Desert Champions Trophy - 2021

[dune jockey]

1 hour ago, varunmehndiratta said:

@Wrangeld since morning today, @Jeepie has  reminded me countless time that  I voted for your team not hers (and ours). And after your success, Its been clear that major reason for success wasn't your experience but my vote

Whatever @varunmehndiratta; as a convoy routine we were bundled up betweeen @Wrangeldas lead and @Jeepieas sweep.  Great to see everyone’s enthusiasm, in a area which is a test of your tolerance, maneuverability, communication, compliance and improvisation. 

Awesome 👏 
 

 

 

[dune jockey]

On 11/19/2021 at 7:13 PM, Srikumar said:

I would request all the Leads @Ale Vallecchi @Wrangeld @Kailas @Jeepie@Lorenzo Candelpergher and @Chaitanya D to share their planning and routes taken to accomplish the task

Trip Report TEAM SALUKI

@Srikumar after a quick analysis and discussion with the whole team Saluki and especially with @Hisham Masaad 

we decided a route which was 

waypoints 4-5-4-3-2-1 .

personally I felt a bit super challenged driving through to waypoint 5 as I had to caution some of my team members to be extremely careful. I humbly apologize if was a bit too vocal about it.

As we were enroute to 4, I realized 5 was just beside and we all circled it and the went ahead to 4. 

Not to boast of ourselves but till we reached waypoint 4 , we had only one refusal if I remember correctly, this instilled huge confidence in me with my team that I can make the toughest technical from waypoint 4 to 3 ( although we had discussed we will backtrack to 4 and then go to 3).

Honestly I made a silly mistake that I over shot waypoint 5 by about 100 to 200 m because my Gaia zoom was set at 500 m, only to realize when @Hisham Masaad told me I went past. We looped back there to make a circle and then proceeded to 3 . I chose a longer route compared to the champs ( @Wrangeld , mentioned R in the screenshot below ) as in the screen shot of the tracks below 

I believe this was the clincher for the champions lead by  @Wrangeld, @Mario Cornejo, @Ruan van den Heever, @Bernard Kalaani and @M.Seidam. They chose a well planned shorter track from waypoint 4 to 3.

But I would feel absolutely proud of my team Saluki - @Anoop Nair for being a perfect 2nd lead in a super tight split second decisions making area. @Warren Flay for being flawless - no refusal and no stuck , simply awesome. @Matt.T For great enthusiasm in the only one rope recovery we had to make it faster. @Hisham Masaad  for being a perfect co-navigator to remind me of the areas I was entering and the waypoints. Of course reminding me to forget side sloping, ridge riding and cross crossing which came naturally to me once  team Saluki came out of tight suffocating technical dunes.  Really proud we came runners up , with 2 or 3 refusals (mainly by me) and one tug .

Special thanks to whole @Carnityteam, crew ( @Gaurav @Srikumar @Frederic), all leads ( @Kailas @Ale Vallecchi @Wrangeld @Lorenzo Candelpergher @Jeepie) and support ( @Tbone @Asif Hussain @Anish S @Rizwanm2 & others if I missed any) 🙏

[Lorenzo Candelpergher]

TEAM LEOPARD - DRIVE REPORT 

 

Dear Desert Wanderers, 

 

What a day!

 

First of all, it was a fantastic event and @Carnity Crew, @Gaurav, @Srikumar and @Frederic and the whole Support Team cannot be congratulated and thanked enough for the amazing and impeccable organization.

 

Equally thanked and congratulated must be all the Leads, @Wrangeld (aka The Desert Champion) @Chaitanya D, @Kailas, @Ale Vallecchi and @Jeepie for their great spirit of fair and safe competition, and all participants for their fearless passion displayed today. 

 

As far as the Arabian Leopard Team is concerned, it was a memorable experience, regardless of the outcome: of course, deep inside, I'm sure we were all aspiring to be higher up in the final ranking, but reality gave us a great lesson about our limits today, from Lead to Sweep, all included, but a lesson spiced up with great fun. 

 

As known, one of my features as a lead is that I lead fast, ie at high pace. That is, of course in those terrains that allow for such possibility. For this reason, when planning the route for today, we opted, unlike all other teams, for a Start-5-4-5-1-2-3-End route instead of going for the Start-5-4-3-2-1-End most obvious sequence. 

