Land Rover Denver East to Compete in Land Rover TReK '00 Final
6 November 2000
Land Rover Denver East to Compete in Land Rover TReK '00 Final
Colorado Land Rover Retailer Will Compete in Final Round Of
Four-Wheel-Drive Manufacturer's Off-Road Driving Competition
WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS, W.Va., Nov. 6 Land Rover Denver
East has won the second of Land Rover TReK '00's six Territorial Trial events.
Land Rover TReK '00 is an annual off-road driving competition currently taking
place on the grounds of The Greenbrier, a world-class vacation resort located
in White Sulphur Springs, W.Va. The Land Rover Denver East team won its place
in the November 16 Final by acquiring the most total points in Territorial
Trial #2's competitions. The Trial #2 events included running; biking; four-
wheel-drive product knowledge; and off-road driving. The team emerged from
their grueling, 12-hour Territorial Trial even more enthusiastic about Land
Rover than ever before.
"Our team was thrilled just to be a part of Land Rover TReK '00," remarked
Jim Patrick, Centre Manager of Land Rover Denver East. "To advance to the
Final is a wonderful achievement. We're very proud of our team." Land Rover
Denver East's TReK team is comprised of staffers Brian Williams, Kirby
Garrison and Eric Valero.
Land Rover TReK was created by Land Rover University-the service training
and development arm of Land Rover North America, Inc.-to build product
knowledge and brand enthusiasm among the sales and service personnel of Land
Rover's nationwide network of retail outlets. The Greenbrier is home to one
of only two permanent Land Rover driving schools in North America.
During the rest of Land Rover TReK '00, a stream of 48 three-person teams-
each like the team from Land Rover Denver East-from across the U.S. and Canada
will travel to West Virginia to camp and then compete in one of TReK's six
rigorous Territorial Trials. The winning team from each Territorial Trial,
including Land Rover Denver East's team, will return to The Greenbrier for the
November 16 TReK Final.
The TReK Final will be even more intense than the Territorial Trials. It
will be a daylong competition consisting of eight unique skills events. For
the competitors, the TReK Final will start early-at 5:00 a.m.-with a written
quiz that challenges retailers' knowledge of Land Rover history; Land Rover
vehicles; four-wheel drive systems; and even competitive products. Following
the quiz, the teams compete head-to-head in four intense competitions that put
their teamwork to the test. The teams will compete in a mountain bike race, a
foot race and-in a first for TReK-a specially designed river race conducted
using inflatable rafts. The team that acquires the most total points will
win.
The grand finale of the TReK Final will be a timed off-road driving
competition. Each team will drive a specially outfitted 2001 Land Rover
Discovery Series II manufactured by Land Rover Special Vehicles. Team members
are required to carefully maneuver their Discovery Series IIs through an
obstacle filled path; physically move any obstacles that cannot be driven over
(or around); stop and swap drivers along the way; and, at all times, adhere to
proper and safe driving techniques. In this competition, it is skill-not
speed-that can help to ensure victory.
The staff of each competing Land Rover retailer knows that TReK's real
payoff is reserved for Land Rover customers. Customers benefit from the know-
how and enthusiasm the highly skilled, TReK-veteran retail staffers such as
Williams, Garrison and Valero bring back to their Land Rover retail
facilities. Land Rover Denver East is one of 124 Land Rover retail outlets in
the U.S. Eighty-one of these are critically acclaimed Land Rover Centres.
Due in large part to Land Rover University's benchmark training programs and
team-building events like TReK, Land Rover retailers continue to score near
the top of the industry in critical retailer-focused customer satisfaction
studies. Land Rover retailers also benefit from very low employee turnover
rates.
The 48 teams chosen for Land Rover TReK '00 were culled from Land Rover's
network of North American retailers. To qualify for TReK, each participating
retailer must have scored a 90 or better in Land Rover North America Inc.'s
most recent internal Customer Satisfaction Index research, among other
requirements. Entry was offered to the qualified Land Rover retailers on a
first-come, first-served basis.
The first Land Rover TReK event was held in Social Circle, Ga., not far
from Atlanta, in 1996. Subsequent TReK events have been held in Manchester
Village, Vt. and Bodega Bay, Calif.
The Greenbrier, home to Land Rover TReK '00, is a world-class, 6,500-acre
resort located in West Virginia's Allegheny Mountains, approximately 260 miles
southwest of Washington, D.C. The Land Rover Driving School at The Greenbrier
was established in 1999.
Land Rover North America, Inc., established in 1986, imports and
distributes Range Rover and Discovery Series II vehicles manufactured for sale
in the United States by Land Rover Group Limited in Solihull, England. Land
Rover's worldwide operations are wholly owned by Ford Motor Company, Dearborn,
Michigan.