Overland Bound - Some Clarity

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Polaris Overland

Ambassador, Europe
Moderator
Member
Member

Pioneer I

11,171
Newtonhill, Stonehaven, Aberdeenshire, UK
First Name
Dave
Last Name
Spinks
Member #

3057

Service Branch
Royal Navy Veteran
There is a popular misconception that becoming a member of Overland Bound means you will get regular arranged meets and trips.
This was never what Overland Bound was about. It was about giving people the tools and knowledge to safely head off overlanding. It was and still is first and foremost a community based group focused on getting people together and out on the tracks and trails.

As a member in order to gain the most benefit from your membership you need to get involved. We have a number of members and Representatives that do arrange trips and meets on a regular basis and the best way to keep abreast of all these trips is to be actively involved in the forums, Facebook groups and Whatsapp groups that have all been set up for members to enable them to share information, share trip planning and arrange get togethers.

Also remember by being an OB Member you can join other regional groups such as Mid Europe where you can again get help and support when travelling out with our own region. In my case OB Members helped me out in Turkey when I needed a new intercooler and in Greece when the head gasket blew. In fact one OB member sent me to a garage with another OB member who replaced the head gasket and all done and completed including pressure testing the head in less than 36 hours.

Admittedly the Covid Pandemic and lockdowns put a massive dent in the social aspects of membership however we still maintained contact through the above mediums and some Zoom style meets. Some events were held but within Covid guidelines and this made planning and execution of the events difficult and social distanced something which goes completely against social ethos of membership.

These meets do not have to be large full scale meets or trips, it can be a coffee and tyre kick in a local care park, it can be 2 or 3 members getting together to camp for the weekend, it can be a Trail Guardian Style Cleanup. To put it simply it can be anything you want it to be that gets members out and about and meeting up, creating new friendships. No one says all members have to get on but by meeting members you can and will find some like minded friends and in doing say start to arrange your own events. A perfect example is I am currently enjoying a few days camping in the Cairngorms with my Grandson. I put out a shout to any local or passing OB members to come say hello and in doing so had 2 members come down to say hi and chat and another member change his plans slightly and come up and spend a night camping with us. Its as easy and simple as that.

278071627_1061358417785301_8026711812979315024_n.jpg
OB Member Lee Quince and Harley came and joined us for a night.


All the most active members we currently have started out this way and now continue to meet and get together but all are still actively seeking new members and contacts to join in and in doing so build our community.

To put it bluntly if you don't participate don't complain when you say you got nothing out of your membership the choice is yours!
 

Ubiety

Rank VI
Member

Explorer I

5,221
Sammamish, WA, USA
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Ubiety
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Ribs
Very well said @Polaris Overland! I’d also add that most of the folks helping members out, member reps for instance, are volunteers who receive no remuneration or consideration for their efforts. When they are having a member conference call, leading a trail run or working with members it is completely on their dime and time. I’m not saying this to complain, rather to raise awareness that many of the “helpers” are doing it out of the goodness of their hearts. We all knew this going in and made the decision in order to support the cause at our own personal expense. So go out of your way to thank the unpaid OB “staff” - they are doing it because they want to make your experience better.
 

Steve_ohhhhh

Local Expert, QLD Australia
Member

Influencer I

4,178
Redbank Queensland, Australia
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Steven
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Jappe
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13609

There is a popular misconception that becoming a member of Overland Bound means you will get regular arranged meets and trips.
This was never what Overland Bound was about. It was about giving people the tools and knowledge to safely head off overlanding. It was and still is first and foremost a community based group focused on getting people together and out on the tracks and trails.

As a member in order to gain the most benefit from your membership you need to get involved. We have a number of members and Representatives that do arrange trips and meets on a regular basis and the best way to keep abreast of all these trips is to be actively involved in the forums, Facebook groups and Whatsapp groups that have all been set up for members to enable them to share information, share trip planning and arrange get togethers.

Also remember by being an OB Member you can join other regional groups such as Mid Europe where you can again get help and support when travelling out with our own region. In my case OB Members helped me out in Turkey when I needed a new intercooler and in Greece when the head gasket blew. In fact one OB member sent me to a garage with another OB member who replaced the head gasket and all done and completed including pressure testing the head in less than 36 hours.

Admittedly the Covid Pandemic and lockdowns put a massive dent in the social aspects of membership however we still maintained contact through the above mediums and some Zoom style meets. Some events were held but within Covid guidelines and this made planning and execution of the events difficult and social distanced something which goes completely against social ethos of membership.

These meets do not have to be large full scale meets or trips, it can be a coffee and tyre kick in a local care park, it can be 2 or 3 members getting together to camp for the weekend, it can be a Trail Guardian Style Cleanup. To put it simply it can be anything you want it to be that gets members out and about and meeting up, creating new friendships. No one says all members have to get on but by meeting members you can and will find some like minded friends and in doing say start to arrange your own events. A perfect example is I am currently enjoying a few days camping in the Cairngorms with my Grandson. I put out a shout to any local or passing OB members to come say hello and in doing so had 2 members come down to say hi and chat and another member change his plans slightly and come up and spend a night camping with us. Its as easy and simple as that.

View attachment 227693
OB Member Lee Quince and Harley came and joined us for a night.


All the most active members we currently have started out this way and now continue to meet and get together but all are still actively seeking new members and contacts to join in and in doing so build our community.

To put it bluntly if you don't participate don't complain when you say you got nothing out of your membership the choice is yours!
Very well presented. Cheers from Australia.
 
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OverlandFaction

Rank VIII
Member
Investor

Pioneer II

10,625
United Kingdom
First Name
Lee
Last Name
Quince
Member #

17393

Very well said, I can only apologise for bringing the tartan version of CV19.x to your doorstep.

Having had it at the end of Feb 2020 it must be totally different with a Kilt on.

Like we discussed tho OB is what you make of it and what you put in you get out.

If people have ideas, or just concepts of what they would like to do there are plenty of us to help facilitate here, with experience we can pull stuff together.
 
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Polaris Overland

Ambassador, Europe
Moderator
Member
Member

Pioneer I

11,171
Newtonhill, Stonehaven, Aberdeenshire, UK
First Name
Dave
Last Name
Spinks
Member #

3057

Service Branch
Royal Navy Veteran
Due to the fact my grandson Dominic and I are having so much fun we have extended our stay until Sunday 17th and the open invitation to all members to come say hi, enjoy a beer or camp with us remains.

There is so much to do here around Aviemore that there are not enough days to fit it all in but here a few examples.

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Hillwalking In The Cairngorm Mountains (Dominic's First Winter Mountain Walk)


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Sunshine and Mountain Bikes


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Walking With Dinosaurs


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Mountain Biking In The Cairngorm National Park


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Mountain Bike Tracks for all ages


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Apres Lunch at the Ski Centre Car Park



All joking aside this isn't overlanding but having an overland prepared vehicle makes this all so much easier and the experience for our 6 year old grandson Dominic is priceless. He is getting to experience trips out into the outdoors in the same way Angela and I did with our kids and many of them still go out into the mountains and camp to this day.

Turn off the TV and go live a little in the outdoors is the message #outfit and explore #adventure is necessary