4x4 Eco Challenge 2007 Winners
Gerhard Groenewald also thanked all who contributed and helped to make this Final such an overwhelming success. Looks like we have a new winning recipe – smaller and more intimate group that entailed easier logistics and more streamlined focus on research and support of our scientists.
Daily Summary of the 2007 Finals
Day 1 :: 27 September 2007
The Final kicked off at Klipbokkop Mountain Resort with all participants met each other, the staff did the final briefing and the vehicles were packed, load strapped down for the long journey north. Petrus and Heleen van Rensburg came a day early from Mozambique, allowing for ample travel time with their Landrover. Liesbeth and Mads Kirk from Zimbabwe spent the previous evening in Cape Town, enjoying the shops and the restaurants of the Waterfront. Pierre and Griselda de Witt from Beaufort West made it just in time, tearing themselves away from their business and kids. They also brought Marisa Pienaar with them, who volunteered to be our photographer on the Final. Sakkie and Carina Louw from Namibia extended their trip with a stay in Cape Town, their second home, it seems! Paul Horn and Lindoe Webb from Gauteng jetted in from Johannesburg and Samantha Stoffberg, our bat lady (Manghajani) joined us from the University of Cape Town.
Day 2: 28 September 2007
Rise and shine at 5 in the morning with a quick coffee, padkos and off we went with a convoy of 9 vehicles, destination Rust de Winter, near Bela Bela in Gauteng. Liesbeth and Mads were worried about the distance that we had to travel on the first day, but quickly adjusted to our pace and the few ablution stops along the road. Byeboer drove with them and helped them to acclimatize to the boere and their weird ways. Johannesburg and its peak time traffic, was nerve wrecking to our teams who are not used to it, and it was with a great sigh of relief that we turned off the N1, near Rust de Winter where Willie van Greune from Toyota SA and the friendly people of Kwa Ndaba were waiting for our arrival with a braai and wonderful beds to sleep in. Here we were joined by our scientists: Marius Burger (Slangman) from SARCA, Andre Botha from Endangered Wildlife Trust who heads up the Birds of Prey workgroup, Johann Oelofse (Mabarule) District Ranger from Kruger National Parks, Foeta Krige and Cobus Bester from RSG as well as Oom Willie and his wife Willa.
Day 3 :: 29 September 2007
After a great breakfast, our convoy headed East in the direction of Phalaborwa, with our first stop in Magoebaskloof where Andre showed us the nest of the very rare Bat Hawk, perched on its nest. We entered Kruger National Park at the Phalaborwa Gate, and headed straight for Twanana, where we pitched our first camp in the rain. We welcomed Andrew and Kath Bowren from Goodyear SA, with their son Charles. The setting at Twanana was so special for everyone and the scientists started right away with their research projects and Marius introduced the new comers to the SARCA project with a presentation.
Day 4 :: 30 September 2007
This morning we started leisurely with a cooked breakfast while Mabarule and his team set the scene for a bush interpretation test. All the teams had a turn to walk with him and his right hand man, Corporal January, who escorted them through a path where 20 articles where placed that showed signs of possible poachers in the area. With our city slicker eyes, it was difficult to pick out the articles that were placed almost in front of our feet!! That afternoon the convoy went on a game drive and the evening was spent around the campfire accompanied by Joss’s guitar and sing-along’s.
Day 5 :: 1 October 2007
Early morning wake up with breakdown of camp and repacking of the vehicles, to arrive at Fumani Primary School for our annual visit and soccer match. This year we were again welcomed with open arms, lots of excitement, greetings and handing over of the HiQ bursary cheque. This will ensure that the top girl- and boy student can proceed to secondary education. With only 5 teams and a few able bodied scientist to help, the kids ran circles around the Eco Challenge teams! Hendrick and his boys tried to turn the game into a rugby match, without any success. Well done Fumani – see you next year!
We turned back onto the regular roads of Kruger and headed north to the Pafuri Picknick site, where we camped with special permission. It reminded our Zim team very much of their beloved Mana Pools. Last flush toilets and water on tap for the next week!!
Day 6 :: 2 October 2007
After another cross over to the RSG Studios in Johannesburg, we said goodbye to Marius, Cobus Bester, Oom Willie and Willa van Greune and crossed the border into Mozambique. For many of the group, this was a first and we immediately encountered the different vegetation, scenery and followed a winding road next to a lane of ancient Baobab trees and little villages where the local people struggled to survive in the very dry conditions. We crossed the mighty Limpopo River near Mapai where the local entrepreneurs constructed a narrow bridge for vehicles to cross amongst the local goat herds at a cost of R30, 00 per vehicle.
Later that afternoon we scouted for a suitable camp site, much to the surprise of some of our teams, who have never camped in the wilds like this. It was the first night without any amenities and took some getting used to.
Day 7 :: 3 October 2007
We followed the flow of the Save River and drove through a narrow twisting potholed sand track through some of the most pristine veldt of the Zinave National Park. Andre and Johann counted many birds of prey and were very excited about the stand of trees we encountered.
After a long search for a suitable road down to the Save River, it was decided to head straight for the Bat Caves, where Sam was very eager to get her nets up. It proved to be the right decision and within an hour of setting up camp, a very enthusiastic Sam returned with a few bags containing 5 different species that she managed to catch. The caves proved to be difficult in that very little oxygen is available and you have to be very careful not to outstay your welcome. Dr. Jacques du Toit was around and made sure that all came out safely. Samantha and her helpers returned a couple of times, and afterward started the long process of taking biologics, recording the echo location sounds etc, etc.
