Story by: Jeffrey Aronson / Photos by: John Robison and Jeffrey Aronson

In the 19 years of the British Invasion, Vermont’s premier British car event, Land Rovers have generally played the role of the “country cousin” in the family. The 500 vehicles and thousands of people who attend the September event celebrate British marques and models no longer in production – MG, Triumph, Austin Healey, Sunbeam - or rarely seen - Lotus, Aston Martin, Rolls Royce. Look in the back rows, that’s where you find the green oval.

Land Rovers get relegated to the status of clowns (the Rover Polo games in the early ‘90s), barbaric brutes (carrying a cheating Mini-Moke into the woods during a tug-of-war), pack horses (Rovers North’s hilly trail rides), or mud wrestling entertainment (Rovers North trials course). Regardless, a cheery group of Land Rover enthusiasts drive up every year to entertain the Jaguar XK-E and MG T-series owners. (…)

Story & Photos by Jim Edson

Land Rover Bluff City, Memphis, TN, will be hosting a guided trail ride for all Land Rover owners. Whether you’ve never been off-road, or you are an experienced rock crawler, this is your chance to experience what your Land Rover is truly capable of – we have a trail for you. If you don’t want to take your Rover “off-road,” come ride with one of the trained staff from Bluff City, we will have room for you along in one of our vehicles.

I had not been off-roading since SCARR last April (South Central Area Rover Rally in Texas –ed). So, right away I gave up my spot at the annual Texas Rovers trip to the Texas State Fair scheduled the same October weekend. With my ’04 Discovery II G4 running well, new tires on the Casita camper and my new camera I felt ready for this adventure. I had not been to the Superlift Off-Road Vehicle Park in Hot Springs, AR, in several years; all I could remember were some very rocky, long steep hills. (…)

WE ARE FAMILY

Story by Matt Martin & Aaron Williams / Photos by Matt Martin

[Matt Martin, Rovers North’s Marketing Director, selected himself again to attend the Solihull Society’s National Rally. No, we’re not jealous! –ed]

Welcome to Leadville, Colorado. 10,430 breath-taking feet above sea level. 310 days of sunshine every year. It is America’s highest incorporated city, and host of the 2009 Land Rover National Rally.

Since it began in 1989, the event has navigated some of the most thrilling terrain in Utah and Colorado. Now in its 20thyear, the event continues to promote and encourage responsible off-roading while attracting an ever-expanding variety of participants. In Leadville this year, the array of Land Rovers that lined up each morning to traverse the trails reflected the diversity of the marque: old Series, new Range Rovers and LR3’s traveling together, learning from one another and lending a hand when necessary. (…)

Cupid, draw back your bow
And let your arrow go
Straight to my lover’s heart,
for me Nobody but me…

Story by Jeffrey Aronson / Photos by Brenda Salmon & Jeffery Aronson

Ah, love, as crooned by Sam Cooke decades ago. Where does one find amour today?
Why, in the woods of Maine on Valentine’s Day weekend.

February 14, 2009, positively oozed romance. From a crisp morning temperature of 14 degrees F, the warmth in Unity, ME, rose to a balmy 27 degrees. The sun shone brightly, the winds died to gentle zephyrs, and the hum of heater blowers bathed the men and women present in the glow of Valentine’s Day.

Bruce Fowler, Unity, ME, a long-time Land Rover owner/enthusiast, once again organized this three day event. Avid winter campers could “enjoy” the outdoors on land surrounding his house; other less intrepid adventurers succumbed to charms of the “official host hotel,” the Holiday Inn in nearby Waterville. (…)

Live from Leadville, Colorado! Rovers North is LIVE at the 2009 Solihull Society Land Rover National Rally this year and we’ve been busy with some fresh photos!

Right out of the Nikon and up to the server, from our very own photographer Matt Martin, we’ve got a few quick pics from yesterday’s off-roading high up in Leadville, CO at the 2009 Solihull Society Land Rover National Rally. I can hear the chipmunks, smell the pine trees and feel the thin air - these photos rock!

Looks like excellent weather and awesome Land Rovers. The awards banquet is today and I’m sure there will be many more photos to come - stay tuned…

Are you hungry for photos? Photo gallery >> STARVING !!!

