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Club News
A new British club has appeared, catering to the many fans of Dakar kit cars. Here Liz and Colin Nicholls, the organisers, explain the attractions of this very individual off-roader, and introduce the Dakar Owners & Drivers Organisation
		Still, after going around the block a few times, we finally came across an NCP. The only problem was the 6’3" height restriction, which meant that the car park attendants had to clear us in after we'd removed our aerials. We just fitted, but the carpark ceiling was still awfully close on many occasions. Parked up, we proceeded to find sustenance. On a walking tour of the town we discovered a tea room and after a light snack we ended up back at the B&B to rendezvous with other Dakars. We formed a convoy to go for a drive and, even though we didn't know where we were heading, the feeling of the convoy and conversations on the CBs led us to a little village looking for a pub. After a brief and accidental visit to a retirement village – where all of us had to reverse back out – we came across a founder member of the club, who directed us all to a pub we have frequently visited before. the Cubbington. Our club's own first event was held on the August Bank Holiday when, inter-rupting the cool, fresh silence of the morning, the rumbleof distant thunder announced the arrival of five other V8 Dakars. With ourselves, the six-strong convoy wound its way through the empty streets; so began the first and the largest, so far, gathering of the Dakar Owners and Drivers Organisation. It was held at Wedgnock Rifle Range, Warwick.	The drive through Warwick town centre to the Wedgnock off-road site with five other V8 Dakars was just the start of a fun day, one which would serve to thrill and educate new-comers to off-roading. At the end of the day, it was agreed that everyone had thoroughly enjoyed themselves. They had learnt a lot, got thoroughly dirty, met some new friends, and built up a list of desirable accessories and modifications for their Dakars. 4x4 fun days - roll on the next one! You can contact DODO by writing to: Liz & Colin Nicholls 21 Fairford Court, Stanley Road, Sutton, Surrey SM2 GRY
What is a Dakar? It's a kit car based on the Dennis Adams‘ Rotrax, which uses a Range Rover as its base vehicle. It's believed that there are currently fewer than 30 Dakars in the United Kingdom, and we're putting together a club to unite everyone through newsletters, meetings etc. The Dakar Club is about having fun. Some members have built them from scratch, some have part-built them, and others have bought them ready-built. The people who own them are generally pretty crazy, with a great sense of humour, but bringing everyone together – from as far north as Scotland and as far south as Kent – is pretty difficult. We always try to meet in and around the Midlands or Oxford region. The club currently consists of ten Dakars, and we know of a further six but not where to locate them. If you know of, own or see a Dakar, please do let us know. There are a few Dakars in Holland and France, but the hardest thing is knowing how to get in touch with them.	Our club offers a great social get-together, with loads of fun, a good break from the humdrum of life, and the chance to help each other whenever we have a problem. So far we have only arranged one club event this year, but we are planning to have at least two or three meetings per annum. There are a number of shows that we all try and attend, and if you wish to have a chat with us we are always at the Stoneleigh Kit Car Show in May and the Weston Park 4X4 Show in August. This year the Weston Park 4x4 Show went well, though our on-road activities were rather less successful than our performance in the mud. We all arrived at our B&B on Sunday after a lengthy search – our directions had stated that the B&B was on the left, when in fact it was on the right. We all decided to go for some lunch, but discovered that it's very difficult to find a parking spot for four Dakars (one of which looked very much like a Volvo).
28       LRW

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