On TV yesterday there was a programme called “My Family's Crazy Gap Year” recording the progress of a couple of young people taking their three children on a “4x4 driving adventure in Africa”. They bought a 13 years old Land Cruiser, “...with a lot of work required”, part of which was done, and set off. Soon afterward they rolled it over at 5 0’clock in the morning on a dirt road. If it hadn’t been for the camera truck following them they would probably all have died. The father said that the SatNav showed a straight road and he was looking at the SatNav when they came upon a bend while driving ‘fast’. The road was dry, but it was a dirt road and didn’t look all that well maintained. The 4x4 swerved from one side of the road to the other several times before rolling over.

That suggests that : A. the driver was half asleep, B. wrong time of day, C. the steering joints were worn, D. SatNavs...well!

A. Roads in that part of the world are sometimes dead straight for tens of miles and tend to hypnotise one.

B. It’s always darkest before dawn.

C. When you find yourself heading for the veldt you tend to over-react. When the steering joints are worn every correction tends to set up an oscillation, inevitably resulting in panic. (Been there, done that)

D. Leave SatNavs for Europe. And, they are best not looked at while you’re driving, especially during the dark hours.