Afternoon Fewbie Plus Desert Drive - M&M Drive: Margham to Murqab - Dubai - 7 Sep 2021

[Alex Raptor]

Thanks for today, really enjoyable and needed midweek blast, we covered a great distance, with really very little interruption, everyone was able to self recover from the few stoppages we had. In my vantage spot in the back I was able to see how the stoppages occurred, they were exclusively on the ridges, experience is the only thing that will really allow you to master these,  there is no magic to it, apart from the correct momentum and approach speed and "hooking your anchors" either left or right side wheels to the ridge, once you are up there, then controlling your speed and momentum will allow you to stay up. Bumpy ridges will always catch us out and push us one way or another, but I'm glad to say everyone who experienced this realised that they would be fighting a losing battle with gravity and either steered down or self recovered admirably. Put a few pictures in the gallery as well. See you all soon, I was a little sad I didn't get a bag of M&M's.......

[Senthil Kumar]

Thanks @Ale Vallecchifor again an excellent drive, it gave great experience specially on the ridges, I understood that distance between the vechiles matters on the ridges, if incase the front vechile get slow or early exit from top ridge,  leaving proper distance makes us to continue the drive on the ridge, 

Complete drive was a show time , all drive mates done nicely, 

 

 

 

[Alain Canivet-Abikhalil]

Thank you @Ale Vallecchi Loved the hidden / secret dunes in the beginning of our journey. Quite interesting to cover all those different terrain and switch between technical, long range and of course your specialty : ridge riding.

Margham - Murquab and pushed to Solar Park with a very well balanced convoy with 3 Wranglers, 3 FJs and 2 giant Raptors. I'm sure we looked very cool to the locals with their falcon 😎

I had a few refusals and early exits due to lack of momentum or miscalculating my steering, but as usual, learned a lot and staying focused I believe is key.

 @Hisham Masaad and @Alex Raptor great support as always.

Thanks @PaoloMaraziti for the refreshments  

Glad to see you all in this midweek drive ! 

[Sunil Mathew]

Great drive and route @Ale Vallecchi..like everyone, i also enjoyed the margham bowls at the  beginning of the track..it was real fun and we should do it more often!!

We were a real strong convoy, i believe, with no major stoppages

It was one of those rare drives where @Hisham Masaad and his FJ must have felt under utilised 😁...thanks for the support along with @Alex Raptor

As usual @Alain Canivet-Abikhalilhandled his role nicely,  probably you must be holding a record in number of 2Ls you have done...are you keeping a count? 😁😁

 

See you all on one of the drives!!

Edited September 8, 2021 by Sunil Mathew

[Hisham Masaad]

Another fantastic drive @Ale Vallecchi, thank you to arrange during the week. I believe @Islam Soliman should change his drive to Go Tech 2, since yesterdays drive can be the Go Tech 1 😅 It was a non stop drive, we made about 82 Km, out of which about 87 km ridge riding 😉 We did no even have a chance to take more photos, the only stops we had are the bio ones (which is not good to photo for the guys while .... ) and the one @Ale Vallecchistopped to take photos for the sub set. I posted few, and can see other photos are almost the same. Thank you guys for keep moving without any need for shoveling or tugs, all saved all, since it was little hot. Thank you @Alain Canivet-Abikhalil and @Alex Raptor for the support, and look forwaard to meet again

[M.Seidam]

10 hours ago, Alex Raptor said:

on the ridges, experience is the only thing that will really allow you to master these,  there is no magic to it, apart from the correct momentum and approach speed and "hooking your anchors" either left or right side wheels to the ridge, once you are up there, then controlling your speed and momentum will allow you to stay up

Totally agree , RR ( Ridge riding ) is a one of a unique part in off-roading in sand that require focus, approach and proper speed and distance from front car . 

[darren thompson]

Thanks @Ale Vallecchi for organizing this midweek hit out, its a great way to break up the working week and was a fantastic route through lots of different terrain. 

Thanks as always to those in the support roles @Alain Canivet-Abikhalil @Hisham Masaad @Alex Raptor for helping to keep the convoy moving so smoothly through the dunes. 

Was an excellent drive, everyone in the convoy doing so well to maintain a solid pace and good momentum from start to finish, I do not think I have been on a drive with so few stoppages and was a welcome surprise to not have to do any digging in the afternoon sun. 

See you all out in the sand again soon

[Ale Vallecchi]

M&M Fewbie Plus - Drive Report

There is a voice that doesn't use words. Listen. Rumi

Great afternoon drive, in a variety of terrains and landscapes: red sand bowls, golden technical areas, yellow sand cordons, white tall ridges, lit first in bight sunlight, then bathed in soft orange sunset glow.

The red sand bowls of Margham (our first "M") are an almost secret jewel, forming a low pyramid overlooking Nazwa and Badayer's expanses. Great side sloping and flowing criss-crossing make for a perfect start of a drive. From there, turning back toward E66, requires crossing an area of tighter dunes, quite full of wild life, which finally open up close to the highway. An underpass connects the track with Lisaili's camel breeding grounds, from which the pylons lead in the direction of Solar Park. This time we entered the technical dunes, separating the pylons from the long range dunes, earlier than usual: nonetheless, we managed to reach the open dunes in no time, and from there we set our sight to the second "M", of Murqab. This segment is divided into three type of terrains: long open cordons, tighter and bushier technical dunes, and finally tall, open (yet, still bushy) long range dunes and deep bowls, close to Margham. No type of terrain proved too difficult for the convoy, and once in Murqab, with 40 minutes until sunset, we decided to extend the drive, through the "Highway to Solar Park" (the marked sand track crossing this area), back into the center of Lisaili, and from there to Solar Park. A perfect exit in front of the "Three Trees" and facing the sunset, marked the end of the drive.

A perfect drive, with NO, zero, none, zilch, stucks, and just a handful of self-recovered refusals, came to an end after 83.8 Kms, covered in 3:00 hours of moving time, at an average moving speed of 28 Km/h.

Thanks to @Alain Canivet-Abikhalil (perfect Second Lead), @Senthil Kumar, @PaoloMaraziti, @Hisham Masaad(spotless Center Forward), @Sunil Mathew, @darren thompson and @Alex Raptor (clean Sweep). 

Have a great week, and see you soon out there.