Camp Rover

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From WalesTo WestfordThis is a picture of us at a place called Hay Bluff. We had wonthe Welsh heat of the “Search for a Legend” competition. bot -tom left; John Mathews - the original owner, bottom right;myself, top left; Lynne, my partner, top right; Chris Lake -Land Rover dealership in this area, middle right; AdrianMorris - Land Rover management.By James Powell[James Powell lives in Crickhowell, Powys,South Wales, UK. In a “coals to Newcastle”measure, he has become a Rovers North cus -tomer to find parts for his Series LandRovers. We asked him to tell us about hisLand Rovers - ed].This has been a difficult year for farmers inthe United Kingdom, but then, I’m genuinelyattached to our farm and our animals. With mypartner, Lynne, Iown and operateLlwyncelyn Farm,where we also dobed and breakfast.Our’s is a typicalhill farm; I keep400 ewes and afew cows. I used tobe an intensivefarmer, but I’ve cutback and now Ienjoy it more. The Godley House Bus as it is today .Not surprisingly,we have many old Land Rovers which seemto go perfectly with our 16th century farmhouse.All my Land Rovers are Series II’s andII-A’s, although I did pick up a FC 101, too.I’m embarrassed to say how many I own.Some are used for spares and some I hope torestore. I’ve always liked them and used them.The basic reasons are the nuts and bolts, andthey have character. In America, you haveHarleys - in England, we have Land Rovers!I always look for a Land Rover in eitherunusual or original condition. We found thislatest addition, an 88” Regular Land RoverStation Wagon built in December, 1962, at alocal antique dealer’s yard. Everything lookedfine but we had a bit of a job finding the originalback door. The antique dealer was lessthan honest about the previous owner butdid say that the back door was in a farm inStanton. He didn’t knowthe name of the last ownerand all we had to go onwas the name on the origi -nal log-book, which wasJohn Matthews. Weassumed that John lived inStanton and that we couldfind him.When we arrived inStanton, we found that thedirections the dealer gaveus were impossible to follow,so we asked a fewlocals if they knew a “JohnMatthews.” No one everheard of him, not surprising,as he had never livedthere. We drew a blank, butthen met an agriculturalcontractor and describedthe Land Rover to him. Hethen remembered seeing itlocally and gave us directionsto get to the farmerwho had once owned it. Wefound the farm and,although the farmer knewnothing of its history that hecould tell us, he did still havethe back door.He said that the LandRover had belonged to hisgrandfather and that he hadsold the Land Rover withsome other vehicles as a jobcar to “Danny the BangerMan” [“Banger Men” buyand sell cheap or scrapcars]. We decided to try our luck and write toJohn Matthews at the address in the old logbook, not knowing if he was still there, oreven still alive. Some time later, we received aletter from John’s sister, who said that Johnwas abroad.Upon hisreturn, he thenwrote to us,expressing surpriseand delightthat the LandRover was stillaround! He wasable to give us itshistory for the first five years of its life, whichwas spent in Pakistan. He had ordered itdirectly from the factory in Solihull, withoptional extras such as 16” wheels and anaccompanying speedometer, fuel filler locks, asecond windscreen wiper, and twin jerrycanholders on the front bumper. At £785, it wasover £200 more than the small sedan of itsera, but its export to a former colony meant areduction in tariffs and a reduced cost. Thecolor was “Mid Grey;” the same color it holdstoday.John was a geography lecturer at AitchisonCollege, the “Eton” of Pakistan, between 1962-1967. He flew over to Pakistan but had theLand Rover shipped over from the factory. Ahired driver then had to take it from the coastto the college, but the seats were all packed upin boxes. So he found a concrete block and saton that for the entire trip. As John served asthe master of a student boarding house at thecollege, it quickly became known as “TheGodley House Bus.”He drove the Land Rover all over Pakistan,Kashmir and Afghanistan. From a photoarchive provided by John, we know it followedcamel caravans in Afghanistan and tackled thesnows of Salang Pass in Hindu Kush. It crossedthe Thar Desert. Near the border of Kashmir, itpassed another camel caravan on a narrowtrack where a load fell off one camel andcrushed part of the safari roof. In Punjab, itneeded a team of water buffalo to pull it outfrom a failed fording of the Cherab River. Neara huge poppy field, John stepped out of the carto take photographs and heard a warning shotfired at him; he