Vol. 7 Issue 2 Newsletter of The Southern Land Rover Society, Inc. Feb. 2003

We need your dues payment now! Final Notice!

February "unofficial" ride to Amicalola Falls Will and Bill Roeder, Stefan, John and Jami Graham, Kevin Vibert, Ross Davidson, and Me and my 3 boys decided last minute to go on a quick ride to Anderson Creek. The first mistake was the group's...they chose to follow me. The second mistake was mine...to take the pig trail into Anderson Creek. The Pig Trail has fond memories for me. My very first trail ride, in a brand new DII, was on the pig trail led by Jack Burton. It was a challenging and scary day 4 years ago, but we made it through unscathed. Unfortunately, it's not the same Pig Trail anymore! It now bears a strik-ing resemblance to upper 2 at Tellico, complete with a very scary drop off to nowhere. I could hear ghosts of Dave Murrell and Jack Walter telling me "don't go!" about a third of the way up. I was first in line and made it through, albeit with new marks of distinction in the sheet metal. New dents in two

It’s time to write the check to the Southern 4WD Association and we need to know whose names to send in with our payment—so please contact the club officers to make sure you are up to date with your dues!

Just look inside to see what you’ll miss without your membership in the SFWDA or Solaros.

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Upcoming Land Rover Event Schedule Feb 22—trail ride Rich Mt; Dan Dollarhide meet at quarry entrance 11:00 AM Feb 23—Sunday Trail Ride—Suches beginner ride Robb Sundmaker March 19- Club Meeting @ Tony’s March 21-23 Windrock ORV Park (Oliver Spring, TN) Jonathon Horrobin, Jeffrey Ferjak March 22 Trail cleanup—Rich Mt. Trail 10:00AM April 18-20 Tellico—need we say more? Chris Schramm May 17—British Motorcar Day @ Chateau Elan May 17-18 Campout at Porter’s, Amicalola ride Sunday

Club News As everyone should have heard by now we have a new slate of club officers in place for 2003—they are: President—Chris Schramm Vice President—Robb Sundmaker Treasurer—Jack Walter Membership—Ron Ward We are working hard to make Solaros a better club this year and we are all real excited about some of the things that are planned for the future. Please join us in helping to make your Land Rover club a more enjoyable experience. Mike Pado found this website that features a neat factory film of military Land Rovers: http://multimedia.campus.luth.se/poff/filmer/landrover_-_military_vehicles.mpg

Jack Walter reminds everyone that the vehicle Prestige Plates for next year must be ordered through you local tag office by April 1st of 2003. They have increased the number of available letters on the tags this year from six to seven opening up all sorts of new possibilities. He has already reserved the tag ‘SOLAROS’ for next year to go on his Range Rover. The prestige tag costs $25 a year extra. This Saturday (Feb 22) two members (Dan Dollarhide and Mike Parrot) have stepped up to lead a ride on Rich Moun-tain. This is an intermediate ride. They plan to meet at the Quarry entrance to the trail at 11:00 AM on Saturday morn-ing for a trip up the quarry side of Rich Mt.

Message from the new President—Chris Schramm Dear Members: As your newly elected President, I'd like to take this op-portunity to thank you for your confidence in me. As Jack Walter said, "it was nice to have 3 good candidates for the job". I believe this will be a great year for the club. Jeffrey, Jonathan, and Robb have put together a great events calendar with an eye toward participation from all. Mike steps down after many years as Treasurer leaving Jack with a positive balance in the checking account and real organization around our finances. Norman leaves a legacy of three superb SAE events, taking up where David and Amy left off. Thankfully, both Norman and Scott again plan to spearhead this year's event, kept going last year only by Scott's tireless effort. For 2003 we will strive for participation, participation and more participation. Make an effort to call a friend to the meeting or ride, stick a business card with www.solaros.com on a Rover that needs to get muddy, and most importantly come to the events yourself. There will be a couple of new agenda items at each meeting to en-courage participation. First, we will take roll call at each meeting. It's important for the membership to know who is participating at both meetings and events. Second, we will add a discussion topic to each meeting. For our first meeting, we will discuss suspension modifi-cations. The purpose of having such a tech discussion is to remove the mystery for our newer members. Other topics will include protective gear, recovery, trail etiquette, and spotting, to name a few. Last, we will bring back the Ray Sullivan Award (probably with a new name) for the driver on the last ride that made the best bonehead move. Our membership is down for the third straight year. This is a result of allowing membership to be the responsibility of just one person, rather than making it part of our routine. Ron Ward takes over as membership chair and will lead the charge. Let's pull together behind Ron and make an effort to increase the size of our roster...because as we all know, size does matter. Recall why you joined and why you stick around, and tell someone about it. We've all made good friends in this club and we all enjoy the events and meetings. Let's go put the word in the street! See you at the meeting, Chris

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doors, and the rear quarter scratched and skinned clean. John and Jami came behind and had matching dents in the door (he musta been jealous), and Stefan put his truck on it's rear end -- quite literally. I think he was showing off the International Scouts balance ability when he lost his concentration as Jami walked down the trail. Ross, Kevin, and Will deserve credit for making the trail look easy. From there, Anderson Creek was Anderson Creek...no sur-prises, just a nice ride with a few challenging sections to keep your attention. The V-ditch claimed Will's driver side mir-ror...a rare mistake from our youngest member. If you want to go sometime soon just give me a call. Anderson Creek is close by....we can meet at the entrance to the pig trail.