 

The rationale behind this choice was that, by adding only approx 3 linear km (say 5 or 6 real km) to our route, we would have kept it for almost 90% on fast terrains, ie sabkhas, flat tracks or long range dunes, where very very high speeds (2x, 3x, 4x) could have been achieved, thus gaining us valuable time and avoiding extended technical terrain with less risks. 

 

The idea, on the face of it, was intriguing and had its merit, so we all agreed on it, but it greatly underestimated how challenging those "only" 2 x 2.5 linear km in technical dunes from waypoint 5 to 4 and back could have been.. 

 

Was this tech stint too early in the drive, before the convoy could warm up? Possible. Were my lines as a Lead wrong and/or too ambitious for a convoy whose members I hardly knew? Very likely true. Was the choice to head back towards waypoint 5 from 4 against slip faces a gamble? Yes, for sure, but the potential upside was massive.. Or not.. 

 

Had this gamble worked, ie had we spent say 30-40' to go from 5 to 4 and back, which in theory seemed easily doable, we would have closed the drive in record time, considering that after getting back to waypoint 5, it took us only 47' to cover 30km through waypoints 1, 2 and 3 and get back to the starting point, at the astronomical average speed of 37.9km/h, with only 1 min stop when my car, 200m from the end, started overheating due to a malfunctioning radiator fan. 

 

Unfortunately... the gamble didn't work, as we totally underperformed on that first technical part across waypoints 5-4-5.. Those "only" 2 x 2.5 linear km caused 12 (!!!) consecutive stucks and corresponding recoveries and multiple, uncounted, refusals!! 

 

The fact that 9 out of 12 stucks occurred going south, ie against windfaces, stands to prove that the idea of going back to waypoint 5 from 4, ie against slip faces, wasn't totally crazy, but crossing that stretch of dunes both ways turned out to be a way bigger and time.-consuming challenge for all drivers than expected: despite our best team efforts in performing quick recoveries (mostly done winching, to be faster), we lost a hell of a time in those technical dunes! It indeed took us 1h 26' to get from waypoint 5 to 4 and back to 5. At that point our race was already doomed no matter how fast we could do the rest of the drive.. 😭😭.. 

 

OK. We messed up big time over there, and clearly I proved to be no @Wrangeldwhen it comes to leading in small technical dunes, but... oh boy!, what followed was pure adrenalinic fun... We were literally flying across dirt tracks, sabkhas and long range dunes, reaching amazing peak speeds going from waypoint 5 through 1, 2 and 3 and then heading back across the Lisaili long range dunes and again on sabkhas and flat tracks. 

 

 

Overall, it was an excellent learning opportunity:

 

@Mus_hus78, an outstanding 2nd lead, I believe the only one who neve got stuck if I'm not wrong, today discovered that drives in Dubai can be as fast and exciting as those in Sweihan 😂😂, especially when literally flying over the sand.. 

 

For @Daniel Rodas, today's drive proved that he and his Pajero can do far more than he thought and the (many and tricky) stucks today were part of an accelerated learning curve towards Intermediate ranking... 

 

@Humayun Ghias realized the hard way how Y62s and technical dunes can be a difficult match, especially when crossing crests, but he also learned that his 2.8 tons car can fly as a fighter jet. 

 

@Niki, always quiet and conservative, experienced today a whole new driving world, achieving speeds he had never even dared to imagine, while maintaining an admirable perfect Sweep role, calm, precise, reassuring, clear with instructions and comms over the radio.

 

Despite the 12 stucks, the whole convoy was magnificent today. Fast, responsive, careful, supportive, focused. And always smiling. Thanks to all, you were the best convoy I could have desired for this race. Proud of you all. 

 

For me.. well for me it was immense fun and a great lesson. Let me try to summarize my takeaways:

 

- First, I could have leveraged better the wisdom and experience of the team, asking for more help in navigation (as @Wrangelddid brilliantly) instead of doing most of it on my own except for the initial route planning, done toghether.

