THE
4X4 CLUB – ZIMBABWE
Newsletter
No: 95
OCTOBER
2012
P O Box HG 594
Highlands Harare Zimbabwe The
Motor Sports Club House, 2 Annan Road,
Eastlea, Harare.
The
Chairman and Editorial Team:
The
4x4 Club is affiliated to the Zimbabwe Motor Sports Federation - ZMSF
Our
Club is a member of the Mashonaland Motor Sport Association Club House,
situated at: 2 Annan Rd. Eastlea. It is
available for hire for weddings, conferences, kid's parties, 21st
birthdays, etc.
News,
comments and opinions expressed in this newsletter are not necessarily those of
the Club or the Committee
THE EDITOR’S
DESK - Michael and Pat Gill
Overheard: When discussing soft sand driving and advising
a driver to lower his tyre pressures. The
reply was "It's alright. I have 4 wheel drive" …………..
Yes,
we are a 4x4 club but many members actually have little knowledge of the
complexities of their car or truck or wagon.
I think it would be good for the more experienced to give the less
experienced, or confused, a bit of advice.
A "Training Day" at Donnybrook. Many drivers talk about
"Diff Lock" on their wagon with no idea what it does. Now we have new trucks with "Traction
Control" or some letters like ETC.
This helps to keep you going but we still have drivers ploughing on in
2WD just to see how far they can go before getting stuck. All very strange!
NEW
MEMBERS:
No
new members this month. However our
membership numbers are up to 92. Ten more than last year and the highest we
have been for a long time. Not all bad!!
MEMBER'S
NEWS:
A
few comments we have received after the last newsletter!!
Greg Stead: Thank you for my mention in both of the last
newsletters. I have been very proud to
carry the Zim flag with me through Africa!
My thoughts now are towards the East African Safari Classic!
Linda
& Gregory Harries: Hi Mike & Pat, From behind the Boerewors
Curtain.
Thank you for the News letter No: 94, it was great
reading it. I would love to have joined
the club for Hwange Game Count but I have already pushed my luck with my leave
this year.
Linda and I leave next week Friday with 6 other vehicles
to Kruger Park (1 night), South Gonarezhou (2 nights) , North Gonarezhou(3 nights) and Do Limpopo (2
nights) and then Home. Zimbabwe`s dirt
roads are in good condition. Borewors
Greetings,
(Linda and Greg
from South Africa were on the Hwange Road Project with us)
Later: Our trip to Gonarezhou was wonderfull,your
country got so much beauty to it and the people chat to you as if you
were old friends. Greetings Boerewors Gang
Keith Osborne: Many thanks for a "great and most
enjoyable" News Letter! So sorry to miss the Bush Pig this Year; but was
committed to a Charity Concert for 'Kids Can' on the night of the 15th. Good to know the whole 'Bush Pig ' weekend
was successful!!
Regards;
Margie Gibson: I really enjoyed this edition of the
newsletter – particularly liked the individual mention of course, but the whole
letter was very interesting. Thanks so much for doing this for all us
club members, well done. See you soon, Margie Gibson
Jim Perry: Mike and Pat.
Got the newsletter, very good.
Safe trip to Hwange. Thanks,
Ralph Stead is a founder member of our Club. Rose Rushforth
recently sent out photos of Ralph Stead and Austin Whitehead receiving the
trophy from Mr Jean Todt President of the FIA (Federation of International
Automobile) for the best organized rally in the African Rally Championship
2012. Knowing Ralph and Austin as we do,
we are not surprised. Please join us in
congratulating them both.
MEMBERS
CARS:
Those
who attended the Bush Pig will have seen the Geach's towing their rebuilt
Off-Road caravan with a very pretty Land Rover 90. These 90s are rare in Zimbabwe and Gareth
bought this one off an Auction after it was written off. The one side and roof were history and yet
with much skill and incredible speed he and Ashleigh rebuilt it. It is now Ashes daily wheels and she enjoys
the extra space after the Nissan March!!!
Getting
things done around here is like mating elephants.
It is done
at high level – it is accomplished with a great deal of roaring and screaming –
and it takes two years to produce results!
PAST
EVENTS:
PAINTED
DOG TALK
Friday
5th October at Motor Sports Club House. This was well attended and very
interesting. Greg Rasmussen has been
with this project for many years, with its ups and down, and gave a most
interesting talk on the way these wonderful dogs live and survive against all odds. A few hundred dollars was collected and we
all learned a lot about the way these rare animals live. Greg has a very interesting and well equipped
Land Rover Defender to do his travelling to keep track of all the packs that
are scattered about Zimbabwe.
BULAWAYO
JAMBOREE Oct 6 & 7
We
hear the Nel's put on a very entertaining Jamboree and from remarks we heard
from the Harare based guys it was different and good fun. A nice touch was a few moments to remember
all the people who had been involved in their Jamboree in past years but were
no longer with us.
Bulawayo
being Bulawayo they had a variety of problems with Marshals and starting times
but with only 16 entries - 4 from
Harare, 1 Gweru and 1 Botswana it went off well. This Bots entry was in a special
"Pipe" car so he had his own class.
