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Very welll said @Srikumar and its truly nice to see that you are growing and maturing in offroading, similar to what Rahimdad mentioned few days back. @Xaf we all love playing and that's why we venture out on our off to play and meet new faces and make new friends with similar interest. It's very natural to have that sneak-in and out behavior for little extra fun, but when you are still learning it's always advisable to stick to the convoy track, not only because you were sweeping but also you don't have much experience in leading. I remember doing something similar to venture off my own and after 15 mins my LC100 was almost 70 degree nose down and I was swinging on the seat belt that ended up with pretty nasty recover and bumper damage. @desertdude with your level of experience what an offroader drives in a whole year, you must have driven in a month or two time, so with that level of experience under the belt you know what you are doing within limits. And for patience that you mention for RD, it comes naturally as once you played and done enough you sober down and value making new friends than tearing every dune every week. For the fewbie level drives, if we have enough participation (more than 5 drivers) then we can continue separate fewbie drives now, as season is in full form and hope fewbie drivers aren't travelling. We can give it a go from next week onwards and test it for 2-3 weeks.

Shared a video in the gallery, but because that the limit is 50 mb, the quality is bad, for better quality:

Just to clarify, all respect for the patience of the seniors. As I mentioned in my first trip report, I have respect for the safety, especially for the briefing. I have no critic against the structure or the performing of the club. Only want to share my feelings, little bit open cards regarding my personality. Will start practice my yoga and meditation breathing exercises again to find my patience. 🧘‍♂️ Looking forward to drive again with you guys, see you on the 6th!

Thanks @Xaf for your feedback and I like your enthusiasm. Kinda reminds me of when I started offroading where I was more than eager to play at every possible opportunity. But one rollover while criss-crossing at a wrong angle and speed made me realise that we need to push ourselves only to a certain point and not go overboard. It's based on such experiences and that of others that I was also in agreement when the Carnity Off-road Structure was formed. For Fewbies we do give them some responsibilities like second lead, Sweep etc. to test their readiness for the next level instead of testing them on particular sidey or hill climb. Now the duty of Sweep is to ensure that he is "always" there to assist when any of the other drivers need assistance and ensure smooth convoy movement and communicate the same to the drive lead periodically. So, while you were playing at Sweep position if you would have got stuck/lost then it would be very difficult for us to trace you back. Criteria's for upgrade to the next level is clearly laid out on the forum, which is based on performance and active participation during the drive and not just a particular side slopping test, etc. I believe with Carnity it was your first fewbie drive and Rahimdad has given you some positive feedback on how to improve for the next level of drives.

Seems like you and me are cut from the same cloth! The same reason I stopped doing newbie and fewbie drives when I was active. Just didn't have the patience. Plus I did enough training drives while I was working. I didn't like them either even if I was getting paid to do them. So most of the times I would do "secret drives" as in not post on the forums with just a select few in away from the weekend fish market areas. But credit is given where credit is due to people like RD and others who have the patience to keep doing them for years now again and again

Good morning everybody, was a bit busy last days. In the meanwhile I've been 2 more times again to Pink Rock. Once on the same evening, man what a show on a Friday evening!!! The day after to show the sunset to my girl. Thanks again for the drive @Srikumar @Rahimdad @Atif. Thanks for the feedback @Rahimdad, this is why we come to get feedback and improve. Rahimdad was curious why I got a few refusals, to be honest now, and I hope you understand my viewpoint; I had the opportunity to be the sweep. I found the drive very easy and this is my character; when I get bored, or loose my patience I go to make it myself more interesting. Because I am at the back, I don't need to behave for the one that's driving behind me, so I can make it myself more challenging. Probably I will be shot down now by the seniors of my behaviour that safety goes first and also when you are at the back you have to drive in line with the convoy. I all understand this, trust me, but this is just my character. In all fairness, I hope that the drives will be more separated in levels. I see that a lot of guys are upgraded to a fewbie level. Also give the person the chance to go quicker to a next level drive. If you don't feel comfortable with it, let the person do some exercises, like, crossovers, sidesloping, shovelling, towing, etc etc. I am just thinking out loud, this is what I feel. This is my first offroad club experience, I have no idea how it goes in other clubs. But because I am getting bored now, I start looking to other clubs. Just my feedback!

