BROOKER AND EDWARDS DEFEAT THE ELEMENTS

With the Joe Brooker’s Building Ltd/SDRR Hydraulic & Industrial Spares Inc Toyota Hilux caked in mud after a long day battling the elements, Damian Brooker and Derek Edwards emerged victorious in Sunday’s (November 9) Nassco November Safari, final round of the Barbados Rally Club’s (BRC) 2008 Mud Dogs Safari Championship.
Their victory – appropriately achieved in one of the event sponsor’s products – came on a day which presented tough challenges for all, with many sections of the route difficult to negotiate, or even impassable, a fitting end to the first season of the re-branded Mud Dogs Championship. Their victory earned them fourth place in the year-end standings and they will also collect the trophies as highest-placed Novices, Damian snatching the Driver’s title from brother Dominic, who had been ahead before the weekend.
Second place was sufficient to secure the overall Driver and Navigator titles for Leslie and Anna-Lee Alleyne in their Bridgestone Tires/AutoZone Inc Mitsubishi Pajero iO; it is husband Leslie’s second – he also won in 2006 – while Anna-Lee earns her place in Club history, as the first female winner of the Sextant Challenge Trophy, a well-deserved accolade after her hat-trick of second places between 2004 and 2006 on sunday.
But it was not all plain sailing for the Alleynes; level on points with Barry Gale and Neil Barnard – Champion Driver and Navigator in 2005 – in the Gale’s Hatcheries Mitsubishi L200 after the Championship’s first two events in March and June, the Alleynes edged ahead after the September Safari, but could not afford a poor result.
Dealing with some mechanical problems, they were seventh at the lunch break, with Gale and Barnard fourth . . . the six-point difference between the two brought them level once again, so the title would be settled on the last route of the season’s final event; route 1 winners were Colin Goodman and Robin Hinds (Suzuki Samurai), ahead of Paul Marshall/Ricky Holder (Mitsubishi L200) and Darrin White/Robert Warren (Flyin’ Fish Nissan Frontier).
While the first two crews would falter on route 2, White and Warren ended the day third – their best result of the year – and also third in the year-end standings. The Alleynes won route 2, to guarantee them the 2008 titles, with Gale and Barnard third – they ended the day fourth and the season second, just 10 points behind.
In his position as chairman of the BRC’s Navigational sub-committee, Leslie Alleyne said: “I would like to congratulate all the competitors, especially the winners, for their remarkable achievements on Sunday. The event was very difficult, both from a driver’s and a navigator’s perspective.
“At some point all competitors were forced to cut route in an effort to stay within the rally schedule, and this meant we needed to employ strategies to which many of us were unaccustomed. To obtain a good result you first needed to devise a good strategy and, at the end of the day, the crew which was able to cut the least amount of route while staying within the rally schedule was going to be the crew to beat.
“I am also pleased to say, from the sponsor’s perspective, that Toyota was well-represented and, of course, claimed victory - had it not been for some of the eight Toyota crews entered, many of us might still be out there now!”
And it is a good job that they’re not, as the Mud Dogs are now turning their attention to this coming Saturday (November 15) and the first of what Alleyne hopes will become an annual Mud Dogs Social. Alleyne says: “We will celebrate the achievements of the year and say thanks to our sponsors, also the marshals for their support throughout the year. We’ll be showing some video footage of the year’s action, there’s a DJ, free drinks and free food, including china box pig, soup and many other finger foods that have been kindly donated by our members. A number of invitations have been delivered to our special guests, but non-ticket holders will be able to pay at the door where the admission is $20.00 per person.”

BRC Mud Dogs Safari Championship, round 4
November 9 – Nassco November Safari
Results - overall
1st Damian Brooker/Derek Edwards (Joe Brooker’s Building Ltd/SDRR Hydraulic & Industrial Spares Inc Toyota Hilux), 4636 penalties
2nd Leslie Alleyne/Anna-Lee Alleyne (Bridgestone Tyres Mitsubishi Pajero iO), 4708pens
3rd Darrin White/Robert Warren (Flyin’ Fish Nissan Frontier), 5022pens
4th Barry Gale/Neil Barnard (Gale’s Hatcheries Mitsubishi L200), 5152pens
5th Paul Marshall/Ricky Holder (Mitsubishi L200), 5666pens
6th Colin Goodman/Robin Hinds (Suzuki Samurai), 6156pens
7th Ryan Corbin/Dustin Edwards (Corbin’s Catering Services Ltd/Sweet Temptations Toyota Hilux), 6216pens
8th Audley Croney/Geoffrey Goddard (JCB/Simpson Motors Suzuki Samurai), 6338pens
9th Edson Arthur/Renata Roett (Rezults Auto Shop Toyota Hilux), 6428pens
10th Kirk King/Tricia King (K & N Equipment Suzuki Samurai), 6528pens
etc
Pro class
1st Alleyne/Alleyne
2nd White/Warren
3rd Gale/Barnard
etc
Novice class
1st Brooker/Edwards
2nd Arthur/Roett
3rd King/King
etc
Route 1
1st Goodman/Hinds, 2206pens
2nd Marshall/Holder, 2392pens
3rd White/Warren, 2464pens
etc
Route 2
1st Alleyne/Alleyne, 1548pens
2nd Brooker/Edwards, 1576pens
3rd Gale/Barnard 2484pens
etc

BRC Mud Dogs Safari Championship
Provisional final positions
Navigators
1st Anna-Lee Alleyne (Bridgestone Tires/AutoZone Inc Mitsubishi Pajero iO), 236 points
2nd Neil Barnard (Mitsubishi L200), 226pts
3rd Robert Warren (Flyin' Fish Nissan Frontier), 206pts
Novice Champion
(4th o/a) Derek Edwards (Joe Brooker's Building Ltd Toyota Hilux), 180pts
etc
Drivers
1st Leslie Alleyne (Bridgestone Tires/AutoZone Inc Mitsubishi Pajero iO), 236 points
2nd Barry Gale (Mitsubishi L200), 226pts
3rd Darrin White (Flyin' Fish Nissan Frontier), 206pts
Novice Champion
(4th o/a) Damian Brooker (Joe Brooker's Building Ltd Toyota Hilux), 180pts
etc

For further information:
e-mail robin@bradfax.com