Whatshot
Mixed Fortunes For Basil Read Ford Rally Team
Mixed Fortunes For Basil Read Ford Rally Team
Jan Habig and Robert Paisley followed up successive fourth places in the first three rounds of the 2012 SA rally championship with a strong second overall in their S2000 Ford Fiesta, while team mates Charl Wilken and Greg Godrich finished in tenth place.
Jan Habig said he and co-driver Robert Paisley are very happy with the progress they are making with their private team and new car. They are now in third place on the championship log.
"We won six of the 10 special stages that were run, against two fastest times by rally winners Johnny Gemmell and Carolyn Swan," said Habig. "We believe we could have been even closer to victory at the finish if we did not have a malfunction with our windscreen demister on the high speed first stage on Saturday, which saw us place fifth on that stage."
The six-time SA champion added that it was a very tough event and the ultra-slippery conditions made it a mind game to commit to the high speed sweeps, but said it was not the worst conditions he has had to endure in his long and distinguished career.
Charl Wilken and Greg Godrich also had a malfunction with their Ford Fiesta's windscreen demister on one special stage that slowed them. "Fortunately it was only a loose connection and we could sort out the problem at the next service," explained Wilken, a former multiple champion in both circuit racing and rallying.
Both the Basil Read Ford Rally Team crews are now looking forward to the fifth round in the eight-event championship, the Rally of SA, which is being staged as a candidate event for possible inclusion in the World Rally Championship in the future. The event will take place in KwaZulu-Natal, which gives home ground advantage to Habig and Paisley, while Wilken and Godrich have also enjoyed success in this region of the country. The Rally of SA takes place on August 17-18.