The sun rose on a misty morning over a beautiful valley in Herefordshire
and the picturesque country estate belonging to Eastnor Castle,
which is also home to Land Rover Experience. Ben and I had been
invited by John Lloyd to go and test a G4 Discovery on their specifically
designed off-road course. The estate is actually an SSI (Site
of Scientific Interest), but all credit to Land Rover's strict
environmental driving policies they are allowed to continue using
the site.
The difficulty
of getting into the high 4x4 vehicle was overcome by Ben and
John lifting me; one under the arms and the other under the
legs into the passenger seat. The course was a great insight
into the worst case situations we will face on our expedition
- from deep rutted roads to steep descents and climbs. The G4
Discovery coped with the course excellently; however it did
come to a grinding stand still at one stage. John's colleague
Jon was our driver but even his blistering driving skills were
not enough to overcome the deep-water course. The bow wave he
created by driving through the water was equivalent to a tsunami,
but as it started to glide away, the wheels began to spin and
as we were no longer following the wave, I knew we were must
be stuck (much to Ben and my delight). Stuck in a six foot ditch
in 4 foot of water, between two trees there was only one option;
an embarrassed rescue call from Jon to his head office.
It was probably
the best thing that could have happened. It was a great opportunity
to learn how deceiving water can be. For me it was a little
frustrating to be stuck in the vehicle and not able to help
in anyway. I would have been first to strip to my boxers, get
a snorkel on and jump in. Probably not the brightest idea as
a rescue vehicle had been called to tow us backwards out of
the water. Although having to ask for help is often very difficult
it is something I'm beginning to get used to doing since my
accident but it made me realise how much I'm going to have to
rely on my support team and the support vehicle if this expedition
is going to reach Cape Town.
It was an
absolutely great morning, thanks to both Johns at Land Rover
Experience. We hope to get all of our team and both of our vehicles
up to Eastnor for training before we leave to ensure we are
prepared for what lies ahead.
Expedition
Medic
A big welcome to Chris Parsons, Driving Home's new Doc. Chris
is going to play a vital role on the expedition not only as
the medical expert but also with all aspects of the expedition.
Great to have him on board and I'm sure he'll fit into the team
excellently.
Expedition
Vehicle
The Discovery arrived in Hereford on the 23rd of May just in
time for an expedition team meeting at 2pm. Hooooooray! At 4.05pm
it was taken for a test drive by the team. At 4.10pm it had
broken down!
Although
I'm no mechanical expert I would have loved to get my head under
the bonnet with the others to add to all the other suggestion
flying around, including Ben's- 'I think you should cut the
Red Wire'??? Not too worry lets hope all the breakdowns happen
in this country. It turns out it was only a fuel blockage in
the sediment trap next to the fuel tank, nothing major and she's
back on the road. I am absolutely dying to drive her, however
she is now has to go off to get converted, so I'll just to continue
being patient. Exciting times.
Fundraising
Once again Sue Green and Keith Benjamin from Moreton on Lugg
organised a fantastic fundraising event. The 'Murder Mystery'
evening at the Green Dragon hotel in Hereford was a great success
raising £1,000. Their enthusiasm and effort has been amazing
since this project was first thought of, thank you.
The Sports
day in Gilgil, Kenya was also a great success raising £2,375,
which was down to Sue and Ricky Brendon, Rob Hart, Sarelle Barlow,
Udume Ltd and Lets Go Travel and all of the teams involved.
A big asante sana goes out everyone and I look forward to seeing
you all in January.
Gowrings
Mobility Show
Although our stand was situated in the coldest wind corridor
in the UK we had a great couple of days. We met some great people
including Tanni Grey-Thompson and Tom from Foot and Mouth Art
and we hopefully raised a lot of awareness regarding our project.
Looking forward to the next one at Billings Aquadrome at the
Land Rover Enthusiast show.
Summer
Ball 18th June in Aid of our African Beneficiaries
The count down to our summer ball in Hereford is now on. It
should be a great night so if anyone would like to attend or
help out please email colin@drivinghome.co.uk. It is all go!
Please log on next month to find out how we are getting on!
