Women’s Day
LRM’S first-ever Women’s Day on September 29 offers a dry (and wet) run of the legendary Billing off-road course
LRM’S first ever Women’s Day is at the end of September and you can join in the off-road fun
Caroline: “You make the best friends in the world through off-roading”
SUMMER is a time for family 4x4 holidays, attending shows and going off-road. Just look at our Events diary pages to see the wide variety of choices available for the Land Rover owner. However, there is one thing missing from the Land Rover events scene and we at LRM have decided to rectify it by hosting the first-ever LRM Women’s Day on September 29, at the legendary Billing off-road course. You can’t really call yourself a real Land Rover owner until you have been off-road at Billing. And the LRM Women’s Day is all about offering female owners and enthusiasts the chance to take their capable vehicles off-road in a controlled and safe environment. Marshalls will be on hand to offer advice and tips to those who need them. Some of the more challenging obstacles will have a chicken-run alternative though there is no reason why any standard Land Rover shouldn’t be able to complete the whole of the Lakeside course! Husbands, partners, kids, dogs and male friends are all welcome to attend and come along for the ride but only women will be allowed to drive on the day.
To launch our new event LRM invited several female social media influencers and enthusiasts who really live the Land Rover lifestyle to experience the Billing course for themselves. This is what they had to say after driving their own Land Rovers on the off-road course, and if they don’t persuade you we don’t know who will!
Caroline Gammon Defender 90 You used to own an Evoque but swapped it for a Defender. Why?
When purchasing the Evoque I got a free off-road course at a Land Rover Experience centre. They took me out in an Evoque but said that if I wanted to do serious off-roading then I needed to get a Defender. So I went out and did just that and I absolutely love it.
You have done some serious trips in your Defender. Tell us more.
I have named my Defender Solace, she has a rooftop tent and I try and go away in her every weekend. I’ve done Morocco and the Pyrenees in Solace. When away on trips you just forget about the world and it’s problems.
How did you acquire your off-roading skills?
I did training with Vince Cobley who took me for several off-road driving lessons. Then I have also spent a lot of time with Ardent Adventures, nothing like learning while out on an adventure! I have done all their UK trips such as Wales and Yorkshire. There is so much more I would like to do and see in Europe though.
Does an event like the LRM Women’s Day make off-roading more accessible to women?
More women should be doing it anyway. If they like driving and nature then they should definitely sign up for the event. You make the best friends in the world through off-roading.
A lot of Landy owners have dogs. How about you?
Yes I have a miniature schnauzer, she’s my travel companion. She sleeps with me in the tent and we have fantastic adventures together. I trained her from young and she does not get car sick. A dog and a Land Rover, what more do you want or need?
Amy: “We are just as capable and can do anything a man can”
Cheryl: “Driving through the lake was nervewracking” Dawn: “It’s so much fun. If I can do it anyone can”
Amy Clarissa Discovery 2 Tell us about your Discovery 2
I saw it for sale down the road and made the lady an offer which she unfortunately refused. I went off-roading a week later in my Discovery 1 and blew both diffs and smashed the sides. I also ran over my phone and smashed the screen.
Fortunately it still worked because ten minutes later the lady rang to say she had accepted my offer. It was completely standard but I have done some serious mods since then to turn it into my dream truck.
What sort of mods?
Bigger BF tyres and a 40mm lift all round. I wrapped the body myself and then I have added a fair amount of offroading accessories such as the rack, ladder, hi-lift and jerry cans. I just wanted to make it stand out and look different to every other Discovery you have ever seen before!
The UK automotive industry is male dominated at the moment. How can we change that?
Women should just jump in with both feet and go for it, even more so if into a male-dominated industry such as motoring. We are just as capable and can do anything that a man can do.
What do you love about off-roading?
I love nature and the countryside and off-roading takes me there. That is what I enjoy as long as I don’t break anything in the process. You also get to meet lots of interesting people.
Best off-road tip ever received?
Don’t try and show off because that is when things will go to pot.
Dawn Luckett Defender 90 Most people only have one Land Rover but you have three. Tell us about them.
I have a 14-plate Puma and it’s my pride and joy. It’s my show pony. Then I have the green 90 which I am using today and use most days, actually. Finally there is another 90 which is my expedition option. Some people like to collect shoes, I like to collect Land Rovers.
How did you learn to off-road?
I did a course with Ardent Adventures which taught me a lot. It made me drive off-road with mechanical sympathy and also what is the best speed when off-roading.
What is your biggest fear when off-roading?
How to safely recover from stalling on a hill as I have seen some horrendous online videos of what happens when it goes wrong. That is really why I did a course so that someone could teach me how to overcome that fear and take the appropriate action when faced with that scenario.
Why should other women come and do the course at Billing?
It is such fun. If I can do it then anyone can do it. Everyone should try off-roading at least once. I loved driving my Defender through the lake.
Cheryl Townsend Discovery 4
Is the off-roading scene accessible to women? Not at all, most women have never really heard of offroading. Which is sad. I think that once word gets out about events like the LRM Women’s Day then hopefully all of that will change. Maybe female Land Rover owners are scared or don’t want to scratch their Land Rovers, but they need not worry. How many Land Rovers in your family?
Our family has three Land Rovers including my D4 which I used today on the trails. I also have a Series III which I am currently restoring while my husband has a Defender 90. So it is fair to say that we are a Land Rover mad family. Hardest part of the Billing off-road course?
Driving through the lake was nerve-wracking because I had never done anything like this before.
Now that I have done it and know my D4 is more than capable of doing it I will come again. The D4 really surprised me with what it can do.
Are there gender barriers in the automotive industry?
It’s exciting because that is all changing as we find more and more women in the industry. The older generations are also helping by pushing them along. Women need to be confident and get out there because you don’t need a man to help you make it.
Your dad Glenn Jackson has been your inspiration
Dad is a driving instructor, he used to drive Land Rovers and tanks in the army. I am always chatting to him about them. I trust Dad to give me good advice when I am behind the wheel.
What is the best tip he has given you?
Keep your foot off the brake when going down a hill. My Freelander has Hill Descent Control and I need to be able to trust it. Another very good tip is not to wrap your thumbs around the steering wheel because you can hurt them if hitting a rock or tree stump.
Did you enjoy the course today?
This was my first proper day of off-roading. The course at Billing is definitely Freelander-friendly and great for beginners like me. There are one or two technical sections for those in modified Land Rovers.
You drove the new Discovery through the lake. How did that feel?
I had loads of fun in it. I know some enthusiasts don’t like the new Land Rovers but give them a try I say. They are still very much Land Rovers.
It was literally just a case of pointing it in the right direction and it comfortably and easily went everywhere the Defenders did. Though in the back of my mind I was thinking about the fact that it costs over £50,000.
Jessica: “Be confident, get out there. You don’t need a man to help you make it”