Grueling 2011 Garden Route Rally for BP Volkswagen Polo Vivo S2000 team
Highly changeable weather on the two-day Garden Route Rally on 26-27 August threw many obstacles to the competitors, but the BP Volkswagen team survived the punishing event, overcoming many obstacles on the way. Damp weather on Friday gave way to sunny conditions on Saturday, and the nine-stage event saw the Enzo Kuun/Guy Hodgson car come home in fourth place, the highest-position Polo Vivo S2000. Giniel de Villiers and Ralph Pitchford finished one place behind Kuun/Hodgson, the defending series champions.
Other cars in the BP Volkswagen livery didn’t fare as well. Hergen Fekken and Pierre Arries landed heavily after a yump, damaging their radiator in stage three. While the damage meant they could carry on, they had to retire at the end of the round. A tree stump on stage nine was the undoing of Jan Habig and Robert Paisley, damaging their rear suspension fatally. The S1600 class pairing of Gugu Zulu and Carl Peskin were knocked out in stage eight when a cracked exhaust manifold lead to a burning engine mount. S1400 class competitors Megan Verlaque and Hilton Auffray had better luck, though, winning their class with their Polo Vivo and getting their new rallying partnership off to a flying start. The next round of the 2011 South African National Rally Championship is the Western Cape Rally on 22-23 September.
