Dear Members Well the year is almost over and with the Christmas Party being the last official event of the year as well the biggest Christmas party ever (140 people) I believe that we have had a great and very successful year. December is usually very quiet with most members spending time with family and friends and not travelling around Africa. If you want to go somewhere and want to get some members together then please email me and I will send the email out. These outings will all be unofficial club trips. I will be away for a few days and so only emails received before the 14th of December will be forwarded. A very big welcome to all the members of Boland Eco 4's that have decided to join us and thank you to Rudi who believes that we have more to offer the Boland Eco 4's group than anyone else. We will hold a welcoming get together early in 2008 to welcome the BE4's into the 4x4 Offroad Adventure Club. We now have four international sister clubs who have joined us: Braddon 4x4 Club of Tasmania Brixia 4x4 Club of Italy Nelson 4x4 Club of New Zealand Auckland 4x4 Club of New Zealand Russell has a West Coast trip planned for January (after the schools go back) and we are having a planning Pow Wow and we will be able to let you have the 2008 programme by mid January. Any requests or suggestions are welcome. Also remember our big 10th anniversary meeting at the Gariep dam in May...we need your support and there will be over R20 000 worth of prizes being given away on the weekend. It will also be our first BIG interclub meeting so please make an effort to be there. Thank you for all your support during the year and especially a big thank you to all the folks who organise, plan and run trips for the club. Russell Johann Hein Ian and Veronica Clive George and Susan Viv and Mary Philip Let us make our 10th year of existance a year to remember. Merry Christmas and please drive carefully. Greg I never received any response to this request 4x4 News Brief NB NB NB I use a number of groupings for my emails and so I need to know if you never received the 4x4 News Brief so that I can add you onto the relevant list. Please let me know soonest and then I can send the 4x4 News Brief to you.   What we have done Since the 8th of January 2007 we have advertised and/or run the following outings: Midweek Madness January Boegoeberg Richtersveld Lamberts Bay Dunes Valentines Party Botswana/Namibia Botswana Diamond West Coast Malgas Fishing Weekend 24 Rivers Hike Midweek Madness February Bird Watching/Camping Trip Zimbabwe Long Haul Kruger National Park trip 4x4 Breakfast Run Riebeeck West Midweek Madness March Klein Tafelberg Bush Medical Course Club Meeting Zimbabwe Longhaul #2 Midweek Madness April Pella Trip Club Picnic Elands Bay trip Sushi Social GPS Run Midweek Madness May 15 Passes Angola Coffee evening Evening with Boland Eco Fours June social evening Photographic Competition Midweek Madness July Technical Driving Day Destination Unknown Adventure Karoo National Park Wild Flower Weekend trip Wild Flower Day Trip Bojaanskop Matroosberg Trip Mont Eco Frans's Kalahari Trip Prawn evening in Simons Town Club meeting Comms and coffee evening Kruger Park trip Ou Trekpad Atlantis Dunes GPS Course for members 10th anniversary trip 2008 Richtersveld 2008 End of year function Mozambique 2008 Luiperdskloof Midweek Madness Nov - Steers Strand Christmas Party   Interest Groups - Bike Group Cederberg Ride Paarl Ride Franschoek Ride Moorreesburg/Darling Malmsbury/Riebeeck West Laaiplek Ride Muldersvlei breakfast Run Zonkwasdrift Ride Atlantis Riebeeck West Elands Bay GPS route planning Moorreesberg Breakfast Ride West Coast Ride Cederberg Ride West Coast Witsand Genadendal Sutherland   Interest Groups - Photographic Group Meetings every month   Welcome to our newest members: John McGahey Stephen and Linda Knoetze Roy and Maureen Bane Darin and Polly Sacker Charl and Ronel Laas Jurgen and Michelle Steinicke Werner and Irna Lotter Dave and Judy Pretorius Ian and Karin Theron Jeanne and Silvana van Jaarsveldt (transfer from Gauteng) Jorg and Rochelle Mauderer Mark Botha Jean De Villiers Dolf Laas Leon Rost   Richtersveld 2008 This was a surprise. I had two bookings from this year and a few enquiries so I sent out the email. Wow twenty nine people booked in the first few days. It will work as follows: We limit the number of vehicles to ten per guide (currently there are two of us) so that means 20 vehicles. If I get a third guide then we can take 30 vehicles but do not count on it at this stage. The last nine people are on a waiting list and as soon as payments are due, in January, we will finalise the list as I am sure some folks will cancel I am sure we will be able to accomodate everyone. There has been a demand to be in my group. At this stage I am taking some folks from our Gauteng branch in my group as well as Morne (he booked in March this year) and the rest of the places will be allocated nearer the time. My group will leave in the evening and get to a bush camp at around midnight we will then explore the next morning at get to Springbok at about noon (Friday). The folks who could not leave on Thursday evening will join us here and the groups will be split and reallocated here. Russel, the other guide has suggested that we try and spend one night together somewhere. We will see if we can find a spot and see if this will work. There is one rule though....the area we are visiting is a pure wilderness area and is visited by nobody except us. You will each have to sign an agreement that no coordinates, tracks or information pertaining to this trip will be forwarded to any forum, mapping group, T4A, Garmap or anybody else. If this is done your membership will be cancelled immediately.   Any ideas....... If you have any ideas about anything, want to get involved, want something new, want to visit a place that is not on the programme or ANYTHING else then please email me and I will see what we can do. I think we have created a great base from which to work and with our ten year birthday around the corner we can only do better.   Members Page Come on members....send your details and a family photo to Russell for inclusion on the members page. russdewet@icon.co.za   Website Sponsors. Please support the website sponsors. They sponsors have all been selected by us and give great service