COVID19 Compliant - Morning Fewbie Desert Drive - North Faqa (The Arboretum) - 14 Aug 2020

[Tbone]

Thanks @Ale Vallecchi, as always you gave us an interesting drive to kick start a weekend. @Kalahari, special thanks for helping me out. Hope @Biju Abdul didn't have any trouble reaching home. Also thank you everyone for the nice drive. 

 

@Jeandre Bezuidenhout, I think I forgot to return your tool set. This is my number 0505090048. Whattsapp me and  we will figure it how to get it back to you. 

[Jeandre Bezuidenhout]

@Tbone, no issue, hold on to it until we see each other again. 👍

[Biju Abdul]

2 hours ago, Tbone said:

Thanks @Ale Vallecchi, as always you gave us an interesting drive to kick start a weekend. @Kalahari, special thanks for helping me out. Hope @Biju Abdul didn't have any trouble reaching home. Also thank you everyone for the nice drive. 

 

@Jeandre Bezuidenhout, I think I forgot to return your tool set. This is my number 0505090048. Whattsapp me and  we will figure it how to get it back to you. 

Hi @Tbone yes I managed to reach home with the bent guard plate holding on to two Nuts 😀. Thanks a lot to you, @Kalahari @Najeeb Mohammed @Jeandre Bezuidenhout @Shiju Manuel for the great support when in need. 
 

Hi @Ale Vallecchi it was a great start and your technical briefing and making us try sample ridge crossing was getting really exciting but unfortunately my car knocked me down  in the middle. But I must say that the drive from that bowl to the exit point was really thrilling cause of the condition for survival that “no refusals and no room for reverse for me 😁”.
 

Hope to join your convoy soon to learn more and practice.

 

[Ale Vallecchi]

THE DAY OF THE LONGEST DRIVE (so far)

The day started while it was still night, with 22 beams from 11 cars pointed at the flat vast plain of Northern Faqa. It ended almost at noon, 2 cars shy of the initial convoy, near the tarmac just before Bab al Shams.

During the almost 6 hours of the drive we rode the long range dunes of the north-west part of Faqa, got deeper into this area navigating a few small bowls, stretched our cars' legs onto the sabkhas on the way to Solar Park, exited 2 cars on the tarmac, and continued through the western Qudra area, before a couple of stucks in soft sand convinced us it was time to call it in. In the end, we drove 94.5Km, in 5:51 hours (4 hrs of which moving), at 16Km/h average speed (24Km/h while moving), starting from 3 meters of altitude to climb as high as 142 meters in the middle of Faqa.

The highlights of the day:

• the convoy snaking its way among northern Faqa's many lonely trees (hence the drive's nickname The Arboretum)
• navigating Faqa's deeper bowls on the way out to the sabkha, with no other choice but going forward and not getting stuck, due to a base plate almost coming off one of the cars, and just skirting the ground by a mere few inches
• the bonus drive through the long range dunes, and clay mud flats, of Western Qudra
• a mixed convoy, ranging between brand new Fewbies and more seasoned Intermediates, moving in good synchronicity, without major delays, other than for the couple of mechanical issues we encountered along the way (the afore mentioned base plate coming apart, and a gear box not engaging in 4-Low when needed).

Great thanks go to @Tbone, @Kalahari and @Najeeb Mohammed, the more senior members of the group, for their support and efforts during the drive.

Congratulations to @Jeandre Bezuidenhout, @Taha Elghuel and @Biju Abdul for showing great control of their cars (hoping that Biju's plate gets sorted out without any issues).

Very well done @Mehmet Volga, @Rajeevan Vickneswaran, @Shiju Manuel and @Janarthan: you are very solid and reliable Fewbie drivers, who should only look forward to more fun and success on the hot UAE sand.

Thank you all for the drive, and hope to see you soon out there. Have a great week.

 

Edited August 16, 2020 by Ale Vallecchi