Photos and video by Yusuf Gorgec
By Perry Mack
Although it seems unrelated, bear with me for a few moments as I talk about windsurfing – it does relate to 4-wheeling. Back in the 80’s windsurfing reached an apex in it’s popularity. Just outside of my hometown of Waterloo, ON you could just about walk across the man-made lake at Laurel Creek Conservation Authority - it was so thick with windsurfers. From then on windsurfing’s popularity declined until it was virtually wiped out by the new sport of kiteboarding.
Windsurfing died out because the sport ignored first timers. All the technology, events, clubs and site development went into high performance equipment and training. The adrenalin rush drove the level of ability required into the stratosphere and like a rocket ship left everyone else on the ground without support or encouragement. Teaching techniques and equipment remained virtually unchanged for twenty years, leaving only us old farts in the sport until we switched to kiteboarding because our knee and shoulder surgeries couldn’t keep up.
It happens to any sport or organization that doesn’t make an effort to encourage new entrants. Take a look around at many community service clubs and you’ll see a lot of grey hair and declining membership.
Our series called Off-Road Essentials is designed to explain the basic to moderate concepts in 4 wheeling gear, etiquette and driving techniques. To demystify and denounce wrenching myths, to spell out the acronyms that we all toss out in conversation and perhaps expound on my belief that 4-wheeling is the most fun you can have with your pants on – in stock to only slightly modified rigs. To boldly go where everyone has gone before.
But at 4WDrive we’re still adrenalin junkies and tech geeks so you can rest assured there will continue to be more off-road race coverage, install features, outbound destinations plus product, tool and truck reviews – from the Canadian point of view. And that’s why your magazine keeps getting bigger; Canadians have a lot of valuable stories and innovations to shout about.
I’d like to ask that if you’re experienced with the 4WD lifestyle, share it and make time to help the new guys out in Canadian fashion – knowledgeably, politely and respectfully. When you see someone in a 4x4 making an error or about to make one – remember a little fortune cookie philosophy, ‘Only the person who reaches too far knows how far they can reach’.
Because that’s how we all got to where we are now, one mistake at a time.