A surprise winner, a remarkable act of honesty and challenging weather conditions marked the weekend's 31st running of the national motorcycle economy run, organised by the Pretoria Motor Club.
Shado Alston, a 36-year-old motorcycle workshop owner from Pretoria, riding a Honda NC700X, completed the two-day, 1100km route from Pretoria to Hazyview in Mpumalanga on only 32.29 litres of petrol - that's 3.22 litres per 100km.
It was only his second attempt at the Bike Econorun - he won the rookie award in 2011 on a Honda CB1000RR Fireblade - and he beat seven-times winner Reg Gurnell (KTM 690 Duke) into second place by 1.78 litres.
Third was former winner, Peter de la Rey, on a BMW F800ST (3.51 litres per 100km), fourth was Grant Scott on another Honda NC700X (3.59 litres per 100 km) and fifth was another former winner, Denver Biggs, on a BMW F650X Country (3.66 litres per 100km).
The event, which drew a full-house entry of 50 motorcycles and scooters, took in some of the most picturesque scenery South Africa has to offer and a challenging route that included the Agatha Road pass in Limpopo and the Abel Erasmus, Koewyn's, Long Tom and Robbers' passes in Mpumalanga. Rain and wind made conditions tricky on Friday and mist caused a slight delay to Saturday's start.
REMARKABLE HONESTY
Bike Econorun regular Clive Strugnell was unlucky to drop his Benelli in Koewyn's Pass near Graskop on Saturday after hitting a patch of diesel oil. He was unhurt, but in lost his wallet in the fall, which he only discovered at the end of the day.
Despite a thorough search, it could not be found; it had been found in the meantime by an anonymous taxi driver who returned it to Strugnell's Johannesburg home, complete with driving licence crederplente before Strugnell arrived back.
Rookie of the event was Braam Smit, a previous winner of the BMW Boxer Cup circuit racing series, who finished sixth on a BMW G650GS. Leading lady rider was Glynese de Villiers, who was ninth on a Ducati ST4S. The team award went to Team Bavarian consisting of the BMWs of De la Rey, Smit and eighth-placed John Smit (BMW F800ST).
Apart from the winners' trophies a special draw saw the names of the first three finishers in each of the qualifying classes go into a hat for cash prizes. First prize of R10 000 went to Sarel van der Merwe, Hannes van der Merwe won R5 000 and Grant Scott received R2 500.
Renowned Pretoria surgeon, Heine van der Walt, professor and head of the department of laparoscopic surgery at the University of Pretoria, was not fazed by being last on an Aprilia Dorsoduro 1200. A regular competitor and off-road enthusiast who sponsors the event's three-man medical team, he always rides in the middle of the field with a cell phone at the ready in case of any medical emergency.
“My job is to look after the guys,” he said. “The ride is just for fun and was most enjoyable - the only injuries were to some riders' egos!”
RESULTS-OVERALL
1 S Alston (Honda) 3,22 litres per 100 km
2 R Gurnell (KTM) 3,40 litres per 100 km
3 P de la Rey (BMW) 3,51 litres per 100 km
4 G Scott (Honda) 3,59 litres per 100 km
5 D Biggs (BMW) 3,66 litres per 100 km
6 B Smit (BMW) 3,69 litres per 100 km
7 A Schoeman (BMW) 3,99 litres per 100 km
8 J Smit (BMW) 4,01 litres per 100 km
9 G de Villiers (Ducati) 4,18 litres per 100 km
10 C Fouche (BMW) 4,37 litres per 100 km
CLASSES
A: S Alston (Honda NC700X), 1st overall
B: G de Villiers (Ducati ST4S), 9th overall
C: A Marais (Triumph Spirit GT), 11th overall
D: A Schoeman (BMW F650GS), 7th overall
E: K Olivier (BMW R1200GS), 20th overall
F: R Gurnell (KTM 690 Duke), 2nd overall
G: W Fick (Triumph Speedmaster), 34th overall
H: Mike Peel (Victory Cross Country), 22nd overall
J: S van der Merwe (Triumph Sprint GT), 13th overall
K: B Ollivier and L Roux (BMW R1200RT, 16th overall
L: G Cillie (BMW K1600GT), 29th overall
M: W Harrington (KTM 690R), 25th overall