Members of the 4x4Cape Club went to Kroonland 4x4 near Villiersdorp on Saturday 16^th March 2024. The members were Lindsay Polley, Ashley Ruiters, Werner Rautenbach and Jaco van Vuuren. Some members met at the N2 garage and travelled in convoy whilst Jaco did a different route to get there. On arrival the vehicles tyre pressures were dropped and a driver’s safety meeting was held. It was decided that Lindsay would lead and Ashley would take up the rear.

The plan was to go to the look-out point and maybe do some 4x4ing in the forest and for lunch go to the campsite for a braai. Whilst on route to the look-out point it was found that the route had not been maintained. Lindsay had to go ahead and check the route. If it was okay he would call the rest to follow. The convoy had reached point 7 and was travelling to point 8 which is near to the look-out point. This section is fairly steep with loss rocks, Lindsay started going up this section of the route but got stuck.

On reversing one of the shafts came loose causing the front left wheel to stand at an angle. The car was reversed back down to the contour road, with the assistance of Ashley who was appointed safety officer. All the vehicles had to be turned around as forward was a dead end. It was decided to take the vehicle back to the reception and call for a tow truck however it was found that the vehicle could not be driven farther. Ashley did a great job as Safety & Recovery Officer.

Lindsay contacted his insurance’s emergency road side assist which proved to be incompetent and thus caused a lot of frustration.

Lindsay’s vehicle was left on the mountain and Lindsay climbed into Jaco’s vehicle and the convoy went back down to reception. It was decided to braai at the reception thanks to the owner who lent us his braai. After long battles with the emergency road side assist a tow truck was sent to recover the vehicle. The vehicle was recovered later that day.

Even though the outing was shortened, everyone had good fun, except for Lindsay who showed great calmness and strength when talking with the insurance company. Thanks to Chantel (Jaco’s wife) who was able to send a map of where the vehicle was and photos to the emergency assist company.

Special thanks is extended to all the members who made this an enjoyable and fun day.

Regards

Lindsay Polley - Chairman

4X4Cape Club ventured to Atlantis Dunes -

A party of 7 vehicles in total, the day's adventure was centered on meandering through the dunes per pre-set GPS co-ordinates with each GPS pin location offering a chance for members to skill themselves up on leading the group from point to point.

CLICK HERE TO READ THE FULL STORY.

The Gatsrivier Holiday Farm hosted the 4x4Cape Club members from the 17^th to the 19^th November which is located between the Roggeveld and the Koedoesberg Mountains. Most of the members camped and some members stayed in two of the cottages. The members made their own way to the farm, one member lost a tyre on route and some members cancelled at the last minute due to work and other unexpected issues.

There are four different types of 4X4 routes from which we could have chosen from. Some of the routes reach heights of up to 1 230 metres, above sea level, with scenic views stretching over wonderland hills, rivers and famous Karoo bushes, which was truly an awe inspiring experience.

On Saturday morning, the members split into two groups, one group was led by Lindsay Polley and the other by Kevin Harris. Lindsay’s group consisted of seven vehicles and Kevin’s two. Lindsay’s group did the ‘Waterval’ route and Kevin’s went to a view point above the farm. Salome unfortunately lost a front tyre due to sidewall damage and it took some time to replace the tyre.

A few of the members wanted to do the ‘Rivier’4x4 route which was led by Lindsay in the hope of finding some game.  On route we encountered a baboon troop. We found that the route to be scenic and the vegetation quite thick due to the lots of rain which fell over the winter season in the area and the route not being driven regularly. The River crossing was also quite nice as we observed that it still had water in it.

The river picnic spot could not be used as it was still overgrown with dense bush which made ‘on foot’ entre difficult.

On Saturday night all the members gathered at the lapa for a braai and Trevor Harris once again entertained the group in the exchanging of Christmas presents.

On Sunday members packed up and headed for home except for Werner who stayed an additional day.

Thank you to all the 4x4Cape Members who ventured out for a weekend of friendship and laughs.

A big thank you goes out to 4X4Cape Club members, Dischem and Thrive Academy for all their support in making this day so special for the children and staff of Die Herberg Kindershuis in Robertson.

The 133 Children and 5 staff all got to play some games they had not played before.

Dischem sponsored toiletries and Thrive Academy the sports equipment used on the day.

40kg's Wors Braai'd, 200 Bread Rolls, 5l Sauce and 40L Juice and were all done!

Thank you to Jaco and Chanel for organising the day and raising the 4x4Cape Club banner in Robertson, we received such heart warming thankyous from the Staff and the children - Read below:

Die Herberg Kinderhuis

Video of the Special Day

Thank you from the Children

After some heavy winter rains 4x4 Cape Club ventured out to Honingklip 4x4 Trail.

