The Weiveld 300, the opening round of the 2022 Inland Off Road Car Racing Championship, takes place in the Parys Area this Saturday, 19 February 2022. The race headquarters will be at the Weiveld Farmers’ Hall, situated on the S967, Weiveld/Wolwehoek road.
Sponsored by 4×4 Mega World, Farmers Meat Market and TopCar Panelbeaters Vryburg, the event sees a strong field of 39 cars that will line up to take starters’ orders on Saturday morning. The leading competitors are in for an early start as they set off from 08:30 on a 25-kilometre qualifying race that will decide their starting positions for the main racing section. The fastest qualifier will lead the field out onto the main racing section from midday. The competitors will have to complete three laps of approximately 90 kilometres to vie for honours at the 2022 Weiveld 300.
The Moto-Netix Racing pair, Werner and Leon Mostert are back, aiming to take the Lightweight Vehicle honours – Photo Dries Beetge.
“Competitors can expect a challenging route with some wet and muddy sections, thanks to the recent good rains in the area. Navigation will be the key to success, as competitors who leave the route can expect to find themselves bogged down in muddy tracks,” says the race organiser, Adri Roets. The Red-Lined Motorsport Adventure team will be among the leading protagonists at the event, with three topflight FIA-Class vehicles entered. Leading the charge will be Eben Basson and Leander Pienaar in the IZUSA Carriers VK56. Basson will be hoping for a repeat of the form that saw him win the Weiveld event in 2021.
Philip Botha and Roelof Janse van Vuuren, in the Penta Motor Group VK56, now have a full season in the sport under their belts. Their consistent improvement will see them challenge Basson/Pienaar for honours in Weiveld. Off road racing novice, Johan de Bruyn with his seasoned navigator, Gerhard Schutte on board, the Odor Cure/Greenjobs VK56 will be hoping that De Bruyn’s circuit racing skills will translate well to off-road racing dirt tracks. If his maiden outing in Vryburg at the end of the 2021 season is anything to go by, he will soon be ultra-competitive on the dirt. TreasuryONE Motorsport is using the Inland Off Road Series as a testbed for their 2023 Dakar campaign. Hennie de Klerk and Adriaan Roets in the Volkswagen Amarok are set to challenge Red-Lined’s dominance in the FIA class. Another FIA Class crew that will be hoping to challenge for the lead is Dewald van Breda and Johann du Toit in the Potch Plastics Century CR6. While the FIA class is home to some eye-catching vehicles, the Production Vehicle category is home to a wide variety of vehicles from the ultra-modified FIA Class cars to standard production vehicles in Class E.
The category has attracted a great depth of field with 24 of the nine entries for the Weiveld 300. Among the leading contenders in the category will be Jannie and Pieter Visser in the Caltex Havoline supported BMW X3 entered in Class T that is open to production-based vehicles with a maximum engine capacity of 5 litres. The Special Vehicle category Class B sees the most restrictions of the frame- based spaceframes but the consistent performance of the women’s team, Karlene Croshaw with her mother, Maryna van Schalkwyk navigating, have seen the pair win the Special Vehicle Category championship in their Koster Boere- dienste/Nashua Raceco for two seasons in a row. They will be up against their respective husbands, Sefie van Schalkwyk and Arthur Croshaw in the Koster Boeredienste/Nashua Sandmaster Marco. The Lightweight Vehicle category side-by-side vehicles with their light-weight frames and superior power to weight are more than capable of contending for the overall lead on events. 2021 Inland Off Road Series light-weight champion driver, Werner Mostert is back in the Moto-Netix CanAm with his brother, Leon Mostert back in the navigator’s seat.
The youngster, Ian Mostert, is focusing on his studies for now. They will do battle with Lichtenburg-based brothers, Michael and Jean de Beer in their MJ Motors supported CanAm Maverick. The De Beers have had a string of successes, including setting the fastest qualifying times. 2021 saw them move up to the national series, enjoying a competitive season on the longer distances of the national events. For the first time since the introduction of lockdown regulations in March 2021, spectators will be welcomed back to off-road car racing events. Food and refreshments will be on sale in aid of Epilepsy Free State & North West.
Join the competitors for a great family day out filled with action-packed racing. Don’t forget to pack your mask, sunhat and sunscreen and observe all social distancing measures and the safety instructions from the event officials while enjoying the roar of the powerful off-road cars. If you cannot get down to the Weiveld Farmers Hall, follow all the action at www.Facebook.com/TIORCSA/.
