THOUSANDS of off-road enthusiasts gathered at Dalton Barracks at the weekend for a mud-drenched celebration of 4x4 power.

The 10th annual Abingdon 4x4 festival, organised by the Phoenix Land Rover Club and Abingdon Rotary Club, has been raising money for local charities for more than a decade.

About 3,000 people saw vehicles power through deep mud, and up and down the slopes of the four-and-a-half-mile course.

The event was opened by Oxford West and Abingdon MP Nicola Blackwood.

Last year the event raised more than £20,000 and this year the organisers hope to have collected even more money for the Thames Valley & Chiltern Air Ambulance.