I would like to comment on the post by LandRoger on Monday 29th may Subject “Idiots†This is not an accurate account of the meeting;
First there were two Discovery’s two Range Rovers, two 90’s and one Nissan. I would now like to put the record straight. We were on the plain when we bumped into Roger. On or first meeting he made some comments to one of the group about ripping up the byways as he handed out flyers to join the Mud Club. I do not believe any of the group were in fact "tearing up the byway", however I had my attention fixed on my GPS, which is linked to my laptop running memory map 2004, and at the time I was working out which byway we could take from the many lanes to chose from on the plain. Our track for the day is still on my lap top if anyone would like to see it.
The next time we met (and this is where Roger is referring to wives and siblings applauding our antics) - yes, I must confess this was off the byway BUT it was not an Ancient burial ground or Tumulus as they are known, Tumulus are distinct mounds and have posts around indicating what they are, they are also noted on the Ordinance Survey maps - which this was not. Please correct me if my understanding is incorrect. There were no signs indicating it was anything of the sort, we were not trying to “get some air†- if you saw my Range Rover you would know that is not what I do with it. As for gathering up spectators and doing a star burst escape, again no such thing happened. Roger explained we could be arrested, fined and have our vehicles confiscated from us. I am aware of this, which is why I tend to be careful where I am going while on the plain. There was no mass jeering or any comments such as “So Whatâ€Â. We parted, as I thought, on reasonable terms as I thought our conversation was over. He mentioned something about taking our numbers and we left all in one direction and slowly.
He then mentions taking a Short cut? Was that a byway? I don’t think so or at least I did not see it on the map, Rogers’s knowledge of the plain is obviously far greater than mine.
Next he watched us tearing up and down Roman road/ditch which was clearly marked! Clearly marked? Thinking back I do recall a few poles however nothing was fenced off, we did not knock any down. As you turn the corner following the byway you’re confronted with many tracks all heading off in the same direction, the lads found a muddy puddle on one of the tracks and drove through it. How wide is a byway? I have been told a byway is five metres wide. Ignorance is not an excuse and having spoken to everyone involved on the day we all say if we were off the byway we put our hands up and apologise.
If Roger would like help in filling the Roman road/ditch as he called it I am willing to give him a hand, I am sure Romans did not make ditches along their straight roads so I imagine it could do with filling in, which would stop people from driving through it
We did in fact meet with the police as Roger said, however there were only two 110 police land rovers and the land warden - one person in each vehicle, not the numbers indicated by Roger. The officer accused us of driving “Beeches Barnâ€Â. After listening to the officer I showed him my GPS track and asked where “Beeches Barn†was, he described it and pointed it out on my laptop and could see that we had never been anywhere near it. The officers in the end was happy with our account of the events and went on their way No fixed penalty fines were given or numbers were taken.
I have been told that Roger is well respected and knows the Salisbury Plain very well. I don’t dispute this, what I do dispute is his account of the event and making us out to be a bunch of hooligans. This is far from the truth.
There are enough people making waves about the use of 4x4’s on the rights of way and even the highway without our own distorting the events, I wonder how many other accounted events posted on different forums are distortions of the truth.
I have no idea how we upset Roger and why he should write such fiction about us and as for naming and shaming. My name is Mark Bailey and I drive a Range Rover 3.9 EFI on Gas; It is not covered with loads of bolt on “Off Road†gear as it is not necessary for enjoying green lanes. I regularly use green lanes all over the country. I have travelled abroad in Europe and Morocco and know how to use a map. I have also campaigned to keep green lanes free and have been involved in lane clearing to keep the lanes open. I am sorry Roger felt he needed to embroider the facts of a very mundane meeting to make it sound more than it was.
