An Novices Insight Into the Worlds Thoughest Motor Event

It is known as one of the worlds toughest rallies - The East African Safari Classic Rally. In 2007 Sudle Motorsport entered the event, after years of planning and hard work. We were one of the only crews that had no competition experience. The team entry and car was built on sheer determination and resilience. The car a Datsun 240Z, Driven by Harvinder Dhanjal and Navigated by Harpal Sudle. Harvinder had been involved in rallying only as a spectator, a Marshal and a service manager for a local entrant in some of the Local National Championship events in Kenya. My experience as a navigator came from being with one of the best names in Kenyan rally organising, my dad - Surinder Sudle. At a very tender age I had been bungled into a Datsun PA10 and been asked to read notes as we checked the route for the Eldoret rallies. However in the late 80's I moved to UK and took a sabatical from motor rallying. Almost every Kenyan born child has an in built bug and the sickness that comes from it is called the "Safari Fever". It was no different for us and our dream was always to do the Safari. In 2007 this dream became a reality.

The Classic Safari boasts over 5000kms of jaw shaking and car wrecking roads. Distances of over 750kms covered in a day and the longest competitive section of over 160 kms. Glorious Mudholes and dust fine like talcum powder, that gets into every nook and cranny, rain and heat all in the space of a few days as you crisscrossed the Equator in Kenya and then travelled into Tanzania.

Having had no experience we were seeded 57th out of the 58th crews. Being novices, our only goal was to finish the event. We battled against all odds just to make it to the start ramp. With the little knowledge we had, we took the start. Over two hours behind the leading car. As the first car was coming to the evening rest halt, we were only just getting to the start of the next stage. At the end of the day the front runners had the luxury of daylight to make repairs. We got in late evening and by the time we got into service, we worked under torch and portable lights. But this is what the Safari is about and we were happy just living this dream.

Day one - Mombasa to Safari Park (Nairobi) - 657.83kms
Today we just wanted to settle nerves and made our way to the first stage. I remember telling Harvinder (Haru) at the start of the stage to 'drive like my grandmother!' There was only one other car behind us and there was no need to try and become heros. As we got through the stage we had already come across a few cars on the way side. The safari was living up to its reputation and already claiming it first victims. The joy was clear through the whole team as we got to our service. There were jumps of happiness as we completed our very first competitive stage without much trouble. After our quick service we headed into the famous Taita Hills. The first icident was in this stage as the car just veered off a right hand bend into a ditch. The good old locals came to our rescue, pushed us out and only then did we realise that there was no one in the car, we were both helping to push it and it just rolled along the road as Haru struggled to jump into it to try stopping it! The final stage was a dash around the now famous Athi-River Spectator stage, thousands lined the quarry to see the classic cars loop around the Quarry. It was relatively incident free, apart from hitting a hidden rock, getting stuck behind a spectator car and we had our first puncture of the rally, luckly this was just as we got on to the Highway into Nairobi! The damage became clear as we came into service at the Lucious Safari Park Hotel. We had already bent the sump gaurd, the manifold was leaking and all this only on the first day! Our service team was fantastic and put in a valiant effort everynight to make sure the car was "fit" for the next day.

Day two - Monday 26th Nov 07 - Distance - 657.83 kms
5.30 am start, taking us out of the City into the Rift Valley and Finishing on the lush grounds of the Lake Naivasha Sopa Lodge, Famous for its Flamingoes. 1st stage was a steep decent down the Ngong Hills and into the Volcanic Soils of Suswa .... the dust was as fine as talc powder and by the end of the stage the inside of the car was lined with it and ever bump we hit caused a smoke effect inside the car, at times we had to stop for the dust to settle so that we could see where we were going!!! Today we motored well. And as we came into the Night Service Halt we were lying 30th Overall! For a novice team this was one hell of an achievement.

Day Three - Tuesday 27th Nov - 568.95 kms
Today was going to be a hard day, some of the roughest roads awaited us. We made our way into Western Kenya, Eldoret - the town I was born in. I was on familiar ground now. We could push the car abit more and try gain some more positions. This idea was going to cost me heavily. The Roads were alot rougher than anything I expected. There were stretches of road that could have been done faster if you walked along them! The Rocks got bigger and crashing sound of them hitting the bottom of the car was numbing. There was going to be lot more work for the boys tonight. We did not realise the extent of the damage until night fall. When we raised the car off the ground, the rear suspension just fell off!!! Only to reveal more damage, a cracked wishbone and even worse the body of the car had started showing signs of fatigue. Cracks appeared on the front pillars, which we had to weld. The service team worked hard into the night and there was no way we could have done all that work in 2 hours. We lost more time and ironically we dropped in our position to 40th overall, it was disappointing after such a great start. But this is what the Safari was all about. Oh yes we also lost both our front spot lights after hitting yet another one of many ditches!

