Buggyra ZM Racing made its first appearance at Baja Poland over the weekend of August 28-30, with Aliyyah Koloc bringing her Red-Lined Revo GTR home in 8th place in the T1+ category, the highest in cross-country rallying, after a demanding three-day event.
-- Buggyra CEO Martin Koloc, back behind the wheel for the first time since the Dakar Rally in January, was forced to retire on the final day with technical issues affecting his navigation equipment.
The FIA European Baja Cup round saw 194 competitors from 13 countries tackle a total route of 646.23 kilometers, including an 8.85 kilometer prologue and 366.60 competitive kilometers spread across five special stages. Of the field, 150 competitors reached the finish line.
A first for the team
Baja Poland was new territory for Buggyra ZM Racing, with the team relying in part on the local knowledge of Aliyyah Koloc's Polish co-driver, Marcin Pasek, to make up for its limited experience of the terrain. The pair brought the Red-Lined Revo GTR home safely over all three days, a result that Aliyyah Koloc was pleased with, given the technical retirements the team has faced earlier this season.
"It was a good rally, and I really enjoyed it," said Aliyyah. "The last day was short but really tricky and technical through the forest, where it's easy to make a mistake, but I think we managed it well. Making it to the finish is a positive, as that hasn't always been the case for us this year. It was also Marcin's home race, so I hope he enjoyed driving with me. I'd love to come back next year, and I'm already looking forward to the next rally in a couple of weeks."
Marcin Pasek, competing on home soil, echoed that sentiment. Saturday's stages had produced a number of crashes and navigation errors among the field on the demanding Drawsko terrain, but the pair came through unscathed. Sunday's finale, run in front of large spectator crowds, was less suited to the T1+ machinery but no less enjoyable to drive.
Overall, Saturday’s fast but bumpy stages left a handful of items to address before the final leg, while Aliyyah's overall pace and confidence continued to build throughout the weekend.
Navigation issues
Martin Koloc, competing in the non-turbo version of the Red-Lined Revo T1+, showed strong early pace on Saturday before losing around 20 minutes to navigation issues in the second loop and running into a lot of dust in the third. He withdrew from the rally on the last day after his navigation equipment repeatedly malfunctioned.
"The navigation tablet kept glitching, especially when the stages were close together, and it kept telling us we were in the opposite direction, which we were not," Martin explained. "I didn't want to risk any safety issues, and as we'd already achieved our goal of gathering as much information as possible, I decided to withdraw. We'll now shift our focus to the next rally."
Baja Poland's technical setup proved complex, and while the team missed some setup and tire-pressure calls along the way, the weekend delivered valuable data and experience ahead of the remainder of the season.
Martin also praised Aliyyah’s progress despite her season having been disrupted by technical failures and cancellations since the Taklimakan Rally in May. "The car is finally working properly, and we've found the root cause of the technical issues we were having. Aliyyah is getting faster and more confident with every kilometer, and I'm really pleased about that."
For Buggyra ZM Racing, the focus now shifts away from the FIA European Baja Cup as the team prepares for upcoming cross-country events in China and the Middle East.
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