Rhino Charge Kenya 2022
The General Tire brand is well known for its “Anywhere is Possible” brand promise which is built on the proven capabilities of its tyre range, particularly in the rough-and-tumble world of 4x4 driving and off-road adventures.
The General Grabber X3 is perfectly at home in the harshest conditions, ranging from dirt tracks to sticky mud and punishing rocks. This is thanks to its DURAGEN Technology built around a heavy-duty three-ply construction, ultra-high strength steel belts, robust tyre compound and unique tread design.
But don’t just take our word for it. Renowned off-roader John Bowden, MD of independent Land Rover specialists Gumtree 4x4 Ltd in the UK, completed the 2022 Rhino Charge in Kenya with a set of Grabber X3 tyres fitted to his trusty Land Rover Defender 90 V8, known as “Car 9”. The tyres were sponsored by Continental Tyre and supplied by Silverstone Tyres Kenya.
Competing in the “Unmodified Class”, Bowden has contested 20 Rhino Charge events in Kenya since 2000, and scored three class wins. To date, the Car 9 team has raised over £172,000 for Rhino Ark – a charitable trust the event supports, which is focused on the conservation and protection of Kenya’s mountain range ecosystems.
“The Rhino Charge is often billed as the toughest one-day 4x4 event in the world,” Bowden says. “Using a supplied route map and a set of 13 grid references with checkpoints that have to be visited, the goal is to drive as close as possible to the shortest route.”
This year the minimum distance possible, essentially as the crow flies, was about 20 km. The winning team, the Averys of Team Bundu Fundi, finished with a total distance of 24.72 km in their highly modified Land Rover Series II/Discovery hybrid. “We managed it in 35.92 km and finished 13th overall, beating a lot of modified cars and 15 km ahead of the 2nd placed Unmodified Class competitor,” Bowden proudly says.
“In past events, we have wrecked tyres from other manufacturers and struggled for grip. Despite giving the Grabber X3s a real bashing, including driving over lava rock on which I had the tyres smoking at times, and forcing our way through thick bush and thorns, grassy slopes and thick sand, the tyres were faultless with no sidewall damage and virtually no tread wear visible. And of course, the spares are still unused,” Bowden says.
The General Grabber range is already a firm favourite for Bowden and his team, with the previous-generation Grabber MTs currently doing duty on the company’s Defender 110, and the Grabber AT fitted to John’s Range Rover Vogue TD6.
“We are very happy General Tire customers, and the Grabber X3 has cemented our opinion regarding the exceptional performance of the Grabber range,” Bowden adds. “I can confidently recommend the Grabber X3 for people who want to go into the bush and come back out again without any drama.”
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