Driving for a cause: Bengi championing for cancer awareness at EA Mini Classic

Rallying is one of the oldest sports in the world and its influence has transcended generations upon generations.

Motorsports, especially rallying here in Kenya started way back before Kenya got her independence in 1963 and over the years, this sport has been used to influence various issues in the society and the country at large.

Kenya will be celebrating 70th anniversary of the Safari Rally next year and even as this year’s East African Mini Classic Safari Rally gathers pace in Eldoret, one competitor in this year’s edition is driving for more than just a win.

The 2016 Kenya National Rally Champion Eric Bengi is a man on a mission of not just doing well in this year’s Classic, but also raising awareness about cancer in Kenya.

Bengi, who hails from Meru County in eastern Kenya, has been in the racing scene for years now and he says he has overtime developed keen interest in raising awareness about cancer.

For perspective, Meru County is listed as one of the counties with the highest prevalence of cancer cases in the country and with most of his county mates battling the menace; Bengi is racing with a banner at the back of his Datsun 160J which reads “Racing against cancer” as a way of raising more awareness about the monster that has so far claimed and maimed lives of many.

“We support and support racing against cancer because cancer is curable and preventable and that’s the message we promote in our races. We want people to know that they can go for early screening, they can go for early testing just to prevent the dire consequences of cancer.”

Bengi says it’s the need for more awareness that has pushed him to keep on with the campaign, adding that cancer treatment in Kenya is still difficult to achieve and also very expensive.

“We have done this for years now and we have learnt along the way that we have to give back to society; we have our doctor who runs the cancer clinic in Meru (Meru Hospice) and we chose to be a part of it by putting the message out there.

“We traverse so many counties across the country and it's good if we keep the message out there to all the people to know that they can get screened and prevent cancer early instead of getting caught up with the treatment which is very difficult and expensive.”

Bengi started 16th on the ramp yesterday but retired early after busting his engine in the first stage. He lost all the time yesterday and he says the aim for the rest of the rally is just to compete well and get to the finish line.

“Yesterday when we left TC0, on transport to the first stage we blew the engine; completely knocked. We had to rebuild it overnight and the guys have really done a lot of work. They managed to finish the car and get it here at about 4am in the morning and I’m glad we are able to restart. The weather is just that, we can’t change it; it’s good when it’s cool. We take it as it comes,” Bengi said.

Bengi will hope for a better outing today in the total 425.89km to be covered in day two of the East African Mini Classic Safari Rally.