Day 8 :: 4 October 2007
When Samantha had enough specimens to continue further research on these strange, new bats, it was decided to head off to Panda, in search of a very scarce weaver bird – the olive headed weaver. The only occurrence of these birds in Southern Africa is on the outskirts of Panda, where Andre gave the teams more detailed information on how to spot these birds and a little competition was launched to encourage them to find these birds. It was a very hot afternoon that reached a high of 45 degrees C, but the Zim team was determined to spot the bird first. To prove their sighting, they had to call in the experts over the two-way radio and try and get a picture of the birds. Liesbeth and Mads succeeded on two accounts to prove their first sighting of the bird, and won themselves 4 Goodyear Wrangler off-road tyres of their choice. Andre was delighted with the success and much relieved to report that there was a successful group of olive headed weavers in that area, but visible signs of destruction of the woods was alarmingly evident and could cause these birds to become extinct in Southern Africa.
Day 9 :: 5 October 2007
With the scientist happy and content, the group headed to the coast and arrived later that afternoon at Paradise Magoo for a well deserved weekend at the beach. The campsite with ablution facilities, the pub and restaurant and the beautiful beach put a smile back on everybody’s face. We spent our first evening setting up the kitchen, entertainment was provided by Byeboer and the teams, and all agreed that it was a very good way to end off an enjoyable trip.
Day 10 & 11 :: 6 & 7 October 2007
We had special permission to drive along the beach in convoy in search of waders and marine birds and to visit the wrecks along the coast of Xai Xai. Gerhard showed the teams signs of previous civilization amongst the inland dunes of Paradise Magoo. The teams had fun and lots of laughter when PG managed the get bogged down in the sand for a short while, in continuation of an old tradition that proved instructors are also human. That evening Wynand and his family catered for us in their restaurant and everybody enjoyed sitting down to a lovely fish meal at a clean table and chairs. Everybody enjoyed watching the rugby matches on TV with lots of tension and biting of nails. It felt like we have truly visited a piece of paradise, and we relaxed and enjoyed the waves and beautiful beaches of Mozambique before heading back to un-civilization!
Day 12 :: 8 October 2007
The big repacking of the vehicles and heading out to cross the border back into South Africa started early and we decided to cross the border into Swaziland, with our first journey through the mountain kingdom. We encountered heavy mist and rains with lots of detours due to road construction and arrived very late back at Kwa Ndaba, where Oom Willie and Willa joined us for the evening. Some of our scientist was very eager to get back home, and we said goodbye to Andre, but Foeta and Johann stayed with us for another night. We were so thankful for the food that was waiting and the clean beds and that we did not have to set up camp in the heavy rains that evening.
Day 13 :: 9 October 2007
Happy birthday PG! We got up around 5h30 and left very early, before some of us were properly awake. The convoy turned South towards Klipbokkop and everybody was eager to get the last stretch of road behind them.
It was a long journey and we managed to get back with the help of Pierre and Griselda, who contributed towards our fuel and food along the way. Paul also pitched in for our first take-away and these are some of the luxuries that you miss in the bush. Back at Klipbokkop it was excitement and congratulations all around, and a lovely meal and drinks to celebrate our 7th successful Final of the 4x4 Eco Challenge.
Day 14 :: 10 October 2007
Even though we could sleep late, everybody was still on bush time, and up early. We unpacked the vehicles, had a great breakfast and as a special treat, Gerhard took the teams up the mountain trail. This was one of the highlights to all our teams from the neighboring countries who have never experienced anything similar. Then our guests started arriving and it was time for the last formalities.
The teams were introduced to our guests and received an Overland Expedition Certificate from the Goodyear 4x4 Academy, which they certainly all earned and deserved. They all gave a small talk on what they experienced and considered to be their highlight of the Final. It was also stressed that we had no problems whatsoever with our vehicles, tyres, camping equipment, accessories and everything that made the trip easier for all. The teams extended a big thank you to all our sponsors who contributed to our success out there in the wild.
Samantha Stoffberg summarized the trip from the perspective of all the scientists and again amazed everybody with her love and passion for her bats.
The teams themselves voted for the winners in the following categories:
- Best support team who won the National Luna Trophy: Pierre and Griselda de Witt
- Best Eco contribution with the Goodyear Trophy: Mads and Liesbeth Kirk
- Best Team Spirit and overall winners of the Toyota Trophy: Paul Horn and Lindoe Web
Award Function
Extras
WE WOULD AGAIN LIKE TO THANK OUR SPONSORS FOR THEIR CONTINUED SUPPORT OF
THE 4X4 ECO CHALLENGE AND PARTNERING IN MAKING IT HAPPEN.
They are: Toyota SA, Goodyear SA, HiQ Automotive, Trentyre Africa,
4x4 Mega World,
National Luna, Avnic Trading and Campmor Outdoor.
Finalists for the 2007 4x4 Eco Challenge
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| Pierre & Griselde de Witt from Beaufort West |
Sakkie & Carina Louw from Namibia |
Mads & Lisbeth Kirk from Zimbabwe |
Petrus & Heleen Janse van Rensburg from Mozambique |
Paul Horn & Lindoe Webb from Gauteng |
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