Aubrey (aka Audrey) put his Landy on its roof to entertain the crowd and
Tom Bawden's Jeep fell over. A couple of
cars broke something so we are wondering how Dale Kiggen, Harare, broke and yet
won his class. Cheryl Nel also broke
something and finished 2nd in that class. Somehow Jim Perry was classed
"Standard" in his very modified Series 1 Landy with a V8 motor and
won the class and was only narrowly beaten by MJ and Martinus Nel in the
Extreme. (Jim has since rectified this
with the Organisers)
So
you see what you missed, next time we hope.
Local
members were Trevor Butler (2nd Special), BJ Lawry (4th
Special), Dale Kiggen (1st Modified), Jim Perry (1st
Standard), Aubrey Bennett (2nd Standard).
FUTURE EVENTS
Dungbeetle
Mutare 16th – 18th
November,
At
last we managed to get the Mutare boys to Harare for Bushpig. And, not only did they win the event they
decided that this was such a good concept for a competition that they are
changing Dungbeetle to run on similar lines.
That is to have two cars working as a team to get through the
stages. Venue will be at Smallbridge
Dam, a lovely scenic venue with really good facilities.
Make
a note in your diary NOW, 16th – 18th
November. They will send out flyers
in due course.
THREE HILLS
October
27 / 28th . Do not miss this
fun weekend. See the flyers we have sent
out. Low cost, low distance and full of
active driving through wild scenery.
Camping on the top of a kopje is very special with the sun set, moon
rise and sun rise on Sunday morning. Even a 2WD bakkie's can get to the camp
site, but not the Sunday drive.
TREE
PLANTING AND CORPOATE DAY
November
10th Saturday afternoon. Wait
for the flyer. This is a special day in
our Calendar and we would very much like to have your company with the
Indigenous Tree Planting out at Donnybrook 4x4 site. We planted most of the trees in our camp
site years ago and they are a pleasure to have now that they have grown. Now we need another batch around the site and
all the Motor Sport Clubs, Karting, Bog Wheelers, Sables, etc. will be planting
in Donnybrook on National Tree Planting Day. Come and join in this good social day.
GRAFFITI. On
back of lorry "If you can't
stop – smile as you go under"
4x4 Club Diary - 2012
The 2013 diary is being finalized and we will publish as soon as it is ratified by ZMSF.
These dates change as the year progresses, but flyers will be sent out before each event.
October 27
- 28 Three
Hills (full
moon) Makumbi
November
10
Corporate Day /Tree Planting Donnybrook Park
November
16 - 18 Mutare
Dungbeetle
Smallbridge Dam
December
9
Christmas
Run
SOAP Fund Raiser
DONNYBROOK
To enter Donnybrook Park on
a non-event day it will cost you $2
per car, providing you have you membership card. Non-members will be charged $20 per car. You must sign the book at the gate and put
your name, your Club and membership number.
Do not pay without signing the book.
Please note: If you wish to go to Donnybrook to play and there is
another event on, then the organizing club can charge what they like for you to
enter. They will have hired the entire
complex for that day. Please don’t try and argue with the gate attendant, they
will just be doing their job. Either
pay-up or go away and come back on a free day.
WEB SITE / FACE BOOK
Have
you had a look at our Web Site? Grant
Weare has done a really good job of updating it. Go to:
http://www.4x4.co.zw
Motor Sports Association Club House
MSA Membership: The Club House bar works
on a Swipe Card basis and any member of an affiliated club can join. Pay your $20 Club House subscription and get
your card. Bar prices are double for
non-cardholders.
Hall for Hire -
Hire
our affordable Club facilities for parties, Wedding Receptions, meetings,
seminars, courses and other functions.
Assist us in this way to obtain funds for the Clubhouse.
CLUB FORUM
A forum for the club has been created. Click on the following
It will be linked back to the 4x4 website in due course
but register in the mean time. Please
pass this link on to anyone you think may be interested in posting on the
forum.
YOUR 4X4 COMMITTEE FOR
2012.
CHAIRMAN TIM THORBURN timthorburn.zim@gmail.com 0772.645.518
TREASURER KELVIN WEARE weare@telfordmica.co.zw 0772.326.687
SECRETARY CAROL WEARE theweares@zol.co.zw 0733.400.496
VICE CHAIRMAN MASS
KIRK kirk@afriglobal.com 0772.261.682
CHF MARSHAL/EVENTS ROGER ELLIS ellisr@barzem.co.zw 0772.219.154
MEMBERSHIP PAT GILL gill@zol.co.zw
0778.731.288
EVENTS / EQUIPMENT GARETH GEACH garethg@sunlite.co.zw
0772.283.524
EVENTS PETER BENZON petebenzon@hotmail.com 0775.009.218
EVENTS JASON YOUNG jason@telfordmica.co.zw 0772.918.878
ENVIRONMENT MUZZA BLACK muzza@zol.co.zw
0772.241.000
NEWSLETTER MICHAEL AND PAT GILL gill@zol.co.zw 0778.843.843
Michael and
Pat GILL
Phone: 04.494028
(M) 0778.843.843 (P) 0778.731.288
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