Four things happen before you go anywhere
None of them is optional and none of them is rushed. This is the part of the day that decides how the rest of it goes.
By the end of it you have been told what the route does, shown how the machine works, and put on it yourself with someone watching.
- Information briefing about the route and the vehicles
- Safety briefing on riding in a group
- Instructions on operating your vehicle
- A test drive before the main route
The test drive is not a formality
It is short, and most guests pass it without thinking about it. It is still a real assessment: our guides use it to see how you handle the machine, and they decide from it whether you take the route as a driver.
If the answer is no on the day, you ride the same route as a passenger at half the driver price. Nobody is turned away and nobody is left at the base.
The helmet
A helmet is provided, included in the price, and worn for the whole safari. There are no exceptions to that and it is not something to negotiate at the base.
It is also the only piece of equipment you need to be given — everything else you are wearing is your own choice, and the what-to-wear page covers that.
You ride in a guided group
You are not sent off with a map. You follow a guide, at a pace the group can hold, on a route the guides know. That is a large part of why an off-road day works for people who have never done one.
It also means the sensible thing you can do for your own safety is the simplest: listen in the briefing, keep your line, and do not try to be the fastest person on the trail.