May Day MudFest

A muddy and wet May Day MudFest splashed-off for the 19 crews and surprisingly large number of spectators who braved the weather to converge at Searles Quarry on Monday.

The popular event hosted by the Barbados Rally Club four by four arm- the Mud Dogs- made its return after a year’s break and was action from the start as crews tackled the obstacle and Figure eight courses as well as the Mud Pit.

Thanks to the recent downpours, the event lived up to its name as drivers and spotters battled it out for bragging rights in the Modified (small tyre) and Super Modified (Large Tyre) categories.

The first event of the day, the obstacle course, saw Dave Gibson (Suzuki Samurai) taking the early lead for the small tyre jeeps, closely followed by Bryan "Banker" Collymore (Owlie’s Trucking/Williams Tools Suzuki Samurai); later these two would go head-to-head for the category title.

Also in the top five in the category were Adrian Sinckler (Suzuki Samurai), Colin Goodman (Suzuki Samurai) and Sean Mottley (First Caribbean International Bank, Suzuki Vitara), respectively.

Meanwhile, the big tyres guys were locked in a three-way battle from the get go.

Jason Croney (Suzuki Vitara) drew first blood, winning the obstacle course, followed by Rodney "Ramma" Mason ( Rodney’s Trucking/Scrawl Up, Mitsubishi Pajero) and Hadley Green (Hunte’s Auto Spares/ Automotive Art/ Scorpion, Toyota Hilux).

The exciting Figure eight course saw crews competing against each other in pairs in a race against each other and the clock.

Crossing each other at points while conquering the steep and challenging terrain, determination and driving skill were put to the test in the course with little room for error.

After an intense three-rounds, Collymore won the small-tyre, elimination-style course, resulting in a tie for small-tyre lead, sending the event into overdrive.

Meanwhile, the battle in the large tyre category also ended in a tie after the Figure eight.

In a thrilling last run, Mason and Croney both focused on reaching the end-point first, saw no one willing to give way to their opponent, resulting in minor contact.

A subsequent wrong turn by Croney saw Mason winning the course, tying the two for overall category first place.

The final results came down to a mud-pit win in both categories.

Collymore, piloting his Samurai, powered by a 1600 cc, 16-valve Suzuki engine, with hardened axils, sitting on 33 inch tyres, blasted through the Pit in a time of 9.24 seconds while Gibson finished in a time of 16 seconds.

This resulted in Collymore (with spotter Adrian Jackman) taking the small tyre category in the first MudFest of the season, followed by Gibson with navigator Alexander Kellman with the team of Mottley and Kerry Renee third.

The mud-pit showdown in the big tyres saw Mason with spotter Peter Sealy and Green face-off, with Mason winning in his small block Chevy V8 powered Mitsubishi Pajero, on 38.5 inch tyres.

The mud-pit win broke the tie, giving Mason the overall large tyre title for the day, with Green and spotter Dane McConney close behind, while the duo of Croney and Chris Thornhill was third.

Vice-chairman of the Mud Dogs sub-committee and MudFest organiser, Ben Norris, said the event was a success which bodes well for the future of the sport.

Promising a bigger and better November MudFest, with plans in the works to stage a night event, Norris added that Monday’s event was a great way to relaunch the sport.

Explaining he said: "The revamped MudFests will cater to both small tyre and big tyre vehicles, with course designers mindful of the fact that there are two levels of competitors."

The popular fun day event, staged last August, may also make a return this season. (PR)

May Day Mud Fest Results
Driver	Total Points	Final Position
Modified (small tire)
Matthew Ward	0
Colin Goodman	8	6th
Peter Lewis	2	7th
Dave Gibson	26	2nd
Adrian Sinckler	8	5th
Sean Mottley	10	3rd
Phil Harewood	0
Chris Armstrong	10	4th
Richard Hinkson	0
Bryan Collymore	32	1st
Theo Waithe	0
Mark Ward	0
Super Modified (large tire)
Chris Thornhill	0
Anthony King	0
Hadley Green	20	2nd
Rodney Mason	32	1st
Edson Arthur	0
Kirk King	10	4th
Jason Croney	20	3rd