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9 hours ago, Niki said:

10 years in this wonderful golden bird cage that is Dubai… a conservative driver (made to be a

@Niki I love your definition of Dubai.

About the GLS. I love it. It drives beautifully also in the desert. Look at the GoPro 6 footage (not stabilised) and you will notice how smooth the ride is. I wish I bought the off road edition with an extra inch of clearance and even lower gear ratio. Alas when shopping for used car you might not have the choice. 

Now, I will probably regret this ride as my car is at the mechanic...something happened on the ridge where I got stuck. Talking about feeling stupid and being laughed at, I am sure I will be joined the club very soon...

8 hours ago, Srikumar said:

 

From being an introvert who would not be much of a risk taker, I have personally come a long way over the past 4.5 years to becoming more adventurous and willing to push my boundaries of comfort. 

 

Cheers !!

 

I love this! I am sure we can apply this not just when off-roading, but in everything we do in life. Thank you so much for sharing openly your story, It is a lesson for all of us.

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Thank you @Enrico Biscaro for initiating the topic. I ve driving 4x4 cars since 1997, and never thought to go off-road. I am a person of work and home only, and if I go out, I go Fridays and holiday with the family. Sometime about 2015, was on one of sites in Nad Al Shiba, and upon leaving thought will make a short cut, and cross a small sand island to the road. Was driving Nissan safari, and got stuck. Was summer noon time, and had to call one of the drivers with 3 tons pickup to pull me out 😅. I was the joke of all whom he heard. In 2016 decided to take a one course with one of the driving institutes. Did not go much in the desert, since was driving Y62, and second drive with Nissan guys, all bumpers got damaged me and all others similar. Decided to stop again, till I bought the FJ from one of my friend in Oct 2020, where I joined @Carnity, and turned out to be a different person now.... 😃

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My off-roading sojourn began in 2011 when at my best friend's engagement brunch (under the influence), I stupidly boasted that I would take the couple out for a drive. I'd never driven in the desert before. I was hoping nobody would pick up on it until he did. Little did I know that his neighbour was a marshal in an off-road club. And suddenly, my ill-conceived boast had blown into a drive the next morning. I immediately proceeded to head home, to sober up, and watch as many videos as I could find on "how to drive off-road".

The morning after, with sweaty palms clutching onto the wheel of a borrowed 2002 LC, I reached my friend's house to find that three of his ten year old cousins were also being bundled into this "fun trip". I should have come clean at this point. I didn't.

At the meeting point for deflation, my story began to unravel. As I bobbed around like a confused munky, another driver came to my rescue and that's when I came clean. He quickly gave me the low-down (pun intended). The loud blaring music was turned down, the radio now chirping, three kids in the back, a half-nervous couple who were getting an Arabian Adventure for free, and me, trying to cram like I did ten minutes before exams in high-school into my short-term memory. H comes before L, Diff after L, L only if you're stuck, radio confirmations, something about gravity...

And then we were off. Nervously overbearing on the pedal sometimes, and then backing off, I was quite the erratic driver. But as soon as we hit our first small dune, the crest and trough melted all of those fears away. And then another, and another, and another. Everything came together. The storm inside (my mind) was finally calm. The backseats not so much. This is the first pivotal moment when I caught the proverbial bug.

It was all was very smooth sailing until we hit our final "playground" Iftar Bowl, where my short-term knowledge broke the cardinal rule - "never fight gravity". I did that at the tip of the bowl, nose pointing twenty degrees upwards, in a car full of screaming children, a couple planning their happily-ever-afters, and the car itself contorting to the side of the slope creaking and croaking with sound effects straight out of a horror movie. I remember the next thirty odd minutes like it was a day. But with tons of guidance, I managed to get it unstuck. 

Back at the base of bowl, our car was eerily quiet going back to the exit. However, inside my mind, I wanted to go back there, and figure out how to do it safely, and right. This was the moment when I truly appreciated the happy fear that comes from taking on something big. The kind of fear that forces you to learn and scale yourself up. I wanted to get that feeling again, but more so I wanted to learn to do it correctly. It would take 10 years for me to finally commit to driving off-road. 

The two drives I've had with Carnity so far have been transcendent 🐵

This topic (thanks @Enrico Biscaro) and the amazing response I've seen in the past two weeks makes me feel like I've finally found the right place to do this.

