Boda bodas back Classic Safari

Organisers of this month’s Safaricom East African Safari Classic Rally are leaving nothing to chance in enhancing road safety during the competition.

The rally will run from November 27 to December 6 and boda boda riders, who are seen as the biggest menace against other road users, have been directly brought on board by the organising team.

They will play a major role in ensuring the safety of spectators and competitors in the world famous marathon rally.

The chairman of the boda boda riders in Kenya, Kevin Mubati, was invited to the event’s media briefing recently where he announced full support from the two-wheel riders.

‘’We are a team of 60 riders on the Kenyan side who have pledged full support for the big rally which I only used to see on TV.

“Today, I feel proud to be a direct player and also at the same time apologise to anyone of you who has had a misfortune with a boda boda rider in the past. We want to play a positive role,’’ said Mubati.

Clerk of the Course, Raju Chagger, said his safety team consists of experienced marshals, officials which will be helped by 300 traffic policemen and the 30 boda boda riders.

Chagger said there will be nine road books of 200 pages in each to help the competitors stay on the right track over the nine-day competition that will consist of 24 competitive stages over 4,500 kilometre route.

Safaricom will pump in about Sh13m sponsorship deal in the ninth edition of the East African Safari Classic Rally.

The amount will support operations, logistics and communication during the rally.

The rally is set to cover more than 4,500 kilometers in Kenya and Tanzania over nine days. The longest stage will be 160kms while the shortest will be 60kms.

The rally has been running every two years since 2003 and is open to two-wheel drive, naturally aspirated rally cars built before 1985.