Let it snow!
The weather outside is frightful, but Dave’s Ninety has proved delightful as he explores the local countryside and gets to meet some fellow Land Rover fans
I’M WRITING this on the (official) first day of spring, but you’d hardly believe it. The temperatures are way below zero, there’s snow everywhere and the weather is so cold that meteorologists have coined a new phrase for the icy-cold blast from Russia: the Beast from the East, they’re calling it. Mind you, I know a few unreconstructed off-roaders out Norfolk way who would answer to that name, too.
Because of the weather, the roads are quiet now, as sensible folk stay indoors. But Land Rover fans are nothing if not unsensible, of course, and you have to admit there’s something special about taking a leisurely drive through the deserted, snow-white countryside.
The once-frigid heater of my 1984 Ninety is a lot warmer since I had the 300Tdi engine installed last year, so it’s my choice of transport when the weather is extreme like it is now. Billy the Wonderdog prefers it to my Discovery, too. He loves to sit up high on the bench seat and watch the winter countryside slip by in the cosy cabin. It’s a great experience and at times like this you can understand why 4x4 sales pick up in winter.
It would be great to go greenlaning, but in my corner of the Northamptonshire countryside most of the lanes are closed in winter. The heavy clay soil in these parts is soon damaged by 4x4s when it gets wet and I have to admit they have remained largely rut-free since the council started imposing seasonal bans, about a decade ago.
Weirdly, though, they didn’t ban motorcycles. Only cars. And this is a source of consternation among other lane users, like ramblers and horse riders, who say trials bikes speeding along the tracks are the biggest hazard to man and beast.
The vast majority of Land Rover greenlaners, of course, are well-behaved, drive slowly and are considerate to other lane users. Now that I’m the footpaths warden for my parish, I’ll be making a point of finding out from county hall why bikers are allowed to be such a confounded nuisance.
In truth, I guess it’s impossible to make men behave whenever machines are added to the mix. There is always the
little boy inside us all, however old we get. That’s why Last of the Summer Wine became the world’s longest-running sitcom until it finally ran out of elderly actors. It featured a bunch of senior citizens who had never grown up, including Wesley Pegden (played by Gordon Wharmby) who drove a Series III on a Q-plate and was never happier than when he was in greasy overalls, working in his shed – like so many Land Rover fanatics I know.
The BBC series, which ran from 1973 to 2010, is still regularly screened on the satellite channels and I was watching an episode from 2000 recently when suddenly LRM appeared. Seriously. Wesley’s daughter Glenda was talking to Nora Batty in the local newsagent’s and there in the background was a copy of your favourite magazine, back in the days when it had a huge purple LRM logo on the front cover. I took a quick photo of it on the screen, in case you don’t believe me. The episode was called Under the Rug (it was about Howard’s toupée).
I think that’s the only time I’ve seen LRM on the telly. But I’m sure our eagle-eyed readers will write in to tell us if we’ve missed it.
I do hope this cold weather is over soon. In a couple of weeks I’m having a new kitchen fitted – an exercise that will also involve replacing the roof (not so handy in sub-zero weather). Because the new kitchen will be fully-fitted, there was no longer room for the pine table and dresser, so I advertised them for sale. The table was picked up by a man in a van, but the dresser went to a lovely couple, Mel and Guy, who turned up in a Freelander 2. Like so many other families, they have discovered that the versatile Freelander is the perfect car for their lifestyle – and they both absolutely love it. I gave Guy a copy of LRM and I was pleased to see him engrossed in reading it as Mel drove away. It’s always good to meet fellow enthusiasts.
But it’s also good to just lose yourself in our beautiful British countryside. My Land Rovers help me do just that, every day. The winter weather has brought with it some dramatic sunrises, so I have been up and out there at indecently-early hours of the day in order to drive out to some isolated places and photograph them. This month I have included a couple of images I have taken in the last few days – I hope you enjoy them.
Until next month, happy Land Rovering.