Monday was both a very lucky and very sad day for us.
Lucky that we all came out completely unscathed, but sad that Rex will never drive again.
I thought it would be a fun end to Jonah’s sleepover with his best mate Isaac with a 4WD trip around the Glasshouse Mountains. Jonah & Ahvie (and me!) had wanted to check out the tracks in our own backyard for a while, and Isaac’s New Year resolution was to go four-wheel driving, as he never had been.
His mum was all for it, as she had grown up doing it with her family. So after their night of pizza and movies, campfire and sleeping in a tent in the backyard, I made sure Rex was filled up, had all the safety and recovery gear we need and off we went.
We had been exploring the tracks for a couple of hours, not being too conservative, but not taking any unnecessary risks and having lots of fun. The tracks were sometimes bumpy and steep, or narrow and windy. Nothing I hadn’t done before.
At one point we followed a track that wound down a hill and came to a section that seemed just a bit too steep for my comfort. If we had another vehicle for company, and another capable adult or two, I might have given it a go, but I decided to do a 12-point turn and go back where we came from.
Along the track was a “cross road” where a very steep track crossed ours, into a deep and narrow gully to our right. We had passed this section on our way down, so I didn’t think too much of it.
But………
Somehow, Rex lost traction in the rear wheel, possibly because there was no ground underneath it as we crossed the deep gully. We started slipping backwards and I had no control over the vehicle. I watched as we slid backwards into the ditch and started to roll. It was not a fast and sudden movement, so I had the time tell the boys to hold on as we slowly turned upside down.
The next moment we were hanging upside down from our seat belts and the car was stuck.
I quickly made sure everyone was ok and undid my belt. I then crawled into the back seat and undid the kids belts and sent them out of the front passenger window.
When we stood up on the bank and surveyed the situation, I realised that Rex is not getting out of this unscathed but could not believe that none of us had as much as a scratch or a bruise to show.
I did what I could to keep cool and make light of the situation so the kids didn’t lose it. Although there was about 20 minutes of hugs and just a few tears, they did extremely well, and I am super proud of all three of them.
Fortunately (again) we had good phone reception, and with Karina’s help from home the Insurance company arranged for a recovery crew to come take a look. My good mate Tom (of The Friends) came down with his 4wd to pick us up and help remove all the lose gear from Rex.
The recovery was going to be a challenge, and I subsequently found out that it took two 4wd’s, a tow truck with a long winch cable and Rex’s winch to get him out, upright and up the side of the mountain!
Rex was written off by the insurance company, and they have said that they will pay out the full agreed value (minus excesses and stuff). That is a great relief, but it doesn’t alleviate the sentiment of losing something that we considered a part of our lives.
Rex had taken us halfway around the country safely, created incredible memories and protected us in a moment of extreme danger. We will always remember the good things that came with Rex.
RIP