Pictures of the Pig Trail courtesy of Ross Davidson That’s the Famous Door-Eating Rock to the lower left. Several Solaros vehicles bear battle scars from this trail troll.

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Rover is in a German garage where it fits in only without the roof-rack. The Landy never was used to transport goods and never driven into the salt water (which was a common pleasure at that time in that area and caused severe corrosion for the frame). It was kept in very good condition, until the company decided to close the construction plant, which made the Land Rover obsolete. I had some official duties there at that time and when I asked what the plant manager intended to do with the Land Rover, was informed that the car would be left behind. It only had about 45.000 miles and was not even 6 years old. I asked about documents for the car and whether I could take the Land Rover with me. I was told it would take too much time to look for the original documents, because they were too busy with closing activities. After some negotiations I convinced them to look for the documents in exchange for a barrel of good German beer, which I could get into the country on a freight plane I was expecting to arrive from Germany in a few days. I called a

friend who ran a brewery back in Germany and arranged to have a barrel of beer loaded on the plane and sent to help homesick Germans stranded in the desertwith a great thirst for no charge. I did have to pay the deposit on the barrel however. The Land Rover subsequently changed owners and travelled in a container back to Germany nearly free of charge (Thomas was arranging to have some empty containers returned to Germany), where it is with me now for many years. Every year it must pass an emission inspection and every two years it has to have a technical inspection due to German law (always a big stress and a matter of good behavior for both of us - no oil leakage at that moment for the Landy, no alcohol for me).

Those of us who went on the New Years rich Mt. Ride got to meet Thomas Werner; a German Land Rover owner who was here on a visit. Here is the story of how he acquired his immaculate red Series III 109 Station Wagon. He was working for the German government on an assignment in the UAE when he happened upon the type of a deal that even surpasses anything that I‘ve accomplished—but I‘ll let him tell you his story.... My truck is a Land Rover Series III , 109 Inch Petrol Station Wagon, with the Chassis Number 934-00066 D, LHD =left hand drive, Export Model was built on 23. April 1979, despatched 8 June 1979, the destination dealer was Leyland GmbH, Duesseldorf Germany, the production label number was 4297 and so on .... The Land Rover was never on road in Germany when new, but left for the United Arab Emirates with a big German Company in the oil business. It's duty was to transfer people from and to the airport. That is why it was the Station Wagon with all the interior trim Landrover sold. It is a 9 seater, that means 2 front seats, 3 middle and two by two in the rear sitting opposite to each other. It has free-wheel hubs (manual) for the front wheels, an overdrive to reduce noise, an extra oil cooler front of the normal one, a different air intake for the desert. The winch is for show only and not a Land-Rover one. The gear box has front and rear connectors for external machinery, rounds per minute chnaged with accelerator and gear 1 to 4. The engine is the original 4-cylinder 2,25 ltr petrol with 3 bearings and a Weber caburettor. It has two fuel tanks one under the right seat in front ( the seat has to be picked up, a plate has to be removed, then you can open the filling hose) one tank in the rear - both to be switched with a mechanical lever in front of the right seat also switching the electrical contacts for the fuel gauge. A big full length 650 pound capacity roof-rack was with the Landy to transport luggage, this is not on the photos, because the Land

Thomas Werner and his Series III 109 SW

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The Land Rover is in it's original shape except that the front seats are from the Disco - for safety reasons - and a trailer hook which I mounted to the Landy. I have the same problems with my Rover than everyone else like poor wiring and poor electrical contacts (Lucas - King of the dark), but never suffered a total break down. For tax purpose it is an RV now. The Landy is always moving, always needs oil in the gear-boxes (only to drop it on the floor of the garage or wherever it stands), the motor has started to smoke a little bit..... My relationship to Series Land-Rovers started when my parents took me on a transcontinental trip to India at my age of ten in a similar Series (a Series II 109 I think). So I felt touched to take the Landy with me and still enjoy riding in it with its old leaves and minimum comfort. It was well worth the price of the deposit on a barrel of good German beer. Thomas also writes: If you are interested on production records of your Land Rover, they are available from the BRITISH MOTOR INDUSTRY HERITAGE TRUST (on the internet). They offer for a few British pounds, what is in the books of the Land-Rover Company and will send you a nice Certificate with all informa-tion they have.