Edited by munkybizness
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9 minutes ago, munkybizness said:

I've seen in the past two weeks makes me feel like I've finally found the right place to do this.

What a great story I agree with you, I just joined, but I feel this is the right place where mutual respect, respect fo nature and gravity can safely help us becoming not only better off-roader, but also better persons. 

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I came to Dubai in 2008 a tax free land with almost all the brand car running on the streets and later got to know about cars running on desert while on a desert safari and was very much excited. Had a strong feeling to get in to desert driving, my job demanded me to travel a lot on work which didn’t allow me to even think of my passion. Then came blessing in disguise Covid lock downs truly enjoyed work from home. Was watching my old pictures and then came desert safari pictures. It just flashed to my mind why not go for off-roading, told my wife about my decision. Her first response was a big NOOOOOOOO. Then i was sure I am getting into it, worked out my way to sell my Nissan Sunny and bought a Pajero. Now my wife wanted me to be sure I am not lost in chasing my passion. I believe how much struggle, delay we go through in achieving our dreams, passion the more we enjoy the success. I found carnity, I found my passion, driving through it now. In 4 months, I have done close to 47 drives, still feel every drive like my first drive!!! Happily found the right balance between family, work and my passion!!!! @Enrico Biscaro you have taken the best decision of joining carnity and the best start with @Frederic as I did, am sure you will enjoy a lot!!!! Welcome to carnity family!!!!!!

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15 hours ago, Adhir Saxena said:

We were then helped by a police patrol car around 4 am, after trying to dig out sands with our hands (we did not have a shovel) for 3 hours.

I was lucky we just got stuck 40 minutes the first time :-) then of course you want to conquer the sand. 

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6 hours ago, Lakshmi Narasimhan said:

Welcome to carnity family!!!!!!

Thanks! Looking forward to share a drive with you although is going to take time fo Rome to catch up with you 

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1 hour ago, Enrico Biscaro said:

Thanks! Looking forward to share a drive with you although is going to take time fo Rome to catch up with you 

Its easy to catchup with many drives been posted!!! See you soon…..

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Having been in an and out of Dubai since 1980 when I was born, (in the Uk they where giving away free passports then 👍🏾)and I  have seen the place change. We where a Lebanese family living in Mirdiff and starting business here . Everywhere was quite in the 80’s in Dubai SZH road being two lanes and jebel Ali beach being in the desert 😂. Al Ghurair Centre wasthe first mall we visited with shops , visiting Sindebads as a child , we were frequenting there a lot.
 

We lived on the edge of Mushriff park ……my playground then a complete desert being watered into what it is now, my father when I was 5 came home with my first desert toy. I remember the day clearly when my mother freaked out at him and he opened the doors of his red 84” Range Rover Classic and there was freedom. My first desert toy a 50cc Suzuki quad. Soon as it hit the ground I was on it, hit a corner on tarmac full pelt and realized straight away how to drive on two wheels on a 4x4 before crashing obviously in the first 5 mins. But that was the start of my desert love, gradually through the years the engines got bigger, the wheels got less. Driving the cars was a part of the learning curve, driving when I 6 years old for the first time in dads lap while he accelerated for me ! I never wanted to live here full time though. Was just here on holidays, 3x a year, job offer after job offer turned down when I was older. Till now and COVID trapped me here , lucky though I was here when the country locked up. The funny thing is before lock down I spent 8 years at sea, crossing the Atlantic multiple times, Indian Ocean , Red Sea everywhere traveling the world cooking as a chef for people with more money then sense and ridiculous toys! Till COVID and a lock down and a fiancé who put her foot down and said enough traveling the world and now I’m here again. Traded in my addiction of the sea back for the desert as a child but in an adult toy this time, my patrol, I always loved that car seeing the locals go anywhere and everywhere in it when was younger. Funny though as a child how I used to cross the desert alone no worries, not getting lost, water bottles of petrol tied to the back , granny’s food packages and friends in tow. We could draw you a map of the tracks we used in mushriff park and the canyon that was there! How different driving in the desert is now and what we consider safe rules to not go alone and what was the norm before. But here we are today spending every non working moment driving again with friends or with carnity when possible, making new friends and back to bringing the desert home to my living room too annoy a woman I love . First my mother now my future wife! 😂

Desert or ocean once you are deep in and at the mercy of Mother Nature there is something beautiful about it’s simplicity and I often find those who love being at sea for different and similar reasons love traveling in the desert too. See you in the sand all.

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