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Thanks @Ale Vallecchi for the drive this morning. Im disappointed to have had to leave early. The transmission temperature light in my Paj came on when we were in the very soft sand area, and i suspected 90% chance it was just the sand churning up causing the issues and on the flat track it would be fine. But Ale and @Vanessa8580 rightly recommended not risking the engine and exiting early. As it turned out, within 500m of exiting and driving on the tarmac the light disappeared and all was fine. I got the tyres filled up at adnoc and headed home. The epilogue to the story was that as I was driving home I saw a car stuck in sand on the side of the highway and a man and woman looking like they were about to get heatstroke. So I stopped, and it turned out they were trying to “test” their suv but the 4wd wasnt working and they had no rope, tools etc. I offered them water, fixed up the rope and towed them out of their sandy rut and got them onto the tarmac. Should have seen the look on their faces when I stopped and reversed back to them, they had been waiting for 30 mins in the sun. So I did my good deed for the day instead of having the longer desert drive - not too shabby :-). See you all next time !

Thank you everyone for the successful drive, we had no stucks but few refusals that was successfully recovered with the guidance of @Ale VallecchiVallecchi @Vanessa8580 @Denizzalbayrak...there was no need for tow rope, n not even shovel actually. Under the leadership of @Ale VallecchiVallecchi, it was a great opportunity to learn different new techniques since the drive was technical and challenging. @Vanessa8580 did an amazing job as always and today in the middle of the convoy she ensured communication is effective and she kept the convoy together running up and down assisting us. @Denizzalbayrak our sweeper had a tricky job and he did amazingly well...he also helped me when I got refusals and provide valuable guidance to recover and also adviced rerouting when needed. I was driving behind Dr. @Chaitanya D and It was obvious that he is now very comfortable with the Xterra n I can see massive progress. When the track was getting messed up, it was so nice to see him taking the initiative to do minor rerouting and changes to tackle the dunes better. Keep it up...

Almost a year ago to the day, I arrived in the UAE. It was part of my plan to be driving 4x4 as one of the benefits of moving from the serene, calm surroundings of the Netherlands, where news starts with headlines like "Today the level of the River Maas Rose by 2mm". A group of close friends gave me and @Jeepie the gift of a dune bashing session as our going away/wedding present. We invested the money in our little TJ (along with a whole load more) and have not looked back since. Waking at 'oh my lord o'clock this morning', as Carnity drives are starting earlier to avoid some of the summer heat, sort of made sense. More so, once we found ourselves in the dark at the entry point to Mahafiz with our intrepid companions all looking for early morning thrills. Deflating in the dark holds new pleasures even for experienced drivers (as I found out when I could not locate the valve to reinsert the stem) so we had an early inflation as well, but were soon underway with @Frederic in the lead. I think that around this area, we might rename the drive from Desert to Jungle drive. The amount of greenery is incredible. It makes for a bumpy drive and a challenge to find a smooth route. The convoy, however kept great pace and discipline until @George Francis wavered approaching a crest and got stuck. We considered digging, but a quick tug made more sense and we were off ag ain to find a few play dunes. Watching the drive along the way it was great to se how both Newbies and Fewbies on the drive are developing their skills. @Jorge Stepniak Felippe did very well as second lead, @Rajeevan Vickneswaran has excellent control of the Wrangler and @Mehmet Volga and @Yousef Alimadadi both are getting to grips with what having all that power means in their Pajeros. @marks and @Leo Francis probably need just a little more time with their vehicles to get to grips with its capabilities. As @Frederic mentioned, we cleared the route towards Fosil Rock in good time that a decisiiin to continue to Faya was inevitable. Seeing the other Carnity convoys along the way of @Ale Vallecchi and @Javier M is an incredible reminder of what this club stands for and why the early starts make sense. Seeing that members grow to leaders and teachers is the essential DNA of Carnity. Everyone out there today has the opportunity if they want to be more involved. Everyone has the same chances. It's not often that can be said about a club with established members and structures. Driving on past our club members, we made it to Faya and most made it to the top. Those who did not can take the learning for the next time out, when inevitably you will. Today, taking the conditions and route into consideration was at Newbie+ level and everyone did themselves proud. Myself and @Jeepie enjoyed the limited sweeping needed and another beautiful morning out in the desert. Here's to more morning and evening adventures and celebrating a year of membership in Carnity in the Winter. And ... in case you are wondering, yesterday's news in the Netherlands "Man Bites Dog" See you soon in the sand.

