We met at the Ampol Wanneroo around 1pm and headed off up North to Lancelin. The bakery was next for a quick toilet stop and then headed off to the dunes, where we met Lorraine and Nathan.
Tyres were let down then we all headed off in convoy over the dunes, following our trip leader, Jeff.
The weather was a bit cooler than Perth but still very humid and not much of a sea breeze which is unusual for Lancelin as it is normally blowing a gale.
Jeff led us over several dunes starting off with the gentler slopes and then finding the steeper ones, until we found one steep enough to give us a run for our money. Several people gave it a go and it really depended on tyre pressure and speed. Except if you’re in a V8, they were just powering all the way up and throwing sand.
Alan discovered something new about his Everest. He was heading up a long sloping dune and had to stop half-way up it. When he tried to take off again the car wouldn’t move. Engine was running, everything was in gear but no drive. Apparently the engine CPU decided it had had enough. So we tried a trick that Tony suggested and turned it off and on again. Just like an IT help desk… And it worked, Alan had drive again.
Then a little while later, Tony got stuck. Yes, who would have predicted that. Tony with his portals and big tyres managed to bottom out going up a dune. Apparently Tony wasn’t paying attention and was wondering why he had no drive. Thinking the gearbox was playing up until we looked out the window. Since this is the first time ever he has been stuck we all had to take photos…
We then made it down to the beach for afternoon tea. There was a gentle breeze and a beautiful view out to the ocean. After that we headed back to the dunes for some more fun.
A visitor, Andrew, who may have been new to dune driving and maybe missed the mention over the radio that the next dune was steep on both sides, i.e. going up and down. Commonly referred to as a razorback. He had seen a few people get stuck on the way up so he gave it heaps. The 200 series flew up the dune and over and left the ground a little. It still landed on the downhill side but the front wheels dug in a little and forced the back wheels up in the air. From the outside, we observed, that it looked like the back was going over the top. But from inside the car, apparently it was all under control and Andrew applied power and the back wheels returned back to earth.
After that we headed off to dinner at the Lancelin pub. Had a nice chat about the day and then most people headed off home. Jeff and his son Cam, decided to do a little bit of night driving and headed off to the dunes for a short drive at night. I think he wanted to test out his spotlights that he fixed that morning.
