Swakopmund hosts first club rally

THE powerful roars from the engines of rally cars will be echoing through and around Swakopmund from 10h00 on Saturday.

According to the organisers, the 2011 V-Power Swakopmund Rally will be the first one of its kind in the history of Namibian motor sport. This will also be the first rally event hosted by Walvis Bay Motor Club, for which it has partnered with Shell Namibia and other local businesses.Drivers such as Namibian leading champion Jaco van Dyk and Werner Gewers are expected to be in action. Oswaldo Mendes, Rolf Pretorius, Tinus Malan in his brand new built BMW will be all in action. Newcomers such as Roland Himmel and his new navigator, Siggi Tietz, will be in action supported by rally veteran Richard Himmel. Attie de Jager from Grootfontein and Dries Booysen from Gobabis are also likely to be in action.The first competitor is scheduled to depart from Ocean View Shell at 10h00. The event headquarters will be based at Ocean View Shell from tomorrow 18h00 until Saturday when the event concludes. The rally consists of 11 stages and will cover 129 km in and around Swakopmund. Spectator’s route cards will be available at Ocean View Shell.’It is a very spectator-friendly rally and nine of the 11 stages can be viewed at various points,’ read a statement by the event organisers. ‘The prize-giving ceremony will be held at the Paintball Centre from 19h00 onwards.’Entries for the competition opened on June 9 and will close today at 19h00.