We approach a steep downhill slope where the trail just seems to drop away from you. Since we don’t have a good view of the approach to the descent, Justin, the Land Rover driving instructor, suggests that we step out of the car to get a better sense of what lies ahead. We jump out of the confines of the Range Rover’s luxurious cabin onto a slippery surface of loose sand and rocks – suggesting that this may get somewhat tricky.
The Range’s parked just before a sharp left turn leading to the descent, which means that we have to turn the car and have it pointing straight before we start heading downhill – try going sideways through a steep downhill slope and you’re likely to find yourself on your roof very quickly. We get back in the car to activate the Range Rover’s Hill Decent Control (HDC), after which we proceed to navigate our way through trees on either side of the trail – taking a wide line so that we can straighten the car before we start heading downhill in earnest. |
Justin now suggests that I simply keep the steering pointed straight and take my foot off the pedals. ‘Take my foot off the pedals?’ I look at him like he’s a man with a death wish but he nods reassuringly. The car lunges forward for an instant before the tires find grip and the Hill Descent system uses traction control to manage our downhill speed. I use all my will power to avoid following my natural instincts of standing on the brakes, which could possibly cause the car to pitch sideways and, as previously explained, eventually leave us sitting on our roof. The tires fight the surface for grip the whole way but the Hill Descent Control uses the angle of the slope to control our speed beautifully. We make it to the bottom of the hill without incident, and, in retrospect, quite easily – the technology in the Range Rover proving triumphant once again.
I’m attending the Land Rover Driving School at Quail Lodge in Carmel, California – one of the most scenic parts of the US west cost. Set amidst some of the best golf courses in the world, there’s about 100 acres of private forest land owned by Quail Lodge. This is used by Land Rover to educate anyone who cares about the finer points of off-road driving – in some of the best machinery in the world suited to the task. The Land Rover Driving Experience is an off-road driving school set up by the company in different parts of the US, essentially with the aim of providing owners or prospective owners the chance to experience the true capabilities of their vehicles in a safe and controlled environment, and, most importantly, sitting alongside professional driving instructors.
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