ELRICO AND PIERRE TAKE THE TANKWA

Twenty-two 4x4s recently gathered at the Stonehenge farm in the Tankwa Karoo for the final round of the Cooper Dust series. The participants came from four regions to compete on this special spot. At the end of the two-day competition, Elrico Koen and his brother-in-law Pierre Genis from Bellville were crowned national champions. Gerrie van Eeden, the organiser of the Dust series (He is also responsible for the Weg Ry & Sleep Bull Run. – Ed), says the competition is aimed at the average 4x4 enthusiast. The idea is that modified 4x4s don’t necessarily have a better chance of winning than standard models. Elrico and Pierre proved this point by taking gold with their standard Land Rover Discovery 3. The only modification was a set of 35” tyres. The father-and-son combo Herman and Henry Neethling from George came in second in their shortaxle Mitsubishi Pajero, with the Bloemfontein brothers-in-law Louis Kok en Henri Storm taking third place in a Toyota Hilux. The final round started with a navigation route through and around the Tankwa Karoo National Park, where the participants had to stop at various control points before the ending at a lookout point on top of Ouberg Pass. You couldn’t pretend to be Giniel de Villiers, though, because there was a target time for the 240 km route. Elrico and Pierre took the lead with this from the start. The second day the participants had the opportunity to prove their mettle over four obstacles, and they didn’t disappoint. At each obstacle there was a choice between an easier option and a more difficult one, which was worth more points. No one chose any of the easier options. The competition ended with a race through an obstacle course, and this tested the vehicles to their limits. Three 4x4s had to be recovered. Gerrie says they might add three more regions this year, which would undoubtedly mean tougher competition. Visit dustmedia.co.za if you want to enter. >