Trip Report - A nice crisp cool morning. I got a bit delayed to reach the meeting point due to one of the roads being closed. By the time I reached the briefing was almost done and we quickly headed to the deflation point. Here after deflation we were given our convoy numbering. The first part was newbie and @Srikumar has matured into a fine leader who can create a smooth path through a very difficult terrain. @Atif being in second lead is also growing into the role and manages the position with utmost ease. As @Amit0103 pointed out I was strategically placed behind him, but my eyes were glued at @Halit Mert Issever as he enjoyed fish tailing at every possible opportunity. Followed by @Julien V, @AKR, @Xaf and @Brette. Good to see @Brette stepping up to the sweeper position with @Xaf to help. Before we knew it we were at the base of Pink Rocks. The main time spent was the traffic on top. Everybody managed well. At this point we were in search for a shaded area to start our breakfast. We found a nice spot to settle and breakfast was amazing but not as amazing as the stories exchanged. While having breakfast there was still an itch to continue. @Srikumar made an awesome decision to continue at Fewbie level. It was good sporting decision for @Amit0103 and @Navinchandar to continue as passengers. This was a fast paced and wonderful part of the drive enjoyed by all. Although I feel that criss crossing over broad dunes @Halit Mert Issever and @Xaf were turning 90 degrees to go over, but it was their first drive at this level and would like to see them improve on this point. The second part of the drive was fast and we almost conquered Big Red, but due to time constraint we had to exit. All in all a brilliant drive divided in 2 parts and enjoyed by all.

Majority of these pre orders disappear when it comes close to cough up money time. Some detail comes up people don't like, delays in production etc etc many many reasons why people cancel. Many have booked because it's just a 100$ with no actual intention of buying it Some hoping to make money by selling their number in the line to someone who just has to have it right now So on so forth.

Well done Tesla Cybertruck for 200K orders in 3 days.

Don't worry, and don't waste time on those stuff as offroaders will always find there peace in the sand.

Thanks for that Srikumar. We will make sure to check all the levels when we take possession and look forward to our first off raod adventure in the Dunes.

Yes, you are most welcome to join. Since you are taking possession of a s cond hand Wrangler on Wednesday, just ensure that all the fluids are in good condition. And that the front and rear tow points are in good condition. Regarding the equipments, you can get them later. See you on Friday.

That drive in 2 different levels was really awesome. The first part was nice, learning for the newbies and a warm up for the fewbies, and I really enjoyed the second part. Thanks to @Srikumar and @Rahimdad for their advices and their help and to all the guys who were there. See u soon.

@Wrangeld welcome to Carnity Off-road Club. Few questions: 1. Which 4x4 do you drive? 2. Have you had any previous off-road experience? 3. Does your 4x4 have front and rear tow hooks?

Yes Dune Bashing habibiti. How do you think I learnt to drive in the dunes. After work was done at the camp I would sneak out for a personal desert Safari Everytime. P.S : I don't have to ask the elementary question because I was the one doing the "dune bashing" . My favorite pick up as in most fun to drive and not ability wise was the Hilux double cabin 4x4. But it was capable enough get over some steep and moderately high dunes. Only thing you had to hold the gear in place outher wise when you pushed it would skip into neutral and gear knob would rap you hard on your knee You really need to open your mind beyond your anecdotal experiences you might have experienced while weekend warrior-ing over the past decade or so.

If you give you your card, and the person makes a copy of both sides, he or she can do with it what she wants. Some banks have a verification for online transfers (after a certain amount), where you have to verify your transfer by a code that you'll receive after putting al your details (also the 3 numbers on the back). Better to pay cash.

Unfortunately not, ran out of batteries. Still need to find a sweet spot for my gear. Practiced today, I think I found a solution.

In ENOC anything below AED 200 doesn't need a pin. This extends to many other retail outlets as well that accept Visa Wave cards. Just tap and hear the sms on your phone.

Yes Shuweihat island still open, a friend visited last week. Still same story, part of its private area, part of it belongs to military, still you can access the open area and still people litter like garbage landfill and soon that will close this beautiful island.

Yeah and it's called pre-order. It's still a big deal to score 200k in 3 days. Imagine 2 million preorder till production and even if 10% buys it makes 200k sale before the first truck rolls out of factory floor. Incredible.

Not really a big deal. All you have to do right now is put down a $100 deposit online.

Thank you @Brette; this is exactly what I had in my mind and would give it a try. @desertdude thanks man - I would definitely prefer doing it myself; the delay was caused by time constraint and non-urgent nature of restoration job.

Hi there. Will take delivery of an bn oldish swb wrangler on weds. My 4x4 experience is almost 100% in mud, not sand and quite a long time ago. I did courses and had a swb patrol. The car has hooks on both ends. But I don't have other equipment yet (boards, big jack) Is it ok to join?

I guess one of the reasons Maybach hasn't taken off is because they look exactly like the Merc they are based on. Only up close you see the double M logo and slight variation in the lights and grill. Now If fished out premium money I wouldn't want my car that looks exactly like a much much cheaper S Class and in this case a GLS. And it's not like there isn't a market for luxury sedans and SUV. The RR phantom came about the same time as the Maybach was revived and it's doing pretty well for its self. So are the Bentley's and their SUVs the Cullinan and Bentayga. Maybach is not even like the Lexus of Toyota but more like Nissan's Infiniti

Dont be scared to try doing it your self. I have done it on a few of my cars of the years. 1. Wet sand with 2000 grit sand paper till all the discoloration is gone. Let dry for 10 minutes or start doing the other side. 2. Once dry, wet sand with 3000 grit or higher to get the smooth glossy finish. Let dry for 15 mins. 3. Wax with any car wax and maintain it. The next time u notice it getting yellow, go straight to the 3000 grit sandpaper and buff immediately and wax. We have the long weekend coming up. Give it a shot. All the best.

