Jaspreet Chatthe Wins the 2015 KCB Safari Rally.

Jaspreet Chatthe of TeamKibos on Sunday won one of the toughest rounds of the 2015 Kenya National Rally Championship in a Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution 10 car.

Chatthe won with a margin of 13 seconds over Ian Duncan, the smallest ever recorded margin in the history of the Safari Rally since it was first held in 1953 as the Coronation Safari Rally.

Duncan, the Liquid Telecoms-sponsored driver, said he gave everything in the last two stages to close the gap on Chatthe, but the latter was unbeatable.

Carl Tundo, who has won the Safari Rally on four different occasions,was third in Proton S2000 car despite suffering two punctures and a faulty wiper motor.

Baldev Chager’s attempt to win the rally for the third yearrunning were thwarted after his Mitsubishi Lancer car suffered mechanical hitches on Day Two. He was placed fourth overall,

Manvir Baryan gave the Ford Fiesta its best ever result in the KNRC since its debut earlier this year by finishing fifth.

Tapio Laukkanen’s chances of winning his second consecutive round of the KNRC evaporated on Sunday after his Subaru Impreza car was forced out with broken rear trailing arm after putting up a relentless battle that saw him build a five-minute lead going into the final day.

Source: Daily Nation

National Bank Joins Matatu Cashless Payment Business.

National Bank of Kenya has unveiled a new cashless payment card as
it moves to tap into the matatu billions. The Matatu cashlite fare
collection solution dubbed ‘ Na3card ’ empowers matatu operators to
accept fare via different payment methods ranging from cash, mobile
money and card.

NBK Managing Director Munir Ahmed said the solution provides operators with the ability to monitor their fleet through route management module. While unveiling the card Mr Ahmed said the
solution will allow matatu owners collect and account for fares from commuters according to the National transport and Safety Authority
(NTSA) requirements.

He said the card’s payment application will be installed on devices
deployed in each matatu to acquire card payment transactions, record
fare collections and track the location of the device.

Source: Standard Media

New CEO Appointed to Head Stantech Motors.

Former CMC Motors executive Ken Ouko has been appointed the CEO of Stantech Motors, replacing Mr Titus Ntuchiu.

The outgoing CEO Mr Ntuchiu, who is a founding shareholder of Stantech will now remain a director in the board focussing on business development strategy.

Mr Ouko worked for years at CMC as the head of the Ford division until last year when he left alongside other executives.Mr Ouko then moved to RMA Kenya as a business development manager, joining a start-up dealer that had taken over CMC’s Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) franchise. He later left RMA and joined Stantech from eLease Kenya Ltd where he was the head of corporate business.

At Stantech, Mr Ouko will be running an auto dealer with exclusive distributorship of Chinese brands.The company sells saloon cars, pick ups, buses, trucks, tippers and prime movers under franchises like Cherry, JMC, Sinotruck, and Grand Tiger brand.

Besides selling and servicing vehicles under its franchises, Stantech also offers maintenance and repair services to customers owning vehicles sold by other manufacturers.
This non-discrimination policy has expanded its client base in terms of after-sales service where it sells parts and charges fees for fixing mechanical problems.

Source: Business Daily

Flag Off PHOTOS of KCB Safari Rally 2015

Here's a photo coverage of Day 1 KCB Rally flag off at the KICC.

Safari Rally Legend, Ian Duncan Unveils New Car.

Rally legend Ian Duncan yesterday unveiled a new car, a Group N Mitsubishi Lancer EVOX, ahead of tomorrow’s KCB Safari Rally.
This will see the six-time former national champion run in the ongoing
2015 Kenya National Rally Championship with Liquid Petroleum as his
title sponsors.

What’s more, yesterday’s launch saw the rallying legend, who won the
Safari Rally in 1994, when it counted towards the World Rally Championship, switch from the Nissan Patrol and pick-up that saw
him exit the season-opening Kisumu Rally.

“It looks really good, but then there is a lot of ‘Kenyanisation’ that
needs to be done to the car, things like suspensions, sump-guard and
cooling all need to be sorted. But we are quite excited that this is the
next step from the EVO9 which we have run for four years,” said
Duncan.

“We hope we can get a good result out of the new car. It’s the first
rally so we expect a few teething problems, but hopefully we can get
them sorted. The Safari Rally is a long event so I think it’s going to be
a lot more of an endurance event,” he added.

The KCB Safari, which has reverted to its former identity that once
elicited immense excitement among followers over Easter weekend,
will be flagged off at KICC tomorrow and will be covering some mind-boggling mileage in an event that will traverse five counties including Nairobi, Kiambu, Laikipia, Meru and Machakos.

Source: Standard Media

Jeremy Clarkson joins Guardian Media Energy Campaign.

The disgraced former Top Gear presenter Jeremy Clarkson has become the latest celebrity to support the Guardian’s campaign for fossil fuel divestment. The Former Top Gear presenter says being sacked by the BBC was a ‘wake-up call’ and  joined a host of celebrities backing climate change campaign

Following what he described as a “dark night of the soul”, Clarkson said he hoped to “regain the trust of the British public” by dedicating his time and financial resources to sustainable energy, road safety and forging mutual understanding and tolerance between people of different cultures and religions.

The 54-year-old said that the “fracas” last month, in which he punched a producer on the patio of a North Yorkshire hotel, had prompted him to “re-evaluate his priorities” and reflect deeply on his life, behaviour and carbon footprint.

“Top Gear was a wild ride for an ordinary bloke like me,” said Clarkson, “But there comes a time when a man’s got to ask himself what he really stands for. And for me, that’s sustainable energy, traffic calming and an end to xenophobia and prejudice.”

Source: The Guardian

Nyeri Road Accident Leaves Driver Dead and Three Injured.

A lorry driver died on Wednesday in a road accident that occurred near Wambugu farm along the Nyeri-Karatina road.

Three other people among them a lecturer at Kagumo Teachers College and two passengers were injured in the afternoon accident that involved the lorry, a private car, a matatu, and two donkeys that were pulling cart.

According to a witness, the lorry which was headed to Karatina from Nyeri Town lost control, hitting the two other vehicles and then the two donkeys.

Nyeri traffic police commander Mr Reuben Bett confirmed that the driver of the lorry died while three others sustained injuriesand were admitted to the Nyeri County Referral Hospital.

Source: Nation Media