CLUB OF THE MONTH
WHEN the new Yorkshire 4x4 Family Club was set up its aim was to give its members what they wanted from a club. That is, local events and an active social side that would include the whole family.
Unfortunately, lockdown meant things didn’t go to plan – with several club nights and shows cancelled. Not the best start for a new club, but being forward-thinking in their approach and already active with their members via Facebook and Whatsapp, club nights still tookplace online, using Zoom, which proved successful.
As soon as lockdown eased it was time to get out and do what all the members wanted most of all – to play with their 4x4s again, which like most UK clubs is 80 per cent Land Rover-based. Yorkshire 4x4 Family Club isn’t an overly competitive club so fittingly the first event was a gymkhana, which doesn’t really have a fixed format other than it’s fun. The first test was an egg and spoon race (an egg in a magnetic tray attached to the entrant’s vehicle). With Defenders being the most common vehicle entered, this would be a problem with aluminium bonnets, so the tray had to be attached to the bumper, meaning the driver couldn’t see the egg rolling around as they drove the course. Surprisingly the results were not as smashing as everyone eggspected – sorry, I couldn’t resist. Just two eggs got smashed, although one cracked in the tray but didn’t come out, so the driver, Ian White, didn’t incur any penalties. Most drivers had two attempts at the task, with penalties being applied for going outside the course’s boundary and exceeding the time limit. Josh Cox in a Discovery 2, came first, with Paul Stephenson and Chris Hawkins close behind.
Various other gymkhana tests included a trials-type section to give members the idea of what a 4x4 cross-country entails. As expected, the section with the mud hole was the favourite, with drivers enjoying discovering the limits of their Land Rovers off-road. Without a diff lock and on wide road tyres, Josh failed to climb out of the bog, but in attempting it, sadly broke his front diff.
Everyone had a great day of off-roading, discovering their Land Rovers (and driving skills) were more capable off-road than they previously thought. The day was a fitting first event for the new club even if it had been delayed several months.
Plans are now in hand for the club’s next event and everyone is hoping a real face-to-face club night will be possible in the near future.