Bronwynne Jooste
28 December 2008
A leading Cape rally driver was killed in a horror crash at Killarney race track on Saturday.
Ben Greyling was killed when his modified Ford Fiesta smashed into a barrier during his attempt to break his own speed record.
Thousands of spectators, including Greyling's own young son, watched as the racer smashed into the barrier.
It's believed Greyling, about 40, lost control of the high-speed vehicle after a mechanical fault.
Greyling was competing in the Fast, Furious and the Glorious Car Show and Family Fest, which started on Friday.
Around 6 000 people attended the event.
Western Province Motor Club Manager Paul Simon said Greyling died immediately after sustaining major trauma to the neck and head.
Greyling was driving at around 200km/h, trying to break a sub-10 record - an attempt to traverse a 400m stretch in less than 10 seconds.
"He did manage to break his own record, unfortunately he never got to see it," said Simon.
He added that the event was all about reaching adrenalin-pumping speeds.
"It's about pushing limits, and reaching your personal best. But Ben was an experienced competitor, he was always at the track, a complete regular."
Simon said the incident was the "worst accident to happen here for years".
The club's spokesperson, Adrian Pheiffer, said Greyling had been practising along with other drivers since early on Saturday morning.
All vehicles went through stringent checks before getting on to the track. "They are checked very thoroughly, all cars are inspected. Everything from the engine to the suspension is checked."
Police confirmed they would open an inquest into the accident.
At the beginning of December, eight people were injured in two separate accidents at the King of the Mountain Gydo Hill Climb held in Ceres.
In October, Cape Town driver Paul Pfeiffer was killed when his Mitsubishi Evo VI went off the road and landed upside down in a farm dam.
Pheiffer was competing in the Blue Crane regional rally.
Roncliff Dirks, Provincial Traffic spokesperson, believes the warnings against speeding and drunken driving sent out to motorists since early December had resulted in lower accident rates.
A pedestrian was killed on Boxing Day at 8:30pm on the R-300 near the N2 flyover. Dirks said the victim was an unknown male.
A case of culpable homicide was opened.
Meanwhile, Western Cape traffic officials are gearing up for increasingly busy roads around New Year's Eve.
The most popular destinations are along the sea, which makes the N2 the busiest road but traffic volume is also set to increase considerably on the N7 as sunny weather draws many to beaches and camp sites.
Traffic officials emphasised they would maintain their zero-tolerance approach over the coming weeks.
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