Popular Post Srikumar Posted September 12, 2020 Author Popular Post Share Posted September 12, 2020 Trip Report Its been 2 years since I last entered from the Shuwaib side and so was looking forward to play in some of the big bowls that this area can offer. Everyone met on time and we had 3 new members who were joining our Intermediate drives for the first time, recently promoted @Shiju Manuel, @Pancho and newly joined @Junaid Sayeed As we entered we were treated to a mini jungle with lots of small bushes and patches of powder soft sand. At one such patch @Najeeb Mohammed demonstrated Toyota's crawl control feature to test. The electronics ensured that the rpm is kept under control and with some quick steering you get yourself out. That was really wonderful to see. As we moved towards the bigger dunes the pace of the convoy increased and we are thankfully greeted to much firmed sand that allowed everyone to play in some beautiful dunes. As the pace increased so did the gap between the cars. In one such bowl, Shiju and Pancho who were in Position #3 and #4 lost the track and got separated. Pancho did the right thing of being behind Shiju which with a bit of back tracking we were able to get them back in the convoy. As the convoy progressed we reached Super Bowl with quite a few cars having the right momentum to reach the top. The stretch from Super Bowl to Iftar bowl was crowded with lots of convoys and we had to reroute a bit to get to the base of Iftar bowl where everyone reached the summit in the first attempt. Well done to @Najeeb Mohammed for an excellent second lead and continuously communicating and taking care of the cars behind him. That's a good sign of an upcoming lead. The wrangler boys of @Febin Frederic @Rinelle Sanaani@J J all managed very well. @Rinelle Sanaani you need to get your gear sorted before the next drive. It was nice meeting @Junaid Sayeed who joined us and was very forthcoming to help out at every need. Really like the way you have built your Wrangler. As you rightly mentioned, a shovel and a rope are always used first, as all Intermediates have this as a basic gear and the right usage can get the stuck car out of 99% situations. For me the best experience of the day was to see our newly promoted Intermediates of Shiju and Pancho rising up to the challenge and managing extremely well in a challenging terrain. Very well done guys. A big thanks to @Foxtrot Oscar who kept a very good watch of the entire convoy at sweep ensuring and helping out at every stretch of the course. Like you said the team spirit and patience shown by everyone was very good. And finally a mention about the unfortunate incident at Iftar Bowl with a FJ in some other club. I was first at the scene and a few important lessons for all drivers: 1. When there is a fire, never open the hood. You are letting in more air causing the fire to grow. 2. Throw sand through the crevices of the engine bay and use extinguishers as much as possible. 3. If the car is in trouble, remove all your personal belongings like phone, wallets etc from the car asap. 4. Move all the remaining cars a good 50 to 100m away from the burning car. Yesterday there were a lot of concerned cars in the close vicinity which is frankly quite dangerous as once the fuel tank explodes it can send parts flying about. Other than that, thank you everyone for the good drive and hope to see you soon. 7 1 1 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J J Posted September 12, 2020 Share Posted September 12, 2020 Thanks @Srikumar for a great drive and everybody did quite well ! The fire incident still disturbs me. First , that vehicle could have been saved if atleast the group that came in with the FJ had ensured everyone had fire extinguishers. I also generally see people reluctant to give their extinguishers - I saw the guys looking for extra extinguishers for a good 5 minutes. Second , does off road insurance cover this ? I think it's safe to say that it's a good idea to keep one . 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Srikumar Posted September 12, 2020 Author Share Posted September 12, 2020 5 minutes ago, J J said: First , that vehicle could have been saved if atleast the group that came in with the FJ had ensured everyone had fire extinguishers. I also generally see people reluctant to give their extinguishers - I saw the guys looking for extra extinguishers for a good 5 minutes. Very good point JJ. Yes, most of them didn't have an extinguisher and were asking all other cars. That lost them a good 5 very valuable mins. Also to add that it's just not enough to have the small 1 or 2 kg DCP Extinguisher. It's better to get the 4.5 kg one as a minimum. If you have comprehensive insurance yes it would cover with a police report. 5 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J J Posted September 13, 2020 Share Posted September 13, 2020 There you go a quick video! Cheers 1 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Srikumar Posted September 13, 2020 Author Share Posted September 13, 2020 Nice video. One observation, some of the cars in the front of JJ where making very sharp turns while criss crossing and also fishtailing. While driving on high speeds its very important that you keep a very tight steering control with gradual movements. Never force the car to cross the ridge. In some unforgiving terrains, it might result in a disaster. 2 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Febin Frederic Posted September 13, 2020 Share Posted September 13, 2020 Agree with @Srikumari did that mistake once thinking that's the track should be taken, then realized it was a refusal from the front and we all went down and re attempted. yes it was dangerous indeed, could have been avoided. speed of video made it look more scary. 😄 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Najeeb Mohammed Posted September 13, 2020 Share Posted September 13, 2020 Drive was awesome and thanks @Srikumar for such a wonderful drive. yes the car got burned disturbed me a lot, yes @J J I have seen him waiting for fire extinguisher seems like people either dint have or dint wanted to give. I have given mine but I didn't want to go nearby the car as I wasn't sure till when its safe to be nearby. Still confused is it safe to recover the car then as we don't know in which point the car might blast, I believe if anyone were inside the car then its worth to risk our life otherwise its better to let the car go off and think of insurance etc. Let me know if you guys have a different opinion or what is the right thing to do if we come across such situation. About the drive- almost everyone did exceptionally good. @Febin Frederic, as usual, his favourite spot and did well and more surprising was @Shiju Manuel as I thought he won't be able to make it considering his first drive-in Intermediate etc. 1st time I could reach the top point without any major efforts thanks to @Srikumar as he took it from different angle and before even realizing I was on top. 2 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frederic Posted September 13, 2020 Share Posted September 13, 2020 @Shiju Manuel seems you have surprised many guys with your Pajero Congrats buddy you always kept a positive spirit, listened to the instructions, and i am sure you will keep moving forward quickly ! 2 1 1 "Go as far as you can see; once you get there, you'll be able to see further." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shiju Manuel Posted September 13, 2020 Share Posted September 13, 2020 30 minutes ago, Frederic said: @Shiju Manuel seems you have surprised many guys with your Pajero Congrats buddy you always kept a positive spirit, listened to the instructions, and i am sure you will keep moving forward quickly ! Hi @Frederic its all with the support and professional off-road training by Carnity Marshals. On last drive after coming down from super bowl i come to know that it was super bowl because it was my first time driving in super bowl and iftar bowl. Really got surprised how the pajero made it all most at top even through in first gear and really appreciate@Srikumar for the perfect route which makes every one easy. 1 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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