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Morning Intermediate Desert Drive - Sweihan West - Abu Dhabi - 10 June 2023


JeromeFJ

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DRIVE DESCRIPTION

From  the outskirts of Sweihan on the E16, drive West along the dune cordons, pass the Tilal area, cross the sabkha to the south, and continue West on the high dunes, try to find the Sweihan Pond, continue on the white sands of Fayah and exit on the E75 side. High dunes, soft sand, hot temperatures... you know what to expect !

MUST READ AND COMPLY

Drive Details

Level: Intermediate and Above 

When: 10 June 2023 Saturday

Meeting time: 5:45 AM (SHARP - Without any exceptions)

Meeting Point:  https://goo.gl/maps/Mf11NJccmLJrgbEv5

Type of Car: Any proper 4x4 with front and back tow hooks and 8-10 inches of ground clearance.

What to bring along: Loads of water, snacks (for yourself), smiles, face mask, rubber gloves, enthusiasm and willingness to learn.

Approximate finish time: 10:00 AM

Type of Car: Any proper 4x4 with front and back tow hooks and 8-10 inches of ground clearance.

What to bring along: Loads of water, snacks (for yourself), smiles, enthusiasm and willingness to learn.

Mandatory off-road gears: Tire deflator, tire pressure gauge, compressor, walkie-talkie radio, off-road flag, shovel, first-aid kit and fire extinguisher.

 

LIMITED SPOTS AVAILABLE

  • This drive is limited to 10 cars only. RSVP will close on FRIDAY - 12 PM
  • If the RSVP is full, you can add your name to the waitlist, once anyone drops, you will be moved to the RSVP list.
  • RSVP will close a day prior to preparing a convoy list.
  • Latecomers will be returned back - Without any exceptions.
  • Members without RSVP will be returned back - Without any exceptions.
  • Please withdraw your RSVP, if you aren't joining, so your spot can be taken by others.
  • Repeated no-show members after RSVP will have their account suspended for a month.

Please RSVP on below calendar

 

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Dear Desert Drivers, 

Last update for tomorrow morning

Meeting time: 5:45 AM

Meeting Point:  https://goo.gl/maps/Mf11NJccmLJrgbEv5

Convoy order will be

image.png.0887457c8194ec7bcdf9703672f86d1c.png

We will use Radio Channel 4

Enjoy the evening, take as much sleep as you can, and see you tomorrow !

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Dear Desert Drivers, 

Thank you for joining the drive this morning. It was a true desert experience, in this mixed terrain. Nice flow in the big dunes to start, as a warm up, and then, passing the sabkha, this impressive set of high dunes. Climbing the  face and going down was relatively easy for the group of experienced IM drivers, even if the soft sand required full concentration to keep the cars straight in the descend, but the real challenge was still to come, when we entered the dunes themselves. Climbing per sections, with a sand becoming more soft after each car, little space to maneuver.  This is when skills were required, and not only power.  Going down on the other side, we met @Imran Kashif, waiting for us close to Sweihan pond.

After a small break by the pond, we had another set of these challenging tall dunes, before to continue in a more relaxed mode, cruising the white sands of the Fayah area.

@Jaro Tuzinskythank you for the second lead, you were holding the convoy when required , until I found a proper route. 

@Krishna R, excellent driving and control all along the drive; I did not hear you on the radio, which is a good sign !

@Ignacio Quindós, excellent drive also for your first IM, well done

@Bjoern you and your car had better days, but you went through the obstacles with calm and determination, without loosing your sense of humor

@Imran Kashif, you missed the big dunes, but thank you for joining halfway

@Zed, @Fabien Monleau, @Chris Wing always good to have experienced drivers in challenging situations. You have shown one more time that you can be autonomous at the back of the convoy, supporting others when needed, Thanks a lot!

Enjoy the rest of the weekend, and see you next time !

 

 

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Second time in a row, driving in Sweihan… With @Ale Vallecchifor an afternoon far away from work and for this morning with @JeromeFJ… Always amazing to drive through these high and virgin dunes, feeling confident, following great Leaders as @Ale Vallecchiand @JeromeFJ

As written by @JeromeFJ, we drove this morning through a mixed terrain, long and high dunes then short, high and technical dunes with soft sand… Always obliged to manually shift gears from 4H to 4L, I thank @Chris Wingfor his patience, behind me, while shifting my gears…

After 6 months carrying my jerrycan full of petrol for nothing, I was pleased to fuel @Bjoernand to feel useful, during the break at the pond. 
 

At the end, seeing @Zedflying and not feeling taking off at my turn, I took a little bit on my left and I got stacked on the crest. Thanks again to @Chris Wingfor his quick tug 😉

Even if departure was very early from Dubai to join Sweihan, I took a real pleasure to drive with all of you…

I wish you a nice week-end

 

38D9F43E-7280-425A-AE37-6FC5C5A48E04.jpeg

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1 hour ago, Fabien Monleau said:

At the end, seeing @Zedflying and not feeling taking off at my turn, I took a little bit on my left and I got stacked on the crest.

I like your calm & composed handling of the senior LC 76 👍🏻, treating it as a precious gem being navigated through a fun journey to reach the rewarding exit 🏆 .  

I'm still at the euphoria phase after getting my LC 100 back, especially with the Unichip and open cone air filter removed, so at times I push too much on the throttle worrying I don't have enough speed when in fact i have enough 😂 Great driving together,  until next time, fellow LandCruiser 🫡

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Thanks @Jerome for a fantastic drive full of learning opportunities. The area speaks by itself, one of my favorites. It’s a pity that it’s so far away from my place and requires an extra effort to get there on time (woke up at 4am 😅). 

It was my first IM drive and I enjoyed from start to end, including the tricky technical area in the middle. 

Thanks to @Jaro Tuzinsky for the second lead and @Zed @Fabien Monleauand @Chris Wing for the support.

@Bjoern hope you have fixed your fuel gauge by now. @Krishna R and @Imran Kashif was nice to see you again. 

Enjoy life guys!

IMG_4241.jpeg.53e243d22f733092c9c63b7831b563cd.jpeg
If plan A doesn’t work, go for B👏🏻👏🏻
IMG_4205.jpeg.a3cb44a99e540f75336c87e6afdf00e5.jpeg
Impressive dunes…

Rest of the pictures in the gallery. 

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