5 minute read
4WD Club Focus
Established in 1986, Quad-Drive is one of Western Australia’s most seasoned off-road enthusiast clubs. The infancy of Quad-Drive and for some decades after its inception was a hard core 'go hard or go home' ethos with an emphasis on challenging 4WD vehicles to perform to their utmost capacity. In the early days of the club 4+ inches lift, 35+ inch tyres and twin diff locks was an average vehicle and the tracks were extreme. These days the club has broadened its horizons offering a wide variety of trips, catering for all 4x4s from mild to wild. The heart of the club is still strong, meaning we go 4W driving on our trips and don’t like to turn back from a challenging track. In recent days more moderately modified 4x4s, often daily drivers are most common in our club. The experienced club members give you the confidence to challenge yourself and take your vehicle places you didn’t think possible while knowing you are going to drive your car to work Monday morning. Quad-Drive 4WD Club has a moderatesized membership base ranging from young adults to mature age. We have singles, young couples and families. As long as you share the common thread of off road adventures in your 4WD, good banter and tall stories at a campfire, it is likely you will get hooked on our club culture. Winter is our most active time of year. Mud terrain is frequently navigated and explored by those members who have a passive fascination for high pressure hoses and car wash affiliations. Once the sun comes out you will find us tackling beaches and sand dunes. Weekend and long weekend trips are favoured as we enjoy a social drink and a campfire to end a hard day's driving. We keep the calendar varied with a range of close to Perth day trips too. Annually there are extended touring and social trips. In the past these trips have included the Kimberley, Canning Stock Route, Holland Track, Karijini and Cape York, just to name a few. We ask that as an absolute minimum you have front and rear recovery points on your vehicle, a snatch strap and third party vehicle insurance. This way if you get stuck you can be safely recovered. If you are unsure drop us a message and we can offer some advice. A good kit can be put together over a period of time. A big advantage of joining a 4WD club is you can learn from others to ensure you spend your money wisely and learn to use the equipment. Some basic items that should be acquired to aid in recoveries are: • Front and rear recovery points are a must have! • Snatch strap, shackles and dampener • Shovel • Tyre deflator and air compressor • UHF radio • Recovery tracks • Basic tool kit incl. spare tyre and jack. We meet on the first Tuesday of each month at Morley Noranda Recreation Club at 7pm.
To find out more about our club, contact: Matthew Johnson - President 0477 154 061 quad.drive@outlook.com You can also find us on Facebook and Instagram @quaddrive4wdclub
If you would like your club featured in our 4WD Club Focus, please email: admin@western4wdriver.com.au
Sunday 22 May 2022 at Captain Fawcett Track
It started out as a chilly Sunday morning as we headed down the freeway towards the town of Dwellingup. When we arrived, there was already a great selection of 4WDs waiting in the carpark of the Tourist Centre. We had members young and old, some new faces and some regulars. We even had a surprise guest tag along. Matt from Westralian Offroad joined us for half of the trip. Half an hour later and after everyone grabbed a coffee from the café to warm up, introductions were made by Dee, Secretary from Western Patrol Club and Matt, President from Quad-Drive 4WD Club. Matt then kindly took on the role as trip leader (even if he does drive a LandCruiser), with a tail-end Charlie car from Western Patrol Club. We headed out of the carpark and towards Nanga Road, where we would turn off at the entry to the Captain Fawcett Track ready to air-down and start the day. Wrangling 17 4WDs is no easy feat, but we managed to get everyone on the track and off the road before we aired down fairly quickly and headed off on our adventure through the bush. We were led through beautiful bushland, with trees still glistening from the rain and dew, when we came across our first ‘major’ mud crossing. If you went straight, it was an easy crossing with minimal mud getting on the fourbie, but if you went right, well, that was a different story! The right track was deep with a hairpin turn that few made it through with ease, but a couple of members got caught up needing a winch and a snatch. This was a great time to stop and have a chat while cheering on other members.
After about an hour of playing, we kept going on our travels towards a spot to have lunch. Matt pulled us into a great flat area right by the river, where we could all stretch
BY DEE – WESTERN PATROL CLUB & MATT – QUAD-DRIVE 4WD CLUB
our legs, have something to eat, let the kids run free, chat and relax. After an hour or more, we packed up from lunch and headed back out onto the track that led us through twists and turns, mud and more mud, deep and shallow. We pulled over again next to the river for a quick pit stop when it started to rain. The weather had held off all day, but it looked like the rain had come to stay. We managed to get onto the gravel road before hitting the tar and finding a place to air up on the side of the road. Once everyone had aired up and gotten very drenched from the rain, those that had to head home left and those that wanted a well-earned beverage after a great day out, went straight through to the Quindanning Hotel. Beer in hand in front of the open fire, there was no better way to finish off a great day out on the tracks. It was a terrific day of driving and we would like to thank all the members from both Western Patrol Club and Quad-Drive 4WD Club for making it an excellent day out.