@Shamil WhatsApp Video 2019-11-25 at 3.51.19 PM.mp4

This was a nice read and a lot of good answers 👍🏻

My experience with friends always ended up with there choices to stay, bbq, live cooking, than actual drive. Hence since the beginning, I was very happy with club discipline that everyone gets together to drive and nothing else. Off course after drive we do chill, cook, bbq and relax but not during the drive. No matter how much you plan and organize with friends but one guy wants to sit back and enjoy so the whole group has to suffer. I have endless stories with guy change his mind and opted to do the photo shoot of his wife, kid and car and leaving all of us to wait for 3+ hours in the best dunes. Other time, one guy change his mind to stay overnight on one island, so I have to split and drove the rest of the way alone to keep my hotel booking during Eid holidays. As everyone mentioned, with clubs you will explore more places and learn faster due to collective experience on board and in offroad you can never learn enough. I and Rahimdad still leaning after decades of experience. The second best thing with clubs is you get to meet different nationalities and talk to them about there country offroad experience, try their cuisines, share jokes and know more about there culture that you rarely get to see with friends and families. In Carnity I guess we have over 20 different nationalities in the offroad club and I always look forward to sitting with them in the end. I rarely eat my own food, as I love trying different cuisine while listening to their own interesting and colorful stories. You will actually see how cheerful people are in offroad rather than at work culture because at work everyone is serious and busy with their routine but in offroad it's more of a vent out and relaxes for everyone so you will enjoy there jovial side more often. Thirdly in most of the offroad clubs here in UAE, safety is paramount so chances of you getting into unsafe recovery/mishap are very less, as they always have trained Marshals and Crew to take care of extreme recoveries and accidents. Looking forward to seeing your clan and don't worry about the noisy animals as Jungle is already filled with many.

Thanks guy for all inputs and showuing the so many different ways and angles i havent realize. I agree fred we limit ourselve many times to serios duens due to the few underpower suv. will think a way to bring my clan to carnity family too - hope it work with so many noisy animals in one group

@derik I can write up all I want, but you will only realize the difference if you join us once. We too will get a chance to know you better and discuss this further. From my personnel opinion having driven off-road for over 10 years and been on both sides, when I have done a few drive with friends and done it as a club. When you are driving in private you might take things seriously and have all the equipment, but those around you would always keep depending on you, where as in a club as you grow you realize that you need to carry some equipment as an individual and along with your driving capability your safety tools also increase. Within 10 friends you are limited to certain areas and would not venture out much, plus if friends are busy or have other engagement you will be left with no drive at all. Whereas in a club there is a drive posted very week, sometimes multiple drives and you can join one which suits your level, having a 100+ members helps, because atleast 10 - 15 cars would want to attend every week. The first year we had no official structure in Carnity due to which we faced several problems, after introducing structure last year, more people enjoy their level of drive, learn with enthusiasm as they want to grow and help others and we make new friends every week. in a friendly drive you will not be able to discover so many places as the comfort level is not so much, you might always sacrifice your drive style to suit the lowest level member in your friends, whereas in a structured club you can join the drives you like or lower level drives knowing that it is going to be slower than your style of drive. As a club you will get to taste several flavours as everybody as individuals has their own preferred terrain and drive style. plus with so many minds at work we are always trying to discover and try out new areas with intermediate drivers and above. I like the way @Frederic has tried to give you an example of a gym, or the way @Emmanuel has expressed his concern as we do not know your drive level or drive style along with your friends or the equipment available to you or the areas you visit or if you have tried to explore new terrains. We are always open to questions and appreciate your question. I have been off-roading for over 10 years, but I still learn from people who ask questions and the many challenges we face during each drive. We are blessed at Carnity to have a very strongly knitted team and all those who join have a like minded approach. Once again I would like to welcome you and your friends to join us and we can chat further on this subject. I am sure after driving with us a couple of times most of your questions will be answered without a word being said.

There's also another group of Guys going out Every Saturday and sometimes having Spontaneous Drives. It's https://www.facebook.com/groups/EveryDayDesertDrives/ and their WhatsApp group https://chat.whatsapp.com/7bvXtAFk4swI7Lx47cr6a1 Because it's not conflicting it's drives with other Clubs which mostly go out on Fridays, hence a complete Mix

Thanks @Amit0103 for updating

Ford unveiled its first electric Mustang SUV Mach-E, to go head to head with other electric cars in market. $44,000 price tag for a 300 miles range seems good for electric segment. What do you guys think......?