 

- Second, quite evidently, I still have a lot to learn as leader in technical dunes, even more so now that my off-roading mentor, @Wrangeld, is a Desert Champion.. 😉

 

-Third, I realized I'm not used to drive against time: some know I'm a maniac about ending on time my drives, but rushing against time isn't yet fully my thing, as it requires a different type of approach to route planning and navigation management (for example, I always navigate with North-Up display with very indicative bearings on my Gaia to set my route, whereas when following a route very closely and precisely as today, navigating with Direction-Up display probably works better). 

 

- last, no matter how well or smart you think you can plan, desert drives can be unpredictable and that's the beauty of it. 

 

In the end.. It was different than usual. It was hexilarating fun. No matter how we ended, we had a great time and we had an amazing day, feeling part of the wonderful @Carnity family. 

 

As @Jeepie rightly said, we were all champions today, it's only that @Wrangeld's team was faster.

 

Kudos to all! 

[Rodas]

8 hours ago, Lorenzo Candelpergher said:

TEAM LEOPARD - DRIVE REPORT 

 

Dear Desert Wanderers, 

 

What a day!

 

First of all, it was a fantastic event and @Carnity Crew, @Gaurav, @Srikumar and @Frederic and the whole Support Team cannot be congratulated and thanked enough for the amazing and impeccable organization.

 

Equally thanked and congratulated must be all the Leads, @Wrangeld (aka The Desert Champion) @Chaitanya D, @Kailas, @Ale Vallecchi and @Jeepie for their great spirit of fair and safe competition, and all participants for their fearless passion displayed today. 

 

As far as the Arabian Leopard Team is concerned, it was a memorable experience, regardless of the outcome: of course, deep inside, I'm sure we were all aspiring to be higher up in the final ranking, but reality gave us a great lesson about our limits today, from Lead to Sweep, all included, but a lesson spiced up with great fun. 

 

As known, one of my features as a lead is that I lead fast, ie at high pace. That is, of course in those terrains that allow for such possibility. For this reason, when planning the route for today, we opted, unlike all other teams, for a Start-5-4-5-1-2-3-End route instead of going for the Start-5-4-3-2-1-End most obvious sequence. 

 

The rationale behind this choice was that, by adding only approx 3 linear km (say 5 or 6 real km) to our route, we would have kept it for almost 90% on fast terrains, ie sabkhas, flat tracks or long range dunes, where very very high speeds (2x, 3x, 4x) could have been achieved, thus gaining us valuable time and avoiding extended technical terrain with less risks. 

 

The idea, on the face of it, was intriguing and had its merit, so we all agreed on it, but it greatly underestimated how challenging those "only" 2 x 2.5 linear km in technical dunes from waypoint 5 to 4 and back could have been.. 

 

Was this tech stint too early in the drive, before the convoy could warm up? Possible. Were my lines as a Lead wrong and/or too ambitious for a convoy whose members I hardly knew? Very likely true. Was the choice to head back towards waypoint 5 from 4 against slip faces a gamble? Yes, for sure, but the potential upside was massive.. 

 

Had this gamble worked, ie had we spent say 30-40' to go from 5 to 4 and back, which in theory seemed easily doable, we would have closed the drive in record time, considering that after getting back to waypoint 5, it took us only 47' to cover 30km through waypoints 1, 2 and 3 and get back to the starting point, at the astronomical average speed of 37.9km/h, with only 1 min stop when my car, 200m from the end, started overheating due to a malfunctioning radiator fan. 

 

Unfortunately... the gamble didn't work, as we totally underperformed on that first technical part across waypoints 5-4-5.. Those "only" 2 x 2.5 linear km caused 12 (!!!) consecutive stucks and corresponding recoveries and multiple, uncounted, refusals!! 

 

The fact that 9 out of 12 stucks occurred going south, ie against windfaces, stands to prove that the idea of going back to waypoint 5 from 4, ie against slip faces, wasn't totally crazy, but crossing that stretch of dunes both ways turned out to be a way bigger and time.-consuming challenge for all drivers than expected: despite our best team efforts in performing quick recoveries (mostly done winching, to be faster), we lost a hell of a time in those technical dunes! It indeed took us 1h 26' to get from waypoint 5 to 4 and back to 5. At that point our race was already doomed no matter how fast we could do the rest of the drive.. 😭😭.. 

