The desert race as a mirror of history

RICHARD MOLEOFE | Thursday June 20, 2013 00:00

 

The offices of Botswana Tourism have been inundated with requests for race maps, which apparently have been published late this year. The race is undoubtedly the biggest annual outdoor activity in Botswana.The number of local participants has increased this year in all categories from motorbikes, quads and cars.

In recognition of the citizens of this country that have participated in the race in the past, this article profiles one Leon Williams, a veteran of circuit and off-road tracks.  He is just one of the few people in this country who have made us proud by hoisting our flag so high.

Leo and his brother Neville started off-road racing in the early 1970s after relocating to Botswana from Port Elizabeth, South Africa where they had been successfully involved in circuit racing.  Leon is one of the pioneers of Gaborone Motor Club whose members included the likes of Hussain Mitha, Ishmael Nshagashogwe, Satar Dada, Roy Carr, Enver Khan, Muhamed Dada and the Noble brothers.

The love and enthusiasm for the race has grown locally and this saw the involvement of individuals, companies and organisations.  In the early 1980s, Botswana Defence Force entered the race in the motorbike category with a promising performance.

In those days, all the races started at Cotton Field which is now the new Gaborone Central Business District. This field was fondly known by the locals as Tshimo ya ga Matsetse (Matsetse's field).  The qualification circuit was around this locality on Fridays.In 1977, Leon Williams took part in the Trans Kalahari Road Race which was a precursor to the Toyota 1,000 Desert Race.

Together with his brother, Neville, they competed in a modified Chev Nomad which roared with a powerful six cylinder Chevy engine.  The modification had largely taken place from their panel-beating workshop in town. The unfortunate happened to the Williams brothers at the qualification circuit; their Chev Nomad overturned and crashed.

This relatively small car made news in the South African press with a picture of the drama appearing in the The Star newspaper.The crash did not dampen the winning spirit of the Williams brothers.  They went back to Wilco Panel Beaters where they worked all night with their staff to repair the vehicle. To the surprise of many, the Nomad was in the race line-up the following morning and eventually finished third in its class.

One of the people that noticed the great potential in this young man was Richard Mannathoko of British Petroleum (BP) Botswana. The recognition came in the form of sponsorship by BP which enabled Leon Williams to frequently participate in the South African circuit races at Kayalami in Johannesburg and Killerny in Cape Town. 

He was commonly referred to as the 'Botswana Man' in the racing circuit. He won this championship more than seven times to the pleasure of his sponsors in Botswana and Britain. In South Africa, Leon had to contest two races at the same time.

He fought one battle on the track, and the other in the hearts and minds of people because he was not white. No company in South Africa was prepared to sponsor him regardless of his streak of wins because they did not want to be associated with the colour of his skin.The annual race this weekend brings in good business to a lot of sectors in the economy of country. This ranges from roadside vendors to five star hotels.  This is something that the government needs to fully exploit for its economic benefit. Botswana Tourism needs to do more to attract more participants from further a field from countries such as Kenya and the US where off-road racing is very popular. According to information from the annual Dakar Rally organisers, the economic benefits of the race exceeded $294 million in 2013.