The second round of this year’s South African Cross Country Series (SACCS) takes place in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) from 4 to 5 May and will don the name ‘The Battlefields 400’.
A name all too apt, rally drivers will compete in the province’s historical war zone(s) where Brits, Boers and Zulus fought more than 100 years ago.
This time round, instead of nations waging war, the battlegrounds will play host to rally drivers from across the country tearing up the dirt where blood once flowed.
The Young Guns team (Richard Leeke and Henry Köhne) debuted their V8-engined BMW X3 SUV at the Mpumalanga 400 in March, storming to class T podium in the process, despite being in a class usually dominated by double-cab bakkies.
The Young Guns in their Speedglas Welding Helmets BMW X3 are feeling bullish ahead of this weekend’s second round action.
“The Mpumalanga result was encouraging and the X3 was impressive, to say the least,” recalled Leeke.
“Conditions were extremely tricky and we were also feeling our way after minimal pre-event testing. It is obvious the BMW is very fast and would’ve been faster still if it wasn’t for an electrical issue which affected engine cooling.”
Business commitments and a National Championship rally have kept the duo busy since their last outing, but a recent shakedown test suggests the changes made to the BMW have already borne fruit.
“It really has been about customising the feel of the vehicle to our needs. Richard likes a car to handle in a particular way, while I have my own peculiar needs inside my office,” explained Köhne, who co-drives for Leeke in their Fiesta rally car too.
As before, the event’s headquarters and service point are just outside Dundee at the Battlefield Lodge.
The racing will however have a different feel this year thanks to a route which is more than 50 per cent new.
The event can be enjoyed from home thanks to the free RallySafe App or by signing up to the SACCS Auto service on Telegram.
“Once again it’ll be an event where we work our way up to speed. Our goal is to get race distance under our belt and hopefully it’ll be good to us again,” grinned 22-year-old Leeke.
Do you perhaps have more information pertaining to this story? Email us at northsider@caxton.co.za (remember to include your contact details) or phone us on 011 955 1130.
For free daily local news on the West Rand, also visit our sister newspaper websites
Randfontein Herald
