The winning team of the first assignment in the Marketing Management Practical Project module were recently treated by Bridgestone South Africa to a 4x4 driving experience. The purpose of the first assignment was to obtain a better understanding of the tyre industry in terms of what competitors are doing (particularly in-store), as well as how consumers make decisions when purchasing tyres. The winning team members – Ms Electra Piagalis, Ms Bianca Meiring, Mr Christopher Brown, Ms Cassandra Mayer, Ms Sabrina Ive and Ms Lisa Hendon – named their team ‘Sticks and Stones’.

 

Our excitement began to build long before the Bridgestone South Africa (BSAF) minivan arrived to take our team on our journey to the Rhino Park Bidvest McCarthy 4x4 Club. Upon arrival, our team was welcomed by Mr Guthrie Blain (BSAF Brand Specialist) and Mr Tinus Breytenbach (McCarthy 4x4 Club instructor), and we were invited to a quaint cottage clubhouse for some coffee and rusks before starting the day.

 

The first item on the itinerary was learning about ‘4x4-ing’. Our instructor, Mr Breytenbach, gave an interactive presentation that involved inspecting the 4x4 vehicles ourselves. He explained all we needed to know about driving 4x4 vehicles. These vehicles – a Toyota Fortuner station wagon and two Hilux double cabs (one was named the Kamikaze) – would be our companions for the day.

 

After the vehicle inspection, our nerves started to kick in as we were hyped up on coffee and excitement. Only then did the realisation sink in that the Bidvest McCarthy 4x4 team was trusting us – six students – with their brand new vehicles (no pressure!). Our team paired up, each pair chose a vehicle, and off we went, with little knowledge of the obstacles that lay ahead.

 

We drove up to the first activity of the day – the obstacle course. It looked rather daunting! The obstacles consisted of steep hills that we had to drive over with surprise potholes everywhere. I was first to go. I was so excited, but nervous at the same time that I just went right over the first obstacle with some speed – which by the way is not how you are supposed to 4x4! You are supposed to go slowly and maintain a constant speed throughout the obstacle (I eventually got the hang of this). Everyone had a blast and we all conquered the obstacle course. We then had some much-needed refreshments to calm the nerves, then jumped straight into our vehicles to go to the ‘Beach’.

 

The ‘Beach’ as they call it, is not an actual beach, but a huge sandpit. We had so much fun doing this activity, driving around in the sand as fast as we could, doing sharp turns and trying to get as much sand to spray up into the air as possible. Two things to remember here: one, pull away in second gear; and two, keep the windows closed at all times (I cannot stress this enough). After a great time spent at the Beach we had all built up an appetite and so it was time for lunch.

 

After lunch came the greatest challenge of all – ‘Die Walle’. This was an area that featured steep climbs and descents, as well as side slopes. ‘Die Walle’ required putting a lot of trust in the vehicles and ourselves. The slopes were so steep that, once you started going up them, you couldn't see where you were going! All you could see was the sky, and you just hoped you were going in the right direction. On the descent, it felt as if the vehicle was going to topple over. But after a few trials, we were all professionals, or so we thought. Our instructors (the real professionals) then took us for a drive, with steeper slopes that were extremely narrow and harrowing, showing us that we were not that professional and we still had a lot to learn.

 

Before we knew it, the day was over and it was time to hand back ‘our’ vehicles (which were very filthy at this point in time) and go home. Our expectations were greatly exceeded and we learnt so much from this amazing experience. We would like to thank Bridgestone South Africa and the team at the Rhino Park Bidvest McCarthy 4x4 Club for giving us the opportunity to enjoy such a memorable experience.

 

From left to right (top): Ms Cassandra Mayer, obstacle 1 at the Rhino Park Bidvest McCarthy 4x4 Club, Ms Lisa Hendon and Ms Sabrina Ive.

From left to right (bottom): Mr Christopher Brown, the Sticks and Stones team, Ms Electra Piagalis and Ms Bianca Meiring.

 

The Department of Marketing Management congratulates Sticks and Stones for doing an outstanding job on their assignment and thanks Bridgestone South Africa and the team at the Rhino Park Bidvest McCarthy 4x4 Club for giving our third-year students such an amazing experience.