Morning Fewbie Desert Drive - Faqa to Solar Park - Dubai - 5 Aug 2023

[Looper]

DRIVE PLAN

Let's drive from Faqa this weekend. Our off-road adventure awaits in two exciting parts. The initial segment will take place in Faqa itself, offering a scenic route (code for lush greenery) and an impending rise in temperatures. After we leave Faqa we will then navigate through Sabkha to reach Little Sweihan. Our primary focus lies on the second part of the drive.

We request every member that joins this drive to go through the information below and strictly follow these guidelines, etiquette, and responsibilities.

MUST READ AND COMPLY

• Environmental Policy
• Offroad Flag Guideline
• Two Way Radio Guideline
• Off road Driving Etiquettes
• Emergency details for all off roaders
• Off Road Driving - Roles & Responsibilities

DRIVE DETAILS

• Level:  Fewbie and above
• When: 5 August 2023, Saturday
• Meeting time:  5:30 AM - Sharp (Without any exceptions)
• Meeting Point: https://goo.gl/maps/9gwwnd7jaXscmVYm9
• Approximate finish time: 9:00 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 GEAR:

• Tire deflator & Tire pressure gauge
• Compressor
• Walkie-talkie radio
• Off-road flag
• Shovel, Tow Rope & 2 Shackles
• First-aid kit
• Fire extinguisher

LIMITED SPOTS AVAILABLE

• This drive is limited to 10 cars only. RSVP will close on Friday
• 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 - Without any exceptions.
• Members without RSVP will be returned - 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

[Joseph Sebastian]

Apologies, need to withdraw due to a late meeting on Friday night - need to get some sleep! Will take myself off the list. Enjoy, folks and see you next time

[Looper]

@Theo09, @PETELCZYC PAJERO - luke, @FERNANDO SYRIO, @Juan R, @Gok Krish, @Rk ram, @Saverio Arena, @Cristian, @Fabien Monleau, @Cha

Thank you all for joining the drive. I will be posting the convoy order later in the day. Request you not to be a No-Show and instead rest well and arrive on time. In case you think there are going to be any issues withdraw from the drive. Meanwhile do check the health of your vehicle as it will be quite hot very soon, touching 40 degrees by the time we end the drive.

It is going to be a semi exploration drive with me, also expect drive to be slightly quicker than usual. We will start driving south from our starting point towards E14. We will encounter a slightly busy area, but it will have mid-sized dunes. Next, we will go West towards Qudra, parallel to E14. It will have long range dunes where we will try to climb them dunes and ride on top. At the end of this we will have our break and then drive northwest to cross a section of tight technical area and then cross a Sabkha to reach the west end of Little Sweihan. We will then drive east and end our drive near Solar Park. I plan to end before 9:00 in the morning.

[Gok Krish]

Hello @Looperbuddy, I am signing out. Just heading back from Kuwait from 53C and will need to be on recovery mode 

[Looper]

The following is the convoy order. We will be on Channel 2 for the drive tomorrow. See you all.

4 hours ago, Gok Krish said:

Hello @Looperbuddy, I am signing out. Just heading back from Kuwait from 53C and will need to be on recovery mode 

Take care, heat is a terrible these days. See you soon.

[Luke K P]

@Loopersorry. Work has called me in for weekend far from the gulf . Can't make anything now 😭😭😭😭

 

Apologies for ultra late reply

[FERNANDO SYRIO]

Thank you once more @Looper for the today's drive. As usual you're a great coach and always open to coach us. Have all a good weekend! And thanks @Saverio Arena for join us today! It was a pleasure to drive with you again!

[Saverio Arena]

Thank you @Looper for the amazing drive, full of technical dunes! Thank you Fernando for the picture, we seems very happy and “fresh” in that picture  have all of you a weekend with some relax!

Edited August 5, 2023 by Saverio Arena

[Looper]

While I planned for a bit more long-range dunes, it turned out to be mostly a technical drive. Having said that it is impressive to note that we drove about 82km at 25.5 kmph moving speed. I must say the end few min was the highlight of the drive when I pushed the limits in the Little Sweihan area and just kept quiet because I knew better not to jinx the concentration of the team. When I thought that the convoy was out, I opened my mouth to express my astonishment at what the convoy did. Alas it was a dune too soon and we had a couple of refusals. We did only half the planned track as you can see below but I am glad we still did it because i was in two minds and was actively considering going direct towards the exit track. Otherwise, the track was a bit bushier than I remembered from last month and took a bit more time to come out of the greenery.

Thanks to @Cha, @Fabien Monleau and @Juan R for managing the convoy. For a first-time Fewbie drive @Theo09 you were exceptional. Also, a big shout out to @Rk ram, @FERNANDO SYRIO, @Saverio Arena & @Cristian for your flawless participation in the drive.

A map and few stats from my gps recording:

 

[Juan R]

Thanks @Looperfor organizing the drive and for taking the decision to extend the drive a bit through Little Sweihan.  It was rewarding to see the smooth sand  after quite a bit of vegetation.  @Cha@Fabien Monleau, than-you for the support and good to meet you for both for first time.  Un plaisir de te connaître