4x4 Eco Challenge 2004 :: Finals

After 10 days of travelling we had our first glimps of the website and the reports that were sent out by Mitsubishi Motors SA. We would like take this opportunity to report our thanks and appreciation to our other main sponsors:

We are sure you have been able to follow our progress and the difficult terrain that we travelled through - with no tyre problems.  We are happy to report that the Goodyear Wrangler RTSA and ATR tyres provided by Goodyear SA and fitted by the HiQ 4x4 Accredited Centres, came out TOPS.  Luckily our guide vehicle was fitted with MTR's and helped us to get the bogged down vehicles out of the mud.  Hopefully by the end of this trip - we will have had no tyre problems!!! 

We are so grateful for the Sasol Turbo Diesel Fuel that was supplied - and the vehicles are running faultlessly - giving maximum performance with the cleanest and most earth friendly diesel available today.

All participants and scientist travelling with us remarked on our great supply of food and ice - thanks to National Luna Fridges performing under extreme conditions, and if were not for these fridges - we will not be able to have our annual "Rondvallende Hof" tonight.

And last but not the least - our very new comfortable Campmor Tents - enabling us to sleep very comfortably without any mosquitoes or goggos crawling into our homes at night.  Protecting us also from very cold night temperatures!!

A very special thanks to ALL who made this possible. 

THE 4X4 ECO CHALLENGE MANAGEMENT TEAM

Returning to Pretoria

Last Morning of loading the vehicles after a good night's rest at Bushmen Safari's near Potgietersrus	Entering Pretoria in convoy behind our trailor with the help of Mercedes Benz	Entering at DaimlerChrysler	Delighted to be back and in time for a light lunch
And now the big unpacking and loading of the trailor	Making sure that our National Luna fridges are empty	So happy to see loved ones and friends again	Enjoying great delicacies prepared for us

Photo Summary 3

Returning home we spent a lovely evening at Marimba Lodge near Livingston in Zambia	Enjoying a sit-down meal for a change!	Another Exam and ...	Another special test
With Team 10 as the winners	A great meal is waiting	With a few people appearing before the Rondvallende Hof	Trying to prove their innocence
Guilty as charged!

Day 13
18 August 2004

Camping in Livingstone next to the Victoria Falls	Craft market at the Victoria Falls	Dinner in Livingstone	Pajero and Baobab tree
The stunning Victoria Falls	Victoria Falls

THE JOURNEY BACK

After the unexpected fire in the Seoma Ngwezi National Park that put a stop to further research, the 4x4 Eco Challenge organisers decided to treat the contestants and stopped over at the Zambian side of the Victoria Falls .

The contestants spent a few hours at the Falls, taking in the breathtaking view of the nearly 700 cubic tonnes of water that spills over the rocks every minute. At the craft market, local curios were bought, before the team set up camp at a local caravan site. Some contestants ventured into Livingstone in the evening to enjoy the nightlife, while others spent time in camp lazing around.

The next morning was spent crossing borders - from Zambia to Namibia at Katima Mulilo, across the Caprivo Strip and the next one from Namibia to Botswana .

The convoy travelled through the Chobe National Park before setting up camp in Botswana . At the camp site several animal tracks were found - amongst them lion, elephant, buffalo and giraffe - so expectations are high for a visit tonight.

Just before camp was set up this evening, multiple South African rally champion and director of the 4x4 Eco Challenge Sarel van der Merwe showed contestants how far it would take a vehicle to stop while travelling at120km/h. Contestants had to stand where they thought the car would stop. Most judged the distance far too short, but one team managed to judge the correct distance.

On Thursday the convoy of Mitsubishi Colts and Pajeros will continue their journey through Botswana before an overnight stop near the border.

On Friday the convoy will enter South Africa and will arrive at the DaimlerChrysler head office in the early afternoon to unpack their vehicles before the prize-giving function in the evening.

Day 11 - 12
16 August 2004

Exam Time	The dirty Colts driving through burnt veld in Sioma Ngwezi	The 4x4 Eco Challenge convoy passing through a teak factory

UNEXPECTED FIRE CAUSES A CHANGE IN PLANS

Teams competing in the 4x4 Eco Challenge, together with the scientists from the University of Pretoria , looked forward to starting the final leg of the Challenge in the Sioma Ngwezi National Park . Specimens of reptiles and small mammals were to be collected for further research, but an unexpected fire in the Park put an abrupt stop to that.

After travelling for more than three hours in difficult terrain, the convoy stopped at what should have been their camp for the next two to three days. However, after consulting the scientist, it was decided that there was no point in staying and the convoy turned around and returned to Kabula Tiger Lodge.