Gustaf Kupetz directing traffic
Story and Photos by Matt Martin

[Matt Martin, Rovers North’s Marketing Director, beat out everyone else in Westford for the chance to attend the 2009 SCARR event. Read why we’re all jealous –ed.]

Dirt, rain and mud. Fun, family and friends – and more mud… Everything’s bigger in Texas and the 2009 SCARR (South Central Area Rover Rally) was no exception. The Texas Rovers Club hosted the sixth anniversary event on April 16th-19th at the Barnwell Mountain Recreational Area. I went to cover the mirth and mud; hey, someone has to take on the tough jobs!

My journey began with a flight to Tampa, Florida, where I met up with the industrious team from Land Rover Lifestyle (LRL) Magazine. They had just started to kit-out a trio of new LR3s, making them off-road warriors for their 1st Descents project – an effort to test the limits of the LR3 on the roughest terrain in North America. (…)

Story & Photo by Bob Mohan
[Bob Monhan, Chester, VA, works as the logistics manager for an Italian specialty foods company and is a Virginia Master Naturalist. With Mary Beth, his wife, and their Discovery II, they enjoy hiking, nature photography and biking. Life was incomplete, however, until they found their first Series Land Rover. –ed]
Mary Beth and I bought our first Land Rover, a 2004 Discovery II, about 3 years ago after looking at virtually every other make of SUV out there. The unobstructed views offered by the seating position clinched the deal on the Discovery for us. I also liked its uniqueness (you don’t see yourself coming down the road several times a day) and quirkiness. I retained a vague awareness of it heritage and off-road prowess.
Nine months later we attended a dealer off-road event; simply put, the Discovery’s offroad capability blew us away. Now I had to take the Rover off-road more often. (…)

Story by Hallie Vail / Photos by Michael L. Palmieri Photography
[Hallie Vail, Springfield, MA, mixes graduate studies in education with Land Rover studies in off-roading. She took to the woods this fall and had a ball –ed.]
Graduate studies can tie you to the library and really sap your energy. A few New England events, alongside group trail riding in late summer, jerked me back on track to living and breathing Land Rover.
Rewind several months - I hadn’t done much “rovering” since Winter Romp 2008 in February. At that event, I made it 30-feet along the trail when I shattered the rear differential of my Range Rover Classic. Not to worry, it was a quality learning experience scooping shards of metal out from the pig and we always find ways to thoroughly enjoy Winter Romp.
Fast forward to late summer – still not much to tell. (…)

Tami Sutherland interview
Photo: Janet Poelsma
[How do Land Rover enthusiasts get started? We asked that very question of Tami Sutherland. Here’s her response –ed.”]
“I am an internet software developer and run a small business out of my home in Grottoes, VA. However, I grew up in Napoleon, MI, as mall farming community. As the saying goes, you can take the girl out of the country but you can’t take the country out of the girl. I escape to nature whenever I can.
“I love to travel and my business allots me the freedom to do so,so I take advantage of that often. Road trips are my favorite. I enjoy a variety of outdoor recreation: wheeling (of course), gardening,camping, hiking, canoeing, swimming, biking; anything that gets me away from concrete and into God’s country.”
“I had a 2000 Jeep Grand Cherokee and the transfer case failed at 150,000 miles, right after the payments ended. I wasn’t planning on a Land Rover. (…)

By Tami Sutherland
[Tami Sutherland, an internet software developer, just moved from Clearwater, FL to Grottoes, VA, no doubt inspired by her affection for her LR3 and the famous Mid-Atlantic Rally. Here’s her account of the October 2007 event –ed.]
Now let’s see, what do I have here? My rain jacket, umbrella, a new pair of Wellies, a month-and-a-half worth of clothes; hmmm, maybe I should bring an extra umbrella, just in case.
This was my first trip to the Mid-Atlantic Rally, also known by its acronym, the MAR. I’ve heard plenty about this event in years past, everything from major carnage adventures on the Pearls Pond trails, to odd tales of blow up animals and urinal cakes in the Philly Rovers circus tent (probably best not to ask more about that). The recollections vary from person to person, but one detail remains constant in everyone’s MAR memories: it’s wet, cold, soaking, drenching, rainy, muddy mayhem, and it’s a blast. (…)