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The One Where Rahimdad Did Not Lead I would never have imagined six months ago after our first newbie drives that @Rahimdad would entrust the lead of a Carnity drive to @Jeepie and myself. But, to my great amazement that's what just happened and it's just sinking in. It's possible, even with a COVID sized break in drives that you can, with the guidance of our amazing crew and marshalls, learn enough so that you get the chance to take the lead of a drive (supervised of course) and get to feel what it's like to have to make the choices about where to go. It helps that the drivers in the convoy are all experienced, then you feel that if you go the 'wrong way' everyone can follow. So we arrived this morning to find the deflation point looking like the Dubai Mall car park as not only Carnity but another group were readying for the off. It was great to see our recently promoted expert @Javier M driving off into the distance. With @Jeepie at the wheel we set of with @Rahimdad in second lead. @Foxtrot Oscar followed with @Lorenzo Candelpergher @Shiju Manuel filling in the gaps to our new centre forward @Vanessa8580. In this early part of the drive @Vanessa8580 handled all the refusals with great advice, supported by @sertac who was sweeping the convoy today. @Jeepie having slowly but surely increased the intensity and led the convoy to the first play area and was rewarded with Rahimdad extending the period of the lead because, frankly everyone was enjoying the drive so much. The soft sand was becoming a little more challenging and we had more stucks as we slipped and sliced our way towards Fossil Rock. After an hour or so on the move we had a long dig out for @Shiju Manuel and It was decided that i would have a chance to take over the lead. We moved off, enthusiastically (well, I was any how!) but the going was getting less easy as the sand is very dry. It seemed everyone was enjoying the challenge @Kalahari @Mels Wolf @asifk and @Colin Jordan @J J all showed how three completely different makes of vehicles can all handle the dunes when in the hands of really competent drivers. We made or way quickly to our next play area. Unfortunately sorting out the pop out from @Vanessa8580 meant we had another delay, reducing the play time again. In the desert heat, having the patience to wait in the car is admirable. Once on the move again, we almost immediately stopped because there was the most amazing lizard in our sights. It was so exciting that @Rahimdad got stuck and had to be tugged free by sertac. With the increasing heat, it became clear that tyres needed to be checked again and unfortunately @Rinelle Sanaani had a problem with his radio. Despite there being a few spares in the convoy, COVID rules are clear. So Rinelle exited and the rest of us launched ourselves up Fossil Rock. Noone had any problems until we arrived at the top and found a few cars were overheating, so we sprayed the radiators, allowed fans to run and prepared for the quick descent down the slipface of the rock. With temperatures rising to hotter than the sun, we took the quick route out of the desert to reinflate as it was already past 10am. From where I sat, in the passenger seat, I think @Jeepie did an amazing job in her first lead. I just hope that the convoy enjoyed the part where I led, despite the stops, as much as I did leading. Thank you all for your indulgence. The excellent skills of the rest of the convoy made it a lot easier for both of us to think about where we were going instead of looking back the whole time to check everyone was OK. Thanks to @Rahimdad @Gaurav @Srikumar @Emmanuel and @Frederic who have given amazing support and guidance since we first braved the desert in our little jeep. My message to everyone who was on the drive today, in a few months that could be you too. The desire in this group is so strong to teach others and empower everyone to enjoy this sport that there are lots of people there to support you in what every you want from your off road experience. See you soon in the sand.

