letters to the editor

Memories of Winter Past
Story & photos by Jeffrey Aronson
34
There’s nothing like seeing a long line of trail-equipped Land Rovers approaching you.
That is, of course, unless you are in a long line of Land Rovers heading directly
towards them.
That summed up the challenges presented by Mother Nature at this year’s Maine
Winter Romp, held from February 15 – 17. Yes, it will snow in New England during
the winter, but there’s such a thing as too much snow. Under sunny skies and chilly
temperatures, the 60 Land Rovers attending – from as far away as Ohio and
Pennsylvania – found themselves bogged down in deep snow and winching out
constantly.
The trail leaders worked quickly to change the convoy routes, but it meant that
new turnarounds had to be created in the woods [waist deep snow in some areas] to
permit vehicles to exit successfully. The sounds of winches turning, tow straps yanking
and shovels shoveling rang through the woods. Despite the many hours of hard work
[or waiting], spirits never flagged and everyone who could pitched in to help – even
though we never did get to the lunch break clearing.
Many of us spent a lot of time running winch cable and rope and making certain
that safety never took a back step to expedience. While some heavily-kitted out
vehicles found themselves stuck, some very stock vehicles [Discovery II, Range Rover
Classic] proved themselves very capable. Novice drivers received a lot of hands-on
instruction and learned a great deal about the extraordinary capability of their Rovers.
Where Series Rovers used to predominate at this event, most enthusiasts now run
their Range Rover Classics, Discovery I and IIs, and of course, their Defenders.
Organizer Bruce Fowler drove 50% of the Series Is present; a few Series IIAs from
Ohio [driven, not trailered], New Brunswick and Maine stood out for their rarity.
My ’66 IIA, largely stock, powered me through some fine icy sinkholes and even
helped yank out others. This was great for my passengers, a toddler named Sophie and
her father, Tomas. She only complained when we had to stop and seemed to enjoy the
pummeling and rumbling down the trails. No wonder – her father and I spent our day
grinning over another wonderful weekend in the snow.
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