AD-VICE FROM A NO-VICE

(THINGS I HAVE SEEN OR LEARNED IN MY SHORT TIME OF OFF ROADING)

CARRY ALONG A SPARE COIL WHEN OFF-ROADING. $9.00-$50.00 FOR A EXTRA COIL IS CHEAP INSURANCE WHEN YOU ARE BROKEN DOWN IN THE WOODS. CARRY ALONG A 4 FOOT LONG x 1/4” DIAMETER STEEL ROD. IT IS USEFULL WHEN TRYING TO KNOCK OR PUSH A BROKEN AXLE OUT THRU TO THE OTHER SIDE OF THE DIFFERENTIAL. BEFORE INSTALLING NEW TIRES ON A VEHICLE THAT HAS HIGH MILEAGE, REPLACE THE SUPENSION BUSH-INGS, SHOCKS, SPRINGS AND TIE ROD ENDS. IF YOU DO NOT REPLACE THESE PARTS, YOU WILL GET UNUSUAL WEAR PATTERNS ON THE TIRES AND WILL BE REPLACING THEM LONG BEFORE THE WEAR MILAGE IS UP. Good advice from Steve Herrod

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OffRoad Sportsman Association News Via Steve Herrod…. Have you guys heard of this group.....they are close and seem to have additional sites to ride that we have not been on Hey Everybody, I know that the majority of you are not familiar with our group, which is the OffRoad Sportsman Associa-tion. We are a ten year old group with 500 plus mem-bers scattered all over the world. We primarily oper-ate in the southeastern United States, as this is the only region in the states with 365 days of wheelin'. We go into some very unique areas and follow the "No Trace" and "Tread Lightly" mandates. When riding we are responsible about it and do not try to tear up things or make new trails. When you go on a ride with us, you will not be allowed to go back into these areas on your own, unless you are a member and with the knowledge of our Association. We do this be-cause in the past, folks have gone back in and run amuck, causing us to lose access to some wonderful areas. The cost for membership is cheap and the ex-perience you receive is priceless. We have members with years of experience in extreme vehicles to nov-ices with basically stock rides. We hope to see all of you soon. Here is the next few months of rides. If you need more details, please let me know. Saturday, February 22nd Heflin, Alabama Meet @ Pops' Charburgers @ exit 199 on I-20 @ 8:00am CST West from Atlanta and East from Birmingham This will be a daytrip only Friday, March 14, Saturday, March 15 Monteagle, Tennessee We will be staying at the Budget Host Inn This ride is by reservation only, so if you are interested, let us know. Tuesday, April 15th OSA meeting @ the Varsity in Atlanta It will be at 7:00pm EST and usually runs about an hour Come early and eat with the Gang

PARTS LIST

· Mile Marker 12,000 lbs. 2-Speed Hydraulic Winch Source: Rovertym Engineering Part Number: 70-52000C (see note 1)

· Mile Marker Valve Adapter Kit Source: Rovertym Engineering Part Number: 34-5010-45 (Landrover Discovery) (see note 2)

· Mile Marker Wireless Remote Source: Rovertym Engineering Part Number: 7075

Hydraulic Winch Installation on a 1988 Range Rover After investigating the various types of winches on the 4x4 market and listening to the experiences, both good and bad that the Solaros members had with their winches I decided the best winch for me would be a hydraulic one. I soon settled on the Mile Marker 12,000 pound hydraulic model. It took six months of studying to figure out how to make this winch work in a Range Rover. This sort of installa-tion is not that common here in the states and gathering information was difficult (even from the manufacturer). Most people here will install the Mile Marker using the stock Rover power steering pump to operate the winch. This is fine but the key to maximizing the efficiency of the winch is careful matching of the pump to the winch. Using the stock pump will not allow you to exer-cise the full capabilities of the winch. Since I was spending a consid-erable amount of money for this winch I wanted to make sure that it was operating at 100% efficiency. The following list details what is required to complete the winch installation into the Range Rover Classic. Compiled by Steve Herrod on 09-10-02 from emails with vendors, owners and other information gathered while researching the Mile Marker hydraulic winch system. Revised 02-11-03; added wireless remote information.

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· Thin Line Cooler

Source: Winches Plus, Inc. Part Number: Cooler-03 (see note 3)

· Mile Marker 204cc UK Spec Winch Motor Source: Mile Marker Part Number: 97-50040 (see note 1) Description: RS1204060A1 (10.5) Motor 151-

2016BP

· ZF74 Power Steering Pump, Pulley, Bracket, Pressure Relief Valve and Hoses for NAS V8 Landrover Source: Alfred Murray Ltd. Part Number: none (see notes 2 and 4)

· Landrover Power Steering Pump Bracket Source: Alfred Murray Ltd. Part Number: none (see note 4)

· Carriage and Packaging Charges Source: Alfred Murray Ltd. Part Number: none

· Winch Installation Source: Trans-it Automotive Time: 16 Hours + (see note 2)

NOTES:

Note 1: The winch motor supplied on Mile Marker Part Number 70-52000C is a 293cc motor. Alfred Murray Ltd. specifies a 204cc motor to work with the ZF74 power steering pump and pressure relief valve. Mile Marker agreed to swap out the mo-tor for the UK 204cc motor at no charge. Discussions with Allan Byrne indicated using a 293 cc motor and the standard ZF74 pump will not stall the winch until 14,500 lbs, making it unsafe. It is possible to get a 9,000 lb winch, part number 70-50080C with 3/8” diameter wire and use the standard ZF74 pump but this puts the stall load at 12,500 lbs and is still too high. Another solution is to have Alfred Murray supply a down graded ZF pump to work with the 293cc motor, but the winch will be slower. According to Allan Byrne, “the down graded ZF pump will be 2.3 times faster than the stock pump and will pull 1.8 times the load. Down grading the pump will add £25 to price, whereas if you swap the motor the line speed will increase by a further 50%, without the loss of power and use the standard ZF74 pump”. I opted for the correct winch motor and pump to get full benefit from the hydraulic winch set up; Mile Marker swapped out the winch motor at no charge.

