Newsletter #2 Perentie of Progress

Hey team!

Well I have to say its been a crazy 6 or so weeks since Daring2Venture announced we are going ahead with the Ten Desert Odyssey. No sooner had we sat down after posting that notifications started going off.

We have had a lot of enquiries and interest in the expedition itself and I really need to thank everyone in our team for their hard work behind the scenes.
As well as fielding all the enquiries, we have been working hard to finalize logistics, field manuals and work on building our team.

Our goal is to cross the ten deserts with like-minded adventurers

The work we are doing around planning and logistics is well underway. Part of this process is identifying the challenges ahead of us.

One of the issues we came across was the need to be able to carry enough fuel and supplies across some of the longer stretches of terrain. Over the last 18 months we have been researching many different vehicles that might be suitable for the task. Old fire trucks already have the ability to carry 1000 litres of water, yet lack the torque for the dunes. Or trustworthy Land Cruisers (that cost as much as a small house).
And then, a few days after we made the announcement, A Land Rover 6x6 Perentie came across the desk.

The universe was looking out for me, and everything just seemed to drop into place (ie, I was thinking about financing it, and then my phone rang and a guy I had spoken to about financing a fire truck 6 months previous was on the other line just enquiring if I needed the finance still) Without too much hesitation I bought it.
To find out more about these incredible vehicles, check out this link

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r20rbDn6Td8

These trucks were basically built for the Australian Army to transport personnel and supplies across long distance desert terrain. In short, they were built to do exactly what we are going to do with them. Even the previous owner opted to sell it to me as they were excited to see what we would do with it.

Just last weekend we took it out into the field to test its capabilities and everyone agreed it had the potential to be a fantastic addition to the convoy.

We did get it stuck on the crest of a large dune in Big Desert, and although some would see this as a fail, I saw it as an absolute positive. Now we know the limits of its capabilities as a stock standard vehicle, straight from the auctions.

Building this beast and sharing the progress with you all is the next big task. New diff locks, tyres, winch and maybe even a sand anchor to start.

As I said before, its been a crazy few weeks, and in another few we have our first event ; the Big Desert Odyssey (8 Oct), where you will be able to come along for free and see the truck in action.

I hope to see you all there, and remember, Life really is a daring adventure 😊

See you in the dunes,

Benji Brundin
Expedition Leader