Quiet Secunda will never be the same after rally circus
The Secunda Motor Rally will take place on May 15 and 16 in close proximity to this mining and industrial Mpumalanga town.
HITTING GRAVEL. The Secunda Motor Rally should provide this kind of spectacle on May 15 and 16. This is AC Potgieter and Tommy du Toit in their Ricky B Polo. Picture: Dave Ledbitter
It is the first ever national event to be staged in the region also known as Cosmos Country and is the third round in this year’s SA National Rally Championship.
The rally, over a total distance of 316km, will consist of 12 special stages totalling an approximate distance of 185km in a very compact format – the furthest stage being only 17km from the service park complex.
The new national event follows on a highly successful Northern Regions regional rally held in the area late last year. It received great support from the community of Secunda.
Willie du Plessis, the course clerk says: “Landowners have spent a lot of time and money on preparing a great route for this new national event” and it has the support of important stakeholders, including local businesses and the media.
The rally is expected to start at the Graceland Casino at 1pm on Friday, May 15, and is immediately followed by the opening gravel stage opposite the casino.
Competitors will then take on another five stages before the overnight stop at the popular Lake Umuzi waterfront complex on the southern outskirts of the town.
Aptly named the capital of Cosmos Country, the Lake Umuzi waterfront development includes various accommodation options, good restaurants and great entertainment facilities for the entire family, including a water park.
The rally headquarters and the service park complex will also be situated there.
A short 3.7km stage next to the lake at the complex will be the final stage on Friday evening, providing spectators with a perfect opportunity to see the cars and their service crews in action.
On Saturday, May 16, crews will tackle another five stages before the event finishes at Lake Umuzi, with the final 3.7km stage next to the lake in the afternoon.
Du Plessis described the stages and route for the event as an “interesting mix”.
“While some of the special stages will run through mealie fields, it will also consist of flowing sections through quarries and other areas with different road surfaces, ensuring a greater variety,” he says.
The service park at Lake Umuzi will be open for team set-up from May 14 and scrutineering will take place at Secunda Toyota from 6pm onwards.
This will include an autograph session, providing another opportunity for petrolheads to meet the top rally crews in South Africa.
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