Aaltonen the beloved nearly man of Safari Rally
Rauno Aaltonen was fondly known as the '"Rally Professor'' for his unmatched meticulous driving skills. He raced in a record 127 countries with his 1967 Monte Carlo victory taking him to the pinnacle of rallying.
What you need to know:
- Fondly known as the "Rally Professor'' for his unmatched meticulous driving skills Aaltonen raced in a record 127 countries with his 1967 Monte Carlo victory taking him to the pinnacle of rallying
- In a world of rallying where victory and defeat are measured in seconds, a skilled driver will always gain valuable time and this is what Aaltonen was best at in the twisty Taita Hills and Kerio Valley here in Kenya as well as mountainous Monte Carlo
- In Kenya he drove Mini Cooper, Datsun 240Z, Violet160J, Opel Ascona, Opel Manta Ascona, and finally Opel Kadet in his last excursion in 1987
The story of Rauno Aaltonen, one of the original ''Flying Finns'' in the Safari Rally is a painful experience but a good example of man's determination and will to succeed.
Fondly known as the "Rally Professor'' for his unmatched meticulous driving skills Aaltonen raced in a record 127 countries with his 1967 Monte Carlo victory taking him to the pinnacle of rallying.
He is remembered for popularising the left-foot braking technique which was later adopted by top drivers in the world and became synonymous with turbo-charged 4WD and AWD cars of Group B era.
Rauno Aaltonen and Lofty Drews in their Opel Kadett GTI kick up a cloud of dust as they take on the Ol Doinyo Nyiro River in this undated file photo.
In this technique, a driver uses the right foot to control the accelerator pedal, instead of having to take care of both the accelerator and the brake.
His left foot operates the brake and the clutch. The rear wheels send the car sliding through a turn while the right foot keeps the engine at high rev to maintain power at high speed.
In a world of rallying where victory and defeat are measured in seconds, a skilled driver will always gain valuable time and this is what Aaltonen was best at in the twisty Taita Hills and Kerio Valley here in Kenya as well as mountainous Monte Carlo.
Rauno Aaltonen the Flying Finn, with co-driver Henry Liddon of Britain tame a hair-pin bend at speed in their Lancia, which finished the Safari Rally in ninth place overall in this undated file photo.
Aaltonen first entered the Safari in 1962 but for 23 intermittent years victory eluded him despite a record six podium placings. He formed a very fruitful partnership with Kenyan Lofty Drews from 1977 until his last rally in Kenya and World Rally Championship in 1987.
Aaltonen's name always popped up in the leaders' table for one to four days before something happened either to him to either relinquish the lead or retire.
We have done it...veteran Rauno Aaltonen (left) and Lofty Drews in a joyous mood after being placed second in the Safari Rally in this undated photo.
However, he was declared champion for a few hours in 1981 after lodging a protest when a section he cleared ahead of teammate Datsun driver Shekhar Mehta was nullified then later ruled in his favour before Mehta won on counter appeal.
The dispute ended at the FISA (now FIA) headquarters in Paris, France and after several months Mehta was declared the winner. Aaltonen switched to Opel the following year but the jinx of Mundu Mugo (medicine man in Kikuyu), as Reinkhardt Klein put in his book “Safari Rally 1953-2002”, followed him when he lost radio contact with his team deep on the floor of the Kerio.
Aaltonen did finish second in a trouble-free race in an Opel Manta in 1984 behind his distant cousin the late Bjorn Waldergaard driving a Toyota Celica Twincam Turbo.
At one point his legion of fans came up with all sorts of theories for his bad luck. Some said he needed cleansing after knocking a medicine man’s pot of charm in Ukambani area.
1980 Safari Rally overall winners Rauno Aaltonen (left) and Lofty Drews (right) with their trophies after presentation by Attorney General Charles Njonjo (second right), patron of the Safari Rally. With them also is Safari Rally chairman Bharat Bhardwaj.
In Kenya he drove Mini Cooper, Datsun 240Z, Violet160J, Opel Ascona, Opel Manta Ascona, and finally Opel Kadet in his last excursion in 1987.
For Kenyan rally fans aged between 50 and 80 Aaltonen will always be their man. He is known to seek company of Kenyan delegations in the WRC Rallye Finland , and was expected to reunite with his beloved Safari Rally this year before the event was postponed following the Covid-19 pandemic. Kenyan officials describe him as friendly and merry, and, although being slowed by age he is always willing to share with them a drink here and there.
Aaltonen was born on January 7, 1938, in Turku. His father, August Aaltonen, raced cars after World War II and later moved on to speedway.
Like father like son, Aaltonen entered motorsport first by racing speedboats, motorcycles, motocross, road racing before finally becoming the first Finn to win a motorcycle Grand Prix.
Until recently, Aaltonen was running the family rally school in the Finnish town of Tahko together with his sons Tino and Kati. His last raced in 2019 aged 81 in the Lombard Rally Bath, an exhibition cameo appearance.
