wri t es Simon says
by Simon Hastelow
Old Git Moaning
This month's moan from this 'old git' was originally going to be about me hating fully loaded off road trucks that never go anywhere, with a particular focus on roof tents which are mounted on a truck all year round.
Then we had the fuel-supply fiasco, so I decided to link the two together. There’s a very neatly tricked-out Discovery II that I see regularly in my town, usually during the morning or evening commute, sitting in the same urban traffic as me, miles away from the nearest off-road routes, and a whole world away from the toughterrain wilderness this particular truck is built for. As much as I love looking at modified trucks - and appreciate the work and preparation that goes into them - there’s something a bit daft about lugging around a roof tent, heavy duty roof rack, externally mounted sand-ladders, rear door mounted 5-litre jerrycan, hi-lift jack, a couple of Zarges aluminium storage boxes
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THE MUD LIFE MAGAZINE
and a Brai bbq rack. Particularly when this particular D2 sits on 33” Cooper tyres and has lifted suspension. It seems all the more ridiculous when you consider that it is used as a daily driver. Now, I know I can’t complain, each to their own. We are all free to do what we want with the vehicles we own, but, just looking at the economics of it all, this guy must be increasing his travel costs exponentially, for little reason. He might as well drive an old army tank! This particular D2 isn't on its own, there are a few others nearby too. Where I live in Essex there are a higher than average number of imported US pickups with their 5, 6 or even 7 litre engines burbling along the A-roads. None of them are decorated to blend in, Dayglo Orange seemingly the favourite paint colour of choice, possibly to match their girlfriend’s fake tan.
