Throughout this eight event series, the rally action was always thrillingly close, nailbiting and truly spectacular as these photos attest. A year to remember, the 2008 South African rallying scene surpassed all expectations...WRITES EVAN ROTHMAN.

PICTURED ABOVE: Snaking through the sugar cane fields of KwaZulu-Natal,the Hitachi Power Tools Tour Natal Rally is spectacular for both competitors and spectators alike. This year’s season-opening event was won by Jan Habig BP Volkswagen Polo S2000). In this photograph, Fernando Rueda (Team Total Evolution Mitsubishi Lancer EVO IX N4) beautifully slides the car around a corner.

 

 

 

ABOVE: Driving aggressively, Visser du Plessis (Pirtek Subaru Impreza N4) effortlessly drifts his car sideways in the Western Cape, wowing the thousands of spectators. Another reason why I love rallying: airborne cars! ABOVE Mark Cronje (Castrol Toyota RunX S2000) hunt for his first Class S2000 victory in the Toyota Dealer Rally - Western Cape, round two of the championship.

 

 

Regarded as the toughest eventon the South African rally calender, the Sasol Rally always provides great rally action. This year, the event was threatened to be washed away as the heavens opened on the eve of the start. The rain left the gravel roads muddy and treacherously slippery, even catching out a number of experienced crews. Many crews picked up not one or two, but several punctures over the course of the weekend... Mud, sweat and punctures: the Sasol Rally 2008. Above the winner: Enzo Kuun (BP Volkswagen Polo S2000).

 

 

Punctures played a heavy hand in the outcome of this rally (but in no way detracts from the sterling performance produced by Kuun to win), with just about every crew forced to change punctured tyres at some time during the event. Rally winners Kuun and Hodgson only suffered two punctures over the course of the rally, while 2007 South African National Rally Champions Jan Habig and Douglas Judd were plagued by no less than six punctures…

 

 

On SS2 Habig and Judd hit a rock, which destroyed their wheel rim, damaged the suspension cross member and left them without brakes. They stopped to change the flat tyre, but with no Service Park scheduled before tackling the next stage Habig and Judd lost over 12 minutes and incurred a 90 second service penalty dropping them to 31st overall at the overnight stop. Displaying true determination, Habig and Judd steered their BP Volkswagen Polo S2000 to a commendable 11th position overall finish, after picking up another five punctures on Day Two.

 

 

The Total Rally (round four) was yet another BP Volkswagen Polo S2000 happy-hunting ground, as Fekken/Arries claimed their second victory of the year. ABOVE: Growing in confidence is Jean-Pierre Damseaux (Team Total Evolution Toyota RunX S2000), who finished in third place behind the Castrol Toyota RunX S2000 of Johnny Gemmell/Peter Marsh. BELOW: Here the BP Volkswagen Polo S2000 of Habig/Judd Habig/Judd looks fierce, throwing up the red dust of Ermelo, Mpumalanga.

 

Round five of the championship, the Volkswagen Rally, will long be remembered and treasured by Toyota Motorsport and Mark Cronje, for it marks his first overall national rally victory. Unable to match the pace of the Castrol Toyota RunX S2000 on their home event, the BP Volkswagen Polo S2000s of Fekken, Kuun and Habig were forced to settle for second, third and fourth places respectively. Cronje and co-driver Robert Paisley will most certainly be celebrating more regularly with champagne in coming seasons in South Africa’s premier rallying class!

 

 

 

Clawing back onto the top step of the winners’ podium in the foothills of the southern Drakensberg Mountain, were Fekken and Arries. The phrase “winning by a whisker” has never rung more true in the South African Rally Championship this season than by the winning margin in Round Six of the series, the Osram Rally. Fekken/Arries placed their BP Volkswagen Polo S2000 at the top of the leaderboard by one second from second-placed finishers Gemmell/Marsh AND third-placed finishers Kuun/Hodgson.

 

 

The 211km of slippery gravel roads around Barkly East proved demanding on both crews and vehicles as the high speeds and flowing bends punished the slightest of mistakes from drivers and co-drivers. With rally winning margin of only 1 second, the Osram Rally 2008 truly provided nail-biting rally action! Pictured ABOVE is Jan Habig, with the flowing mountain pass roads in the background.

For only the second time in 2008, it was a non-BP Volkswagen Polo S2000 crew atop the overall event classification at round seven of the calendar. This honour went to Damseaux/Vrey, which was also their first overall victory and most certainly not their last!

 

 

 

ABOVE and BELOW: Charl Wilken pushed his SASOL/Konica Minolta Subaru Impreza N4 to claim an impressive sixth place overall at the Swartland Rally in the Western Cape. The Toyota Dealer Rally - Gauteng (final event of 2008), Fekken wrapped up the Driver Champion crown, while Wilken took the Production Car Champion title.

Next year, Hein Lategan (AFROX Subaru Impreza N4) and Jon Williams (Volkswagen Polo S2000) will be the drivers to closely watch!