 

OK. We messed up big time over there, and clearly I proved to be no @Wrangeldwhen it comes to leading in small technical dunes, but... oh boy!, what followed was pure adrenalinic fun... We were literally flying across dirt tracks, sabkhas and long range dunes, reaching amazing peak speeds going from waypoint 5 through 1, 2 and 3 and then heading back across the Lisaili long range dunes and again on sabkhas and flat tracks. 

 

 

Overall, it was an excellent learning opportunity:

 

@Mus_hus78, an outstanding 2nd lead, I believe the only one who neve got stuck if I'm not wrong, today discovered that drives in Dubai can be as fast and exciting as those in Sweihan 😂😂, especially when literally flying over the sand.. 

 

For @Daniel Rodas, today's drive proved that he and his Pajero can do far more than he thought and the (many and tricky) stucks today were part of an accelerated learning curve towards Intermediate ranking... 

 

@Humayun Ghias realized the hard way how Y62s and technical dunes can be a difficult match, especially when crossing crests, but he also learned that his 2.8 tons car can fly as a fighter jet. 

 

@Niki, always quiet and conservative, experienced today a whole new driving world, achieving speeds he had never even dared to imagine, while maintaining an admirable perfect Sweep role, calm, precise, reassuring, clear with instructions and comms over the radio.

 

Despite the 12 stucks, the whole convoy was magnificent today. Fast, responsive, careful, supportive, focused. And always smiling. Thanks to all, you were the best convoy I could have desired for this race. Proud of you all. 

 

For me.. well for me it was immense fun and a great lesson. Let me try to summarize my takeaways:

 

- First, I could have leveraged better the wisdom and experience of the team, asking for more help in navigation (as @Wrangelddid brilliantly) instead of doing most of it on my own except for the initial route planning, done toghether.

 

- Second, quite evidently, I still have a lot to learn as leader in technical dunes, even more so now that my off-roading mentor, @Wrangeld, is a Desert Champion.. 😉

 

-Third, I realized I'm not used to drive against time: some know I'm a maniac about ending on time my drives, but rushing against time isn't yet fully my thing, as it requires a different type of approach to route planning and navigation management (for example, I always navigate with North-Up display with very indicative bearings on my Gaia to set my route, whereas when following a route very closely and precisely as today, navigating with Direction-Up display probably works better). 

 

- last, no matter how well or smart you think you can plan, desert drives can be unpredictable and that's the beauty of it. 

 

In the end.. It was different than usual. It was hexilarating fun. No matter how we ended, we had a great time and we had an amazing day, feeling part of the wonderful @Carnity family. 

 

As @Jeepie rightly said, we were all champions today, it's only that @Wrangeld's team was faster.

 

Kudos to all! 

Hey @Lorenzo Candelpergher, it was a priviledge to drive with the Arabian Leopards, the most important things for me were the bonding with the team and the unprecedent learning experience. @Niki, @Humayun Ghiasand @Mus_hus78, thanks for being such great team members!

See you guys on the sand soon! Cheers!

[Niki]

9 hours ago, Lorenzo Candelpergher said:

TEAM LEOPARD - DRIVE REPORT 

 

Dear Desert Wanderers, 

 

What a day!

 

First of all, it was a fantastic event and @Carnity Crew, @Gaurav, @Srikumar and @Frederic and the whole Support Team cannot be congratulated and thanked enough for the amazing and impeccable organization.

 

Equally thanked and congratulated must be all the Leads, @Wrangeld (aka The Desert Champion) @Chaitanya D, @Kailas, @Ale Vallecchi and @Jeepie for their great spirit of fair and safe competition, and all participants for their fearless passion displayed today. 

 

As far as the Arabian Leopard Team is concerned, it was a memorable experience, regardless of the outcome: of course, deep inside, I'm sure we were all aspiring to be higher up in the final ranking, but reality gave us a great lesson about our limits today, from Lead to Sweep, all included, but a lesson spiced up with great fun. 

 

As known, one of my features as a lead is that I lead fast, ie at high pace. That is, of course in those terrains that allow for such possibility. For this reason, when planning the route for today, we opted, unlike all other teams, for a Start-5-4-5-1-2-3-End route instead of going for the Start-5-4-3-2-1-End most obvious sequence. 

 

The rationale behind this choice was that, by adding only approx 3 linear km (say 5 or 6 real km) to our route, we would have kept it for almost 90% on fast terrains, ie sabkhas, flat tracks or long range dunes, where very very high speeds (2x, 3x, 4x) could have been achieved, thus gaining us valuable time and avoiding extended technical terrain with less risks. 