Day Four - Wednesday 28th Nov - 386.39 kms
After only 2 hours sleep we were back in the running, albeit after taking a heavy penalty in service. Today the dash was to the Amboseli Game Reserve, back up the Ngong Hills - Over the Kajiado plains and into the Amboseli Game Reserve. Surprisingly today we had some really smooth roads. As we got to Kajiado the patch up job we had done last night had started to crack already. But our support vehicle had already arranged for the car to get repaired at a local "garage". In the middle of no-where, they had managed to find someone with a welding machine, all other equipment that we needed to get the car "fixed again". In 20 minutes we had fixed all the cracks and breaks. And got some straps round the roof to stop the car from becoming a convertible!!! The last stage of the day was a very long 80 miles of dusty tracks and Narrow roads. As we got to the end our concentration was lapsing and we almost got swallowed by a Hole the size of a crater. I was shouting stopping "STOP" to my driver over the intercom and he just managed to halt the car a foot before! As we navigated round this "crater", a ford Capri that was behind us hit that very hole at some serious speed, they were very lucky to have got away with only a broken steering and some damaged ego!

Day Five - Rest Day
We had covered only half the rally distance - managed to damage the car, repair it, damage it,repair it and so on .......Today was purely about making the car fit enough to last the next 4 days!!! Every crew worked on their cars from 8am - 5pm. The local dusty football pitch in the Middle of Amboseli Park had been converted into numerous "garages" ... our support crew welded away .... pulled apart the engine put it back together again ... got more new tyres.
This warning was printed on our map/road books -
WARNING - Please don't walk outside the Lodge and Service areas - Wild animals including lions and elephants. Donot Feed the Baboons as they are dangerous and can inflict a severe bite" !!!

Only in Kenya do you get a service park in a game reserve, watch the animals and fix your car! The service park was a buzz with activity, most of the crews having full rebuilds on their agenda. Crews sharing tools, borrowing equpiment, everyone just helped each other. It was a fantastic atmosphere.

Day Six - Friday 30th Nov 379.13 kms
Today turned out to be a wet day - however this was one of the days we motored without any major problem - Muddy and wet , a few river crossings and some how managed to get lot of water inside the car! First dust now water and glorious mud. The Datsun motored well, the LSD from Stewart wilkins working wonders in the sloppy mud.

Day Seven - Saturday 1st December 07 - 501.45kms
We crossed over into Tanzania today - did the first stage and took a "jump" abit too fast and landed heavily - we did not know this until we got to the check-point but we had damaged the fuel tank and were losing alot of fuel. For safety reasons we (did not really want to test our fireproof underwear!!) decided not to take the risk and moved to the night rest halt and once again our service team worked hard to remove the tank, weld it and put it back together in the short time that we had.

Day Eight - Sunday 2nd Dec 07 - 403.86kms
The longest day of rallying - we started the day with a 90 mile run around lake Manyara - we got stuck in a river crossing, got stuck in a 3 mile stretch of sandy road. Got stuck again in more sand ... paid the locals to push us out this time! Started again then had to stop for a flock of ostriches that were blocking the road! The last stage of the day and we came of the beaten track to find ourselves perched in a big ditch - this time in the middle of nowhere - there weren't even any locals. These ditches where getting the better of me!! We waited for what seemed an eternity for help, finally a local game ranger pulled us out with his Land Rover!

Day Nine - Monday 3rd Dec 07 - 739.42 kms
Finally the last day ...all we had to do was nurse the car to the end. And we did just that ..... however ....... as we got into Kenya and ready of the last run to Mombasa .... there was a crushing sound from the rear of the car. We were so close to complete and it was going to disastrous not to be able to finish now! We stopped to find the rear suspension had just collapsed. Desperately we got everything that we had in the car and both me and my driver basically strapped it together with alot of ratchet straps and tow rope .....we literally limped out of the stage ...the repair just held together to the finish ramp ....... those must have been the longest 30 miles of my life ........

We finished 36th overall in what is know as the Worlds Toughest Rally, quite an achievement for a team that has never attempted anything like it before! And probably one of the youngest competitors on the event. The Safari is a true test for man and his machinery, preparation it key to completing this mammoth task. Just remember that even with a half decent car and a sensible drive you have every chance of completing in a favourable position. For us this finish was as good as a win.

All this and lot more in 10 days ...we had completed an event that only some would dream of .... Would I do it again? without a doubt yes. But I will need to make sure my wife does not find out!!! It has been the biggest highlight of my life, an 'eye opener' and definitely life changing.

Harvinder Dhanjal and Harpal Sudle
36th Overall In the Worlds Thoughest Rally!

The Sweeper had just been stopped to wait for the late-comers 48 !!

The co-driver was fantastic she never took her helmet off, even on the mobile, squeezing it to her ear outside the helmet "Don't tell anyone, don't tell him (her father) !".

She never left her Roadbook, and as soon as bandaged, ran around for spotlights, wing-mirror and stuff dipped & dumped in the process.

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