Cricketer is 102 not out
Red-Lined Motorsport team principal Terence Marsh, a former professional cricketer, is 102 not out and top of the scoreboard when it comes to membership of an exclusive ‘100 Club’ in the South African Cross Country Series.
Marsh and fellow veteran Coetzee Labuscagne are the only two current competitors who have competed in 100 or more events counting towards the SACCS championship.
Marsh, a former South African champion, leads Labuscagne by one event.
Both have competed in the Special Vehicle and Production Vehicle categories.
Continuing with cricket parlance former South African champions Chris Visser (97), Evan Hutchison (96) and Gary Bertholdt (93) are in the nervous 90s.
Visser has one appearance as a navigator for brother Jannie, while Hutchison has spent his entire career in the Special Vehicle category.
Marsh and Labuscagne have both covered around 50 000 kilometres of cross country racing.
Events in the SACCS championship are held throughout South Africa, Lesotho and Botswana in all types of terrain and conditions.
“Competitors who have competed in landmark 50 to 100 events in what is a demanding sport deserve recognition and high praise,” said Archie Rutherford, chief executive officer of SACCS.
“The effort and sacrifice by teams and competitors that accompanies these achievements shows huge determination and a will to succeed.
“It is also testimony to the resilience our sport, the competitors and cross country enthusiasts have shown down the years and ‘100 Club’ members will compete with a distinctive yellow number panel.”
Closest to the top three are Jannie Visser (76) and Archie Rutherford (75).
Next up are Deon Venter on 68 events, followed by Rob Howie (66) with Danie Stassen, Mike Lawrenson, Keith Makenete and Sandra Labuscagne all bracketed on 61.
Competitors will be in unfamiliar territory from the word go when the 2018 season kicks off with the Mpumalanga 400 in Dullstroom.
The event is a new one on the calendar and should get the season off to a rollicking start.