Note 2: The supplied valve adapter kit and the UK kit did not come with all the correct plumbing fittings. Winch installer had to get the required fittings from NAPA; they are standard hydrau-lic parts and connectors. There is room to mount the solenoid

pack under the air cleaner horn, but you will need to relocate some other items. The hoses supplied are the correct length for this installation.

Note 3: The in line fluid cooler is recommended. It can be mounted in front of the AC fans behind the plastic grille. I have noticed a lot less power steering fluid leaking from my steering box since the winch installation. A in line power steering fluid filter is not nec-essary according to Mile Marker.

Note 4: The instruction sheet supplied from UK is not easy to follow, it leaves out some information and does not show the correct schematic drawings required. Requested pictures of the installation never got posted on the emails.

When ordering the pump, make sure you request special protec-tive shipping materials, as the outlet connector nozzle on the new ZF74 pump was damaged during shipping. Luckily the part is a standard item on a stock pump and can be easily replaced. However, there is a trick to removing it. Insert a dowel rod that is the same diameter as the nozzle and lift up on the rod with a rocking motion; be careful as we damaged two nozzles before we learned this trick.

When ordering the power steering pump bracket, there is a need to know what type power steering pump you have, either the cast iron pump or the sheet metal body casing.

Source Information

Rovertym Engineering Bradley-Smith, Inc. 3930-F Castle Rock Road Midlothian, Va. 23112 Phone: 866.768.3786 Web Site: www.rovertym.com Contact: John Bradley-Smith

Winches Plus, Inc. P.O. Box 1263 Meridian, Id. 83680 Phone: 208.898.0093 Web Site: www.winchesplus.com

Mile Marker 1450 S.W. 13th Court Pompano Beach, Fl. 33069 Phone: 800.426.8646 Contact: Bob Pearsall Web Site: www.milemarker.com

Alfred Murray Ltd. Bell Lane Cottages Chilworthy, Somerset TA20 3BG England Phone: +44 (0) 1460 61674

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2003 Solaros Event Schedule in work Robb and Chris have been hard at work with other members of the events committee to put together a well rounded series of events to entice all of the Solaros members to get out and explore the remote corners of the southeast in their Land Rovers. A tentative schedule has been blocked out and we will refine it time to be published in the next issue of the Greenlaner. This years’ schedule includes all of the old favorites as well as some new adventures and some explorations into un-charted territory. We plan to try to hook up with some of the other groups around the South and have trail rides for all levels of off-road enthusiast as well as several camping and socializing opportunities. One suggestion that we are enter-taining is a good old fashioned pig roast—possibly to be held at the Porter’s property in Dawsonville sometime this spring. Club members are encouraged to make suggestions to the events committee and at club meetings as to what we should do as a club to have fun. On the schedule so far are rides at: Suches—February 23 Windrock—March 21-23 Rich Mt.—March 22 Talladega exploration—April 5 Tellico—April 18-20 Uhwarrie Safari—April 18-20 British Motorcar Day—May 17 Amicalola—May 18 Fun with Guns - June 7 Tellico Redux -June 20-22 Beasley Knob- July12 Monteagle– July26 Tellico a’Trois-August 22-24 SAE—Sept 12-14 Mid Atlantic Rally (Virginia) Oct 3-5 Fall in the Highlands—Oct 25-26 Big South Fork—Nov 7-9 Rich MT-Nov 22 Christmas Party—Dec 13

Contact: Allan Byrne Email: Alfred.Murray@virgin.net Web Site: www.4x4winches.com

Trans-it Automotive 162 Craemer Way Alpharettta, Ga. 30004 Phone: 770.754.9231 Contact: Bud Donnelly

Again this is a tentative schedule that will be fleshed out and added to throughout the year. There are requests to add more events geared toward the beginning and light off-road driver (dirt roads and tours to hidden secret cor-ners of Georgia). We have had a suggestion to move the SAE later in the year when the weather will be a little cooler and/or to stage a major event sometime in the spring. (I like the pig roast idea myself). With a great slate of officers and new enthusiasm among the mem-bership Solaros has a great year ahead of it in 2003.

Treasurer’s Report for February 2003 So far we have 46 paid renewals of Solaros Club dues for the 2003 year. I know of at least 10 members who have promised to renew their memberships at the Febru-ary meeting so we have some obvious challenges for our new Membership Chairman (didn’t know the title came with the job of being the official club badger did you Ron?). We have an excess of funds in the club treasury right now as we have not yet written the check to the Habitat for Humanity folks. They were scheduled to receive the benefit of the money we collected during last Fall’s SAE event in Menlo. I am preparing a projected budget for this year since we have now established a pretty good idea of the costs involved in running the club and put-ting on our big annual SAE event. I am also preparing to send out invoices to our advertis-ers to see if they want to continue advertising in the Greenlaner and contacting a few others to see if they are interested in participating. The new club stickers are here and we will include one with each copy of this month’s newsletter. We have also reduced the price of additional stickers to $2 each or 3 for $5.

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Windrock, TN – 1/3-1/5/2003 Having checked the weather forecast for the area , daily for the previous fortnight, it came as no surprise that the interest for the trip was minimal. In the end there were only three vehicles my-self, Jeffrey Ferjak and a friend of mine from the South Eastern Xterra Club. Chris was making his fifth trip to Windrock so at least one of us had some experience of the area. Norman Barden was on board, until last minute work commitments changed his plans. Chris and I met at the McDonalds at the Windy Hill exit of I75 and hung around until the advertised time of 9:30, just in case anyone had decided to tag along at the last minute. Nobody did. I phoned Jeffrey to let him know we were leaving and set off along I75. We made great time, and arrived early where we had ar-ranged to meet Jeff, further north along the highway. Standing around on the forecourt of a BP garage we soon started to realize what we were in for. The temperature wasn’t far above freezing, and with the constant wind we could tell we would have an inter-esting weekend. Jeffrey arrived and we did all the introductions and such, and started on our journey. The trip up was uneventful, other than Jeffrey getting bullied around a stretch of highway by an over zealous truck driver, who either wasn’t paying any attention, or thought he was driving something much smaller and faster. After being forced onto the hard shoulder we finally made our escape as the truck slowed on one of the many climbs along 75. We exited the highway just outside Knoxville and continued the rest of our journey on main roads. The trip isn’t bad and unlike Tellico, for example, is on well signposted main roads. We made a quick stop at the Super Wal-Mart in Oak Ridge to pick up a few last minute supplies, at the same time we saw our first snowflakes of the weekend, but they wouldn’t be the last. On through Oak Ridge we come to Oliver Springs, pulling off the main road into the downtown area, we stop to buy our permits for

the year. The owners of the Short Stop convenience store were very nice and we had a good chat while we all paid our dues. After repeatedly asking if we were sure we were really going to be camping on the mountain, the owner tried to point out the mountain but explained that if it wasn’t snowing so much up there we would be able to see it. Undeterred we set off, back up to the main road and up to Windrock. Upon arrival there is a large graveled parking and staging area, we secure our gear and air down. It’s mid afternoon and the weather is starting to come in, there were a number of people milling around, all ATV riders. They looked on as we set off up the mountain, no doubt wondering if we were sane or not, setting off up there, at this time, in this weather! Not really having a planned route of trails we were to ride we set off along G1, which is one of the main gravel roads through the property. Although these roads are listed as easy gravel roads they can hold a few surprises here and there. We keep our eyes open for a likely place to camp for the evening and find a good candidate with plenty of flat space for the tents and the ability to pull the trucks off the trail. Whilst stopped a group of ATVs pulls up, one of whom introduces himself as the property warden. We show him our permits and enquire about camping and fires, he confirms our information then asks if we had notified our next of kin! We never could tell if he was being entirely serious, but said he would keep an eye out for us the next day. Right by the camping area we found is a large puddle which straddles the whole trail at this point, we all go through one by one. By now it’s past dusk and we are driving with lights on, Chris goes through first nice and slowly not disturbing the water too much. Next I go through, a little too much accelera-tor, the water comes up and over the bonnet covering the whole front of the truck with frigid water. Now here’s some-thing to think about for winter off roading, if your headlights are on then the lenses are going to get hot, if you suddenly quench that heat with ice water the glass cannot handle the rapid change in temperature and you have instantly cracked headlights, which are not the cheapest item to replace! Jeff got through without any trouble, this time. We continued riding trails into the night and with the snow falling was a very enjoyable ride, nothing too difficult but not too easy that it became boring. Trail 11 and 13, and up to see the windmills. We met a friend of Chris’s who had come up from Knoxville for the evening for a few drinks around the campfire. We set off back along the main trail to our chosen camping spot, rolling at a good rate through the numerous puddles along G1. Chris’s friend was driving a very slightly modified Pathfinder, which at one stage allowed Jeffrey to get a little too close, and as the driver had his window down slightly got a cab full of ice cold water splashed inside from one of the many puddles. As we pulled into the camp area Jeffrey decides to attempt the

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same puddle that I cracked my headlights in, but this time further over to the left where it appears to be a little deeper and muddier. Just as he starts to drive in the Pathfinder guy chirps up that it is deceivingly deep right where Jeffrey is heading. Too late, Jeffrey’s nose down in the thick frozen mess. I see him try to go forward, nothing. He tries reverse, nothing. Each time getting stuck more and more. I raced around behind him and attached my snatch strap to both of our vehicles. Twice I failed to release him from the mud, then on the third try he finally started to move, and we got him free. Jeffrey’s truck isn’t sounding too well and as he opens his door to alight, ice cold muddy water flows out. He opens the passenger side and the same thing, he reaches in and pulls out his spare clean boots and empties them onto the ground. The front of his truck is just covered in a layer of mud, under the bonnet is the same. The whole engine bay is covered in a layer of mud. Most of the night he leaves it running to try any dry off any component which may have got a little too wet, as we warm ourselves around the campfire and eat dinner. I was the first into bed and slept soundly in my new sleeping bag that Father Christmas had just brought me. The night was wonderfully quite, only broken by Chris’ snoring, and appar-ently mine also but I didn’t hear that! Saturday morning, up to a nice brisk start. Everything that was left out overnight has a layer of ice over it, the trucks are fro-zen to the ground, and all that mud and water that went on, in. and through Jeffrey’s truck is also frozen. He starts it, but it doesn’t sound good at all. Now that it’s running he leaves it running and it does start to sound a bit better. Meanwhile, I decide to get a pot of water going for a coffee to warm us all up. I pour the water into the pot and before I can even light the burner the water is crystallizing in the pot be-fore our eyes. Whose idea was this trip? Jeffrey needs petrol after running his truck most of the night and the next morning, so we head down the mountain. The car park is starting to fill up with ATV riders here for the day, giving somewhat surprised looks as we are coming down the mountain as these “early birds” are setting off up. Jeffrey fills up and Chris wants to eat before going back up so a quick stop at Hardees and we make our way back. Jeffrey’s still not en-tirely confident of his truck, and by the time we reach the car park it is beginning to over heat. He opts to drive back into town and find a pressure washer to clean off the radiator, al-ternator and whatever else was covered in mud and will meet us on the mountain later. We had mobile phone service almost the whole weekend so keeping in touch wasn’t an issue. Chris and I left Jeffrey at 12 noon and set off for a day of trails, hoping to hear from Jeffrey sooner rather than later. By this time there were a quite a number of people on the trails, thankfully there are a lot of trails so we didn’t have to do too much stopping and with the majority of people on ATVs or dirt bikes passing wasn’t really an issue.

We rode trail 2 down hill, and with the mixture of trail use and the ice melting all the trails became very muddy. Trail 2 was more of a controlled slide at times, but with some tight turns and deep ruts at the bottom it was a very enjoyable trail. We were sat at the start of trail 7 when we heard from Jeffrey, he was on his way up the mountain. He’d cleaned out the radiator and the truck seemed to be running well. Unfortunately, once he started to climb the mountain the temp rose again and he decided to turn around and make the journey home. He stopped again and did another cleaning of the engine and radiator. We told him to call us if anything should hap-pen on the trip back, he did call later that evening to let us know he’d got home alright and the truck just needed a good cleaning. The interruption of us waiting for Jeffrey was actually a blessing in disguise as we were just about to tackle trail 7 when he first called. This trail is listed as difficult, but with all the mud many of the ATVs and bikes were turning back part way up the trail, which we wouldn’t have had the option of doing. Chris had done this trail once previously in the dry and there are a couple of high ledges to get over towards the top which can prove very tricky. We spoke to a few people while waiting and once we knew Jeffrey was leaving we decided to drive up to the top before trying the trail for a look. At the top the mud was everywhere, the trail looked like one big mud slide. We walked over to get a better view of the trail proper and made the decision not to take the risk and to leave it for an-other trip. The trails on the property are broken up into three categories, easy, moderate and difficult, with one solitary trail being listed as ex-

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treme. That would be the Rattle Rock trail. We didn’t see any-one on that trail but there were a couple of trailered 4x4’s who had come up to give it a go, we don’t know how they did. Saturday Chris and I continued riding trails both on the south side of Highway 116 and the newly mapped area on the north side of 116. Without riding trails other than the gravel access roads more than once we rode until 11 PM when we stopped to camp in the same spot as the previous night. A total of 11 hours without any significant stops, I was very impressed that we had been able to achieve such a long run. Saturday night, the wind arrived and brought with it snow and hail, luckily we were already bundled up in our tents by this time. I was awoken a couple of time through the night by the howls of the wind, and by my tent being blown in on itself. In the morning there was a mix of snow, ice and hail on the ground. We broke camp and decided to head back to civiliza-tion. We stopped in Oak Ridge to pressure wash the trucks before the ride home. I couldn’t understand why Chris kept passing by the washers, until he finally pulled into a small, four station washer, off the main road with nobody else using it. I put in my money and was surprised to find hot water coming out, it made the clean up much more enjoyable than a cold wash. We had an uneventful ride home and made really good time. I had my first breakfast at Cracker Barrel in the eight years I’ve lived in the US, I can’t believe it was kept such a secret for so long, I don’t think I’ll be able to eat at Waffle House again with the same satisfaction. All in all we had a great weekend. There are 65 miles of marked rails open to our kind of vehicle out of a possible 123 miles. All trails are well marked, although we did notice some defacing and vandalizing of signs and trail markers after Saturday after-noon. Markers which we had used Friday night weren’t there Saturday. There are no “official” camping sites on the property, and I wouldn’t leave anything set up unattended the same as we do at Tellico. We did talk to some locals in a 4runner who told us that he had once been on the mountain overnight with a friend and had left his truck in the car park, when they came back down in the morning his truck was on blocks and his American Racing wheels and BFG tires were gone! When I go again I’ll be doing the same as this time, camp light and load up each morning. There are also a number of motels and camp grounds within a short distance of the site. Definitely worth a trip. Jonathon Horrobin

Grayrock ORV Report—Birmingham, Alabama Below is a report on a new ORV park just outside Birmingham, AL. Thanks Ronnie for giving back to the club and making it a better experi-ence for everyone! Robb, I just wanted to let you know that I did go check out the new ORV park just north of Birmingham this past Sun afternoon and overall had a good time. They do have a lot of land to see. They also have a new name for the place and in turn have a new web site: www.grayrockorv.com In addition, here are more photos of the place: www.printroom.com/ViewAlbum.asp? userid=SAWilson&album_id=131367 Gray Rock has 'trails' that are nothing more than scenic dirt roads and hill climbs to all out 'big rig' only types of trails. I talked to a couple of guys there and they hope to have it 'open to the public' about once a month with some sort of registration fee. In my opinion the fee is a little high but it'll probably drop once the newness wears off. If I remember correctly, it was $35 for both Sat and Sun although that did include a very good spaghetti dinner with all the fixings on Sat night. They are also willing to schedule private club rides as well. They just have to be worked out on a case by case basis. Gray Rock has a very large field/parking area available if anyone wanted to camp out. It is probably not more than 20 minutes from downtown Birmingham for those that don't like to rough it. Again, the place seems to have at least a little bit for everybody. For relatively stock trucks like mine there's not quite as much to do but the place is very 'spectator friendly'. You could pull a stock truck right up along side a 5+ trail and get out and watch the big boys. To have a REALLY good time I think you would basically need tires, rock sliders, and diff guards because there are small shoe box sized rocks every-where. There are also rocks the size of small children. I guess that's where the Gray Rock name comes from. A little lift would probably help as well to clear the rocks but with good sliders I don't guess it would matter too much. Now I haven't been able to make any of the SOLAROS rides in the past so it's hard for me to compare it to anything else the group might have done but from looking at various pictures of Will over on his side and the latest pig trail photos, it doesn't appear any more hard core than what others have tried in the past. As far as already scheduled future events, they are planning on hosting the Central Alabama Offroad Society (CAOS) 'May Madness Jambo-ree'. From what I was told about this event it sounds a lot like the theme of the SAE event. There will be check in available on Fri, riding all day on Sat, ending at dark with a dinner, bonfire and raffle. Then on Sun more riding and a rock-crawl competition with prizes of some sort. I think the cost for the whole weekend will be around $50 although you pay less if you ride less days (or something like that). I hope to make the meeting on next Wed if I can get off work a little early although it shouldn't be that big of a problem since they want me in Tuscaloosa on Thursday morning. I'll bring a little hand drawn map that they had avail-able although it was pretty confusing once you got in the woods. Anyway, hope to see you next week in Atlanta... Ronnie McKinney Admissions Advisor AUM Enrollment Services 334-244-3598

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Lots of stuff for sale this month—check it out: Leftover T-shirts from the 2002 SAE event—$5 each or 3 for $10—contact Jack Walter 1997 Discovery SE 71,000 miles, off-road ready. +2 Rovertym HD springs, Rovertym sliders, ARB, Adventure roof rack, lights all over, waterproof seat covers and LR rubber mats, CB, custom Hi-lift jack mounts, LR Castor alloys with 235 85 R16 MT's. Gently pre-owned and off-roaded. Some battle scars, but they add character. Ron Ward, ronward@synovustrust.com 706-596-0821 Columbus, GA I just learned of some rebuilt 2.25 engines for $1500 each All with alternator, carburetor, Series 3 clutch—if interested please call or e-mail me—David Russell— 5moose@bellsouth.net c 404 379 8155 h 770 979 3538 w 770 261 9129 SIII Zenith carburetor $25.00 SIII Transmission and transfer case $300.00 TUFFY Security boxes $200.00 RRC Gray cargo cover and spare wheel cover $15.00 each Steve Herrod 770-928-3307 steveherrod@bellsouth.net

Club member Matt LaFrenz is selling the following Land Rover—1967 is arguably THE best year for a Land Rover—and yes I’ll argue with anyone on that point….

