watched as the cars made their way out of the 4.5-kilometre special opening stage at Kasarani and onwards to Naivasha, whisking out of the sights of several Nairobian faces with white-toothed grins. Many more poured out along the path to watch the Safari cars blast past, buses and trucks and bodabodas flying backward as the cars surged down the tarmac toward Naivasha. 

But, miracle of miracles, despite being held in Kenyan soil, despite having several all-African teams who we assume have a better understanding of the terrain, weather conditions and language (in case a driver is stuck in the mud and needs to be pulled out), no Kenyan or African got to within the top 10 positions. 

Toyota took the cake again, through Toyota Gazoo Racing team, with Kalle Rovanpera defending the title for Frenchman Sebastien Ogier who wasn’t in the race this year. It revealed a curious pattern, as these two drivers have been exchanging the number one position in the Safari Rally ever since it was reintroduced to the WRC calendar in 2021.

There is definitely a colour issue hidden in there, because since time immemorial, only Kenyan Asians and white Africans have ever won this competition, but the big question is, why, and what can be done about it. We could blame it on the leap in technological advancement, that our continent seems to be struggling to catch up with. 

But the way I see it, despite any digital evolution that the sport has undergone in recent decades, eyes remain a driver's most important tool. Eyes are hugely important to drivers, who must read the road quickly as it unrolls before them, and most African and Kenyan drivers have a pair, just like every other competitor. 

If it is about speed, I doubt there is any driver with tachophobia who would dare enroll in such a sport. Additionally, even a layman like me, whose hands have never touched the steering wheel of a rally car, knows that a driver has to hit 120 or 130 kilometres per hour over the good stretches to maintain good averages during the race. So, where is the challenge?

Anyway, I’ll leave you with this question: Should rally results run on the sports pages or the entertainment pages? Or maybe on the commercial pages? After all, the whole point is to sell cars, not so? Congratulations to the Finnish duo of Kalle and co-driver Jonne Halttunen!

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