Off Roading Sat 14th November in Leics area

Colin and Debbie’s day out.



Well how do we start this one?

I know for a week I have had moaning. Deb stressing herself about their day out - blaming me (why me I still don’t know) doesn’t think she can cope with the stress of doing breakfast for the scampers - wetting herself as the group got more day by day. (But not as wet as she is to get later) I kept saying ‘chill out’ there’s enough people and they will all help as they did on our day out and we all did - and I thank you all on behalf of Debbie; Thank you Debbie and her kitchen assistants for a great breakfast.

Right here we go - after causing havoc outside Colin and Debbie’s house with the pedestrians and traffic we set off in convoy - nine vehicles. We had a very short journey to the first green lane and then it started - three cars length off a fast moving road, Colin got stuck, so all the other scampers had to scrabble onto the verge out of traffics way. We knew it was going to be a long day as we had had lots of rain over the last few days.

We all got out of our cars to go and have a good laugh at Colin and help him out of the mud. Anyway, he was well bogged in. Mk 4 Rob to the rescue - as he (and Mike Smith in his Suzuki) were a lot today - and he rang Colin the day before wondering if he should bring his 2cv! (I think, personally you made the right choice!) By hook or by crook we got through the first mud patch all rather messier than it was before we started, but in high spirits. Moving on down the track, about 100 yrds later, all stop- people were getting stuck again. Wellies on and huffing and puffing plus help from the 4x4s, we move on again. At this point our first breakdown of the day – Fred’s Mk3 had a problem with the acceleration. A quick look and a petrol pipe leakage is resolved -thanks to Mike Smith who had a spare pipe in his toolbox Fred’s on the move again.

A lot more mud patches, lots of puddles, and lots of cars getting stuck and stuck again. We were getting nowhere fast! (I wonder how many of the drivers out with us today would be getting irate if, during the week, they were held up in traffic as much as we were today)



Four weeks ago Colin and I did the same lanes and thought ‘yes, would be great to have more scampers and it would be a great day scamping, with enough lanes to make it worthwhile.’ We had been out two hours, done one lane and we didn’t think there be a pub stop today – I’m all right, I bought coffee - lots of coffee!

We moved on to the next lane, that was also very muddy, lots of floods and great fun. Colin and Debbie were leading the convoy and, as a rule, I plodded on behind. During this second lane I heard it, - the unmistakeable sound in the distance, yes you’ve guessed it - Woodstock had lost it’s exhaust. No surprise there. A little bit of driving, a lot off towing and pushing, we plod on. Then the second mechanical mishap - Once again its Fred’s car. This time it’s a drive shaft but typical Scampers way we have the means and know-how to rectify it thanks to Mike Smith and Colin. While we were waiting for Mike and Colin to return, unknown to Mk4 Rob, his partner Jane, with a little help from Mac, was handing out his chocolate chip cookies. Thank you Rob.

At this point Debbie and Colin changed their minds on the itinerary and decide to miss a few of the lanes and go straight to one they knew would be very ‘challenging’ shall we say.

This time Colin got twenty yard down the track and got stuck (ho hum!) This time I think Mk 3 Rob was fed up of towing and just pushed Colin out the way and we all, by any means possible, got through this next stage and moved on down the track. Now, some one out in a Land Rover, having a nice drive in the country is up behind me so I let him by and, to his bad luck, into a traffic jam. We went over to talk to him and apologised for holding him up – but he said he had come to watch us as he had seen us and thought we were enjoying ourselves on another lane we were on earlier; this time it’s a major hold-up. The mud’s well deep and the ruts are too deep for glorified minis, so with a lot more towing and shoving we get through. Even the man in the Land Rover pulled Steve out of a rut.

From here on it’s the same old story move on to next mud hole, push pull and so on. Great isn’t it! Don’t know how much WD 40 we got through with the wet electrics; don’t know how far Lin, Rose and Debbie walked taking photos, probably more than was driven by cars under their own steam. Oh! And well done Debbie, I had a fantastic view of you going ass over tit into a rut full of mud. Here’s where I wonder what you would have said to your Charlie / Maisie at this point if they’d got that dirty. I think all of us adults would have had to cover our ears!