DRIVE REPORT Another lovely drive with the Carnity crew ! All arrived on time, and I noticed a new face amongst the crowd: @syed salman raza joined us with a nice little TJ. The first time in the desert for Syed, but definitely not for the TJ that felt at home and willingly did what had to be done. Throughout the drive you managed very well and drove with confidence and momentum. Well done ! Because the deflation point was a bit further down in Al Qudra, I decided to keep heading south towards the solar park, which offered us a bit more technical dunes, knowing well that our convoy was strong and could manage. At one point @Yousef Alimadadi came over a small dune and slid into a small ditch, with as result his one wheel was lifted in the air and the car was tilted quite a lot. We decided to pull the car slightly back upwards towards the dune with my rope to get the car level again, and then attached Brette his car to tow it slightly forward. Excellent support again from @Brette as always, and calm and well communicated approach from @Yousef Alimadadi that dealt with a little pop out too a bit later. Once we reached the more technical area, more and more people started to get some stucks and refusals , and the soft sand and heat did not offer any relief. After deflating some cars again we eventually got out without too many issues. This terrain can be harsh sometimes and normally more reserved for Fewbie level but all did so well. @Janarthan joined us with an Xterra, which is slowly becoming the number one off-road 4x4 in our club and with good reason. Congrats buddy ! Our Spanish buddies @Jose Martin and @Nacho drove also very good today. No stress no struggle. @Gregory Perkin was my second lead and patiently waited when I was out for recoveries, and brilliantly kept his distance and slightly rerouted where needed. Well done ! @Anish S is a regular attendee to our drives and I see him growing steadily week after week. Saw you even proactively giving instructions over the radio to help out another member. Brilliant work ! @Mikhail Lukichev drove the Prado like you hit the sand every day, which is either the case and if not, then it’s even more impressive. @Chaitanya D had to deal with technical terrain today which is not an easy thing with a big Patrol. But you went through without any issues which is very impressive ! Halfway through my drive my odometer hit 300k and I was happy to have this happening in the desert where my little blue feels home, and not somewhere on the E11 😜 on the next 300k. See you guys soon back in the sand !!

Hello Guys, thank you for the nice trip. It was a challenging and technical drive today and we did it well because we were a good team. It was nice to see all of us on time and deflating the tires already as soon as we arrived. Today, i was driving behind @Nacho and i could observe that Nacho was very comfortable and confident. He had very good control over his vehicle. Behind me there was @Chaitanya D, i can see Chaitanya has remarkable experience off roading especially with the huge Patrol. He was driving cautiously. @Yousef Alimadadi Yousef had the front tire popped out which was my first experience and the situation was managed successfully and swiftly by our leader @Frederic and @Brette. Hopefully after the Covid 19, we can have the opportunity for some hand on practise in recovering from such situation, so that we can learn. But I was glad that at least we could see from a distance how the situation was managed by our seniors. @Brette our sweeper did a fabulous job, he calmly managed and assisted numerous refusals and stucks. Thank you @Brette @Frederic...looking forward to learn more and more from everybody and every situation.

Dear @Wrangeld and @Jeepie, While this was your first drive as Leaders (kudos for your excellent performance) it was as well my first one as Fewbie, so some of your excitement was also mine. When he noticed that @Rahimdad was not in the lead, my 6 years old son asked a ton of questions why someone else was leading, as in his mind only someone wearing a Superman T-shirt would be fit for the role.. Afterwards he admitted the ride had been a lot of fun and concluded you can be leaders even if you aren't dressed as super heros. I'd say this means you passed with flying colors! Letting aside a few stops for refusals and recoveries from stucks (which I used for a few photo shoots more than usual), we kept a fairly fast pace, which was indeed the greater difference I noticed from previous newbie drives. And great fun too, a totally different ride compared to my 1st time at Fossil Rock two weeks ago. Following @Foxtrot Oscar wasn't always easy, as she was surprisingly faster than I would have expected. Towards the end I feared my tyres (which I had deflated only to 16 psi) would gain too much pressure with the heat, but I managed to avoid further deflate and ended without trouble at 17-18 psi. I climbed and descended Fossil rock with somehow a heavy foot, which caused a couple of jumps too many on the way up (where I slightly damaged the rear left inner mudguard plastics, fixed by hand for the time being). On the way down @Wrangeldquestioned whether I was actually on 1L, as I descended too fast, probably again with a little throttle in excess. Next time I'll pay more attention. Overall a great ride, thanks to the whole convoy members. See below ride track / details from Pathaway.

It was a great drive, with many scenic detours. Thanks @Wrangeld and @Jeepie for not only very competent leads, but also maintaining a great pace! It was great to have the desert basically to ourselves, and as always the highlight of my week. Thank you to @Rahimdad and @sertac for the guidance, and all the shoveling with @Vanessa8580!

