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Not the cleanest run, but Hennie & Adriaan find their way best

TreasuryOne Racing duo, Hennie de Klerk and Adriaan Roets delivered a splendid team effort as they overcame a couple of car challenges to set the quickest time on the opening day of the Kalahari Rally around Mafikeng aboard their BMW X3 on Saturday. 

De Klerk and Roets led Red-Lined duo Eben Basson and Gerhard Schutte home by 21 seconds, with Dewald Breda and Johann du Toit’s Century buggy a further two minutes behind on the short 99 km prologue to the 3800 km race. The duo however dropped to fourth in the overall standings after incurring an overspeed penalty. 

“Day one was good,” Hennie de Klerk pointed out. “The first hundred kilometres went well and Adriaan and I had a great time in the TreasuryOne BMW X3,”  Our navigation went very well — I have to say Adriaan is exceptional on the notes, he understands the markers and the CAP readings. “We are getting on well in the car and have a good understanding between us, it’s such a pleasure to have him in the car!

“We did have a few car issues though — we struck a ditch on one turn, the car stalled and there was a starter issue. “We could not get it going again and had to wait for the next car, Terence Marsh was a proper gentleman and stopped to help. “We must thank Terence for taking the time to tow us to get running again. "Then we lost the power steering for the last 25 kilometres, so we had a few overshoots and I had to practice my muscles to get home! 

“Still, we had a good clean run and thanks to Adriaan’s great navigation, we found the way when the others got lost and we were quickest through the stage. "We however picked up an overspeed penalty that dropped us to fourth . “The lads will have a bit of work on the TreasuryOne BMW X3 tonight. "The penalty means we will not open the road on day 2. “Either way, I would not be concerned with Adriaan reading the notes . “There’s still 3600 km to go — see you tomorrow!”

“Today was so much fun,” Adriaan Roets grinned in the first night bivouac. “There were some tricky sections to navigate where the road book was altered, but we got it right and found the way while lots of people got lost. “We had a very good run, Hennie is driving well, he’s well within his limits and our TreasuryOne BMW X3 seems good. “So we are really looking forward to the rest of the race.” 

The Saturday’s fast and flowing savannah stage is followed by a tough Sunday route taking in 440 km of racing over two stages through the Kalahari desert from Mafikeng to Digtebos. Designed to settle crews into the navigational challenges ahead, it starts on winding bush tracks and opens up to long and fast sections before a sandy run to the finish. Perfect conditions for Hennie and Adriaan to hone their skills as they prepare to attack Dakar 2022 in the TreasuryOne Amarok.

ENDS

Issued on behalf of TreasuryONE Motorsport

What:Kalahari Rally Day 1 Report
Where:Mafikeng
When:Saturday 4 September 2021
Community:South Africa National

For further information please contact hennie@treasuryone.co.za

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