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Tim Webster article in LRO


v8bobber

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Evening all,

Bit of a strange request, but probably not the strangest. I cleared the garage out last week and sorted out a load of magazines and threw a load out aswell. I kept a few of the very old LRO magazines most because of the old Tim Webster articles that i used to read and re-read when I was first getting into Land Rovers and led to a load of trips across Wales in the old series 3 with a couple of other mates in Land Rovers.

We must be talking over 15 years ago now and i've lost count of Land Rovers i've owned and have gone from the first series 3 to my current Range Rover. However, amongst the other Land Rovers I own, i've recently bought an old 90, very similar to the one Tim Webster had which had me searching through the articles.

It may be a long shot, but I remember reading an article he wrote about him rolling his 90 over in a forest in Wales somewhere when he was on his own and managed to right it and get home whilst suffering from the illness from which he eventually passed away. I don't supposed anyone can remember this article and has it tucked away somewhere or can remember what issue it was in? It was probably at least '91 or '92 so I don't hold out much hope!

Fingers Crossed

Dave

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Cheers,

I can only think that one particular issue must have been thrown out by accident. I remember the main picture of his 90 on its side with winch cable attached and all his kit strewn out all over the place. The other thing I remember is being inspired by alot of the stuff he wrote. The 90 i've got tucked away may well end up very similar to the Webster one!

Dave

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I remember that article too. Didn't he use a combo of front winch or a Tirfor and multiple snatch blocks rigged off various trees to right his vehicle? A very ingenious and inspiring fellow indeed.

It just goes to prove that one doesn't need all the latest fancy suspension and other toys to achieve the kind of stuff he used to get up to. That stuff just didn't exist then...

Afraid I had to throw out mags that old some years back. I tried to offer them to friends at the time but no takers, shame really.

Hope someone can find you that article, wouldn't mind reading it again myself.

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I remember reading Tim Webster articles before I even had a licence! :) I only remember him having a 90 (on SATs?) and I do remember the roll over article too.

Not much help I am afraid, just adding to the reminising posts :)

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I remember Tim as a family friend from before he even started with Land Rovers or writing. He greenlaned in an old beaten up Suzuki SJ!

Great guy, Sorely Missed, and an inspiration to many!

James

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Inspirational indeed. Not sure if I mentioned it previously but I have an old 90 of the same age tucked away and am very tempted to rebuild it along the lines of the Webster 90. I know that you can still get the SAT copies and already have a set of LWB rims somewhere.

I have the articles following the roll over where his 90 was rebuilt into a truck cab it would be nice to go back to basics. For the type of stuff I do these days it would be sufficient an certainly got him far enough all those years ago. Would give me an excuse to buy an 8274 also!

I did think of getting in touch with LRO themselves but getting any contact details or into the forum from the website appears to be a pain. Will try again this evening as they've probably got it catalouged somewhere

Dave

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Yes I too remember this article, and sadly I remember he kept refering to ' being a bit tired, run down' which did'nt help the situation. He was of course dying, and he knew it, but kept on 'till the end. he never mentioned this in the article, but then why would you, it's not wat people want to read is it. Great article, I'll have a look.

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Many thanks,

Hopefully between us we will find a cope tucked away for everyone to enjoy

Dave

I know i have copy, i'll take look in the loft over the w/end.I always enjoyed Tim's articles. The route he was on was near Devils bridge, now sadly a Bridleway.The whole lane was tricky, mud and a collapsed river bank. The climb though the trees to the summit where he rolled was steep and washed out, once took 3 of us several hours to winch up the 3/4 mile climb.

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I know i have copy, i'll take look in the loft over the w/end.I always enjoyed Tim's articles. The route he was on was near Devils bridge, now sadly a Bridleway.The whole lane was tricky, mud and a collapsed river bank. The climb though the trees to the summit where he rolled was steep and washed out, once took 3 of us several hours to winch up the 3/4 mile climb.

Sounds promising. If you could dig it out that would be fantastic! Would be even better if you had a scanner! ;)

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Evening all,

Bit of a strange request, but probably not the strangest. I cleared the garage out last week and sorted out a load of magazines and threw a load out aswell. I kept a few of the very old LRO magazines most because of the old Tim Webster articles that i used to read and re-read when I was first getting into Land Rovers and led to a load of trips across Wales in the old series 3 with a couple of other mates in Land Rovers.

We must be talking over 15 years ago now and i've lost count of Land Rovers i've owned and have gone from the first series 3 to my current Range Rover. However, amongst the other Land Rovers I own, i've recently bought an old 90, very similar to the one Tim Webster had which had me searching through the articles.

Hi Dave

FWIW I've known Baby (D626 PAT), Tim's old 90 for a few years now. A laning buddy of mine and fellow LRM gang member Dom Marder and I spent a whole load of time retracing as many tracks which Tim opened up 20 years ago.