We carried on down the lane to a black puddle - seemed like itwas a very wet coalhole and once again all stop. Colin had to be pulled through, as do others again. When its my turn I can see Rose and Debbie taking photos and laughing at us poor drivers struggling. Mac walks up to me and we were chatting as other scampers struggled to navigate the coalhole. Mac asks which line I was going to take and I said I would like to keep to the right where Rose and Debbie are standing, taking photos. His words were ‘what’s stopping you?’ Sorry Rose - boy can you move when you have to!

It was getting late, and darkness was closing in. Colin and Debs say there’s one more lane so we make for that but then we had another break down. This time Phil had snapped the knuckle off his rear hi-lo. Once again, in Scampers fashion, it’s bodged. Now it’s too dark to try another lane, so we drive back to Colin’s and leave that one for another outing. As I’m following Colin in the dark, in the pouring rain, I kept seeing his arm poking out of his door; he has a manual wiper blade - multi speed! - Well as fast as his arm can move! He also has no headlights - the same as Fred behind us who is driving on side lights. We got back to Colin’s, do a proper job on Phil’s hi-lo and had coffee and tea, thanks to Debbie. Every one filtered off home, cars a lot dirtier than when they arrived, as were the Scampers inside. (Not as covered as Debbie was though!)

I think all of us had a lot of fun. I know I did. Thank you Colin and Debbie for all - your efforts must do it again.

Thank you to everyone who turned up to make it a great day in spite of the atrocious conditions over the last few days, and for all being great sports.

Thank you Tony for doing such a great write up for me. I giggled (at my own expense) from beginning to end.

Once again, thanks to everyone who came along. I know we didn't get far, but we had good fun trying. Its great people that make a great day, and it was definately a great day.

Thank you Debbie and Colin for a great day Rosie, Mac and I enjoyed the green laning very much THANK YOU AGAIN you done a first class job. Like everyone that has left a post on here enjoyed the day, we didn't do many lanes but it was hard enough to stand up let alone drive down them. It was a good breakfast and it was a good turn out of keen Scampers the amount of cars that made the day that it was.
Debbie had a nice clean house till we return in the afternoon all covered in mud..Don't forget the people that have good photos of the day can email them to Chris Yates so he can put them on the main website...

Thanks again..

Just a few pics. Will also send some to Chris for the main website.

The green lanes across from my parents house have always been regularly used by scramblers, 4x4 owners, etc.

Glad you all had a 'good' time!



I can almost hear the TRR lads reciting the six P's though
Elaine.

Comments from Newark Motors PLC.

[b]Steve[/b]

When I saw the first lane and the fact that Colin had got stuck within 20 feet of the start, I realised we were in for a long but eventful day.
The lanes were very muddy, that bad in fact that you could not even stand up !

I want to thank all that were involved in the breakfast department, it was like a conveyor belt, as soon as I had finished, my seat had been taken by the next hungry person.

Thanks again for a great day, the lanes were hard and the company great, what Scamping is all about.

[b]Fred and Tasha[/b]

First of all, thank you for a most welcome breakfast and even that Tasha did not eat all of hers, Fred did the decent thing and finished it off, what was left was given to the dog as instructed.

Tasha says thank you for the loan of Tonys coat and somebody's blanket. She snuggled up with the heater on full blast, snug as a bug in a rug ! I nodded off and did not feel a thing when it was jacked up to fix the broken CV. Thanks to Colin andTony for fixing it.
Thanks also to Birthday boy Mike Smith for the tow (s)
Thanks to all for a great day, for the help and the good company, looking forward to the Turkey run, all I need is some practise and I might even get better at this.
Fred has a message for Debbie, the mud pack is for your face, not your a*se............
But it was for free, most people pay a lot of money for that sort of treatment.

[b]Wayne[/b]

This was my second Scamp do and I must say, what a friendly bunch you lot are. I enjoyed the breakfast, had a good time driving and pushing the Scamps out of deep puddles. I was warned about standing next to the driving wheels and I found out at my expense. covered in mud, but with a smile on my face. I was not the only on that got muddy that day.

[b]Andrew.[/b]

Had a great day out, enjoyed the breakfast and the company, looking forward to the Turkey run.

There's some gravel lanes either side of the A1 between Colsterworth & Stamford that would be good for a day out some time. I drove one in the Rover a couple of weeks back.