Witness 254; Legends and Kenyan Greats

 Years ago when I was a little kid, my father huddled us up in his Peugeot 504 and drove us from Meru to Timau, a town close to Mt. Kenya.

We parked somewhere by the roadside. There was a number of vehicles parked there with a bunch of spectators. To get a better view, my dad perched us on top of the car.

Then, as this one car approached our position, we sang in unison, 'Let's Go, Let's Go, Patrick Njiru!' Patrick was a Kenyan great. He was, I think and for lack of a better word, the first 'indigenous' rally driver.

There had been other amazing Kenyan rally drivers before him lakini huyu alikuwa wetu. There was the legendary Sheker Mehta. There was also Joginder Singh, 'The Flying Sikh' who had his hair uncut with a long beard to match. 

Years later, my late brother had the opportunity to ride in Patrick Njiru's Subaru Legacy, branded with the legendary '555'. That was at the Bungoma showground during the annual show. 

Somewhere, there is a picture of Jay wearing a helmet and beaming widely. Next to him is Njiru, wearing a helmet and a wide smile.

Years later, for some reason, Kenya was excluded from the World Rally Championship circuit. For some of us, it felt like a part of our childhood had been stolen, even stilled. 

So, a few years ago when Kenya was once again included in the WRC series, there was a lot of reasons to celebrate. This time round, with a crop of new kids revving it up.

So just last week when I met Linet Ayuko and Pauline Shegu as they prepared to race in this year's Safari Rally, there were a lot of reasons to be proud.

Meeting them, my sister put it into perspective when she said, 'there will be a lot of little girls who look at you and say, we can do it too!' You make us proud.

The legacy lives on!