It's been a busy couple of months with no end in sight. This weekend was our first off road experience courtesy of our Land Rover dealership. I can't say that there wasn't some initial hesitation to take our shiny, still very new, LR3 on the course. But, how else would we know all the cool buttons actually work?
On Saturday we got a private run through of the course. It was great to have our instructor Shawn in the seat next to me to tell me what to, and not to, do. His favorite words are "Trust the Truck!" With him guiding us through, we completed the 3.1 mile course with no problems.
After the course we explored a bit, giving the kids a chance to visit a petting zoo and even do a little fishing. Within the first 10 minutes Allan caught a rather large fish. Fortunately there was an actual outdoorsman on hand to get the fish off the hook and back into the water. Allan was ecstatic. So was I when the guy offered to get the fish off the hook.
That night we had dinner at the Lodge (the event was held at the Rough Creek Lodge). It was very expensive and good, but not something we would do again. The kids spent the evening in the kids' club playing games and eating.
Sunday morning was the main event with around 70 Land Rovers. It was something to see them crawling up the trail in all shapes and sizes. We went through the main course and had timed trials through a precision course. My favorite part was splashing through the mud, even if it did make a huge thud. Fortunately, all the parts remained intact. In fact, not a single rattle or squeak was introduced.
Allan thought it was the best vacation ever. That's not too shabby for a quick two day trip. I certainly can't complain. How often do you get to romp around in the dirt with a 6000lb machine?
The advertisement says the LR3 is built for the '1', meaning the 1 in x chance something will happen. I have a whole new appreciation for what that means and can't wait to explore it further.
Click the images for pictures and a video.
