Hutchison was fifth overall in the special vehicle category and Harcus sixth in a tough event that was run in hot, dry and dusty conditions and reduced the original field of 29 special vehicles and 21 production vehicles to 11 specials and 14 production at the end of the 400-km event.
With just two events remaining, the Toyota Dealer 1000 in Mpumalanga in October and the Carnival City 400 in November, Hutchison and Ormerod enjoy a healthy 23-point lead over defending champions Marcus Taylor and Marc de Chalain (JRE).
Hutchison recorded the fastest time among the 14 class B contenders in Friday’s 43-km prologue and was not headed throughout Saturday’s race, which was held over three laps of a 115-km course.
“Trevor and I enjoyed a trouble-free run and a good battle in the early stages with Marcus Taylor and Marc de Chalain in their JRE. The BAT-Nissan performed faultlessly, we thoroughly enjoyed the route, which was exceptionally well marked and provided a tough combination of challenges that ranged from hard, rocky sections, thick sand, dry river crossings and some very enjoyable fast, flat sections,” said Hutchison.
“Full marks to Willem Prinsloo and the Koepel Club and the Pietersburg 4×4 Club for a most enjoyable and well-organised inaugural event in Limpopo.”
Harcus, who made his debut for the Motorite Racing team in the last event, the Lesotho Sun 400 in August in which he and Alec Salley finished second overall in the special vehicle category, will stay with the team for the rest of the season.
This time he was partnered by Steve Smith, editor of SA Sports Illustrated magazine, who was making his off road racing debut.
“It was a lot tougher than I expected and I have the highest admiration for the off road competitors, particularly the navigators, after this weekend,” said Smith, who was visibly exhausted when he clambered out of the roof hatch of the Motorite BAT after nearly eight hours of racing in extreme heat and thick dust.
“We had a good day today and I must say, after a cautious start, Steve turned out to be a useful navigator; I’m sure he could do well in this sport if he chose to carry on,” said Harcus. “We had a small argument with a fence on lap one and were slowed by a flat tyre on lap two and a sticking accelerator on the last two laps. Otherwise our BAT-Nissan gave no trouble at all,” said the man who conceived the South African- designed and built BAT. He can be proud of the fact that there were five BATs in the top seven finishers.
“It was a great day for Motorite and a very rewarding experience for us to be joint hosts of what turned out to be a very popular event with competitors and spectators alike,” said Motorite managing director Justen Cooper.
“My congratulations to the Off Road Racing Commission, the organisers, the competitors, the other sponsors and all the very professionally turned out teams who did battle this weekend. This is a wonderful sport where whole families are involved and the camaraderie and sportsmanship is probably unique in sport.”
