Leading the Army Astray
19th Nov in Belize, Expeditions by Land Rover Expedition6
Well give the Army boys a chance to get out of camp to do some good and they’ll jump at the chance. Got there for 8am and sat around drinking tea and chatting with the Welsh Guards. Eventually, there I am driving through the jungle, followed by a green ‘Wolf’ Land Rover, replete with half of REME’s tools and 3 huge VHF aerials, charging through mud and negotiating ruts. Until I get whacked in the eye by a branch flicking through the open window and I can’t stop crying down half my face.
Here comes the tricky bit of mud. Apparantly, the Army guys weren’t trained for the type of terrain, so that’s why they got their Wolf briefly stuck and my Defender sailed through. It makes me realise how when it comes to expeditions, people that support expeditions as a job can surpass even the Army in their expeditionary skills, because we do this sort of stuff all the time. I rubbed it in a bit. The retort came, “we do it only in training[!]“.
The guys were a good laugh, and got the steering rod off in no time at all. I learnt a few mechanical tricks. ‘Lefty loosy, righty tighty’. Time to leave and a nervousness about going back through the mud. There’s soldiers sprawling all over the Mountain Pine Ridge and Vaca area. Feels kinda cool driving past a bunch of soldiers in a Land Rover. It’s the little things.
Went a bit faster than I should have so the shock absorber trumpet is starting to shear off. Lots of clanging. Same old same old.
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The Army do it only in training!! Yes we do training, arduous realistic training, which is more than can be said for a lot of LR driivers but equally, most guys I know have driven (not just in training) in the deserts and mountains of Africa, Iraq and Afghanistan, the mountains and snow of the arctic circle (Northern Normway), the bogs and mud in the UK, the back streets and concrete obstacles of Ireland and kosovo, the jungle of belize, Hong Kong and Brunei and the sands of cyprus.
We use tirfor winches, studded tyres, mud tyres, snow chain, sand ladders, ropes….
Obviously there are guys who do just LR for a living who are fantastic and have far superior experience to your average soldier but….
Please don’t tar the whole army just because you have more experience than the one or two members you met.
Hiya Bob
No offence intended. Belize is crawling with Army Land Rovers and when I finally saw them in action on this occasion in the rough stuff, the vehicle wasn’t really kitted out for mud. My comment “They only do it in training” was a paraphrase of the excuse the guy gave when I rubbed it in after it had taken him a few attempts to get through. It was merely banter. After all, they were following me through the jungle to help retrieve one of my stricken Land Rovers. I have the upmost respect for the British Army. I have amended the wording slightly to better reflect the circumstances.
Regards,
Will
Git your knickers in a twist Bob? lol
US specops here to tell ya, Easy baby boy its ok. lol
We can allways come git ya bro. lololololol
Hi Will,
are you still in Belize? If so let me know, I’m in Ladyville (BATSUB!). I currently manage the vehicle fleet here. I also drive a Discovery 2 V8, with “toys”! I got it shipped down from the UK. If your’e still about it’d be great to meet up, as Land Rover enthusiasts are few & far between out here!
Regards,
Smudge
Hi Smudge
Sadly, no. Its been almost 2 years since I was there. I’ve been to BATSUB quite a few times. REME fixed my trucks a few times for a crate of beer, etc. I lived in San Ig and had a great time in the MPR. If you ever see a white battered hard top on the Western highway then it’ll be one that I used!
Will
There are a few 110’s that match that description mate
Most belong to Graham Herbert, I expect you know him?
I’ll be sad to leave in a couple of years time
There’s a rumour going around that BATSUB may be shutting down soon, Defence cuts & all that