I love this time of year. Spring is in full flow, and it is the beginning of the show season. That means, camping, BBQ’s and of course, Land Rovers. Many, many Land Rovers. It’s also a great chance to catch up with friends not seen during the winter months and discuss what’s gone wrong with our vehicles since we last spoke.

The first show of the year for us was Castlewood 4×4 over at the Cheshire Showground. I’ve never been to this event before, and wasn’t too sure what to expect. This event was not Land Rover centric, instead it was open to all brands of 4×4 vehicle. As such, there was more than a horde of Defenders to look at.

Above – Pretty in Pink – The LRLife stand was quite colorful once Bertie appeared!

Walking through the club stands to see what was about is always interesting, and more so at Castlewood because the variety of vehicles on offer was wider. There were a host of Japanese 4×4 enthusiasts flexing their suspensions, some American classics were on display and a host of vehicles that had been modified in weird and wonderful ways.

Below – The LRLife Club shop was manned by our team of dedicated professionals. And Emma.

The highlight for me though, was the dirt track. I’ve watched rally cars go around courses on television before, but never have I seen anything quite like the competition 4×4’s shooting around the course. There was mud, there was mayhem, there was carnage. Vehicles were upside down, on their sides and balancing on see-saws! It was phenomenal. Best of all, some of them were Discovery 2’s. Seeing the same type of vehicle conquer the track the way these ones did hammered home how capable they are to me. Alright, so they were lifted, upgraded and had bigger wheels and tyres than mine, but the base vehicle’s the same.

Above Left & Right – The off road arena was a great spectacle and provided great entertainment for the show visitors all weekend.

I was tempted to take Larry around the track on the Sunday, when the course was open to the public, however I also had to get home in him… maybe another time.

That evening, Ian confessed that there was something at Castlewood that he had always wanted to do but never had the chance to up until now. Not pelting through mud on the crazy course, but axe throwing. We couldn’t let that go, so we sent Phil, the Head of Procurement, so speak to the chap at the stand.

Below – The inaugural LRLife axe throwing competition. It would be churlish of us to mention the only one not to score a point was Andy, so we won’t.

After swift negotiations, we were in. Competition and banter were high, old rivalries reared their heads. Unfortunately, the level of skill was nowhere near the level of back talk. The final scores were close, but not particularly high. Fun was had by all however, and there was only one winner. With the grand total of nine, yes nine, points, was Ian. A close second was OG Dave, with eight points. Everyone else came in underneath that.

I am also glad to report that no one was harmed while throwing axes.