CAPE TO CAPE – RENAULT PUTS ITS TRUCKS TO A GRUELLING TEST
By Julian Nettlefold
13 Apr 09. The Editor was privileged to be chosen to join on the fourth section of the second Renault Trucks Cape to Cape expedition from Norway to South Africa. After months and months of preparation, the Renault Trucks vehicles and members of the Cape to Cape expedition travelling from Cape North (Norway) to the Cape of Good Hope (South Africa) finally set out on 1st March to cover a distance of 30,000kms. The first stages will see them facing up to the wind and the cold as they cross the spectacular Norwegian landscape in winter. The Team had spent two years planning the trip and had conducted a recce using one Kerax and one Sherpa the year before travelling the whole route. Every single Government on the route had to be informed about the trip and permission granted for crossing borders.
A party of 21 journalists joined the Expedition at the Dead Sea and we travelled across spectacular countryside going via Petra and Wadi Rum reaching Al Aqabah on Easter Monday evening. The convoy consisted of six Kerax 450.26 6×6 trucks and six Sherpa 2 vehicles, purpose built for the event using the Sherpa 2 running gear developed for the military requirements.
The Editor had always wanted to visit Petra and the effect was startling and totally memorable and unforgettable. A walk from the hotel takes you down a winding rock route to the centre of Petra where the stunning Exchequer building is based, carved out of 150 million year old rock. Shaun Connors of Jane’s had expressed scepticism about Petra and said he would only spend a few minutes there, preferring to get back to his trucking! After 15 minutes he was completely involved in the spectacle reeling off photo after photo and posing for a number of shots taken by myself and Charleen Clarke from the South African magazine ‘Focus on Transport and Logistics.’
But, Petra was a sideshow to the real purpose of the event to prove the durability of Renault’s Kerax and Sherpa range to military and civil operators alike. As a former PR consultant working on vehicle demonstrations, the pitfalls experienced in the most amiable environments can be huge, but when this is transferred to what was in effect a live demonstration with no practice runs – slip ups and break downs can occur right at the wrong time and wreck what is in effect a great vehicle. The audience always remembers the breakdowns and crashes as the Editor found to his cost when he blew a gearbox on the SMC Sandringham 6 in front of the V.I.P. bus at the 1980 Armada Winterthur Exhibition! Result – No order!
The road part of the journey held no mishaps on leaving the Dead Sea with a quick lunch and a startling journey across the mountains with the convoy stopping at intervals to give journalists in the chase 4x4s a chance to take shots. The prize of the number of shots must go to a French photographer we nicknamed ‘David Bailey’ who must have taken 2000 shots! Maybe he was waiting for a crash or a breakdown! He was to be disappointed.
The convoy turned off–road 15kms before Little Petra where the drivers conducted a fast cross-country deployment across rocky terrain to a maze of sand dunes where the vehicles crawled up and scooted down with no breakdowns or mishaps. Certainly potential military customers of both vehicles would be impressed by the versatility of both vehicles. It must be taken into account that the majority of drivers were not trained demo drivers but came from all parts of the Renault organisation and going through a rugged selection and training process.
When we arrived at the Little Petra camp Site the organisers explained that as well as being a press event, Coast to Coast had a rigged timeline which required us to be on parade and ready to leave at the stated hour, usually 6am which we nicknamed ‘Renault Hour.’. It also became apparent later that the drivers were all required to take the same route