Two crews seeking victory in the June Safari: Simon Parravicino/Andrew Croney (Jeep Wrangler, left) and Leslie Alleyne/Chris O’Neal (Suzuki Jimny)
Touching all 11 parishes, this weekend’s Chefette MudDogs June Safari (April 28/29) will present a stern challenge for crews as they mark the Barbados Rally Club’s (BRC) 68th Anniversary. The overnight event will cover a distance of 180 kilometres clockwise around the island and is scheduled to last just under 16 hours, celebrating the Club’s roots in navigational rallying.‘The June’, as it is fondly known, is the longest-established motor sport event in the region with a continuous history, interrupted only by the pandemic in 2021. The Rally Club was formed following the June Rally in 1957, which ran as a navigational event for road-going cars until 2004, when the off-road MudDogs Championship started.
Reigning MudDogs Champions Simon Parravicino and Andrew Croney (Jeep Wrangler) are keen to add victory in the championship’s marquee event to their cv but know it will not be easy with multiple winners Leslie Alleyne and Chris O’Neal (Suzuki Jimny) on the entry list. Alleyne and O’Neal won this year’s March Safari, Parravicino and Croney the event in April, giving the Jimny crew a two-point lead in the standings.
Parravicino says: “We were very pleased to win the April Safari, especially as Andrew was finally able to win his father’s memorial trophy for the first time. That meant a great deal to all of us. Looking ahead, we’re carrying that same momentum and determination as we aim for our first win in The June. The pressure is tight, and the competition is fierce, but we’ll be as ready as we can be.”
With 12 wins – two as navigator, 10 as driver – Alleyne sits atop The June’s Roll of Honour, which lists 74 winning drivers and navigators. Navigator O’Neal added an eighth victory last year, when they also became the first crew to claim a hat-trick of wins and with one of the smallest-ever margins of victory, just four penalties. Alleyne says: “I am looking forward to it. We’ve been getting the Jimny ready and it’ll be full attack. We have bragging rights to defend!”
Three other previous winners of the June are also entered: Ben Norris and Kirk Watkins (Jeep Rubicon), who are currently third in the standings, won in 2019, while navigator Warrick Eastmond has won twice, in 2016 with Michael Ward and 2020 with Chris King. This year, Eastmond is navigator to son Jaden in a Nissan Frontier.
Currently fourth in the overall standings, also leading Class B, are Alexander and Chelsea Gill, competing in their Isuzu DMax as a married couple for the first time following their wedding last Saturday. Chelsea is the daughter of Wayne Clarke, after Chris O’Neal the most successful navigator in The June – he won six times between 1991 and 2013 – and sister of Rebecca and Charles, who also compete this weekend, Rebecca as driver to Austin Barber and Charles with mother Robyn as navigator.
Route-setters are BRC MudDogs Chairman Ricky Holder and Bridget Garity, who has competed as a navigator for the past decade, notably as partner to the late Biddy Barber, with whom she set the September Safari in 2023. The first of three routes will start from Chefette Speightstown, St Peter, at 2.00pm on Saturday and head through the northern parishes to reach the first halt at Belleplaine Rubis in St Andrew.
Driver Challenges, where spectators can enjoy the skill of these off-road competitors, will run on the pasture opposite the gas station at the end of the first route at around 5.30pm, then an hour or so later ahead of the restart. Route two, at six hours the longest of the three, will take crews through the eastern parishes towards the second halt at Sol Charnocks, Christ Church, alongside the Grantley Adams International Airport at half-past midnight.
The final route, which will bring the total distance to around 180 kilometres, will loop through the southern parishes, still under cover of darkness, to finish at Savvy on the Bay, Carlisle Bay, Bridgetown shortly after sunrise, where crews can enjoy a well-earned breakfast. The results of the Chefette MudDogs June Safari will be declared at the Prizegiving which starts at 7.00pm next Tuesday evening (July 1) at Savvy on the Bay.
Chefette MudDogs Safari Championship
Round 3 – June 28/29 – Chefette MudDogs June Safari
Class A
3 Simon Parravicino/Andrew Croney (Realtors Ltd/Serenity Pest Control Jeep Wrangler)
6 Wayne Manning/Willie Hinds (Suzuki Vitara)
7 Ben Norris/Kirk Watkins (Jeep Rubicon)
8 Leslie Alleyne/Chris O’Neal (POD Store/Maxxis/Lucky Locks Suzuki Jimny)
9 Jaden Eastmond/Warrick Eastmond (Nissan Frontier)
Class B
1 George Mendes/Johnathan King (G & G Sales and Service Suzuki Vitara)
2 Charles Clarke/Robyn Clarke (F) (Mitsubishi Pajero)
4 Rebecca Clarke (F)/Austin Barber (Mitsubishi Pajero iO)
5 Abdullah Patel/Bilal Patel (Patel’s Motoring Jeep Grand Cherokee)
10 Tyrone Chase/Sameisha Williams (F) (Executive Auto Centre/E-Travel Services Suzuki Vitara)
11 Alexander Gill/Chelsea Gill (F) (Isuzu DMax)
Chefette MudDogs Safari Championship – positions after two rounds:
Drivers: 1st Leslie Alleyne, 118 points; 2nd Simon Parravicino, 116pts; 3rd Ben Norris, 114pts; 4th Alexander Gill, 108pts; equal 5th Rebecca Clarke (F) & Christopher King, 102pts; etc
Navigators: 1st Chris O’Neal, 118pts; 2nd Andrew Croney, 116pts; 3rd Kirk Watkins, 114pts; 4th Chelsea Gill (F), 108pts; equal 5th Austin Barber & Warrick Eastmond, 102pts; etc
Class B Drivers: 1st Alexander Gill, 120pts; 2nd Rebecca Clarke (F), 116pts; equal 3rd Tyrone Chase & George Mendes, 110pts; etc
Class B Navigators: 1st Chelsea Gill (F), 120pts; 2nd Austin Barber, 116pts; 3rd Sameisha Williams (F) & Leslie Evanson (F), 110pts; etc
Chefette MudDogs Safari Championship – remaining rounds: Round 3 – Jun 28/29, Chefette MudDogs June Safari; Round 4 – Sep 14, Savvy on the Bay MudDogs September Safari; Round 5 – Nov 2, KG Enterprises MudDogs November Safari