The daredevil rally driver
Jul 11, 2004
Isa Numba can pass for any other wretched of the earth person when you see him hoping along.
By Joshua Kato
Isa Numba can pass for any other wretched of the earth person when you see him hoping along.
He is a bearded small man in his late 40s. His face tells a story of a person who has not lived on the better side of life. Yet, his smile is warm. “Will you complete the rally today?†a fan asks.
“Do you think rallying is like eating food?†Numba replies.
One of his legs is shorter than the other by at least 10 inches.
However, this does not prevent him from taking part in motor rallying, one of the most exciting sports in Uganda. Numba became partially lame as a result of an accident he was involved in.
By then, he had not yet started rallying. “I love the sport, that is why I am driving against all odds,†he says. Numba, however, owes part of his stay in the sport to his fans and fellow rally drivers. He is currently one of the most popular rally drivers in the country.
This has nothing to do with his speed, but with his creativity. Numba is not rich like Riaz Kurji or Charles Muhangi or even Charlie Lubega. “Every time I think that I have reached the end of the wall, somebody comes up with some help,†he says.
Recently, Riaz Kurji, one of the richest Ugandan rally drivers gave him sh1.5m to buy a new engine for his Mazda. Tyres which some rich drivers could no longer use are quickly passed over to him and other less financially able drivers.
And because of such support, Numba is one of the drivers who rarely misses a rally.
“I go out there to enjoy myself and entertain my fans,†Numba says. He adds that rallying is like super glue. “once you start driving, it is very hard to get out of it.â€
Numba began rallying in the early 90s. “I have always loved speed, always followed rally cars during motor rallies. So, I used my experience as a mechanic to construct my own rally car.â€
Creatively as a mechanic, he joined two cars, a Honda Civic and a Ford to make his first rally car.
The car did not have a name. Should it have been called Honda-Ford? Ridiculous. Because of its hunch back, it was nick named Frog or Kikere. But because the car was old, it always broke down.
“Most of the time, I was pushing the car in sections, or trying to fix some broken part rather than driving,†he says. He once pushed the car for over a kilometre from Rubaga road roundabout to Bulange, Mengo. “Every rally driver, small or big, will tell you that failure to complete a rally is the most painful experience in the sport.â€
He adds that every time he failed to complete a rally, he would think about the problem. “I would always think that if I was rich, I would have a good car and chase the winners.
That is a dream for me as well as every driver. But thanks to the fans and fellow drivers, I somehow survive,†Numba says.
Fans and fellow drivers mobilised some funds and bought for him a Toyota MR 2. With the car, Numba did more rolling than rallying.
He complained that the car was too light for him. One of the most memorable crashes in this car was at Kazi motor circuit, when the car rolled three times, while on the race track in 2001.
The moment fans put it back on the road, he sped away, leaving behind a trail of falling parts.
And because it was too light, he considered quitting. However, his fans collected him millions of shillings in a fundraising sprint rally.
He used the funds to buy another car called Audi Quattro. However, the car did not even make two rallies before it broke down.
Unlike Japanese cars, the Audi lacked spareparts. He later abandoned it, but he did not despair. In 2002, with donations from fans and fellow drivers, he bought a sports Mazda, which he uses todate.
Fans say one of Numba’s undoing is to try and work on the cars by himself. “He is the chief mechanic of his car.
Sometimes, he even makes unnecessary modifications on the cars, which prevent them from running effectively,†says a fan.
But Numba says he personally works on the cars because he has no money to hire expert mechanics.
“He is one of the most consistent drivers in the country. He is unique in that he is not afraid of begging,†says Hajji Juma Nkambwe, a rallying official and former driver.
His best career positioning was being the 5th in the challenging and long 2003 Mbarara Rally. This is the second toughest and longest rally on the Ugandan calendar.
During the rally, Numba beat several drivers with newer and more powerful cars including driving ahead of Emma Katto.
“The sweetness I felt is only comparable to the misery I got when I failed to complete the previous year’s rally,†he adds.
