Clyde and Tyrone in action in the KZN Sprint Series. PHOTO: Submitted
IF you’ve watched the sport of rallying, you’d be forgiven for thinking the navigator of the car was speaking a secret language only known to drivers. The ‘pacenotes’, as they are known, describe the route to be driven in extreme detail. As the rally car is flying down a dirt road stage at 140 kilometres per hour, the car’s navigator yells, ‘Forty, left five over max crest and tight right nine’.
While the notes look and sound complicated, they’re not, insists uMhlanga residents, Clyde Challenorand Tyrone Koen. The local duo are part of the KZN Sprint Rally Series, which sees the province’s dirt roads and sugarcane fields being transformed into a rally driver’s playground. They finished third overall in the last two events of the series.
“Communication and trust is key in the sport. The pacenotes look like some sort of algebra but they are designed to help a rally driver pilot the car slightly ahead of his own eyes, see around the next corner and come out unscathed. You have to be totally focused as the navigator, your mind has to be clear as you give instructions.
“The driver has to have 100 per cent trust in the navigator and visa versa. The navigator is like the car’s manager, he controls all the book-in times and controls the pace of the stage. The driver is just the pilot. Each track is different, so what Clyde and I do is map the course first. We drive slowly around the course to get a better understanding of it,” said Koen.
uMhlanga residents Clyde Challenor (driver) and Tyrone Koen (navigator) with mechanic and teammate, Blessing Jiyani (middle), participate in the KZN Sprint Rally Series.
The duo have also built their car from scratch, tweaking the engine, the chassis and other components of the car.
“We bought it second-hand and then began modifying it. We’ve put a lot of sweat and hours into this car; when we started, we were right at the back of the field, so after each race we’d adjust and re-adjust until we got it right. I must also give credit to Blessing Jiyani, who helps out with the preparation, he’s like the mechanic of the team.
“I love this sport, it’s such an adrenaline rush but also one where you implicitly trust your navigator, he paints the route, you just follow it. With all motorsports. It is very expensive and we are looking to try and secure any sponsorship for their season,” Challenor said.
He added spectators were welcomed to the events and could even ask drivers to take them around at the end of the day.