 

The idea, on the face of it, was intriguing and had its merit, so we all agreed on it, but it greatly underestimated how challenging those "only" 2 x 2.5 linear km in technical dunes from waypoint 5 to 4 and back could have been.. 

 

Was this tech stint too early in the drive, before the convoy could warm up? Possible. Were my lines as a Lead wrong and/or too ambitious for a convoy whose members I hardly knew? Very likely true. Was the choice to head back towards waypoint 5 from 4 against slip faces a gamble? Yes, for sure, but the potential upside was massive.. 

 

Had this gamble worked, ie had we spent say 30-40' to go from 5 to 4 and back, which in theory seemed easily doable, we would have closed the drive in record time, considering that after getting back to waypoint 5, it took us only 47' to cover 30km through waypoints 1, 2 and 3 and get back to the starting point, at the astronomical average speed of 37.9km/h, with only 1 min stop when my car, 200m from the end, started overheating due to a malfunctioning radiator fan. 

 

Unfortunately... the gamble didn't work, as we totally underperformed on that first technical part across waypoints 5-4-5.. Those "only" 2 x 2.5 linear km caused 12 (!!!) consecutive stucks and corresponding recoveries and multiple, uncounted, refusals!! 

 

The fact that 9 out of 12 stucks occurred going south, ie against windfaces, stands to prove that the idea of going back to waypoint 5 from 4, ie against slip faces, wasn't totally crazy, but crossing that stretch of dunes both ways turned out to be a way bigger and time.-consuming challenge for all drivers than expected: despite our best team efforts in performing quick recoveries (mostly done winching, to be faster), we lost a hell of a time in those technical dunes! It indeed took us 1h 26' to get from waypoint 5 to 4 and back to 5. At that point our race was already doomed no matter how fast we could do the rest of the drive.. 😭😭.. 

 

OK. We messed up big time over there, and clearly I proved to be no @Wrangeldwhen it comes to leading in small technical dunes, but... oh boy!, what followed was pure adrenalinic fun... We were literally flying across dirt tracks, sabkhas and long range dunes, reaching amazing peak speeds going from waypoint 5 through 1, 2 and 3 and then heading back across the Lisaili long range dunes and again on sabkhas and flat tracks. 

 

 

Overall, it was an excellent learning opportunity:

 

@Mus_hus78, an outstanding 2nd lead, I believe the only one who neve got stuck if I'm not wrong, today discovered that drives in Dubai can be as fast and exciting as those in Sweihan 😂😂, especially when literally flying over the sand.. 

 

For @Daniel Rodas, today's drive proved that he and his Pajero can do far more than he thought and the (many and tricky) stucks today were part of an accelerated learning curve towards Intermediate ranking... 

 

@Humayun Ghias realized the hard way how Y62s and technical dunes can be a difficult match, especially when crossing crests, but he also learned that his 2.8 tons car can fly as a fighter jet. 

 

@Niki, always quiet and conservative, experienced today a whole new driving world, achieving speeds he had never even dared to imagine, while maintaining an admirable perfect Sweep role, calm, precise, reassuring, clear with instructions and comms over the radio.

 

Despite the 12 stucks, the whole convoy was magnificent today. Fast, responsive, careful, supportive, focused. And always smiling. Thanks to all, you were the best convoy I could have desired for this race. Proud of you all. 

 

For me.. well for me it was immense fun and a great lesson. Let me try to summarize my takeaways:

 

- First, I could have leveraged better the wisdom and experience of the team, asking for more help in navigation (as @Wrangelddid brilliantly) instead of doing most of it on my own except for the initial route planning, done toghether.

 

- Second, quite evidently, I still have a lot to learn as leader in technical dunes, even more so now that my off-roading mentor, @Wrangeld, is a Desert Champion.. 😉

 

-Third, I realized I'm not used to drive against time: some know I'm a maniac about ending on time my drives, but rushing against time isn't yet fully my thing, as it requires a different type of approach to route planning and navigation management (for example, I always navigate with North-Up display with very indicative bearings on my Gaia to set my route, whereas when following a route very closely and precisely as today, navigating with Direction-Up display probably works better). 