This evening, Professor Chris Chimimba, who specialises in small mammals and rodents, gave a very interesting talk on his subject. He pointed out that mammals range in weight from 2 grams to as much as 150 tonnes and that around a fifth of all mammals in the world are found in Africa. Tomorrow morning the teams will write their fourth exam, based on tonight's talk.

As a result of the fire in the Sioma Ngwezi Park, the organisers decided that the teams should depart for Livingstone tomorrow and overnight at the Victoria Falls in Zambia, before crossing over into Botswana on their way home.

However, more surprise special tasks and exams will keep them busy on the journey.

Photos Summary 2

The snakeman and his latest catch	An imprompto classroom in the veld	Jeanne and Michel also joined us from Luxembourg	Together with Gordon and Randi they thoroughly enjoyed the sunset
A stunning campsite along the road with great new tents	No. 2 Lovely campsite	Tent Pitching competition with Team One as the winners	Back from Liuwa Plains it is exam time at Kabula Lodge
With our Mitsubishi Friends looking on	The men doing their time at the wash basin	My wife is going to love this	Change of plans - and look where we are standing!!!
The Vic Falls from the Zambian side was a real bonus for all	A relaxed moment	Andrew and Kathrien Bowren also joined us for this last leg of the journey

Day 10
15 August 2004

Chris and Anton Steenkamp (Team 7)	Gerhard Groenewald talking to a village elder	The road back to Kabula	Fish market in Sitote
Passing through Sitote	Typical shop in Zambia

THE ROAD BACK TO KABULA

Today the 4x4 Eco Challenge convoy of 18 Mitsubishi Colt and Pajero vehicles arrived back at Kabula Tiger Lodge, after crossing some challenging roads that are in a bad state. Tomorrow marks the last stage of this Challenge.

The vehicles will be re-stocked in the morning after which the convoy will depart for the Sioma Ngwezi National Park to give the five scientists a final chance to gather specimens and information on fauna and flaura in the area.

Jenny Scholtz, a conservation expert on raptors gave a short talk this evening on what's been seen on the Challenge so far and later this evening the competitors will write another of five exams which will all count to their final score to determine the winner of the 4x4 Eco Challenge.

The Mitsubishi vehicles today performed faultlessly again and the convoy encountered two different stranded tourists having run out of fuel and water, once again proving how important proper planning is when traveling in Africa. Both tourists were traveling alone, which is the worst thing one can do on this continent.

The logistics of 4x4 Eco Challenge is planned in fine detail months before the departure date and everything is done to ensure that everything is done so that every eventuality can be dealt with. Some 13 tonnes of equipment and hundreds of litres of fuel, not to mention enough water is taken along to ensure this.

Day 9
14 August 2004

Day 8 Crossing the mud pool	Day 8 Marius Burger giving his talk on reptiles	Day 8 Note the sign behind Ben Badenshorst	Day 8 The convoy crossed the Lialunga river

TURNING AROUND

Today the 4x4 Eco Challenge convoy turned around and started it's journey back to Kabula Tiger Lodge after a successful three days assisting the scientists doing research in the Liuwa Plains.

En route, Marius Burger gave a talk on reptiles and this evening the contestants have to write their second exam on the talk Marius gave. The contestants will write 5 exams in total, with the focus of each being the speciality of the different scientists.

It was a long day's driving with the convoy managing to travel around 170 km in 8 hours with deep sand making it difficult to drive any faster than 40km/h, but their identical Mitsubishi Colt Rodeo 2,8-litre Tdi 4x4s and the Pajero 3,20litre Di-D vehicles performed faultlessly.

Tomorrow afternoon the teams will arrive at Kabula River Lodge where they will replenish their supplies before departing for Sioma Ngwezi National Park to continue their research.

Day 8
13 August 2004

Fouche Meyers, one half of team 5	Phillip Steenkamp & Phil Snijman (Team 6)	The tall grass the teams had to drive through today	One of many hyenas were spotted on the Liuwa plains
The convoy waiting for wildebeest and zebra to cross the road	Zolile Mtimkulu & Mduduzi Ncube (Team 9)

DAY OF GRASSLANDS AND SEARCHING FOR LION

Competitors and scientists from the University of Pretoria were treated today with a game drive to the northern part of the Liuwa Plains, the highest point in Africa the Challenge has reached so far.

While the scientists were looking for more samples and specimens to add to their already impressive list of small insects and animals, massive migrating herds of zebra and wildebeest were seen. Everybody wanted to spot lion today, but it seems the lion prides are still in Angola with the main body of the migration. However, a large number of Hyena were spotted.

