NORRIS, WATKINS WIN NASSCO SAFARI FOR TOYOTA

Alleyne and O’Neal add to MudDogs Championship titles

Ben Norris and Kirk Watkins claimed their second victory of the 2019 Barbados Rally Club (BRC) Chefette MudDogs Safari Championship in last Sunday’s (October 20) final round, the Nassco October Safari, handing the island’s Toyota dealer a ‘home’ victory in their Land Cruiser. They finish the season second in the Driver and Navigator standings, just two points adrift of multiple Champions Leslie Alleyne and Chris O’Neal, who were the route-setters last weekend.

Alleyne has claimed a record seventh consecutive Drivers’ crown, with O’Neal adding a sixth to his total, having been absent for the final round of the 2018 Championship; their run of success in the Simpson Motors/Shell Spirax/Shell Rimula/Maxxis Isuzu D-Max has broken all records in BRC navigational events. Having finished second last year in the Shelbury Construction Trophy for the season’s Driver Challenges, Stephen Mayers (Toyota Hilux) is this year’s winner, beating Norris to the title by four points.

At the Prizegiving on Tuesday night (October 22), Nassco’s Thomas Hill presented the trophies, along with a number of Toyota giveaways. Reflecting on the season’s final round, winning driver Norris said: “Watty and I really enjoyed Leslie and Chris’s route. Coming off the back of setting the September Safari, we felt really ‘dialed in’ and would encourage everyone to try their hand at setting an event! We were especially happy to bring home a Toyota win for the Nassco October Safari. On the personal side, we brought on some new sponsors - Powerbass and Lenovo - so winning our first event with them on board was icing on the cake.”

Norris and Watkins led throughout the event’s two routes, comfortably ahead of the opposition; Christopher King and Warrick Eastmond were second on the first route in their Nissan Frontier, with Willie Hinds third, along with veteran Navigator Wayne Clarke in the Black Bess Group Suzuki Samurai. On the second route, Mayers and David Reece were second, having finished ninth on the morning route, while David Armstrong and last year’s Champion Navigator Andrew Croney were third in their Nassco-backed Hilux.

In terms of route wins, Class B honours were shared between the only two crews entered: John Pinto and Adam Hunte (Structural Systems GMC Sonoma) won route one – they finished fourth overall – while Yosuf and Musab Patel prevailed in route two in the Aquarius Faucets/ToolCraft/Goodyear Mitsubishi L200; it was Pinto and Hunte, however, who claimed class honours at the end of the day, just as they did in last year’s Nassco November Safari.

In setting Sunday’s route, Alleyne and O’Neal were assisted by new recruit, 12-year-old Austin Barber, whose contribution was recognised at the Prizegiving. From the start at the Barbados Clay Target Shooting Association (BCTSA) Clubhouse at Searles, Christ Church, the first route travelled to St Philip, then through St John into St George for a lunch stopover at Chefette Charles Rowe Bridge. After lunch, crews visited St Thomas, St Joseph and St George before the finish back at the BCTSA Clubhouse.

MudDogs Chairman Ricky Holder said: “I wish to thank our sponsor Nassco for their continued support and all of the marshals and competitors; all in all, I think it was a fantastic rally, with some great tricks, so well done to Leslie and Chris. Finally, a special vote thanks to Roger Mayers, who assisted in the towing out of the competitors who got stuck at Challenge 2 . . . and I feel sorry for the guys at Details Car Valet, who are going to clean his vehicle.”

Chefette MudDogs Safari Championship - round 4
Nassco October Safari, October 20

1st Ben Norris/Kirk Watkins (Lenovo/PowerBass Toyota Land Cruiser), 666 penalties
2nd Christopher King/Warrick Eastmond (Nissan Frontier), 1235pens
3rd Willie Hinds/Wayne Clarke (Black Bess Group Suzuki Samurai), 1481pens
4th David Armstrong/Andrew Croney (Nassco Toyota Hilux), 1687pens
5th Phillip McConney/Mark Western (HVAC Caribbean Land Rover Defender), 1813pens
6th Stephen Mayers/David Reece (Toyota Hilux), 2073pens
7th Dean Springer/Bridget Garity (Eastern Veterinary Clinic Ford Ranger), 2325pens
8th John Pinto/Adam Hunte (Structural Systems GMC Sonoma), 2445pens
9th Justin Gill/Andre Murrell (Isuzu D-Max), 2892pens
10th Yosuf Patel/Musab Patel (Aquarius Faucets/ToolCraft/Goodyear Mitsubishi L200), 4044pens etc
Route 1: 1st Norris/Watkins, 238pens; 2nd King/Eastmond, 626pens; 3rd Hinds/Clarke, 644pens; 4th Pinto/Hunte, 798pens; 5th McConney/Western, 912pens; etc
Route 2: 1st Norris/Watkins, 428pens; 2nd Mayers/Reece, 534pens; 3rd Armstrong/Croney, 564pens; 4th King/Eastmond, 609pens; 5th Hinds/Clarke, 837pens; etc

Class B

1st Pinto/Hunte, 2445pens
2nd Y Patel/M Patel, 4044pens
Route 1: 1st Pinto/Hunte, 798pens; 2nd Y Patel/M Patel, 2800pens
Route 2: 1st Y Patel/M Patel, 1244pens; 2nd Pinto/Hunte, 1647pens

Chefette MudDogs Safari Championship
Final Points, after round 4

Overall (Driver): 1st Leslie Alleyne (Simpson Motors/Shell Spirax/Shell Rimula/Maxxis Isuzu D-Max), 238 points; 2nd Norris, 236pts; 3rd D Armstrong, 224pts; 4th King, 212pts; 5th Hinds, 186pts

(Navigator): 1st Chris O'Neal (Simpson Motors/Shell Spirax/Shell Rimula/Maxxis Isuzu D-Max), 238 points; 2nd Watkins, 236pts; 3rd Croney, 224pts; 4th Eastmond, 212pts; 5th Clarke, 210pts; 6th Garity, 192pts

Class B: no competitors qualified for year-end awards

Shelbury Construction Trophy
Final points, after round 4

1st Mayers 25 points; 2nd Norris 21pts; 3rd Chris Armstrong (Toyota Hilux), 18pts; 4th Alleyne 11pts; 5th D Armstrong 10pts; etc

For media information only. No regulatory value.

For further media information, robin@bradfax.com
Web sites: www.barbadosrallyclub.com, www.muddogsbarbados.com