Claudio C Posted May 14, 2021 Report Share Posted May 14, 2021 6 hours ago, Desert Dweller said: Angela AKA @Foxtrot Oscar will call you Oscar from now on 🤣 hi Angela, sorry I didnt know your name I hope to see you in the next trip 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thomas Varghese Posted May 14, 2021 Report Share Posted May 14, 2021 1st time attempting to capture pictures in my Canon 5D Classic which is a full frame. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Probir Mukherjee Posted May 14, 2021 Report Share Posted May 14, 2021 Great Drive @Foxtrot OscarAngela Oscar Foxtrot.. you are truly calming leader .Thanks to @Desert Dwellerfor keeping us in order and Center forward for managing all recoveries with the reassuring @Craig Finlayson See you folks in August .. take care and stay safe . 3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post Foxtrot Oscar Posted May 14, 2021 Author Popular Post Report Share Posted May 14, 2021 Drive Report Good evening fellow adventurers, Well that was fun! Everyone met promptly and got themselves ready for the drive without any issues aside from the radio frequency that for some reason was not clear but easily resolved, we switched channel. As we made our way into the dunes the large convoy following, we had some nice low dunes to create little u turns in. Everyone seemed to be coping well. The convoy headed to some more challenging dunes where we kept a nice pace and had some decent climbs to conquer. En route to the more playable areas Murquab has to offer we had a car side crest, ever so slightly, it clearly just slipped off the track . With Carnity we always try to recover without the need for ropes, and with @Craig Finlayson, @MUHAMMAD Kashif RAZZAQ and @Desert Dweller all on hand with shovels we dug it out of trouble. The key to de-cresting a car is knowing where to shovel and allowing gravity to work for you. With some left/right and gentle gas the car was free. As we approached another medium sized dune the convoy took turns to climb on top and carry along, with all of the convoy doing well and managing to get on top with only a few refusals caused by being a bit gas shy. This is par for the course when you’re learning what your car can do in the desert sands. You will all learn with time and practice just how much gas is required for certain dunes, taking into account, not just the incline but also the consistency of the sand. As we approached the last dune before the sabka we took turns to drive up, across and down in a nice u shape, taking care to follow the tracks created as to avoid the little land mines that are shrubs of grass. These should always be avoided at this level as they cause your car to bounce erratically. The entire convoy coped well with the challenge. We were also treated to a masterclass in how not to tackle dunes safely as, what I can only describe as a marauding convoy, gate crashed the drive with not a safety flag in sight. We saw fishtailing, overtaking refused cars and quite frankly utterly reckless driving. Those guys were very fortunate not to collide with each other or worse. Still, it was very entertaining haha. We headed back into the small tighter dunes to experience something a little different before we headed across the sabka and onto the track that led us to the enchanting dunes of Solar Park. All the convoy handled the more technical dunes well with only one refusal. With the sunsetting and the pristine sands offering a range of challenges the convoy continued along its way. The convoy became disjointed a couple of times. It can be hard to see tracks in the sand but I choose a path that I know you can all follow and is free of danger therefore its important to ensure that you always have eyes not only on the car in front but on the car behind you too. I have to say it was heartening to see the gradual improvement of many of the drivers during the course of the drive. I was pleased that many were following advice and using the correct technique to tackle dunes safely and without creating an issue for yourself. As darkness began to fall, we had one more crested car to deal with A little digging, and the car was free but the issue was not resolved as it then got stuck at the bottom. @Craig Finlayson used the winch to get it out safely as it was in a particularly tight spot. Refusals and stucks are part and parcel of drives at this level, they are so incredibly valuable, as you learn so much from them. For example, you all now know that, at this level, you must approach an up and over dune straight on, or to put it another way be perpendicular to it. Darkness was truly upon us by the time we had recovered the crested vehicle and the sabka and track were not far so we made our way out having covered 42km with the newbie convoy experiencing a little night driving as a bonus. Charlie, @Zixuan Huang you had an excellent drive, and handled the Pathfinder really well, well done. @Charbel Yazbeckyou definitely became more confident as the drive progressed after a sticky start and had a great self-recovery to boot, well done, keep it up. @Ishraque Ahammed, a few refusals but a good drive, you’ll get used to what your car can do in time. @Kassem Zaiter, you drove really well, and didn’t have any issues , aside from losing the track haha @Cale Hugill, flawless drive, well done, Likewise @Wade Pat2, the drive presented no issues for either of you and you both demonstrated lovely technique when completing the challenges I threw at you. Well done! To the more experienced members of this Newbie convoy, @Probir Mukherjee, @Senthil Kumar @Thomas Varghese@Lakshmi Narasimhan, you all said it was a chance to chill and enjoy. I’m glad you did and also that you adhered to protocols to ensure our newer members had a good driving experience. Thank you. A very special thanks to the team who supported me today. To @TT_Dubai who was immaculate in executing the 2nd Lead, Tim I know it is a relatively new experience for you , but you handled it with aplomb, well done. To @MUHAMMAD Kashif RAZZAQ who was my CF and always on hand to help guide drivers with refusals, thank you . Finally the two at the back, @Craig Finlayson is alright , I guess he’s got a winch so kinda helpful 😉 , and @Desert Dweller who swept up everything at the back, continually offered advice and ensured we all kept moving. Finally, thank you to all of you for accompanying me on this wee adventure in the sand. Hope to see you all again soon . Until our next adventure 2 6 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TT_Dubai Posted May 14, 2021 Report Share Posted May 14, 2021 (edited) Thanks @Foxtrot Oscarfor leading a very nice sundowner drive this afternoon/evening. The sunset was spectacular (so thanks for organising that!😀). It was a windy afternoon and very happy to have been able to experience a variety of interesting challenges during the drive. The gung ho convoy that joined us in the bowl clearly wanted an audience. However I have new found respect for that Lincoln Navigator that pretty much kept up with the FJs. Delighted to support as a second and thank you for the opportunity! A couple of pics uploaded in the Gallery. Hope everyone has a great weekend! Edited May 14, 2021 by TT_Dubai 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cha Posted May 14, 2021 Report Share Posted May 14, 2021 Thanks a lot @Foxtrot Oscarfor the lead, the guidance and the recovery. The some dunes were challenging but I enjoyed every single piece of them! 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lakshmi Narasimhan Posted May 15, 2021 Report Share Posted May 15, 2021 Thanks @Foxtrot Oscarfor the wonderful drive. It was very relaxing, pleasant drive and wonderful watching new members learning the techniques. Happy to see the number of opportunities given to newbies to retry the maneuvers and to safely recover and appreciate all of them trying again and again till they go through. One small suggestion for newbies is to have the communication going on always and respond to leads while recovering which is very important. Amazing lead by @Foxtrot Oscar and support role played by @MUHAMMAD Kashif RAZZAQ in recovery and guiding, @Craig Finlayson for winching out and specially sweep@Desert Dweller in rerouting the convoy quickly and jumping in for almost all the recovery. Good team work. Thanks for positioning me in the last so that I learnt driving and negotiating on churned up sand. Looking forward for seeing you all again. 2 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Craig Finlayson Posted May 15, 2021 Report Share Posted May 15, 2021 @Foxtrot Oscar loves a winch! 😉 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wade Pat2 Posted May 15, 2021 Report Share Posted May 15, 2021 Short Vid clip. Sorry about the wind noise. 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Foxtrot Oscar Posted May 15, 2021 Author Report Share Posted May 15, 2021 22 hours ago, Clau Co said: hi Angela, sorry I didnt know your name I hope to see you in the next trip Haha , no need to apologise, I like Oscar 😁 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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