@Frederic thank you for your encouraging words, a wonderful lead today and yes I am getting better at wriggling my patrol on soft sand 🤣... had to use 4L few times today to get out of really soft sand which made the car to heat up ...but all under control. @Anish S thanks for your comment ... you were driving your pajero very well... could not match the same speed and approach sometimes owing to a different vehicle (big fat patrol 😉) driven by me. Thank you @Brette for guiding me out of a refusal and more with other cars at the back . All in all a good "hot" drive by everyone. Few pictures uploaded in gallery.Stay safe everyone

Thanks to everybody for the drive. Very well done, with very little issues, all brilliantly resolved. Hope you didn't mind my first experience at the head of the pack. I enjoyed it very much, especially the later part, chasing the sunset. You all certainly responded very well to the terrain, the temperature and the technical dunes that sometimes Qudra throws at you. Special thanks to @Srikumar for giving me the opportunity to lead. Thanks also to @Shamil for watching over the convoy, to @Desert Dweller for her first "center" and recovery role, and to @Matti Brockman for his sure and safe second-lead. See you next week.

It was a great drive. This time we had chance to taste the lead of @Jeepie and @Wrangeld, both did amazing choices of route. We had few stucks, few refusals and 1 pop out situation. All handled well. Thanks to @Rahimdad bhai finally i got my new kinetic rope and felt more ready for sweep duty. Also it was good idea to add 2 extra fan to Jeep, because of extra fans even with extreme heat Jeep never passed the 100C. At the end we approach the Fossil Rock. Whenever we reach that point it reminds me my absolute newbie drive. I am not forgetting that excitement even after 3 years. Big thanks to everyone who participate the drive and special thanks to @Jeepie and @Wrangeld for lead, @Rahimdad for giving that secure feeling of having Superman with us and @Vanessa8580 for keeping her eye on the convoy and sharing her experience with others.

@Wrangeld @Jeepie you had an outstanding lead today. Hats of you guys 😊 Today was my first Fewbie drive and it was quiet challenging in few places where the sand was very soft due to hot summer. Thanks for @Rahimdad for guiding us all the way and special thanks to @Rahimdad @Vanessa8580 @sertac for recovering me when i was stuck. Even the summer heat goes up to 45 degree,we all had the off road spirt to conquer it. See you guys next week. pic posted in gallery.

It was a fantastic drive! I visited Al Qudra desert or the first time and definitely I enjoyed it a lot! Thanks to @Frederic, we were able to experience speedy dunes in the first half of our trip and challenging soft-sand areas in the second. Completely different feelings! @Brette provided outstanding help and guidance! Thanks a lot, mate! Also I have to admit that convoy behave very well! All stayed inside of the cars at all time even when we had to wait a bit due to several stucks and recoveries. No gathering, masks on, everything is in accordance to COVID-19 guidelines! Well done! Thanks a lot!

@FrederickK thank you for giving me confidence for my first drive .also like to thanks all the members for supporting

Not mentioned but not forgotten is @Rajeevan Vickneswaran who managed very well and always keeps a positive spirit !

Here is some photos of the drive...there is mainly Nacho's Jeep since he was the infront. @Nacho @Rajeevan Vickneswaran

Thanks @desertdude I went to capital auto and had a positive experience

My pajero is "dark-gray" or "ash" indeed. But doesn't matter, it is close to black...

