“And everywhere that Mary went, the van was sure to go…”
The day began in earnest with a 7 a.m. call time at the Caroni Bird Sanctuary. Suzuki Jimnys, Toyota Hiluxes, Mazda BT-50s, Ford Rangers, Land Rovers, Range Rovers and even a chop-top, door-netted Nissan Patrol were gearing up for a taste of the Total Trailblazers 4x4 Annual All Terrain Challenge event. Last year there was so much rain that the King of the Hill had to be cancelled but this year things seemed off to a great start.
For our media crew the day’s events would be particularly interesting, thanks to our Total lubricants-sponsored Polaris off-road, roll caged, tractor-tyred dune buggy with racing seats and a cooler strapped to the back. One game of rock, paper, scissors later and Duane of Trinituner.com was selected as the driver, while we took turns literally hanging off and maximising photos of mid-splash marshals motoring through the mud. Try saying that five times fast. Although our guide in the Jimny up front said that the first stage was an easy drive, nothing more than what the club considers a grade one or two, one of the 4x4s with huge tires managed to get fully sideways, albeit in the same spot spinning them. He ended up across the road and then corrected the situation by reversing and reorienting the vehicle– so much for grades one and two.
The next major section for competitors, besides finding any issue of Zorce along with a Monster-branded er… population control “packet” and other treasure hunt items, was the King of the Hill mandatory challenge. This was divided into two courses– novice and expert, with a few competitors swapping expected positions. It was highly entertaining to see many drivers reach the very edge, some even with two wheels atop the steep expert summit, only to slide back down again with wheels so full of mud that retries proved futile. But yet again there were some who persisted or even took another try and managed to succeed. One or two novices on regular road tires genuinely got stuck, but thankfully there was a recovery tractor on standby, along with the marshals’ hardy little Suzuki Jimnys. It was precisely at this point when we fully understood that the Meguiar’s wash bay back at the start was not put there for style and branding. These boys and girls were out to get down and dirty. But the majority of the action was yet to come.
Back at the Caroni Savannah Road highway exit, two massive mud pits, one novice and one expert, which took mud to the bonnet level, along with a slushy hill and a tight series of curves meant that any vehicle not dressed in murky brown would soon have a healthy coat. This venue proved to be quite the spectator spot as many highway travellers stopped in to see what all the fuss was all about. Highlights included drag racing champion Sheldon Bissessar with rally champion Ainsley Lochan at the wheel getting positively stuck in the expert pit and needing a Jimny to pull out the Jimny that was pulling them out of the pit– yes three vehicles in tandem– total mud madness! After being pulled out and over the hill, they decided to engage in a bit of tug-o-war with the marshal’s recovery vehicle. Also worth mentioning is the V8-powered Patrol that conquered both the King of the Hill and the mud pit at an unusually moderate pace. A few entries found out what is was like to have a mud flood and what it felt like to get pulled out backwards. All in all, it was a day of total fun and after a visit to the Meguiar’s wash bay, it was time to start the prize giving ceremony.