Most of the day was spent driving on the edge of the plains, but the convoy also needed to cross the plains to the other side. This resulted in driving in very tall grass, which created lovely photographic opportunities, but blind driving as you could not see a thing except the trail the car ahead of you left in the grass.

All the competitors were back in camp in the early afternoon and after some re-packing and a bush shower for all a surprise awaited them - the first special task of the event.

Professor Clarke Scholtz prepared an exam for the competitors and questions were focused on things they learned over the past few days by the scientists.

Tomorrow the convoy will depart early for Kabula Lodge to replenish supplies, before leaving for the Sioma Ngwezi National Park to continue the research. More special tasks will follow where competitors will be required to prove their driving ability in their identical Mitsubishi Colt Rodeo 2,8-litre Tdi 4x4s.

Sarel van der Merwe, director and chief judge of the Challenge said: "I am very impressed by the competitors' driving ability this year. They know how to drive and their convoy procedures are exemplary."

Day 7
12 August 2004

JP & Lynette Claasens (Team 3)	A lone palm tree in the Liuwa plains	A Small Frog	Sunset in Zambia
The huge leguaan	Birds

Collecting samples and specimens

Today the 10 teams competing in the 4x4 Eco Challenge concentrated together with the scientists from the University of Pretoria in gathering a variety of specimens and samples after several traps were set-out last night.

Although it was not the most interesting find, the most exciting find of the day was a 2-metre long adult water leguaan (likkewaan), from which a DNA sample was taken before the massive reptile was set free.

Professor Clarke Scholtz, head of the Department of Zoology and Entomology at the University of Pretoria, said in his research into insects he's found that the grassland areas in the Liuwa Plains is very similar to what one would find in the Kalahari, while in the woodland areas they are finding more tropical insects, which makes the plains a particularly interesting and unique area.

Tomorrow the contestant will set-off in their Mitsubishi Colt Rodeo 2,8-litre Tdi 4x4 models to explore a new area. As there is little wildlife in the southern parts of the park due to the migration, expectations are high that more wildlife will be found tomorrow.

Day 6
11 August 2004

The locals had a spectacle and some helped	Sarel van der Merwe taking a break	In camp this afternoon some competitors took time to maintain their vehicles	Crossing the mud hole. A bit of speed was required
A lot of driving in soft sand today	Competitors Danie Scholz, a doctor by profession and Elma von Plaster helped this little child with eye problems this morning

A DAY OF CROSSING A RIVER, MUD HOLES AND SAND

Today everybody on the 4x4 Eco Challenge tested their Mitsubishi Colts and Mitsubishi Pajeros to the limit, having to cross a river (although on a ferry), negotiate a tough mud hole and covering many kilometers in soft sand.

This morning there was excitement and a little apprehension in the camp site as the convoy needed to cross a river to enter the Liuwa Plains. Although the crossing would happen by ferry, only two cars could be loaded at a time and the ferry works by pulling on a rope.

It could not be guaranteed that there would be a rope, or that the ferry would take the load of around five tons at a time, and everybody was very relieved when everything worked according to plan and in slightly more than an hour all the vehicles were pulled across the 100 metre wide Lualinga river.

However, the morning did not start that easy as a few kilometers from the overnight spot, the convoy found a broken bridge and had to cross by driving down into a muddy flood plain and then back onto the road again. All went well for the first 3 cars in the convoy, but from there the crossing required clever thinking. It took the convoy about an hour to manage this mud hole, much to the amusement of the local population who even managed to sell some of their goods to the contestants.

After crossing the Lualinga river the convoy continued in a long and uncomfortable sand journey in the Liuwa Plains to tonight's camp site in a small forest on the plains, where the convoy will stay for three nights while continuing their research with scientists from the University of Pretoria .

This is lion and hyena country and we are sure to see those in camp tonight!

Photo Summary 1
General photos from the first 5 days

First morning at Kabula Lodge	Danielle spoiling us with bacon and eggs	Peet the birthday boy found the first reptile specimen	Gordon and Randi at Sioma Falls
Zoli and Mdu posing with a view to die for	Charles admiring the rocks	All the team members at Sioma Falls	Wading through serious water holes
Using Manpower to ferry the vehicles across rivers	The more the merier

Day 5
10 August 2004

convoy driving	Crossing a rickety bridge	Setting up camp	Sioma Falls
Small town on the Zambezi river	Warning!

On the road again

After camping at Kabula Lodge for two days, the 4x4 Eco Challenge convoy set off to Sioma Ngwezi National Park, on a route that took them through the Liuwa Plane National Park and a brief stop at the spectacular Sioma Falls.