DRIVE RSVP IS NOW CLOSED: This is the convoy list for tomorrow: Gaurav Silver Pajero E.C. TAN Grey Wrangler Nikola Bozovic Pajero (Absolute Newbie) George Francis Nissan Pathfinder (Absolute Newbie) Carlos Fernandez Black Wrangler (Absolute Newbie) Mehmet Volga Black pajero Wrangeld Green Wrangler Luca Bregni Grey Wrangler Jun Zamora Wrangler Jas Gajaria Black pajero Mahmoud Hamzawy Grey Prado paolo dassi Pajero bunty_and_pops White Wrangler P.S. Please help correcting your car color, If I got it wrong. @Jas Gajaria please read and click on totally agree on the ban thread on top of every page. Without agreeing no one is supposed to join any off-road drive. Radio frequency will be: Carnity Channel 1: 446.00625 Mhz. Please make sure your radio is charged and set to all 5 Carnity frequencies when you arrive at the deflation point, as we might change the channel if there is disturbance on Channel 1. Keep your distance when deflating and do not "gather" upon arrival. Deflate your vehicle and step back in the car so we can convey the briefing over the radio. Whenever you need help to deflate, announce on the radio and a senior or marshal will come to assist. Make sure you have a deflator, flag, and your radio. See you tomorrow ! @E.C. TAN @Mehmet Volga @Wrangeld @Luca Bregni @Jun Zamora @Mahmoud Hamzawy @paolo dassi @bunty_and_pops @Nikola Bozovic @George Francis and @Carlos Fernandez as an absolute newbie, please go through this full newbie briefing video for your and your vehicle safety. I will personally ask few questions to check.

Great idea and I would definitely join !

Great idea @Desert Dweller, at one point @Barry had suggested to have a session which would give everyone the basic knowledge of how the car operates and some basic tools and stuff. Maybe @Barry can help with such a session. It would also be helpful if @Jeepie, @Vanessa8580 and more people can join to make this session lower cost for all and @Barry could address several people in one session. What say @Barry? Do you want to launch a session which you had spoken about earlier but died due to no interest at that point?

What a track.. Enjoyed the moments led by @Jeepie and @Wrangeld .. The flavour was indeed good and we all liked the brownie sand .. @Rahimdad .. Yes stucks, pop outs happen and they are part of the game .. thats what we have signed up for ! @Rahimdad was the man of the match though , I could see him really beat but still got that smile to keep you motivated . I was very impressed with @sertac sweeping skills and he was very helpful in so many instances today . @Vanessa8580 keeping up that energy in the team ..All drivers were great today .. drove like pros. As usual I have loaded some pics in the gallery and a customary video . Enjoy ! VID-20200612-WA0204.mp4

Hi @Gaurav, my wrangler is black. see you later cheers

See you guys tomorrow. Remember, communication is very important. And watch your temp gauge.

My Pajero is SWB and black. See you tomorrow!

My wrangler is dark green, hope this helps to identify it better.

2 extra fans are added, I should be fully ready for the drive.

@syed salman raza as an absolute newbie, please go through this full newbie briefing video for your and your vehicle safety. Frederic will personally ask few questions to check.

DRIVE RSVP IS CLOSED Convoy Numbering for tomorrow 1. Srikumar - Cherokee XJ 2. Matti Brockman - Wrangler 3. Jolly Abraham - Fortuner 4. Febin Frederic - Wrangler 5. Szymon Stankiewicz - Montero 6. Desert Dweller - Xterra 7. Jorge - LR4 8. Roshan Abraham - Pajero 9. Nizam Deen - Prado 10. Ale Valleci - FJ 11. Najeeb Mohammed - FJ 12. Deniz - Trailblazer 13. Shamil - Xterra Please make sure your radio is set to Channel 2: 446.03125 Mhz and switched on when you arrive at deflation point. Also make sure the other Carnity channels are programmed into your radio so we can switch to another channel when needed. Members who have not clicked "totally agree" on the BAN post as well as this drive post, will not be allowed to join the drive, as we want to have formal acknowledgement that you have understood our rules and precautions. Keep your distance when deflating and do not "gather" upon arrival. Deflate your vehicle and step back in the car so we can convey the briefing over the radio. Make sure you have a deflator, flag, and your radio. See you tomorrow !

DRIVE RSVP IS NOW CLOSED: This is the convoy list for tomorrow: Please make sure your radio is set to channel 1: 446.00625 Mhz and switched on when you arrive at deflation point. Also make sure the other Carnity channels are programmed into your radio so we can switch to another channel when needed. Members who have not clicked "totally agree" on the BAN post, will not be allowed to join the drive, as we want to have formal acknowledgement that you have understood our rules and precautions. Please take note we are not meeting at the old meeting point in Al Qudra. This new meeting point is a few kilometers further down the road, where you have a sand track that leads into the desert. Double check the Google Maps coordinates. Keep your distance when deflating and do not "gather" upon arrival. Deflate your vehicle and step back in the car so we can convey the briefing over the radio. Whenever you need help to deflate, announce on the radio and a senior or marshal will come to assist. Make sure you have a deflator, flag, and your radio. See you tomorrow !

