My big training week with African Offroad Academy started out on Sunday 20/06/2010 at 06:00 when we woke up and frantically got the last goodies together for the big trip because until Saturday evening (late) I was convinced my plane leaves CTI at 11:00. With a shock i realised the 11:00 that stuck in my head was the ARRIVAL time at OR Tambo. I still had to get the Ford sorted so that it could go visit Allan for a pre-long-trip service, pack a few goodies and I promised E a goodbye-brekkie at the Airport.
We made it to CTI with plenty of time to spare, only because I drove like a maniac and the R300 has no more roadworks. I got booked in and we sat down at the Wimpy for a brekkie. The flight was uneventful, and I slept most of the time, a latish night of Fish and Chips at Coenie's does that to me.
Once I arrived at ORT I started looking for the guy who was there to pick my up, he described himself as standing outside "Arrivals" wearing a sheepskin jacket and blue jeans... half of everybody outside was dressed in similar attire, but as I was walking up and down I heard my name being called and there he was. Paul Mouton (DownandDirty) at my service. He drives a Hilux 2.5 D4D D/C 4x4, so we clicked immediately, and hit the road to Marble Hall. I was totally lost, because in all my years I very rarely crossed the Vaal river, and then only to get to the bigger town/cities, so this was all new to me. Once we arrived at the farm outside Marble Hall I was amazed at the scenery and the quietness of the Bosveld. The bush-camp consisted of 5 tents sleeping 2 each, a rondawel/outbuilding that was converted to showers and toilets, a pool en a fire-place. There was also a lecture-lapa. Francois (the owner of the farm) was still busy putting on the finishing touches when we arrived. Power to the tents and bathrooms came from a quad-bike battery amd energy-saver globes. Hot water from a donkey, and water from a big green tank hidden somewhere on the hill hidden by the bushes.
Paul and I picked the tent furthest away from the fire-place, so that any late night camp-fire banter would not prevent a good night's rest. We were there to learn after all and not to party all night long. It turned out to be totally unnecessary, as I was usually the one that went to bed last, die Transvalers kannie die punch vat nie.
One by one the other students arrived. First to arrive was Phillip, followed by Barend in a Datsun 1400 bakkie and then Uncle Bob showed up in his Disco. The last to arrive was Derek Foley, who got lost on his way there, and had to meet Tinus somewhere along the way. That made the full compliment of students, 6 in all, all from completely different walks of life, and all sharing one passion. We all looked forward to a week of hard work and lots of learning.
The schedule for the typical training day went something like this,
06:30 wake up and drink coffee
08:00 start lessons
10:00 brunch
10:30 lessons continue
15:00 afternoon snack
17:00 end lessons - go to the main house for dinner/braai
21:00 back at camp, shower and last bit of nonsenspraat around the fire
22:00 go sleep (except the last nite we went to sleep at about 2am)
Smoke/Coffee break every 40 minutes for 10 minutes. Throughout the breaks and late into the night the group shared information about practical experiences relating to whatever we were busy learning, which greatly enhanced the learning experience.
Monday saw the rest of the class doing the Offroad Vehicle Operator Certificate (OVOC) course, which I already completed at Klein Tafelberg earlier this year. Tuesday and Wednesday we completed the OVOC and Advanced OVOC courses with practical driving and demonstrations. The Instructors course kicked off on Thursday and consisted of a LOT of paperwork, with planning and working out lesson plans, venues, requirements for learning facilities, and a whole lot of other written stuff. The last time I wrote that much was when I did my Matric exams. By the time Friday afternoon arrived I suffered from writer's cramp, but the lesson was worked out, flip charts and other learning aids made/prepared/completed and documented. We knocked off early (16:00) and went down to the main house for a few drinks and a nice braai-pie.
Lettie, Tinus's wife, (also called Mama Africa by some) ensured that the manne never experienced hunger for the entire week. As a matter of fact, she fed us so well that I picked up a few kg's by the time I got on the plane to come back to Cape Town. Oy daai tannie kook lekker kos.
Saturday morning we all got up at our leasure, packed up our stuff, and proceded down to the main house for breakfast and to do a practical "Training Session" for the class and a pesky video camera. The video camera is used to record our presentation and submit it as part of our Portfolio of Evidence to SETA for evaluation. Standing in front of a bunch of people doing a presentation is not really that hard, but knowing the camera is recording your every move can be a bit unnerving. Paul went first, he is a natural. Then it was my turn. I managed to ignore the camera, and once I got going there was nothing that could stop me. After my presentation, we had breakfast, and immediately after breakfast Paul and I departed for ORT to be in time for me to catch my flight home. The other 4 guys did their presentations without us.
The week was very enjoyable. I learned a lot and the cameraderie amongst the ouens was fantastic. Amazing how people from such diverse back-grounds can be bound together by one common interest and connect on that level. The group consisted of a computer programmer, construction specialist, waterproofing specialist, a dude what is a doctor and makes artificial limbs that work, a crazy Land Rover driving Scot and a field guide. Right from the start the group clicked and right up till the end there was always a little joke to be shared, or a hot mug of coffee ready when the cold got too much. I made very good friends out there, saamstaan-manne.
My Overall Training Experience:
The level of training is of the highest standard and African Offroad Academy went to a lot of trouble to ensure that their learning material does not only cover what is prescribed in the Unit Standards, but also includes other educational/informational material that is good to know and will come in handy in the bush and on the trail. Tinus and Alde (his daugther) are great facilitators and their personalised way of presenting the courses made learning fun. Some aspects were practically demonstrated to make sure everybody understand exactly what to expect on the trail. We were made to feel like part of their family. In the end we also became part of the African Offroad Family consisting of 42 fully qualified and competent Instructors country wide. The vision of African Offroad for the 4x4 and offroad industry is one of co-operation and working together for the common good of the environment, and not for personal gain, and that is something I can relate to. The entire African Offroad team country-wide is eager to add value to not only the Hilux4x4 community, but also to the greater 4x4 and offroad community in this fair land of ours.