All the details are in the attached report.

HONINGKLIP 4X4 Trail

A big thankyou to all the members who took part in the Annual General Meeting held on 1 March 2023 at the Multi Motor Club.

Please click link below to access the Chairman's Report for your leisurely read.

Chairman's Report 2023

We would like to thank Danie Steyn for Chairing the Club for the past 6 years and welcome the new committee elected at the AGM into the driving seat of managing the Club.

We would like to congratulate - Lindsay Polley as the newly elected Chairman of the Club for 2023.

The newly elected committee for 2023 are listed as follows:

Lindsay Polley - Chairman

Jaco Van Vuuren 

Craig Parsons 

Ashley Ruiters

Tom Jones

Elrene Koch

Graham Butler

Congratulations to all the above and we look forward to working together in 2023.

Forty-eight likeminded members and friends joined in the 4x4Cape year-end close down Spit Braai event at the MMC Clubhouse in Parow to say farewell to 2022. 

Preparation and serving of the food was outsourced to allow members to enjoy the evening. 

The dress code was “Something 4x4Cape” and most members dressed accordingly.

Members arrived from 17:00 and starters were enjoyed from 19:00 onwards consisting of an Exclusive Bread Table with a variation of breads, Butter, Cheese, Cold meats, Jams and Pates.

Round 20:00 the main meal was ready for collection and consisted, amongst others, a 450g portion of Spit Braai Lamb, Salads, Curry Noodle, Greek, Potato, Traditional Potato bake, Creamed Spinaches with Feta and roasted Vegetables with mushrooms.

Desert followed in the form of Malva Pudding and Ice cream as dished up by the supplier. 

Needless to say that most members opted for a second helping until the food containers and salad bowls were empty.  

With reference to member’s feedback, ongoing “(loud) chatter” amongst friends throughout the evening led to one conclusion that the event was enjoyed by all. 

A raffle was held and the prizes were donated by Trevor Harris. The First prise, 20 Year KWV Brandy in a presentation box was won by Mari Ware-Lane. 

Thanks to the Trevor for the raffle donation and the committee that assisted with the arrangements and hall preparation. 

Special thanks to all the helping hands that assisted with the “wrapping up” of the event.

The committee are proudly announcing that 4X4Cape sponsored a portion of the total cost as a token to “Give back to our members”. Thanks to  4x4Cape Club. 

Another 4x4Cape event that will be remembered and talked about in time to come.

On the 22^nd October 2022, 4x4Cape Club members and some guests did the Tierkloof 4x4 route. The members were Lindsay Polley, Jaco van Vuuren, Jaco Viljoen and Yashodan Naidoo. Mark Thaysen completed the route with ease in his Toyota Fortuner D4D and can now receive his membership. Some member’s partners accompanied them. There were seven cars in total of which two weren’t Toyotas.

After a safety meeting to discuss the route, Lindsay was tasked to lead the convoy, Jaco van Vuuren volunteered to be safety officer and Jaco Viljoen volunteered to be the last vehicle. There were several obstacles on the way up that needed proper planning and packing of rocks. Tierkloof is not an easy route, Yashodan lost three tyres due to side wall cuts and had to leave his vehicle on top of the mountain. Rocks are always very unforgiving and Tierkloof 4x4 has no shortage of them. Due to the challenging obstacles it took quite a few hours to complete the route. 

The sand section at the bottom did not prove to be a problem as the sand wasn’t as loose as previous times, it also appears that the route had not been driven for some time. It was quite a hot day and most people were wearing hats. A special thanks to the members who attended and made it an awesome day. 

Through word of mouth, we came to hear about the wonderful work the staff and volunteers of Die Herberg Kinderhuis, in Robertson, are doing. 

It is no easy task raising children, yet these men and woman make raising +/-130 children look doable for anyone.

They run a tight ship, however there is so much love showered on each child present. It is clear to see that each child there is cared for and taught to love others as they are being loved, to do unto others as they would like to be done to them and most of all to not stand with hands open expecting to receive but to rather take what they have to offer and give!

Yes, there are challenges, but the staff are dedicated to find solutions and hope to see each child succeed in adding value to their community.

We as 4x4 Cape Club and its members had the privilege to partner with Dischem in an initiative to bless the Die Herberg Kinderhuis with toiletries. 