Drive Report: The first drive of the year where I had to wake up at 3:00. Luckily I was not the only one in the house that had to wake up so that made it a bit easier. Arrived around 04:40 and Rajeevan was already there, eagerly waiting to hit the sand with the big blue Wrangler. Syed Salman could not make it due to technical issues on the TJ. @Incognitoes was incognito today.. As we had a strong convoy I decided to brush the newbie+ level to see how our friends were doing and i wasn’t disappointed. Having seen some people grow this much in a matter of weeks makes me really happy. Things went so well that we reached Fossil Rock in around 90 mins although we played around a lot on the way there. After a chat with my sweep team @Wrangeld and @Jeepie we both decided nothing was gonna hold us back today and we would head out to Faya. We took the easy track to make sure we had enough play time in Faya and came across @Ale Vallecchi and @Vanessa8580 their convoy who was doing almost same route but in reverse direction. Upon reaching Faya we see another Carnity convoy, this time our Intermediate crew under the lead of @Javier M. They were putting tire tracks on every square meter of the area, and we decided to play on the side of Faya and do some small ridge riding on the smaller dunes towards the buggy rental exit point. It seems Carnity convoys are taking over the UAE deserts. To all newcomers, rest assured that Carnity has big future plans and that you have come to the right place for safe off-roading adrenaline ! @Jorge Stepniak Felippe was doing his first second lead and I was very impressed as he managed it brilliantly and was pro active in rerouting and communicating with the convoy. I thank all who joined and hope to meet you all soon again ! IMG_8094.MP4

TRIP REPORT Due to COVID-19, it's been a while since we had so many fresh faces on a drive and hence I was pretty excited for this drive. It's wonderful that there is a trend of being at the meeting point on or before the scheduled time. It was also good to see that those who brought radios had taken the effort to program them before the drive. After a quick introduction and brief for the Absolute Newbies we started moving. @paolo dassi was my second lead and he did a splendid job of following instructions, responding clearly and keeping adequate gap incase of any route correction. @Islam Solimanhad a real challenge today in getting to know his monstrous GMC Yukon. But as the drive progressed you could see the confidence and better throttle control. Well done as that is certainly not an easy car to drive on the sand. As mentioned I strongly recommend that you remove the Air Dam (Lower Front bumper extension) so that you have better approach angles for future drives. @Biju Abdul had joined with his FJ and I hardly heard anything from him, even in the form of a refusal. Bravo. @Anam Fatima managed herself pretty well and the number of refusals kept reducing as the drive was progressing. It's a sign of growing confidence and better control. However, for the next drive please ensure that you have proper rated tow points at the front. Even though you have a metal bumper which is bolted onto the chassis, it will most likely not be accepted by the lead on the next drive. @David Ortells and @Edgar had absolutely no issues at the back of the convoy and were nicely gliding through the dunes with a lot of ease. And finally big thanks to @sertac for supporting the drive and to be more than willing to help recover some of the stuck vehicles when needed. Hope you guys had a good drive, for I most certainly did. See you next time

Dear fellow Desernauts. To paraphrase @Wrangeld Richard’s report titles, I guess we should call this one “The Rumble in the Jungle”. I don’t know you, but I have never seen any desert in such green and lush conditions. That cloud seeding is certainly working, to the benefit of the citizens and residents, yet to the detriment of the off-roading community. Having escaped successfully from Mahafiz’s jungle (and to a lesser extent that around Fossil Rock), I’ll have to mow the lawn trapped under the car If I want to be able to drive without literally sweeping Dubai’s highways. Backtracking to the beginning of the drive, first of all, a commendation to all drivers for their timely (or in most cases, even early) arrival. After an unhurried deflation, we proceeded to move in the following order: @Rinelle Sanaani for his first second lead, diligently and patiently executed, @asifk doing great until his car experienced transmission issues (luckily resolved) which forced him to exit prematurely, @Shiju Manuel @RohanH, @Jolly Abraham and @J J, driving with poise and control in spite of the tricky terrain, @Vanessa8580 dominating the convoy, covering its length to help direct the occasional refusal, @Najeeb Mohammed much improved in extracting the power under his FJ’s hood, @Chaitanya D totally enjoying his new desert toy, @Anish S, overcoming a cooling issue to finish the drive in perfect conditions, @Tbone and @Janarthan navigating as a perfectly synchronized pair, and finally @Denizzalbayrak, who swept the convoy with exceptional control, lending his precious help to Vanessa in sorting out some refusals. The great news is that, in spite of some challenges that the bushy and very technical environment threw at me (and I, in turn, threw back at the convoy), it’s the first ever drive that I have done, ever, with no stucks. Truly amazing, guys (and girl)!! So, what else did we do? We started backward from the usual itinerary, to exploit the cooler air and sand to scale Faya’s first wall (as Faya has many, most of which were to be conquered later in the day by @Javier M's convoy). Not everybody made it to the top: unfortunately, the Pajero contingent had some issues with engine power and shifting gears (following which Vanessa will ask Fred for a new car). Nonetheless, everybody truly enjoyed the sideys on Faya’s second high slope, which most did twice, with great control. And, very importantly, we all enjoyed the sunrise while driving away from Faya, toward Camel Rock and then Fossil Rock. Here we found some very soft sand, which forced us to pause for a few minutes, to cool a few engines off and check the tires’ pressure. Finally, we managed to descend from Fossil Rock toward the pylons, where some of the cars almost crossed paths with @Frederic's convoy, running on the opposite Mahafiz-to-Faya lane. En-route to Mahafiz, we paid a mandatory visit to what are now known as @Gaurav's Slopes”: a play area with a set of 3 adjacent slopes, which all cars drove twice, to everybody’s satisfaction. As the vegetation became denser as we were approaching our exit point, we still managed to side slope a few more dunes, adding some criss-crossing to the challenge. We all arrived safe and sound at the exit point, which was none other than the group of trees where we usually deflate when doing the opposite route. The drive, started at 5:21AM, took us 4 hours and 1 minute, at an average speed of 11Km/H, with 141 meters of altitude gradient. That’s all from the Rumble in the Jungle. Have a great week-end and see you soon.