 

 

 

Class Rd 1 Rd 2 Rd 3 Rd 4 Rd 5 Rd 6 Rd 7 Rd 8 TOTAL
01) Hergen Fekken S2000 21 25 21 25 17 25 14 25 159
02) Jan Habig S2000 25 17 10 17 21 16 21 15 132
03) Enzo Kuun S2000 DNF 21 25 DNF 19 19 19 21 124
04) Johnny Gemmell S2000 DNF 16 DNF 21 12 21 17 16 103
05) Charl Wilken N4 DNF 12 15 15 14 13 15 17 101
06) Jon Williams S2000 DNF 15 DNF 16 15 14 16 19 95
07) J-P. Damseaux S2000 DNF 14 16 19 DNF 17 25 DNF 91
08) Japie van Niekerk S2000 19 10 12 14 16 DNF DNF 14 85
09) Visser du Plessis N4 DNF 9 14 13 13 DNF 12 13 74
10) Fernando Rueda N4 17 11 DNF DNF 11 12 13 64
11) Nicholas Ryan S2000 DNF 13 19 12 DNF 11 DNF 55
12) Chris de Wit A7 9 7 8 10 EXCL 8 0 5 47
13) Mark Cronje S2000 DNF 19 DNF DNF 25 DNF DNF DNF 44
14) Richard Vaughan N4 16 6 11 DNF 10 0 43
15) Lola Verlaque N4 DNF DNF 9 11 3 7 12 42
16) Craig Trott A6 14 1 5 1 6 4 DNF 8 39
17) Adrian Karth A7 DNF DNF 7 0 9 DNF 10 11 37
18) Hein Lategan N4 13 6 DNF 15 DNF DNF 34
19) Rodney Visagie N3 DNF 4 3 0 4 9 8 6 34
20) Kosta Koumantarakis N3 15 2 0 0 DNF 5 3 7 32
21) Mohammed Moosa A6 13 DNF 6 DNF DNF 0 11 DNF 30
22) Theuns Joubert A7 11 DNF DNF 9 DNF DNF DNF 20
23) Joos Stassen N4 5 8 0 7 DNF 0 DNF 20
24) Stevan Wilken A6 DNF DNF 4 5 7 DNF 4 DNF 20
25) Paul Pfeiffer N4 EXCL 17 DNF DNF 1 DNF 18
26) Etienne Lourens N3 DNF 0 DNF DNF 8 10 DNF DNF 18
27) Ettiene du Toit N3 7 0 1 3 DNF 6 DNF EXCL 17
28) Gugu Zulu A7 DNF 0 DNF 0 DNF DNF 6 10 16
29) Michael Otto A7 10 DNF 2 4 DNF 0 DNF DNF 16
30) Nico Higgs A7 8 5 DNF DNF DNF DNF 13
31) Evan Hutchison A7 DNF 3 0 8 DNF DNF DNF 2 13
32) Salie du Toit A6 12 DNF DNF 12
33) Schalk Burger (Jnr) A7 DNF DNF 9 9
34) John Peiser N4 9 9
35) Tjaart Conradie A5 DNF 0 DNF 0 5 DNF DNF 4 9
36) Andre Cleenwerck A5 6 0 0 0 EXCL 0 2 DNF 8
37) Duncan English N3 0 DNF 7 7
38) Riaan Erasmus N2 DNF 0 0 EXCL 3 1 3 7
39) Abduraghman Amlay N3 DNF 0 DNF DNF 5 5
40) Piet Bakkes A5 4 0 DNF DNF DNF DNF 4
41) Dave Compton A5 DNF 0 0 DNF 2 2 DNF DNF 4
42) Eric Storbeck A5 3 DNF 0 DNF 3
43) Jose de Gouveia A6 2 0 T/BAR T/BAR 2
44) Nico Nienaber A6 DNF DNF 2 DNF 2
45) Bradley Martin A5 1 1
46) Vusi Mbanga A5 1 DNF DNF 0 0 DNF DNF 1
47) Charl Strydom A6 DNF DNF 1 DNF 1

 

Manufacturers’ Champions: Toyota
Class S2000 Drivers’ & Co-Drivers’ Champions: Hergen Fekken & Pierre Arries (BP Volkswagen Polo)
Class A7 Drivers’ & Co-Drivers’ Champions: Chris de Wit & Dean Redelinghuys (Team Total Evolution Toyota RunX)
Class A6 Drivers’ & Co-Drivers’ Champions: Craig Trott & Tony Ball (Team Total Evolution Toyota RunX)
Class A5 Drivers’ & Co-Drivers’ Champions: Andre Cleenwerck & Des de Fortier (BP Volkswagen CitiGolf)
Class N4 Drivers’ & Co-Drivers’ Champions: Charl Wilken & Greg Goodrich (Sasol/Konica Minolta Subaru Impreza)
Class N3 Drivers’ & Co-Drivers’ Champions: Rodney Visagie & Carolyn Swan (Team Total Evolution Toyota RunX)
Class N2 Drivers’ & Co-Drivers’ Champions: Riaan Erasmus & Hester Erasmus (Toyota Corolla)