4x4 Cape Club raised R10 000 and Dischem matched every cent. On Monday 8 August 2022 two Dischem representatives loaded a bakkie in Durbanville and made their way to Robertson where they were met with two representatives from 4x4 Cape to meet and greet some of the staff and be taken on a tour of the Die Herberg Kinderhuis

We had the pleasure of meeting some of the children there and of course deliver the goods. What a joy it is to give! 

We hope to further our partnership and be in touch with the Die Herberg Kinderhuis on another occasion.

Thank you to all the Club members who contributed to this special cause and to Dischem for partnering with 4x4 Cape Club.

SOME OFF ROADING - MYSTERY GIFTS - FAMILY TIME - RENEWAL OF THE BODY, MIND AND SOUL.

The 4x4 Cape scooop 

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4x4Cape Atlantis Dunes through the eyes of Squirrel

Let me start off with saying, usually motorbikes and 4x4's dont mix, like surfing and motorbikes, like cyclists and motorbikes, cops and motorbikes and the list goes on. Not to sure why though.

Atlantis is one of my happy places, I purchased a season pass for the bike in February and I will admit, I have been getting some serious value for money out of the annual pass. 

Since the revamp of the entrance to Atlantis, everything there is so much more convenient, you can buy your day or yearly permit at the on-site permit office. The parking area is a well-regulated, bin free area.

After officially joining 4x4Cape in December last year, I have felt blessed to be part of this more relaxed group of 4x4 enthusiasts. Everyone is down to earth and genuine. That is what made it rather difficult to ask the organisers of the Atlantis outing if I may attend on two wheels opposed to four. 

Surprisingly this amazing group of people were very open to test the idea. 04:30am on Saturday the 17th of April 2021, I found myself sipping coffee trying to wake up for the adventure ahead. Started loading bikes onto the trailer, ensuring all the protective gear was packed and headed off for the dunes just before 6am. 

The 4x4Cape event only started at 9am, but why would I leave so early for the dunes one might ask? That is simple, around 10:30 am, when the sun starts getting overhead and the shadows of the dunes start disappearing, the contours of the dunes all seem to blend into one. This makes it extremely difficult to see the drop offs and gradient of the approach angles.

We arrived at the dunes just before 7am with a bike behind the car. Waited until 07:30 when the main gates opened. Then queried why they only opened the gate so late. They pointed out that in winter times, the gates only opened at 8am, this was news to us as with the yearly permit, one could get into the parking area and onto the dunes an hour before the permit office opened. 

After much back and forth between ourselves and the rangers (it seems the rangers are all new and have not been informed of this concession for the annual permit holders) we were on the dunes, carving up the dune faces before the rest of the group with the 4x4's arrived. Just had to get the speed fix in. As always, headed off to my favorite lookout location.

As 9am rolled up, I pulled into the parking lot, leaving my other riding buddies to do their thing. I saw a few familiar faces. Walked over and started greeting them. A few minutes later, more of the group arrived. Standing there head to toe in MX gear, it was starting to get warm. 

When Graham arrived, he handed me a pink radio with extended arial and hand held receiver so I could stay in contact with the group. All this while the unmistakable sound of deflating tyres filled the air.

While in the parking lot, we confirm the radio channels to use, we were informed to meet on the dunes for the briefing. When I walked back to the bike, the 4x4s were all lined up being inspected for alcohol and other items not permitted on the dunes. Hopped on the bike and headed off to the briefing location. 

We had some first timers to Atlantis and man, was I jealous of them. I can still remember the feeling of going down the first steep dune, crazy feeling and one never experiences that feeling again. It seems as though one would need to push even harder, but the question always remains, at what cost. We don't want to damage the vehicles as for most of us, these are our daily drivers. 

But I digress, back to the day at hand.

Getting to the meeting spot seemed challenging for some. Strangely a Prado was having a real challenge getting to the debriefing location just a few meters in from the entrance to the dunes themselves. Tony jumped into the Prado and showed the first timer to the dunes just what a Prado is made of. 

It was like herding cats trying to get everyone together for the briefing, this must be due to all the excitement of the day ahead.

Once we settled, the briefing commenced with the safety factors for the day. Then the curve ball, the hidden gem which none of us were expecting. We were rather unprepared but gave us a good indication as to what we should all have, no matter what 4x4 route one is on. 

We were lit into 2 groups, two team leaders and experience of drivers were split equally. Group 2 moved from Channel 1 on the radios to Channel 2 in order for direct communication with the group, respectively. 

We were then handed a piece of paper with some weird numbers on them. We (not the biker, me) were assigned a GPS location and informed that each one of us would need to navigate to that specific location. Turns out, most us:

1) did not have GPS's; 

2) did not know what GPS coordinates were 

3) no clue how to convert the various forms of GPS coordinates.

