Top Fry Classic Rally: Speed festival comes to the plains of Laikipia

Awesome: Carl 'Flash' Tundo's Triumph TR8. [Standard]

From today, the plains of Laikipia erupt into throaty roars of Porsche Carreras, Datsuns 240 &260Zs, a Triumph TR7, VW MK2s, Ford Escorts, (and a Mustang too!) as the Top Fry Classic Rally vrooms off from the Fairmont Mount Kenya Safari Club in Nanyuki.

By the way, a BMW323i is in the battle as is a VW Beatle driven by Fergus Robley navigated by Charles Wang’ombe.

The 2019 Top Fry classic will be a five-day event, starting and finishing at the prestigious club.

It features approximately 1,500kms of competitive stages running through uniquely stunning expanses of Northern Kenya, according to www.topfryrally.com.

In the speed festival are Kenya’s daredevils in pre-1978 (or thereabouts) machines. So, no fancy electronics with names such as EFI, VVTi, Tiptronic transmissions, traction control and so on.

These are machines for real men and women who can handle the H-pattern gear shift, repair carburettors and tune-up engines in the bush.

Talking of daredevils, you have last year’s winner “Baldie” Baldev Chager behind the wheel of the same Porsche Carrera 911 in which he won the rally last year.

 Looking for sweet revenge is the South African Geoff Bell --- number two last year--- in the pacy Datsun 240Z that boasts a V-6 and three carburettors. Very light and therefore not for the lily-livered. What with the skewed weight-to-power-ratio!

Also driving a similar Porsche is a very-fast Onkar Rai, a scion of the Rai motor-sporting and industrial family. Remember the great Sarbi Rai and his Celicas?

The rear-engined Porsches out-cost a medium-size CDF project but they are bloody robust and perfectly-engineered. Almost.

A Porsche Carrera 911 is in the rally too... [Standard]

Feeling like a German Shepherd who has spotted a rabbit (read the car in front) will be Carl “Flash” Tundo in a Triumph TR7, a beautiful eight-cylinder marque.

 Google tells us it was designed by Harris Mann and manufactured by British Leyland.  Under the mile-long bonnet is a ‎3.5-litre engine heaving ‎1.2 tons like it was laden with feathers. Again, awesome power-weight ratio. Production‎ was between ‎1978 and 1980. Transmission‎? ‎5-speed manual.

Two-time winner of the gruelling East African Safari Classic Rally and dare-devil-in-chief Ian Duncan is back after gremlins ensured he did not finish last year in a Ford Capri, a misfortune he shared with “Flash”.  He is navigated by Antony Nielsen in a Ford Mustang.

...as well as this silver beauty of a Datsun 260Z. [Standard]

Below, the full list of man and machine: