Four Wheel Drive Club of Sri Lanka

FWDC Camp Trip 2009 - Moragaswewa

A Long overdue camping trip was organised over the Wesak weekend for the current members of the FWDC, former members whos renuewed their membership for year 2009 were hosted at a 3 days camping excursion to Moragaswewa situated in Habarana.

All Meals and beverages were on site served buffet style. A total of 25 people and their vehicles gathered to the campsite on friday afternoon for lunch organised opposite the Moragaswewa Lake. After which everyone started to pitch up their tents for the night. A very inviting lake got everyone ready for a swim to cool off after a hot days work. A scrumches Rotti, Dhal and fish curry dinner was organised that was thouroughly enjoyed by all.

The happy campers were also visited by a lone elephant in the wee hours of Saturday morning. A very well organised surch party was sent out for recon, just to assure that pachiderm didn't have any ideas to walk through our campsite.

After breakfast an andrenalin pumped group of our offroaders took off to tackle some natural obstacles in

and around the campsite whilst others just relaxed and took in the beauty of nature. A visit to Minneriya nature park was also organised for those who wished to join in, Come night time it was again a gathering near the campfire to chat about the days experiences over some chilled brews and a Hoppers served with katta sambol and chicken curry.

After much anticipation and effort, the first championship event scheduled in Nuwara Eliya did not take place, which as left the competitors, 4x4 enthusiasts, and the organizers itching for action in the following days.

There is a unique 2 day event brewing, which will have the championship a reality for the competitors and a little extra for the 4x4 enthusiasts who want to spend week end of 4x4 and be with the family, yes it is both possible. For the first time in the 4x4 history competitors and their guests will go to a clean white sheet beds after hot water showers in their chalets. Further they will be treated for a BBQ evening and with an opportunity to watch day 1 action on video footage.

Schedule

Sat 27^th June 10: am- 1:00 pm– Prologue – Extreme Class SS1-4

Sat 27th  June 2:30 pm -4: 00 pm – Novice & Ladies Event

Sat 27^th June 4:00pm – 6:00pm – Kiddies Quad Bike Event

Sat 27^th June 7:30pm -10:30pm – BBQ Nite

Seat Belts - Better than insurance...

Today alot of 4x4 clubs & organisations are in the habit of organising off road events on very high competition levels, but people who take part are not sufficiantly educated regarding thier safety.

The most important safety feature on any motorised vehicle I belive is the SEAT BELT, it does not matter if your vehicle is equiped with the most state of the art Air Bag systems or Anti Collision warning system or covered with the most comprehensive car insurance policy; if the occupants are not safely straped in; Airbags do not replace seatbelts. A seatbelt allows you to hit the airbag while it's deflating without a seatbelt, an inflating airbag can hurt you.. It only takes an object moving at less than 10Km/P to sustain injuries in the event of a collission.

"Failure to wear a seat belt contributes to more fatalities than any other single traffic safety-related behavior. 63% of people killed in accidents are not wearing seat belts. Wearing a seat belt use is still the single most effective thing we can do to save lives and reduce injuries."

In a collision, three things can happen very quickly:

• your car collides with another vehicle or object,
• you collide with the inside of your car, and
• your organs collide with the inside of your body.

That's why it's essential to wear a seatbelt.

Date : 12th April 2009 (Easter Sunday)

Locations: Kalutara

P.O.A : Kayaking & Picnic.

A small gathering of the founder members & their families set out to Kalutara on Sunday to explore the Delta of Kalu Ganaga. It was a day of good fun for all.

The day was brite and sunny, the river was not so calm but adventurous as we are took on the heavy flow and paddled for all glory up river in the Kayak. The founder members decided that more of these type of family oriented activites should be organised for the members.

Another camping trip is scheduled in the books...

It's late i know but, found this article on my pc and thought it'll be nice to upload for all to reminice about the event...enjoy :)

SLARDAR 1000 4x4 Rally – A Co- Drivers Story

It all started at the 4x4 challenge 2006 awards ceremony when SLARDAR president announced they are to re instate the SLARDAR 1000 Rally with a twist for the off road enthusiasts, with this information I approached my brother in law who is also a keen off-roader and a seasoned outdoorsman to take up the challenge of participating in the rally in June 2007.

Preparations started almost immediately, we were expecting the worst thrown at us from the organizers. With this in mind we set of to design the perfect vehicle to cope with the terrain, we chose a Toyota Land cruiser BJ-70 Series vehicle as it was small and agile to take the beating. 6 months and counting…the worn out vehicle was entirely stripped down to the chassis and inspected for any damages, all the body panels were removed including the electrical wiring for close inspection. Damaged parts were re molded or bought second hand. We were lucky enough to have a dedicated team of mechanics who worked round the clock to have the vehicle ready.