ALLEYNE AND O’NEAL WIN CLOSE CHEFETTE MAY SAFARI

“A good vibe” suggests strong future for the sport

Leslie Alleyne and Chris O’Neal emerged victorious from Saturday’s (May 14) Chefette MudDogs May Safari after one of the closest contests in recent memory. Fewer than 200 penalty points covered the top six when the results were announced at the Barbados Clay Target Shooting Association (BCTSA) Club House at Searles, Christ Church on Tuesday, with every position in the overall Top 10 changing after route one.
  Alleyne said: “We were very surprised to hear the results, as we knew it would come down to timing and challenges . . . and we did not do at all well in the challenges. I guess consistency on the road section is really what helped seal the deal and of course some luck thrown in!” They did not win either route, unusual for a MudDogs event, but two third places were good enough for overall victory.
  Having given their new POD Store/Maxxis Suzuki Jimny a debut win when the Barbados Rally Club’s (BRC) Chefette MudDogs Safari Championship got under way in March a second win gives them an early lead in the standings with three more events to run. They finished with 352 penalties, 28 ahead of Ben Norris and Kirk Watkins in their Jeep Rubicon, repeating their second-place finish from March, but only just, beating Chris King and Warwick Eastmond (Jimny) to the position by a mere four penalties.
  With just 86 penalties incurred, Norris and Watkins won the first route, which started from Chefette Speightstown, St Peter, at 2.00pm and headed south-east across the island to a stop-over at Four Roads Fire Station, St John. King and Eastmond were second, just eight penalties behind, with Alleyne and O‘Neal third on 108 penalties. In a repeat of the March event, after lying sixth at the stop-over, Gary and George Mendes won the second route, which finished at Chefette Six Roads, St Philip, at an hour or so before midnight, with 222 penalties incurred; Stephen Mayers and David Reece (Toyota Hilux) second and Alleyne/O’Neal third.
  Route-setters Simon Parravicino and Joel Smith, who finished third in Class B in the March Safari in their Samurai, came in for high praise from multiple MudDogs Champion Alleyne: “Simon and Joel did an amazing job setting the event, especially as first timers. It was thoroughly enjoyable and even took us on a couple of roads that we had never been down before.”
  Adam Hunte and Samantha Gibbs finished eighth overall and won Class B in their Doverwood Projects Nissan Patrol, a switch from the Mitsubishi L200 in which they had claimed their debut Class B win as a team in March. They also won both routes: former champion Robert Warren (Suzuki Samurai), driving for son Tye on his debut in the sport, was second on route one, third on route two to finish third in Class B, while MudDogs Chairman Rick Holder acted as navigator for first-timer Kerstin Corbin in his Jimny to finish second in class.
  Alleyne, who is passionate about navigational rallying, said: “It is most encouraging to see our entry numbers creeping up with a steady flow of newcomers and a few faces from the past coming back. There is a good vibe at the moment and hopefully we will keep gaining momentum.”
  Holder echoed his sentiments: “Everyone said it was a fantastic rally for first time setters. I personally had a great time and I hope that all the newcomers did as well. A big thank you to our sponsor Chefette, also the route setters and all the marshals who worked on in difficult conditions.”

Chefette MudDogs Mary Safari – May 14
Chefette MudDogs Safari Championship - round 2

1st Leslie Alleyne/Chris O’Neal (POD Store/Maxxis Suzuki Jimny), 352 penalties
2nd Ben Norris/Kirk Watkins (Jeep Rubicon), 380pens
3rd Chris King/Warrick Eastmond (Suzuki Jimny), 384pens
4th Gary Mendes/George Mendes (G&G Sales and Service Daihatsu Rocky), 396pens
5th Dustin Edwards/Ryan Corbin (Toyota Hilux), 540pens
6th Stephen Mayers/David Reece (Toyota Hilux), 546pens
7th Philip McConney/Willie Hinds (Black Bess Group Suzuki Samurai), 752pens
8th Adam Hunte/Samantha Gibbs (Doverwood Projects Nissan Patrol), 776pens
9th Dean Springer/Bridget Garity (Eastern Veterinary Clinic Ford Ranger), 802pens
10th Chris Armstrong/Wayne Clarke (Toyota Hilux), 1116pens
etc
Route 1: 1st Norris/Watkins, 86pens; 2nd King/Eastmond, 94pens; 3rd Alleyne/O’Neal, 108pens; 4th Edwards/R Corbin, 112pens; 5th Springer/Garity, 148pens; 6th Mendes/Mendes, 174pens; etc
Route 2: 1st Mendes/Mendes, 222pens; 2nd Mayers/Reece, 244pens; 3rd Alleyne/O’Neal, 244pens; 4th King/Eastmond, 290pens; 5th Norris/Watkins, 294pens; 6th Edwards/R Corbin, 428pens; etc
Class B
1st Hunte/Gibbs, 776pens
2nd Kerstin Corbin/Ricky Holder (Suzuki Jimny), 1308pens
3rd Robert Warren/Tye Warren (Suzuki Samurai), 1518pens
4th Kristina Pinto/Austin Barber (First Step Security/First Step Maintenance Suzuki Jimny), 2748pens
5th Max Taylor Smith/Paul Rohoman (Suzuki Jimny), 3045pens
Route 1: 1st Hunte/Gibbs, 218pens; 2nd Warren/Warren, 224pens; 3rd Pinto/Barber, 248pens; 4th K Corbin/Holder, 304pens; 5th Taylor-Smith/Rohoman, 1438pens
Route 2: 1st Hunte/Gibbs, 558pens; 2nd K Corbin/Holder, 1004pens; 3rd Warren/Warren, 1294pens; 4th Taylor-Smith/Rohoman, 1607pens; 5th Pinto/Barber, 2500pens

Chefette MudDogs Safari Championship: Round 1 – Mar 13, BRC MudDogs March Safari; Round 2 – May 14, Chefette May Safari; Round 3 - Jun 25/26, The 65th Anniversary June Safari; Round 4 - Sep 16, BRC MudDogs September Safari; Round 5 – Nov 19, BRC MudDogs November Safari

For media information only. No regulatory value.

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Web sites: www.barbadosrallyclub.com, www.muddogsbarbados.com