 

- last, no matter how well or smart you think you can plan, desert drives can be unpredictable and that's the beauty of it. 

 

In the end.. It was different than usual. It was hexilarating fun. No matter how we ended, we had a great time and we had an amazing day, feeling part of the wonderful @Carnity family. 

 

As @Jeepie rightly said, we were all champions today, it's only that @Wrangeld's team was faster.

 

Kudos to all! 

@Lorenzo Candelpergher@Mus_hus78 @Daniel Rodas @Humayun Ghias what a great day out, what a great week prior (on our WhatsApp chats)!  It was fun above all! 
 

@Lorenzo Candelpergher (our fastest lead) being paired with me (Carnity’s slowest and most conservative driver) could have only happened with the fairness of a random draw!  From the build up, the execution of team formation, the banter in the event thread, the morning competitive spirit and the ceremonies to end the day - thank you team @Carnity for a perfect day out! @Hisham Masaad appreciated and loved you opening a pop-up fresh coffee shop for all… your generosity has not limits! 

and to the winners… worthy and setting the standards for next year!  

[Rodas]

Before I forget...

That sonic boom you all heard?

That was the Team Arabian Leopards crossing the Sabkha at supersonic speed

Thanks team @Carnityfor the amazing event, looking forward for more to come.

[Zed]

1 hour ago, Niki said:

 

@Lorenzo Candelpergher (our fastest lead) being paired with me (Carnity’s slowest and most conservative driver) could have only happened with the fairness of a random draw!  

I was gonna comment the same thing after the draw, but put it on hold after the real event... when your supersonic leader @Lorenzo Candelpergher followed by his devout 2nd lead @Mus_hus78 "cut in" and separated our convoy, i said "Let's yield and give them the way, they seem to be in a rush..." Then we wait... and wait... and wait... until the Black FJ Sweeper showed up, whose pace looks like it's exploring for a picnic area instead of a rally race 😂😂😂 Next year, no more Mr Nice Guy, we'll handle junction crossing like in Vietnam, move forward with eyes closed 🙈 i'm sure Jeepie & @GauravSoni were making coffee while waiting for our convoy to regroup 😅

[Varun Mehndiratta]

59 minutes ago, Zed said:

I was gonna comment the same thing after the draw, but put it on hold after the real event... when your supersonic leader @Lorenzo Candelpergher followed by his devout 2nd lead @Mus_hus78 "cut in" and separated our convoy, i said "Let's yield and give them the way, they seem to be in a rush..." Then we wait... and wait... and wait... until the Black FJ Sweeper showed up, whose pace looks like it's exploring for a picnic area instead of a rally race 😂😂😂 Next year, no more Mr Nice Guy, we'll handle junction crossing like in Vietnam, move forward with eyes closed 🙈 i'm sure Jeepie & @GauravSoni were making coffee while waiting for our convoy to regroup 😅

This is pure Evil @Zed For this one @Carnity tech team needs to incorporate Devil/Zeddy emoji .. .👹 😂😂😂

[Niki]

57 minutes ago, Zed said:

I was gonna comment the same thing after the draw, but put it on hold after the real event... when your supersonic leader @Lorenzo Candelpergher followed by his devout 2nd lead @Mus_hus78 "cut in" and separated our convoy, i said "Let's yield and give them the way, they seem to be in a rush..." Then we wait... and wait... and wait... until the Black FJ Sweeper showed up, whose pace looks like it's exploring for a picnic area instead of a rally race 😂😂😂 Next year, no more Mr Nice Guy, we'll handle junction crossing like in Vietnam, move forward with eyes closed 🙈 i'm sure Jeepie & @GauravSoni were making coffee while waiting for our convoy to regroup 😅

[Niki]

38 minutes ago, varunmehndiratta said:

This is pure Evil @Zed For this one @Carnity tech team needs to incorporate Devil/Zeddy emoji .. .👹 😂😂😂

@varunmehndiratta oh no … @Zed recognized my driving style which I am proud of- I am Carnity’s only (and therefore best) leisure driver and take the above as a badge of honor 🤣🤦🏽‍♂️.  Zed’s only fault is the way he treats his beauty of an LC100!… for that I am submitting a demotion request for him 

Edited November 20, 2021 by Niki