The Liuwa plane is a huge grassy expanse that barely rises over the high water level. It is home to a large number of animals, ranging from lion to uncommon antelope such as oribi. The local people farm on the edge of the plane. Most of the day was spent driving through these farms and many children came out to see the spectacle of 18 Mitsubishi vehicles passing through their homeland.

Due to the dust, the convoy was sometimes more than 10 kms long, making communication with each other via two-way radios difficult.

Chief judge, Sarel van der Merwe, commented: "I was surprised at how friendly the people are; in other African countries tourists are often greeted by local kids begging for sweets. Not here in Zambia! All the kids just waved at us."

Once again all contestants' Mitsubishi Colt Rodeo 2,8-litre turbo diesel bakkies performed faultlessly under difficult sandy conditions, while the Mitsubishi Pajero 3,2-litre support vehicles carried the guests in luxury.

Tomorrow the 4x4 Eco Challenge convoy will enter the Sioma Ngwezi Park. But first there is a river crossing across the mighty Zambezi awaiting them.

Day 4
9 August 2004

PG Groenewald	Setting traps for bats	Marius Burger	One of the interesting finds of the day

The research begins in earnest

Day three on the 4x4 Eco Challenge was spent assisting the researchers and scientists to gather information and samples on the wildlife in the area around Kabula Lodge in southern Zambia.

Marius Burger, a herpetologist (reptiles and amphibians) from Cape Town said that no herpetologist has ever formally visited Barotsiland in Zambia and that he was concerned that they would find very little reptiles or amphibians as this time of the year as it is not the best time to find these aninals.

"The day started rather slow, but we managed to find a few common frogs and lizards," he said. "However, later in the day things turned for the better and we managed to find three lizards that I need to investigate further. I'm not sure exactly what species they are - although there are signs that they belong to a certain species - but I will only have a clearer picture once we're back in South Africa."

"I'm very excited about this find," he said.

Tomorrow the convoy will travel to the Sioma Ngwezi National Park along a tough route that will test the driver's ability to the best.

Day 3
8 August 2004

After a good night's rest, we visited the pan's edge at Nata Bird Sanctuary	Birdviewing		Our cameramen in action
The rest of the day was spent driving north through Botswana, transit through the Caprivi Strip into Namibia and finally into Zambia		Baobab Country

THE ROAD TO KABULA LODGE IN ZAMBIA

It was a restful night and all had a good rest and were ready for what promised to be an interesting day's travel to Zambia.

The vehicles were filled at Nata, before the next leg to the Kabula Lodge in Zambia was started. There was far less traffic on the roads and the convoy made good progress through the northern parts of Botswana and through the Chobe National Reserve. Several elephant were seen on the route and resulted in everybody getting excited at the prospect of seeing varying wildlife.

Fuel consumption has become another item for scoring in the 4x4 Eco Challenge and chief judge Sarel van der Merwe told the competitors that their individual fuel consumption would become a scoring item for this year's 4x4 Eco Challenge. As all the vehicles are heavily laden, the competitors were rather skeptical about this.

However, after working out their fuel consumption at the last refuel stop before entering Zambia all were surprised at the excellent consumption their Mitsubishi Colt Rodeo 2,8-litre 4x4 double cabs achieved, seeing they are all carrying a heavy load. Even the consumption by the 5 Mitsubishi Pajeros proved excellent!

Briefly crossing the border into Namibia and traveling through the Caprivi Strip the convoy finally entered Zambia and after a short hold-up at the border post , the convoy of Mitsubishis reached Kabula Lodge just before sunset.

They will camp here for the next 2 nights while working with the scientists from the University of Pretoria to collect samples for research.

Day 2 - Departing
7 August 2004

After a very early rise today, we started the great trek north. All went extremely well, and all the people traveling together for the first time; they immediately worked as a team and pulled this very long convoy through difficult border posts, very busy traffic on small roads towards Nata Bird Sanctuary - where we are going to sleep under the stars tonight.

Tomorrow we will cross over into Zambia at Katima Mulilo and from then on, no cell phone reception until we get back at the same border post. We will try and update this website every day, but please remember to refresh the site every time, or else you will not see new updates.

Day 1 - Send-off Function at DaimlerChrysler Head office in Pretoria

Christian Drescholdt, Chris Chimimba and Marius Burger are the rest of the scientist	Clarke and Jenny Scholtz heads the scientific research projects of the 4x4 Eco Challenge	Vehicles parked and ready to leave

The day before the Start of the Final

Fitting the National Luna Fridges	Packing and sticking on decals	Loading the Sasol Fuel	White Lightning ready to lead the convoy with Sarel van der Merwe behind the wheel

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