returned to the car and droveaway.In one memorable trip through centralAfghanistan, the engine froze solid [antifreezewas an expensive luxury -ed.] and strandedhim. John had to abandon the vehicle in themountains and walk for three days to the nearestroad to get out. He hiked to Kabul, wherehe knew the Deputy Prime Minister. Thisfriend’s considerable clout resulted in anarmed guard surrounding the vehicle andarranging for a tow to Kabul for repairs. Someweeks later, John picked the car up at theAfghan Consulate in Peshawar.Petrol was a problem; fillingstations were few and farbetween and there was only oneHighest road in Asia. Salang Pass,Hindu Kush Mtns.grade. If you found a station, therewas no guarantee that it wouldhave petrol there. Spare partswere also a problem. Once, a localcraftsmen also repaired thedynamo with a bit of copper wire.At another point, the Land Roverdeveloped gearbox trouble and, inthe absence of qualified mechanics,John received advice to take it totwo old brothers who had a reputa -tion for being able to fix suchthings. He called on them a fewdays after leaving the vehicle withthem and was horrified to see hisgear box in pieces, all over thepath in front of their house. Oncereassembled, the box worked perfectlyand continues going strongtoday.Fording a river, Punjab. Minutes after this photo wastaken, we were pulled out by water buffalo.When John returned to this country, hetraded the vehicle in for a Range Rover, preferringthe speed and comfort of this new model.Since then, it seems to have spent the next 30years in the farm in Stanton, before being soldto Danny the Banger man where it was therebought by our antique dealer. To complete theCoals to Newcastle or...Wales To Westfordcircle of the car’s history, we now have theoriginal registration number -557 EUE- whichis the one it had coming from the factory. Johneven gave us the original jerry cans.Not long ago, when I was coming backfrom a trip to London, I stopped at a servicestation and a gentleman from Pakistan cameover to see me. He had recognized the Arabicscript on the side of the car and knew it said“Godley House Bus”. His children are in collegeand are boarding the Godley House. It’s asmall world.Until the recent quarantine because of footand mouth disease, I had continued on page 18© 2001 Rovers North Inc • 1319 VT Route 128, Westford, Vermont 05494-9601, USA • 802.879.0032 • e-mail rovers@together.net • www. r o v e r s n o r t h . c o m
The coveted Rovers North Sightings MugSightings is a team sport and many playerscompete fiercely to make the big leagues. Withthe completion of our Spring training, a rookiehas joined the Sightings team. We thank Jac’KiyeMcCollett, Augusta, ME, for her help in compilingthis issue’s column.With the immense snow pack in NewEngland slow to recede, we’ve “enjoyed” a longmud season so far. That’s kept us out of somefavorite fields and woods as effectively as footand mouth disease had closed off the Englishcountryside.Happily, though, we’ll be emptying more ofthe crockery cupboards with this issue of theRovers North Newsletter. As always, it’s importantfor you rookies to review the rules forSightings - and it wouldn’t hurt if some veteranswould take a look again, too.Rule #1 - All Sightings receive recognitionand our appreciation, but not necessarily amug. We reward only those Sightings that cap -ture the unique qualities of Land Rovers andtheir owners, and display them in a uniqueway .Rule #2 - If your Sighting does not reallysurprise you, it won’t surprise us, either, andyou won’t get a mug. We’re delighted, but notsurprised, that Land Rovers appear in Britishtelevision programmes, British publications,films with British themes, and shows aboutAfrican safaris. You shouldn’t be surprised,either, and should consider looking for otherways to get a coffee mug.Rule #3 - At an ever-changing date beforepublication, we close off the Sightings. Ifwe’ve mentioned the Sighting in an earlierissue, we won’t mention it again. If you’renew to the family of Land Rover enthusiasts,you may not have seen your Sighting in anearlier issue.Rule #4 - We’re not outfitting your kitchen.If you qualify, one mug per Sighting per issue.Rule #5 - Sightings that are Land Rover ref -erences in books go to our Literary LandRover editor for mention, but only whenspace permits.Rule #6 - Psst... if we can’t read you nameand address because of atrocious penman -ship, we can’t recognize your Sighting norsend you a mug. Psst...E-mail submissions -remember we can’t send a mug by e-mail.Send us your real name and shipping address,too.Rule #7 - Grudgingly, very grudgingly, theEditor admits he might make an error. Let meknow if you think