Dom made a few changes to Baby after this pic was taken at Gaydon in 2004

3883357295_f8f7c5c4d7.jpg.

Baby was put on stilts, a chimney was added, Bikini hood and a 3.9 EFi replaced the carb 3.5.

We had an ace time, and took a few photos of our adventures - some of these are around Machynlleth/Devil's Bridge pre-NERC. Baby was always a bit special, as if she knew the lanes better than we did...

2624286430_427d8a2c6f.jpg

2623462743_833182b4f8.jpg

2707491539_28b1beb292.jpg

2624289220_e796ef2b02.jpg

Dominic sold Baby on last week, we were both very sad to see her go, but Land Rovering life moves on...I'd love to see the articles. Richard Thomas shared a few back copies with us when we were retracing these tracks, but we gave them back and I didn't have a scanner then!

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I did think of getting in touch with LRO themselves but getting any contact details or into the forum from the website appears to be a pain. Will try again this evening as they've probably got it catalouged somewhere

Dave

I'd forget LRO. Richard (Howell) Thomas was the editor of LRO then (and good friend of Tim). It might make a good article - back to basics. The highly modified truck has been done to death, maybe it's time for the de-engineered laning Landy to get some column inches?

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I'd forget LRO. Richard (Howell) Thomas was the editor of LRO then (and good friend of Tim). It might make a good article - back to basics. The highly modified truck has been done to death, maybe it's time for the de-engineered laning Landy to get some column inches?

I agree, much as I love the Range Rover I have, and it is brilliant for towing and also a family car. The most fun I had off roading was in the 90s and series three that I had. That is the thinking behind the start of this thread; going back to basics. I'm still in the throws of building the trialler so once thats finished, that should take care of any hardcore off-roading, and in some ways i do think thats where the more severe off roading should stay.

The 90 will have probably a winch at the front, maybe a rear hoop and a set of 235/85 x 16 Mud terrains and certainly no larger. You can see by the attached pic that theres a fair bit of work to do.

Dave

post-1345-125201906091_thumb.jpg

post-1345-125201909324_thumb.jpg

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  • 2 weeks later...

Looks like a proper Landy that :)

The most fun I've had has been in basic machinery as it left the factory. The principle is similar to all vehicles I guess, the more capable it is the greater the challenge you seek.

Tim and I were known as Green Team, actually together with Martin Smith. I used to off road with Tim, indeed we went to prep school together.

The time that is referred to, when he rolled his Ninety (Humphrey) on a recce was when we discovered the way through what we called Ziegler, named after a German contestant on the first Warn Transylvania Trophy. Known I understand from this year's Dragon Trophy to some as Spooky.

I seem to recall that Tim claimed something like 10 or so back to back winches to get up the hill, that would be with a 150ft wire rope on the standard 8274 to get to the point he rolled. He was actually quite a long way from help, the track used to top out on a sort of moorland.

The recovery technique he used, we had worked out before and would have been a fairly quick affair.

I can actually remember driving the lane with Blue Team one Easter, in a LR FC101, apparently waving wheels.

In terms of health although ill at the time he was actually pretty good - we used to off road probably every fortnight in the season, October to March (weren't fans of warm weather and easy routes - in fact Ziegler was first driven under snow conditions!

I noticed the odd comment about Suzukis ,we both had them at one time, I had a yellow 410 and Tim a 413 that later had a Janspeed turbo added, we saw the light and bought both A837 KRW may V8 Ninety (known as the Defstar) and later Baby which was Tim's D***PAT from Land Rover on the Wold in East Yorkshire, the famous George Brabinger claiming that then (new) Ninety was very secure on steep ground! We believed him.

Any other questions re those Halcyon days happily answered.

James

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  • 4 years later...

Folks. I have most of the articles of Project 90 and others from LRO back in the good days. I may be able to scan them and post them but am unsure of copyright etc and exactly what can be posted.

I was 13 years old in 1991 and spent my allowance on LRO each month purely for Tim Webster and Bob Morrisons articles.

Having had several Landies and green laning & camping around the country (including Mastiles lane and Cam Fell prior to closure) I look back with great fondness on these articles.

If I can share them I would.

Hope this helps, if this thread is still alive.

Cheers

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If Tim was under contract to LRO then intellectual rights could belong to either the present owners (Bauer Media) or more likely one of the original publishing companies. If he was just a 'contributor' then intellectual rights will belong to his estate

I met Tim a few times back in the day - hell of a bloke; but then most the characters in the LR/4x4 scene were. I loved his articles and would like to see them back in print

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never met Tim, but enjoyed reading his articles, & after he passed away I marshalled on the Webster Trophy events run by jis friends around the Gloucester area & met his parents & partner afterwards, still got the overalls all the marshalls were given for the 1996 & '97 & the polo shirt in '99.

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