Sugarbelt 400 as tough as nails
Off-road racing is a tough and challenging sport for drivers, navigators and cars, and this event, after an absence due to the flood in 2022, proved no walk in the park.
The second round of the Sugarbelt 400 was run in KwaZulu-Natal over the past weekend of May 12 and 13.
Racing through the tight cane field roads at full taps required nerves of steel, superb navigation and precise driving skills.
Henk Lategan and Brett Cummings (Toyota Gazoo Racing DKR Hilux T1+) claimed their second win of the season. They lost time by landing in a ditch, had two punctures and some mechanical issues, but they still proved unstoppable by winning the Production Vehicle Category and FIA T1+.
Schalk Burger and Henk Janse van Vuuren.Giniel de Villiers and Dennis Murphy came in second by three minutes and 16 seconds.
Despite various brake problems, Pietermaritzburg team of Gareth Woolridge and Boyd Dreyer (NWM Ford Castrol T1+ Ranger) finished a mere 19 seconds after De Villiers and Murphy.
National rally champions, Guy Botterill and Simon Vacy-Lyle, survived their first Sugarbelt 400. They finished fourth overall in FIA T1+ (05:25:22). Johan and Werner Horn (#TeamHilux Rally-Raid) were in fifth place, 44 seconds behind Botterill.
Chris Visser and Albertus Venter (Red-Lined REVO T1+), and Lance Threthway and Adriaan Roets, also finished in the top ten.
Lance Woolridge and Kenny Gilbert (NWM Ford Castrol T1+ Ranger) finished ninth in FIA T1+ and 12th overall (06:04:03).
Brian Baragwanath and Leonard Cremer (Century Racing CR6), who qualified fifth fastest, finished 18th overall.
Teenager, Jayden Els (King Price Xtreme SVR), had a roller-coaster first Sugarbelt outing. His navigator, Elvéne Vonk, became ill during the first of the two 160km loops and was replaced at the halfway mark by Henry Köhne. Els and Köhne finished 10th overall with the silverware for third place in FIA T1 a just reward.
Schalk Burger and Henk Janse van Vuuren rounded off a 100% finish rate for Team King Price Xtreme when they brought their VW Amarok home as the winners of Class T.
The third round of this series, the Kalahari Botswana 1000 Desert Race is the next event, from June 23 to 25.
Source: SARRC