Thank yoy so much @Shiju Manuel. I just update the report where for some reason you tag name had not registered. You were very much a good part of the drive. Very good control and care in handling the car. See you soon on another new stretch of desert.

Thank you @Frederic and @Wrangeld for the fantastic drive today. We had a lot of fun and some new learnings. I am looking forward for more drives with you guys. I think everyone in the convoy did a great job. @Jorge Stepniak Felippe, @Rajeevan Vickneswaran, @Mehmet Volga, @George Francis, @Yousef Alimadadi and @marks, great driving guys. And yes, I will fix my flag next time!.

Well done @asifk that’s one of the things we always preach to help out others and especially now you have obtained the skills to do so !

RSVP is now closed for this drive. @Gregory Perkin will be our second lead tomorrow. @Matti Brockman - Center forward - will be trained for tow rope recovery tomorrow. @Nacho and @E.C. TAN will be our sweep. We will have plenty of easy level newbie track and dunes for newbies along with plenty of play time for fewbies during the route and towards the end at Pink Rock. No one is allowed to step out of their cars without my or Matti's permission with a legitimate reason. We all need to respect COVID precautions at all times, especially while inflating and deflating tires - The most. This is just a desert drive and let's just keep it like that - WITHOUT any gathering or stepping out for photos and video. Radio channel 1 will be used for all communication (446.006 Mhz). but still program all 5 channels. Please make sure you have your radio programmed as per our Walkie Talkie tutorial. Convoy Numbering Gaurav Khanna - Crew - Silver Pajero Gregory Perkin - Fewbie - Red Wrangler Veedooshee - Newbie - White Pajero VipinShetty - Newbie - Red Grand Cherokee Carlos Fernandez - Newbie - Green Wrangler Nizam Deen - Fewbie - White Prado Matti Brockman - Intermediate - Red Wrangler Jun Zamora - Fewbie - Green Wrangler Jose Martin - Fewbie - Silver Pajero Nacho - Fewbie - White Wrangler E.C. TAN - Fewbie - Grey Wrangler See you tomorrow ! @Veedooshee @VipinShetty @Nizam Deen @Jun Zamora @Jose Martin @Carlos Fernandez

@Frederic, @Jorge Stepniak Felippe, @Wrangeld, thank you so much for organizing such a great off road trip today, I really enjoyed and learned a lot. thank you everyone and see you soon again. as usual here you go with short video of our activities today 😊😊

Very big appreciation to @Ale Vallecchi for todays drive where he very well managed and took us in a new route with well planned, you did a grate job without even a single stuck and very few refusal. I really like the way you rerouted us in a safe patch. Really enjoyed the play area with 3 adjacent slopes. @Vanessa8580 and @Denizzalbayrak did a grate job to manage the convey through out the drive. See you all soon. Picture uploaded in gallery.

I do hope so. Trouble is, as you well know, that the sooo many bushes don't show in the maps, and really change the landscape, forcing changes to the original plan that sometimes are not optimal. But we all managed well, and learned some more.

What a fantastic drive report and seeing Vanessa coming home with a smile after such a great drive means your preparation and planning really paid off !