Done, thanks!

Hello Guys, I will not be able to join tomorrow's drive . I have left the event. If anyone else want to go please RSVP.

@Denizzalbayrak @Jolly Abraham @Nizam Deen @Roshan Abraham @Jorge Stepniak Felippe @Lucky sAm @siddharth maheshwari @Shamil You need to read the above COVID related restrictions and click "Totally Agree" Emoji on the main drive post to be able to participate in tomorrow's drive

congratulations @Desert Dweller...well done

I have also thought about taking some automotive training courses to get more knowledge and experience handling car maintenance and problems, a better understanding of car mechanics. If Carnity organizes some in the future I would be happy to join. I can spare a few hundreds of dirhams for that purpose.

In this difficult times whole world "policy" is to stay safe and continue doing what we were with minimal restrictions. We were probably the first offroad club in the UAE to have "COVID Compliance offroad drives" posted publically by implementing strict restriction to safeguard everyone. To be in full compliance with authorities guideline and yet manage the convoy, we have restricted each drive to 10-15 cars at max. And doing that itself was a borderline challenge that we have to issue a new ban policy for the first time in Carnity history last week. I fully understand your enthusiasm and disappointment to not to able to join the drive, but wait for tomorrow as we always have maximum plus and minus on Thursday. And once you drive with carnity offroad club, I'm sure you will understand that why drives here get filled within few hours of posting. Kindly make sure that your name is in the wait list for the drive that you wish to join.

Hi, with due respect, our community has decided on the limited numbers PER drive - it still allows for more than 48 to join drives on Friday.

@Rahimdad thnx - done!

Have heard nothing but good things from LR owners about Capital Auto in Qouz. Have been using them for years.

My own reflections on this: - What have failed in this case is not the tow hook, it seems the bolts. Then I see a locally fabricated bar, like the one on the land cruiser, I always get worried. I have too many times seen bars being fixed using the bolts of the regular tow points. If that is the case, the high-tensile rated factory bolts might have been too short and did not have enough of threads. The bolts might even have been replaced with local none rated longer bolts. The bolt might not have been tightened and therefore bent before ripped off. - Even if it seems not have been the issue in this case, the factory front hooks on the 100 series land cruiser are rubbish and should be replaced. It bends after a few recoveries. Unless you like to go after market recovery points, both the 105 and the 70 series have factory recovery points with the same bolt pattern. The 100 series cruiser is not the only car with bad factory points. Possibly something the club could support and recommend? - I do fully agree on using soft shackles were possible. The less iron that comes flying, the better it is. - Many of us knows very well the strengths and the weaknesses of our own cars. We know what point to use and we have ensured the bolts are high tensile rated. But how can we ensure the car you are recovering are properly setup? If it fails in the other end, you get it in your wind screen. - We often have the debate on recovering from the front or the back. Some time you have no option depending on how the car is stuck. From the recovery vehicle point of view, you also have weaknesses and benefits. Pulling from the back going forward might put less strain on your drive train. It might also provide some better safety. Pulling from the front reversing on the other hand provides better visibility and control. - I also have a good experience using bridle. The main benefit is that you divide the force on two points and the risk for failure is less. But if you get a failure, the friction is high enough to take the tension away. It only takes a moment longer to rig (picture stolen from the WEB) - A safety strap also comes handy. It doesn’t divide the force, but it stops things from flying. Will be pleased to share my experiences if anyone would be interested.

@Gaurav just to let you know I will not be released from work before 15:30, so unless things change I won't be able to reach meeting point in time☹️. Sorry, but unfortunately out of my control!

Hello @Frederic i had to cancel my RSVP from evening drive due to some family commitment in the evening. Please let me know if there is any last minute cancellations and also add me in the list . Probably at the last .. Thanks