LANING LIFE

by Lauren Eaton

Read about green laning as seen through Lauren ‘Sunshine’ Eaton's windscreen at The Green Lane Association, and find out what’s hot, or not, in the laning world each month. Enjoy!

It’s not goodbye, it’s see you later

Welcome to the last ever Laning Life column!

I was first welcomed on board by Damian and Karen Lee back in 2019, and what a ride it has been! Who’d have thought rights of way could be such a diverse, complex, and contentious subject?

Over the years we have been busting common myths, setting the record straight when it comes to anti-4x4 rhetoric in the mainstream media, celebrating wins that protect our rights going forward, and having a lot of fun.

While this is a joyous place to be, the power of the press should not be underestimated. We all know how persuasive the media can be, but sadly outside motoring publications, our hobbies are rarely given much positive coverage. When 4x4s appear in the news, it tends to be because someone made a mistake, because someone has an axe to grind, or because some plonker decided to take it upon themselves to represent us in a bad light.

It only takes one person to put a foot wrong and it will inevitably be shared so far and wide you’d think everyone who owns a 4x4 was out intent on destroying the entire countryside or had a second hobby collecting ASBOs like Happy Meal toys.

Someone needed to speak up for our community, and thanks to The Mud Life, that’s exactly what has happened over the last few years.

Unconstrained by content filters, flexible and accessible due to its online platform, strengthened by the commitment to the needs of its readers, and fully supportive of our rights as motorists, The Mud Life has been THE platform to counter the bias that affects us daily.

It has also been educational, informative, interesting, fun, and on the odd occasion a bit tongue in cheek!

While bringing us huge amounts of new content every month, it never loses sight of itself as being a magazine that is created for enthusiasts by enthusiasts. And what’s more it is brought to you for FREE!

Let’s take a look at the top laning stories The Mud Life has covered so far: •Hubble, bubble, toil, and…well, bias!

•Stilettos, stupidity, Snowdonia, and a whole lot of spin

•The valley of intolerance: YOU ARE NOT WELCOME HERE!

•The ABCs of laning - Part 1 and Part 2

•Fun in 4WD! - Non-laning 4x4 pastimes.

While my job at GLASS took me all over the UK to the people who shout the loudest against us, and to the few places that have experienced genuine problems with drivers and riders - which we must remember are very few compared to the majority of the network that is largely unproblematic, most problems are due to local authority neglect rather than those who use the lanes - the above negative media view often contradicts my experiences.

In the time I’ve spent with GLASS, I’ve seen laners and trail riders achieve some really great things: fighting for our rights, repairing lanes, helping themselves, each other, and their communities, raising money for charity, giving countless hours of volunteer work, rescuing people in need, and even saving lives.

The reality on the ground is that our community is an awesome place to be and it is full of some of the very best people!

I h ave tried to pay some homage to the best the laning community has to offer in a recent publication, inclusive Countryside Access, you can read it here - https://glass-uk.org/menu-resources/publications/glass-publications/inclusive-countryside-access/viewdocument/252.html . We’re a minority group with a big heart and a lot to offer, and those stories deserve to be told.

The idea behind the paper is that this message finds its way into the hands of those who have the authority to make huge decisions about our hobby. It insists that they consider the facts and will hopefully shift perceptions about who we are and what we do, but also why we do it.

It is the summation of years of work - all the reading, courses, meetings, negotiations and conciliations between us and those who have very fixed ideas about our community and want us banned. The legal cases, the physical projects, working groups, and events. The clubs, organisations, and members. The truth about the environment, how much we contribute to the economy, and how much we save the public purse. Everything gets its five minutes in the limelight in one document.

It even explains why, despite all the good stuff, people still insist on hating us.

Understanding the psychology of prejudice is a stepping stone to tackling it head on. This was step one of a process I had planned for the future, a future where perceptions are shifted based on facts, evidence, and a lot more positive representation of the motorised community.

Although, that future has now taken an unexpected turn as come early September, I will no longer be working for GLASS. )

At the time of writing this, I am not in a position to divulge where I will be moving on to. To be honest that wasn’t actually known, nor were the plans GLASS have to replace me, or pick up where I left off, or if they even intend to do so, but one thing is for sure, I will continue to write for The Mud Life.

I will also be publishing several other pro-laning publications, and I will continue be heavily involved in the laning community. I do, or did, my job because I believe in the cause. Access really should be for all!

Those who use public money to manage and preserve public rights should be held to account when it is misused or not used at all. We should be able to trust that our interests are being protected in the same way other user groups are protected.

The law insists that this happens, but when it doesn’t, it really bothers me. Most importantly it motivates a passion in me beyond anything money, caffeine, chocolate, or even car parts could hope to inspire.

I’m already working on future publications that will look at subjects like environmental impact, law, and other subjects in finer detail, and have been engaging with various organisations who could be extremely helpful when it comes to affecting change.

I’ve also been working hard on Ralph the Range Rover L322. Having a mobile base that I can work from wherever the need arises is vital to being able to represent laners where it has the most impact, and I can’t bring you the latest news if I’m sat behind a desk!

So, this isn’t the end of the road, it’s the beginning of a new one.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart to all of you for supporting me over the last few years. It’s not been an easy job, although I loved every minute, but hopefully it has made some small difference. Thankfully the strength of our community is far greater than it was when I first joined it, many years before I joined GLASS, and that is thanks to every single person who has lent their support to the cause.

You’re all awesome and every time we represent our community in a positive light we are all strengthening our position and helping to create positive change!

I’ll be back with a new look column very soon, but for now I’m heading off in a newly converted Ralph on a very much needed road trip for an indeterminate length of time; one month, two months, three months… who knows?

In the words of Tom Petty: "It's time to move on, it's time to get going. What lies ahead, I have no way of knowing. But under my feet, baby, grass is growing. It's time to move on, time to get going."

(admit it, you sang that in your head didn’t you?)

Drive safe and happy laning! Lauren and Celyn x