1967 SERIES IIA; Price: $11,000 OBO;

Frame Off Restoration For Sale ---MUST SELL Price reduced by $2,000.00! Must Sell! Sad but true! I must sell my blue and white hardtop 88''. This is a great Rover with many new and recent parts. I have owned it for the last 5 years and ensure you it is very well taken care of. It was built as a frame-up refurbishment around 95-96 by Kifaru 4x4 in Colo-rado and was featured on their web site as a model of their work (I think they have changed their name). This was my only vehicle and as a daily driver or long trips it has been great. It has a Turner 2.25L gas engine with a 2X barrel We-ber carb and I am looking to add a fuel pressure regulator soon. An upgraded ignition with the starter replaced a 1.5 years ago. Transmission and transfer case work perfectly. Free-wheeling hubs for better gas mileage (very tough, unique all metal hubs), overdrive (60 mph) and recently replace mas-ter cylinder. Completely new suspension to include Rocky Mount Parabolic Springs, new bushings, shocks...everything. All electronics works great and has interior dome light, 2x Hella 500 auxiliary front lights, rear work light, Detachable face CD player with 2 Pioneer speaker. Interior is very good. All standard gauges plus temp, oil pressure, tach, and volts. New gear shift lever and knob. Rear seats have never been sat in. High back front seats OK but not great (one small hole). Floor mats all around to include front noise/ heat insulation. Rear interior repainted in 1999. Exterior is in good but not great shape. One ''battle scar'' on right door from prior owner and the hood needs paint. Custom front winch mount (no winch) and rear swing-a-way spare tire/ jerry can carrier. Full size spare also hood mountable. D-90 side mirrors. Top re-painted in 1999. New windshield wipers, front turn signals and gas cap. Tires are Radial Super Sport 245/75R16 and all (5) in great shape. Over $2,500 spent less than 250 miles ago to include stainless exhaust valves, stellite intake valves, hard-ened seats, unleaded conversion, new head with high peak design (8:1 compression), complete break job, replace rear differential, new transfer case and engine mounts and new rear outer wheel bearings. Extras include hand crack, plug-in engine warmer, Hi-Lift Jack with front mount and many spares. This Rover is not perfect but very reliable, well built and taken care of with minor flaws. I MUST SELL because my family is growing and I can not afford a second Rover. In all honesty the only flaws in this Rover is the hood needs work and a 'groan' in the rear end. I have had two LR certified mechanics look into the noise and they ensure me all is fine mechanically but I have not had time to get it fixed (sounds like a U joint). Mechanic can verify the quality of the Rover. Price negotiable. Pics of entire rebuild possible for very seri-ous inquiries. Matt La Frenz :amlafrenz@aol.com OR (912) 790-9259

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ENGLISH - SWEDISH SPARES 345 Branch Drive Alpharetta, GA 30004

Largest collection of recycled Saab, Volvo, Jaguar and Land Rover Parts in the Southeast. Just off Mcfarland Road 1 mile west of GA 400. Toll Free 1-800-241-1916 Local 770-475-2662 Fax 770-475-2663

More Land Rovers and Parts For Sale For Sale: Used ARB bull bar for a '95 Defender 90. Drilled to accept a Warn XD9000i winch. Some well earned scratches but nothing serious. $650 or near offer. Will deliver within 50 miles of Atlanta/Athens. John Casteel 678-576-7925

Bear Valley Land Rovers News - Bear Valley Land Rovers has become the local dealer for new Laforza 4x4 vehicles—an interesting mix of Italian coachwork and Ford running gear that was first seen in the US market more than ten years ago. These vehicles have been absent from the US market for a while but they are making a comeback as so many other manufacturers such as Mercedes, VW and Porsche gear up to tap into the seemingly endless demand in this country for our be-loved SUV’s. The Laforza was seen as a competitor for the Range Rover (but with much more power) back when it was first introduced. My cousin desperately wanted one of these back then. It has a 5.0 liter Ford V-8 under the hood and you can learn more about it at the following website: www.laforza.com or via a link off the Bear Val-ley website at www.bvlr.com. Bear Valley has also donated some items to SOLAROS to be raffled off among the club members to help raise money for the club. These include: 2 black A-bars for Discovery Series I 1 chrome A-bar for Discovery Series I (the A-bars make good auxiliary light mounts) Two tire covers for Discovery Series I (one with a Land Rover oval one with a giraffe) One pair of alloy 16” wheels for a Series II Discovery One cargo net for a Series II Discovery Please submit your bids to the Club Treasurer, Jack Wal-ter in person or via e-mail (solaros1@att.net) by the end of this month (Feb 28). Thanks guys for the donations—we’ll put them to good use!

Jackson Pike has TJM front bumpers for Defenders and front and rear bumpers for Discovery Series I vehicles at very favorable prices—he also has a large stash of Cibie auxiliary lights, some Hellas and lots of other lights, bulbs and relays in stock . Contact him at 678-714-0516 or visualeffects@charter.net

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THE GREENLANER Southern Land Rover Society 1325 North Point Way Roswell, Ga 30075-4135

Inside This Issue: Pig Trail adventures Windrock Trail report A Series III 109 for a keg of beer Hydraulic Winch installation Grayrock ORV area Off road Tips Lots of stuff for sale Bear Valley news

MEMBERSHIP RATE SCHEDULE Annual membership $40/year Membership includes a subscription to The Greenlaner and a SOLAROS club decal for your Land Rover and membership in the Southern FWD Association. Additional decals are available for $2 each or 3/$5 Advertising rates for the Greenlaner: Business Card $45/year 1/4 Page $95/year 1/2 Page $200/year Full Page $395/year Ron Ward is the Membership Chairman. Please send all of your new membership enquiries to: 873 Peachtree Dr., Columbus GA 31906 e-mail: ronward@synovustrust.com Send your membership renewal checks to: Solaros club Treasurer; Jack Walter at 1325 North Point Way, Roswell, GA 30075.

Solaros can be found on the net at: http//www.solaros.com

Please send all stories, ads, pictures and other submissions for the Greenlaner to Jack Walter at the following address: solaros1@att.net