Contestants lose out of 2015 Ford Odyssey

The first two contestants have been eliminated from Ranger Odyssey 2015 following four days of intense action in the extremely remote and rugged Damaraland and Kaokoland regions of Northern Namibia. For Johan Henn and Xoliswa Nontanda the Odyssey journey has come to an end. While both contestants give it their all, they emerged as the lowest-scoring competitors over the first four days of the event.

Each day the contestants are scored on their off-road driving abilities, leadership and team work, technical challenges, as well as their knowledge regarding the vehicles, locations and other aspects discussed during the trip.

For last night’s elimination, each of the 20 contestants also voted for the two people they would like to send home, and this was factored into the final scores. Xoliswa Nontanda was the first to be eliminated from the running. The 32-year-old quantity surveyor from Durban was judged to have not met the minimum requirements to proceed with the event.

“I haven’t done that well through the competition so I’m feeling a little bit upset with myself at this moment,” she said. “I didn’t plan to go back so soon and I really wanted to stay for the 12 days, but now it’s time to go back home.

“This was my first time out of my comfort zone and I’ve never camped before. I really enjoyed the experience and this lifestyle, and it’s something that I am going to start doing with my family and children.”

“The capabilities of the Ford Ranger impressed me a lot, and the 4×4 driving has been spectacular,” she said.

Johann Henn a 32-year-old farmer from Barberton was the next to be voted off. Henn said: “It came as a bit of a surprise to me to be voted off at this round. I thought I had done my bit to get on with my team-mates, but that’s how the cookie crumbles.

“This is the kind of trip I’ve been waiting to do my whole life, as Namibia is an amazing country with some of the best scenery and off-road driving in Africa. It’s been a really good experience, and driving the Ranger through this part of the world has been really special.”

The remaining 18 contestants continue their adventure, completing a Garmin GPS navigation task today in Purros, and then the convoy departs tomorrow for Palmwag followed by the aptly named Desolation Valley.

The next elimination round will be announced this Friday, which will see four contestants leaving Ranger Odyssey 2015. The odyssey website features a leader board that is updated daily for fans to follow the progress.

However, the rankings for the highest-placed contestants will remain hidden and placed randomly on the chart, adding a further element of intrigue to the competition. The winner of Ranger Odyssey 2015 will ultimately be revealed at a Ford event in Sandton on 11 August.