Co Derry’s Josh McErlean has described his first attempt at the biennial East African Classic Safari Rally as “pretty crazy” after safely making it to the finish of the gruelling 1,300-mile event.
What started out with McErlean competing in the co-driver’s seat ended up with him taking the controls of John Coyne’s Porsche 911 after the Irish businessman had to withdraw on medical grounds.
McErlean’s experience of competing at World and European events certainly helped, although it still could not prepare the 24-year-old for the challenges that awaited him at the legendary rally.
In the stages, McErlean and stand-in team-mate Eoin Treacy encountered flash floods and wild animals on top of multiple mechanical setbacks with their special green, white and orange liveried car, including issues with the steering rack, gearbox and engine due to the terrain’s forgiving nature.
Despite often arriving back at the overnight service halt tired and dirty, pictures shared on social media showed McErlean and Treacy to be always smiling due to the enthusiastic local population.
Their perseverance was rewarded on the final day of the East African Classic Safari Rally as they recorded the quickest time on the deciding stage to wrap up their adventure on a positive note.
“We made the end of this exciting adventure,” said a relieved McErlean at the finish.
“It has been very crazy – nothing like I have ever done before. I don’t know how to describe it – the craziness from the open roads to the pace notes. It was pretty crazy but we have all really enjoyed ourselves.
“We had our fair share of ups and downs like everyone else taking part, but we came through it and we kept on going and it was such a great feeling to win the final stage of the rally with Eoin.”
Whereas McErlean had time to familiarise himself with the Tulip-based diagrams relied upon by co-drivers, it was very much a case of learning on the job for Treacy.
Adding to the challenge were the rules governing the event which kept route details secret until the night before each leg. These, along with any route amendments, were dropped through the car window of each crew just minutes before each day started.
“It was absolutely mental,” reflected Treacy, “but fair play to Josh as the condition through all of the stages were incredibly tough. We got through it though and had an unbelievable experience.”
The Porsche 911 belonging to Italians Eugenio Amos and Paolo Ceci triumphed by almost 11 minutes from the identical car of Kenyan duo Baldev Chager and Gareth Dawe, with Austrian Kris Rosenberger and Germany’s Nicola Bleicher making it a podium lockout for the iconic machine.