Jan Habig Rallying

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Slip-sliding away on the Sasol Rally

22 April 2013

The 2013 Sasol Rally was an event not many competitors will forget - there was rain, mud, mist and wind.

With just a hint of a laugh, former national rally champion Habig said: "It was certainly an event that will be remembered for the worst rallying conditions experienced in South Africa for many years. We had it all - rain, mud, and worst of all was the misty conditions - the first time we have had to deal with mist in the past fifteen years or so."

"It was a difficult rally and unfortunately we had a misfire in the very first special stage and we lost a massive 40 seconds, and in the top end of the field this is not easy to make up," he continued. "We were very fortunate to get it sorted it out but then the rain came down. Between stages, we had to deal with the servicing, and just didn't have the time to change from a dry set-up to a wet set-up, and this cost us a lot of time."

At the end of the first day, it was Matthew Wilson who had a very comfortable overall lead which he maintained until special stage 10. He had a damaged windscreen and slowly lost ground, battling with obstructed vision in the misty conditions.

On the muddy forest roads, Habig spun and lost another 40 seconds, but at this stage competitors were really just holding their places to get to the end and with the safety of the competitors in mind, special stages 14 and 15 were cancelled by the organisers.

"This very much determined the outcome of the event," said Habig. "What was really impressive was the way in which Matthew Wilson and Chris Patterson performed on South African soil - a very welcome change for our spectators and competitors."

"The organising committee did a superb job again, and the marshals and officials were faced with unusual challenges, but this didn't dampen the spirit of the spectators or the event," said Habig. "We are obviously not totally disappointed with the result, and find ourselves currently third on the South African Rally Championship ladder with six events to go."

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