Record entry for Jim Heather Hayes Memorial Rally set for Nanyuki

Rally legend and late  Motorsport Personality of the Year winner Jim Heather-Hayes. [Courtesy]

Even though Kenyan rally legend Jim Heather-Hayes is gone, his cherished memories remain.

The life and times of the late Motorsport Personality of the Year winner will be celebrated this season.

Part of the commemoration will be the inaugural Jim Heather Hayes Memorial Rally set for December 13-15, in Nanyuki, Laikipia County.

Even though the contest's entry deadline is November 25, 2024, all the 50 unveiled slots by the organizers have been snapped up in record time, with the number swelling to 55 now.

The rally, which will also act as the fourth edition of the Rift 1000 challenge annually held by the Rift Valley Motor and Sports Club, is unique in that it allows all types of vehicles to enter.

From the rally raid cars, cars whose Motorsports homologation has expired, SPV class- whereby one can develop any type of car- and finally the historic cars like the Ford Escorts, Porsche 911s, and Datsun’s, just to name a few.

"The uniqueness of the rally allows enthusiasts who can not afford high-end cars to compete," the organizers said in a statement.

"Never before has there been an event that has such a selection of models taking part against each other and against the clock, over the most picturesque part of Kenya, at the foot of Mt. Kenya and the Laikipia region," added the statement.

Top speedsters who have signed up for the rally include multiple Kenya national champions Flash Tundo, Ian Duncan and Baldev Chager.

Tundo's father Frank is also in the mix together with Eric Bengi who will be navigated by Mindo Gatimu.

Other spectacle to watch is the brothers affair involving Aslam Khan and Arshad Khan and father and son effort entailing Russel Parkinson and Steve.

Jim was renowned as one of the greatest legends in the sport of rallying, recognized for his pivotal role in mentoring the next generation of motorsport champions.

He first tackled the real Safari Rally as a World Rally Championship event notably in 1984 when the event was sponsored by Marlboro and was part of the World Rally Championship series

Following his retirement, Jim led a group of service teams dedicated to supporting professional rally drivers, earning fame for his invaluable assistance to the rallying community.

In 2023, Jim’s enduring contribution to the sport was acknowledged as he was posthumously honoured with the title of Motorsport Personality of the Year.

Jim Heather Hayes Memorial Rally entry list

Team Huzi: Tony Hughes/ Lynda Hughes Historic

Steve Rose/ Mike Rose Historic

Destro: Malcolm Destro/ Lloyd Destro Historic

SSS Rallysport: Garry Bimler/ Al Cullen Historic

Peter Glover/ Tim Bates SPV

Piers Daykin/ TBA Historic

Ian Duncan Rallying: Ian Duncan/ Jaspal Matharu Historic

ALS Motorsports: Farhaaz Khan/ Tauseef Khan Historic

ALS Motorsports: Aslam Khan/ Arshad Khan Historic

ALS Motorsports: Shakeel Khan/ Assad Mughal Historic

Scuderia Dagoretti: Jonathan Somen/ Richard Hechle Historic

Quest Performance: Robert Calder/ Gavin Laurence Historic

Team From Milan: Andrew Doig/ Pierre Arries Historic

Richard Arrowsmith/ Roger Norris Midwood Historic

Marzio Kravos/ TBA Historic

Frank Tundo/ TBA Historic

Quest Performance: Geoff Page-Morris/ Dez Page-Morris Historic

Quest Performance: Nish Lakhani/ Teeku Patel Historic

7-70 Motorsports: Eric Bengi/ Mindo Gatimu Historic

Onkar Kalsi: Onkar Kalsi/ Qahir Rahim Historic

Cementers: Ramesh Vishram/ TBA Historic

Arkadios Motorsport: Timothy Kinoti / TBA S

Ghalib Hajee/ TBA Historic

Minti Motorsports: Joey Ghose/ Imran Khan Historic

Pulse Racing: Tim Mammen / Keith Henrie Historic

SSS Rallysport: Angelo Perez-Riemer/ Konstantin Mastalka Historic

Hardev Sira/ Sinder Sudle Historic

Jose Sardinha / TBA SPV

Raaji Bharij / TBA Historic

Freestone Rallying: Phil Squires / TBA Historic

USN: Rajesh Maini/ Devan Bhundia Historic

Dansport: Geoff Bell / Tim Challen Historic

Ayub Khan/ TBA Historic

Ganatra: Altaf Ganatra / TBA S

Russell Parkinson/ Steve Parkinson Historic

Young Ones: Peter Young / Zane Young Historic

Verlekker: Lola Verlaque/ Eddie Verlaque Historic

Kabras Racing: Baldev Chager/ Gareth Dawe Historic

A.A.M.: Azar Anwar / TBA Historic

Rogers Racing: John Roger/ Colm D’olier SPV

F&R Racing: Ibrahim Namoya / TBA SPV

Good Times: Aadil Vaiani / Shanty Singh Historic

Equatorial Classic: Anthony Neilsen/ Riyaz Ismail Historic

Flash Tundo/ Tim Jessop Historic

Ron Oakley/ TBA S

Toby Wright/ Douglas Rundgren Historic

Fredric Comtet/ TBA Historic

Masaomi Suzuki/ TBA Historic

Patrick Mcmurran/ TBA Historic

Wilken Rallying: Graham Shaw/ Christopher McLean Historic

Asad Anwar/ TBA

Hamza Anwar/ TBA

Giancarlo Davite/ TBA

Tariq Khan/ TBA

Rommy Bammrah/ Harvey Jutley Historic