The Toyota 1000 Desert Race
THE TOYOTA 1000 DESERT RACE
IT’S QUITE FASCINATING TO NOTE THAT THE WORLD’S RICHEST DIAMOND MINE – BOTSWANA’S JWANENG MINE ABOUT 120 KM WEST OF THE CAPITAL GABORONE – IS ALSO THE ANNUAL DESTINATION FOR THE MOST ICONIC CROSS-COUNTRY RACE ON THE SOUTH AFRICAN CALENDAR.
Situated in the heart of the dry and sandy Kalahari, the Toyota 1000 Desert Race is now the premier event on the South African racing scene, attracting the very best in local and overseas participation who arrive with their race-prepared bakkies, quad bikes, off-road bikes and quaintly styled special vehicles to gather at the Jwaneng Sports Club. Here, locals in their thousands show their enthusiasm for the event by camping out at their favourite spectator viewpoints in the bush for two solid days for the privilege of seeing their heroes in action for a brief moment.
Hosted by Total South Africa, and with a stunning Hyundai Tucson 1.6Turbo Sport as our transport of choice, the 500 km from Johannesburg to Jwaneng was dealt with in speedy and economical fashion, with the Tucson cruising along at a Garmin-indicated 126 km/h while delivering – with three adults and their luggage on board – astonishing fuel consumption figures of only 6.6 l/100 km.
Apart from its superlative fuel-sipping figures, the Hyundai proved itself as a supremely comfortable vehicle, with all the bells and whistles one would come to expect from a luxury mid- sized SUV with an asking price of some R500,000.
Arriving at Skilpadhek Border Post, the South African officials turned out to be friendly and efficient, processing vehicles and passengers without undue delays. The Botswana side, however, was a more drawn-out procedure with the now rather oldfashioned immigration forms still being required, and the Botswana government relieving the driver of a passenger car of R152 in “road tax”.
Once through the gates and bureaucratic red tape, the Hyundai Tucson, with its stylish black alloy wheels and chromed twin tailpipes, used its 150 kW and 295 Nm of torque to good advantage on Botswana’s good roads, seeing off the slow-
moving locals who seem to regard an open-road speed of 80 km/h as something of a local sound barrier not to be exceeded. In all fairness, traffic police were present in abundance, keeping motorists honest and law abiding. “Our” Hyundai Turbo Sport, in attractive metallic deep blue, attracted much interest, with the VIP sticker on the windscreen adding to the allure in a country where Toyota seems to enjoy overwhelming popularity.
For our ventures into the heart of the race for a suitable viewpoint, we decided that the Tucson was much too pretty to squeeze through thorn trees and, feeling less empathy for the rental Toyotas which were on standby, we gave up the Hyundai’s comfort for the more robust alternative.
According to unconfirmed rumours, the Desert Race weekend, a 48-hour nonstop party, easily sees off some R3 million worth of beer and other refreshment consumption. Adding to the fun is the local population’s friendly attitude towards visitors. Relaxed and outgoing, the Motswana people seem to enjoy life, as is also evident when driving through the streets of Jwaneng. Road rage is unheard of, and very few houses even have burglar-proofing.
SOME INTERESTING FACTS
The Jwaneng Diamond Mine, a joint venture between De Beers and the government of Botswana, is expected to keep on producing high-quality diamonds for the next 27 years. Current annual production stands at 2,200 kg (11-million carats), making it the richest diamond mine in the world by value of recovered diamonds.
The race itself, a high speed dusty dash through arid terrain and thorn scrub, was won in fine fashion by South Africa’s only Dakar Champion, Giniel de Villiers – who won the event in 2009 – ending the two-day 1,000 km event a mere six seconds ahead of South African rally champion Leeroy Poulter. Both were in Dakar-specification Toyota Hilux vehicles designed and prepared by Glyn Hall.