So I knew from the start that Him Outdoors was a Land Rover owner but in the beginning I wasn’t introduced to his other beloved because she was in the garage at his parents’ house for much needed repairs.
I should explain now that as with many other classic cars Land Rovers have definite personalities and lots of them have names. Please excuse my habit of referring to them as she or he it truly is a sign that they have become a part of the family.
Anyway the old girl was in the garage and I thought nothing much of it until the idea was mooted that I should join him and her on a trip to the ARC National. Now I didn’t know what an ARC National was but I thought why not! It was a chance to spend more time with the man I loved. This was the point at which his girls were introduced.
I’m not sure what I was expecting but I can honestly say it was not what I found when I stepped into that garage. There were bits everywhere and my immediate thought was that it was never going to be on the road in time. Of course I was missing a very important point about the Land Rover it is in essence a man sized construction toy and with the will and a certain amount of luck it is possible to take one apart and put it back together with relative ease. Although as many other Land Rover widows could testify the speed at which one is taken to pieces is rarely matched by the speed of rebuilding. I was unaware of this at the time just as I was unaware that being in pieces to a lesser or greater degree is one of the natural habitats of the Land Rover these were lessons that I’d learn in time.
The main thing as far as I was concerned was that thanks to a very hectic weekend for Himself and a handy mate (a handy mate is a definite necessity for Land Rover ownership) the old girl was back together and ready to take the trip to the ARC National.
Monday, 30 August 2010
Wednesday, 14 July 2010
The Way to Land Rover Widowhood
I never dreamt I would end up living a life dominated by Land Rovers, I mean what woman does? Somehow that is what I ended up with and for all of it’s quirks it is a life that I enjoy, most of the time. This is my attempt to explain just what living with a Land Rover Obsessive can be like.
It started in the way that many good stories do with girl meeting boy although in our case it was more life weary twenty-something meeting cynical thirty-something. That really is another story, instead it is enough to say that from the start I was aware that cars played an important part in the life of Him Outdoors. A one time mechanic he had been a boy racer and spent his free time working on rally teams. He was in short a first class petrol head, I on the other hand was not. I had never learnt to drive and came from a mostly non-driving family, I certainly did not know one end of an engine from the other but in time honoured fashion opposites were attracted and a relationship was born.
Even once we were a couple I never suspected that Land Rovers would come to take over my life. So maybe the early date to watch a Comp Safari should have been a clue but I was too in love to realise, I wanted to learn more about the things he enjoyed. I was to learn a lot more.
Before meeting Him Outdoors I honestly only had the barest awareness of what Land Rovers were. I thought that they were driven by farmers and the like and that Range Rovers were for those who thought them selves better than the rest of us. My only experiences of the marque had been mostly thanks to a gamekeeper friend of my grandfather, a teacher with a Range Rover and a Discovery owning chap I used to get an occasional lift home from work with. I could recognise a Land Rover, or at least a Land Rover badge, but that was about my limit. I certainly didn't understand the difference between Series landies and Defenders let alone between the Series I, II and III. And I am not about to bore you with them now because yes to those who aren't a part of the scene it is about as interesting as watching paint dry. Hell even to me now a discusion about the more subtle differences between the models is enough to have my eyes glazing over. I suppose that what I am trying to say is that I learnt quickly that the old adage if you can't beat them join them is very true.
It started in the way that many good stories do with girl meeting boy although in our case it was more life weary twenty-something meeting cynical thirty-something. That really is another story, instead it is enough to say that from the start I was aware that cars played an important part in the life of Him Outdoors. A one time mechanic he had been a boy racer and spent his free time working on rally teams. He was in short a first class petrol head, I on the other hand was not. I had never learnt to drive and came from a mostly non-driving family, I certainly did not know one end of an engine from the other but in time honoured fashion opposites were attracted and a relationship was born.
Even once we were a couple I never suspected that Land Rovers would come to take over my life. So maybe the early date to watch a Comp Safari should have been a clue but I was too in love to realise, I wanted to learn more about the things he enjoyed. I was to learn a lot more.
Before meeting Him Outdoors I honestly only had the barest awareness of what Land Rovers were. I thought that they were driven by farmers and the like and that Range Rovers were for those who thought them selves better than the rest of us. My only experiences of the marque had been mostly thanks to a gamekeeper friend of my grandfather, a teacher with a Range Rover and a Discovery owning chap I used to get an occasional lift home from work with. I could recognise a Land Rover, or at least a Land Rover badge, but that was about my limit. I certainly didn't understand the difference between Series landies and Defenders let alone between the Series I, II and III. And I am not about to bore you with them now because yes to those who aren't a part of the scene it is about as interesting as watching paint dry. Hell even to me now a discusion about the more subtle differences between the models is enough to have my eyes glazing over. I suppose that what I am trying to say is that I learnt quickly that the old adage if you can't beat them join them is very true.
A Little Explanation
In addition to the crafting that is the reason I started blogging in the first place writing has also long been an important part of my life. Confessions of a Land Rover Widow came out of online conversations with a friend and developed into articles for the Severn Valley Leafers magazine One Life, Leaf It. Since then I've developed them further and have started this blog to share this part of my life. This is a tongue in cheek look at my life, my take on things around me.
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