Once we were over that challenge, we headed off in our two separate groups off on the adventure. I tried my utmost to not be in the way of the 4x4's, trying to keep a safe distance while also trying to get some good shots with the GoPro. 

We went up dunes, down dunes, around dunes and just more dunes. Leading seemed to be a lot more challenging and stressful than one would think. I would try to get a general idea of where the group was going, head off to a vantage point higher up and film. Everyone followed a single file as we do in groups. 

At one stage, the leader of our group went left around a dune with a soft, sharp right up a hill. This proved to be challenging for our leader, it took more than one attempt to cut the tracks through the super soft sand to get up and over. 

Second up was one of our first timers in a Jimny. After several attempted, he opted for an easier route to get over. This was the right decision, though the Jimny is more than capable in the dunes. General rule is, after 3 attempts, move on.

One of my pet hates is litter, not the kitty type. As a smoker, I always take the cigarette butts home with me. As one can see the image below, a piece of glass was picked up on the dunes. There have been all sorts of trash left out in the dunes. Great thing is, the 4x4s are usually open to take it out with them as there is limited space on the bike. Well, most of the guys. 

The rest followed suit around the dune, right up and over. A few 4x4's have to take more than one run up but everyone made it through the fluffy sand. 

One this which I really do like about this group of well-groomed hooligans is the fact that they (we) take safety seriously. When approaching a new obstacle, its always best to step out the vehicle and look at the challenge at hand. A nice steep dune might seem like a simple, first gear, low range, using the engine braking while going down. This can be really daunting for the lesser experience drivers but most exhilarating at the same time. 

Bearing in mind that things can go wrong at any stage. When the vehicle starts going sideways down the dune, while the adrenaline is pumping through the veins, one can quickly forget to give the accelerator a little nudge to get it back in line. Never mind the fact that there is minimal feedback on the steering wheel while descending the dune. So, you think your wheels are straight but actually not. With time on the dunes, this does become second nature. 

With the sun beating down on us, I was getting rather warm in all the MX gear, so had to take a quick spin every now and then to try to cool off for a bit. One of the down sides to riding the bike is that the climate control is handled by the weather around you and you can't just pop on the AC to when it's too hot. Small sacrifice for being so free on the dunes. 

The objective for each GPS location destination(s) was to take a group photo of everyone with the vehicles to have evidence that we made it to the correct location. At times, this was a bit challenging to line up all the 4x4's in the soft sand. Though, thus far in the day, no one had to pull out their recovery gear yet, even though the sand was super soft. 

As the day went on, so more and more obstacles were tried, within everyone's comfort levels (and some, outside their comfort levels), up and around dune obstacles, up and downs all while the communicating efficiently on the radios. Though, it can be slow going getting everyone through safely, the sun was getting higher and the contours of the dunes were disappearing. It was reaching the time I usually start to head off the dunes but the troop soldered on making sure they get the adrenalin fix in.  

All this time I had been trying to keep a safe (what I assumed the 4x4's would consider safe) distance away. Suddenly I had a brain fart and decided to test the waters a bit and to get a bit closer keeping to what I thought a safe distance would be. Surprisingly, no one raised any concerns or asked me to rather backoff. 

I won't lie, doing such slow speeds on a bike was a challenge in itself however, the paddle tyre on the back of the KTM 350 worked its magic and was able to chug along without bogging down. That left me with only one choice, to follow more vehicles around obstacles. 

Once everyone had their chance, we headed off to the next location.  

Mr Jimny (Werner) leading the way to GPS destination, taking what he had learnt during the course of the day and putting it into practice. Always great to see.

Once we conquered the next location, it was time for the group photo. At this stage, the sun was reaching over head, the heat was starting to really take its toll, even with the CamelBak, trying to keep hydrated, it was getting a bit much. Decided to do the sensible thing and call it a day. Really sad to not stay until the end but one always needs to listen when your body starts saying, I think we have had enough. 

Said my goodbyes, thanked everyone for a different experience and headed out to the exit of the dunes. Once there, I saw one of my riding mates had also decided to head out, the heat, the sun, the snow blindness and the early start is nothing compared to just how amazing one feels out there in the dunes. The freedom, the beauty and fresh air makes life worth living. 

To sum up, a great day was had by all and the photos just don't do justice as to how steep the dunes are. The experienced sand drivers looked after our first timers. The best part of all was the fact that we only left our tracks and a bit of air pollution behind so the people after us can also enjoy the un-spoilt terrain. 

Thank you to the organizers of the day!