Land Rover G4 Challenge National Selections

The winners of this prestigious event will have the honour of Land Rover donating a vehicle on their behalf, to their National Red Cross or Red Crescent Society.

Even if you miss out on the big one, you might still be jetting off to Eastnor Castle in Herefordshire, Britain, in early 2009. That is, if you are good enough to be one of four people chosen from the G4 national selections, held recently around the Lithgow and Katoomba areas of New South Wales.

More than 40 tough as nails competitors were selected to compete in this punishing event, which included some extreme off-road driving, kayaking in ice cold water, mountain biking, cross-country running and abseiling down a cliff high enough, to scare the bejesus out of me.

Just getting to the first event was difficult enough, as the tracks (if you can call them that) were hard-core and very taxing for many of the G4 hopefuls.

Competitors arrived on the scene early Saturday morning just after an energy sapping exercise that involved pushing the vehicles, sans engine power, along with some 20-litre water bottles across a grassy field.

It was then a case of competitors hauling a kayak down – a long way down – and back up to a section of the Clarence Dam, where individuals needed to complete a 45 minute circuit that included a swim in 15-degree water, paddling a kayak down river, an exhausting run to the bottom of a ravine and back, climaxing with an abseil and jump into that cold water again, just to re-start your heart.

If that wasn’t enough, it was then a case of pack up and convoy towards Lost City, through some of deepest ruts and steepest rock crawls you’d ever want to attempt in a civilian vehicle, of any kind.

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