you’ve been jobbed, but alldecisions of the Editor are final.SIGHTINGSRegarding Rule #7, the Editor must grudg -ingly, very grudgingly, admit that he neglected tolist John Oswald, Asheville, NC, as a Sightingswinner in the previous issue’s Sightings of anInternational Motorsports catalogue. A mug ison its way.Of course we’re never happy to see a totaledRange Rover, which *Terence Allen,Kinthersville, PA, saw in the movie “ExitWounds”, as well as, *Matthew Smith,Cranston, RI. watching a woman test her crashabilityon the wrong side of the road in a LandRover Discovery, in the children’s movie “LittleVampire”.A Land Rover is a dog’s best friend? *GregCoffman, Coshocton, OH, reports seeing aBoxer sitting at the wheel of a Series II 88 in the2001 issue of Men’s Journal magazine while*Mike Bross, Hendersonville, NC, caught aglimpse of a “modified hardtop model” whilebrowsing Elle magazine. *Kevin Kelly, MillValley, CA, found a Discovery Series II with dualmountain bikes mounted on the roof rack as thecentral image in a Cisco Systems ad in RealEstate Forum. Steve Bradke, Niskayuna, NY,sent us a Sighting of a Defender 110 on an articleon African aid organizations in QST, theamateur radio fan’s journal.While the children are away the dads mustplay! Barry Greenhalgh, Pawcatuck, CT.,watches the “bad guys” cruise around in aSeries III 88 soft top inthe video game “DeltaForce II”. Keith Frank,Salt Lake City, Utah, spotteda Series I included inthe instruction manualfor the video game “TombRaider”. Not owningvideo games, we entrustthese readers to tell thetruth, the whole truth,and nothing but the truth- and it’s a great way tosell video games.7 year old*Hannah Thayer,Abingdon, VA., enjoys ridingin her fathers LandRover Pickup as well ashelping him search for“Sightings; she spottedone in a Reese’s PeanutButter Cup commercial.This next “Sighting” isnothing to sneeze at;*Jon Villanti, Williston,VT., views a black RangeRover during an antiallergycommercial forAllegra.An episode of TheSimpsons features Homer and the gang drivingto Africa. Their guide drives them around in a109” Series II; both Bob McCreary, Houston,TX, and Chuck Moffit (see Rule # 6) also spot -ted the poachers driving an FJ-40. A “Rover” inthe city? *Jeannie Peeler, Appomattox, VA.,watches as the heroine from the TV seriesProvidence dreams she is driven off in a limestonecolored Series II-A. *William DeVizia,Keyport, NJ., and Matthew Smith, Cranston, RI,watched as one of the TV show’s Sopranos sidekicksbuys himself a brand new black RangeRover 4.6. *Brian Lang, Los Angeles, CA[which he wrote as “LA” - how CA! -ed] found aNAS Defender 90 in an episode of the programSheena.*Nick Jacobs, New York, NY., spotted aSeries II-A in the Travel section of the New YorkSunday Times, being used for tourrides in Cumberland, GA; KevinHealy, Massapequa Park, NY,found the same article.A Series III outfittedas a RedCross ambulance inthe Winter 200-2001issue of the NATOReview was spotted by HenryQuisenberry, Enterprise, AL. JohnKountz, wrote to us after seeing a“Defender” in an issue of “Defense News”.Some bank tried to entice *ErnieAschenbach, Richmond, VA, to take a SouthPacific cruise by putting a photo of a Defender110 in the mailing. We’ll find out later if itworked. *Peter King, Signal Mountain, TN,spied a Defender 110 in full military kit in aHistory Channel special on the US Army’s GreenBerets - as Peter asked, “where are theHumvees?” *Arlene Kountz, Laguna Beach,CA, found that a Discovery is used as a “mobilemummy mover” by the Carlos Museum at EmoryUniversity in Atlanta - great photo in their alumnimagazine!As an April Fool’s closer, *Brian Riley,Minneapolis, MN, noted that theJanuary/February issue of Toyota Trails, the magazineof the Toyota Land Cruiser Association,featured a Land Rover on page 12 of thatissue.Winners:Arlene KountzLaguna Beach, CABrian LangLos Angeles, CABrian RileyMinneapolis, MNErnerst AschenbachRichmond, VAPeter KingSignal Mtn., TNKevin KellyMill Valley, CAJon VilliantiWilliston, VTMatthew SmithCranston, RI.Barry E.Pawcatuck, CTNick JacobsNew York, NYJohn OswaldAsheville, NCJeannie PeelerAppomattox, VAHannah ThayerAbingdon, VAJohn KountzLaguna Beach,CARon WardColumbus, GAKevin KellyMill Valley, CAKevin HealyMassapequa Park,NYPat HarrisWilton, CTJohn BradkeNiskayuana, NYWilliam DeviziaKeyport, NJGreg CoffmanCoshocton, OhioMike BrossHendersonville,NCTerence AllenKintnersville, PA© 2001 Rovers North Inc • 1319 VT Route 128, Westford, Vermont 05494-9601, USA • 802.879.0032 • e-mail rovers@together.net • www. r o v e r s n o r t h . c o m
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Camp Rover

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