Fans say they like Numba for being a dare devil. Even after rolling off often, he never gives up. “We just love his resolve,†says a fan. Numba is married and has several children.
Isa Numba can pass for any other wretched of the earth person when you see him hoping along.
He is a bearded small man in his late 40s. His face tells a story of a person who has not lived on the better side of life. Yet, his smile is warm. “Will you complete the rally today?†a fan asks.
“Do you think rallying is like eating food?†Numba replies.
One of his legs is shorter than the other by at least 10 inches.
However, this does not prevent him from taking part in motor rallying, one of the most exciting sports in Uganda. Numba became partially lame as a result of an accident he was involved in.
By then, he had not yet started rallying. “I love the sport, that is why I am driving against all odds,†he says. Numba, however, owes part of his stay in the sport to his fans and fellow rally drivers. He is currently one of the most popular rally drivers in the country.
This has nothing to do with his speed, but with his creativity. Numba is not rich like Riaz Kurji or Charles Muhangi or even Charlie Lubega. “Every time I think that I have reached the end of the wall, somebody comes up with some help,†he says.
Recently, Riaz Kurji, one of the richest Ugandan rally drivers gave him sh1.5m to buy a new engine for his Mazda. Tyres which some rich drivers could no longer use are quickly passed over to him and other less financially able drivers.
And because of such support, Numba is one of the drivers who rarely misses a rally.
“I go out there to enjoy myself and entertain my fans,†Numba says. He adds that rallying is like super glue. “once you start driving, it is very hard to get out of it.â€
Numba began rallying in the early 90s. “I have always loved speed, always followed rally cars during motor rallies. So, I used my experience as a mechanic to construct my own rally car.â€
Creatively as a mechanic, he joined two cars, a Honda Civic and a Ford to make his first rally car.
The car did not have a name. Should it have been called Honda-Ford? Ridiculous. Because of its hunch back, it was nick named Frog or Kikere. But because the car was old, it always broke down.
“Most of the time, I was pushing the car in sections, or trying to fix some broken part rather than driving,†he says. He once pushed the car for over a kilometre from Rubaga road roundabout to Bulange, Mengo. “Every rally driver, small or big, will tell you that failure to complete a rally is the most painful experience in the sport.â€
He adds that every time he failed to complete a rally, he would think about the problem. “I would always think that if I was rich, I would have a good car and chase the winners.
That is a dream for me as well as every driver. But thanks to the fans and fellow drivers, I somehow survive,†Numba says.
Fans and fellow drivers mobilised some funds and bought for him a Toyota MR 2. With the car, Numba did more rolling than rallying.
He complained that the car was too light for him. One of the most memorable crashes in this car was at Kazi motor circuit, when the car rolled three times, while on the race track in 2001.
The moment fans put it back on the road, he sped away, leaving behind a trail of falling parts.
And because it was too light, he considered quitting. However, his fans collected him millions of shillings in a fundraising sprint rally.
He used the funds to buy another car called Audi Quattro. However, the car did not even make two rallies before it broke down.
Unlike Japanese cars, the Audi lacked spareparts. He later abandoned it, but he did not despair. In 2002, with donations from fans and fellow drivers, he bought a sports Mazda, which he uses todate.
Fans say one of Numba’s undoing is to try and work on the cars by himself. “He is the chief mechanic of his car.
Sometimes, he even makes unnecessary modifications on the cars, which prevent them from running effectively,†says a fan.
But Numba says he personally works on the cars because he has no money to hire expert mechanics.
“He is one of the most consistent drivers in the country. He is unique in that he is not afraid of begging,†says Hajji Juma Nkambwe, a rallying official and former driver.
His best career positioning was being the 5th in the challenging and long 2003 Mbarara Rally. This is the second toughest and longest rally on the Ugandan calendar.
During the rally, Numba beat several drivers with newer and more powerful cars including driving ahead of Emma Katto.
“The sweetness I felt is only comparable to the misery I got when I failed to complete the previous year’s rally,†he adds.
Fans say they like Numba for being a dare devil. Even after rolling off often, he never gives up. “We just love his resolve,†says a fan. Numba is married and has several children.