Magnifico drive @Ale Vallecchi. Thoroughly enjoyed the drive at Faya and Mahafiz. Absolutely no stucks and tugs, just few refusals. Well driven everyone 👍 Thanks @Vanessa8580 and @Denizzalbayrak for all the help.some images uploaded in gallery

Trip report from my eye. It was an amazing drive. Everyone was there on time. We started after checking all the cars tire pressures and hooks. A small brief was given by Sri and he ask few questions to make sure everyone watch the newbie brief video. Sri really knows how to build the pace. Today i am sure our absolute newbies learned a lot. They learned how to go strait up and straight down. They learned how to do small side slopes. They learned how to deal with refusals and they learned how to deal with stucks. I saw some people had struggle at the beginning but with time everyone warmed up and they followed the convoy perfectly. Very big thanks to @Srikumar for great lead. @paolo dassi showed his talent as 2th lead. He did the right moves to keep the convoy safe. Thanks to all participants for this great drive.

Glad you guys had fun today!! Sorry I overslept Freddie + Crew - drank too much absinthe last night (I'm not kidding). Also, Are all drives going to be 5 am start going forward? (That would be hard for me unfortunately....) ....

Great @asifk. First of all, very good news that the car functions well. I do believe the decision was for the best, just in case. You will be back on the sand in no time. And it's great that you managed to get some extra action, while (most importantly) literally saving the poor couple from a sun stroke, and possibly a damaged car. Well done!!!

That's how we drive through out the year and still enjoy desert in the summer when its blazing hot. Actually this year got bit late for night and late evening drives due to COVID timings and restrictions.

I guess the only reason I’m still here is because I spent most of my time in the garage fixing my crappy broken cars instead of driving them. Funny story time. I bought a 1.1 205 just for scooting to work and back when I was building my Subaru. I don’t remember if it was a 1.0 or a 1.1 but it was a clean 2 door shell so I cut the front springs, reset the rear torsion bars and threw a gti body kit and wheels on it. It looked good for what it was. Anyway, I was doing stuff I probably shouldn’t have been doing with this girl at a party and she had no way of getting home so I volunteered to drop her off in the next town. I was driving at 85 just to get rid of her as fast as I could, she wasn’t very nice. I saw the blue lights in my rear view mirror so I pulled over. The cop walked up and tapped my window and I rolled it down. He asked me why I was doing 85. I apologised and said I’m sorry officer, that’s as fast as this car would go. He booked me on the spot. Apparently police are born without a sense of humour.

Thanks for the opportunity and the responsibility to be sweep together with Nacho. Getting prepared for an evening drive. 😉

JUST FYI Only join if you have a compressor to inflate your tires after the drive.

I got my tiny lightbar installed. I am ready for darkness. It looks like an Inspector mustache though 😄😄

This drive is organized in full compliance with the COVID19 guidelines. We expect every member that joins this drive to respect and follow these guidelines strictly in order to not jeopardize someone's health and to ensure we can keep organizing these drives safely. MUST READ: Not following these rules and precautions = Not allowed to drive. No Gathering | No Briefing | No BBQ | No Eating Together | No Touching | No Hugging We are only allowed to drive through the desert, as we are driving on the road now. So we will only do the desert driving just by sitting inside our cars at all the times and leave the drive without socializing or coming close to each other. Just like before we like to continue our desert drives through out the year, but this time we need your immense support to understand the strict control and to help everyone follow them all the time. How to maintain "STRICT" Social Distancing Meeting point will be set slightly (100m - 200m) inside the desert track. You individually deflate your tires on the tarmac before reaching the meeting point. While deflating tires, stop cars 10 meters away from any other car. Drive signup on calendar will be closed on Thursday morning by 9 AM. Convoy numbering and briefing will be posted here on this drive post before 6 PM on Thursday. All participants need to read & acknowledge the briefing by clicking "Totally Agree" reaction. Switch on your radio when you reach the meeting point on the set frequency advised by the trip lead in the critical briefing here. Once everyone reaches to the meeting point, everyone stay inside the car at all the times. Trip lead will do the roll call, convoy numbering recap, critical briefing over the radio. Any suggestions or issues will be discussed over the radio too. You can also speak to other members through the radio only. So please make sure that your radio battery is fully charged. Once all set, trip lead will start the drive as before. Refusal and Recoveries with Social Distancing Every drive will have 1 lead Marshal and 1 or 2 supporting senior members/crew. Whenever there is a stuck or refusal, only a Marshal / Senior Member / Crew is allowed to handle the situation. Everyone else including the stuck car driver, stay inside the car - AT ALL TIMES. Marshal / Senior Member / Crew is only allowed to step out to access the situation and do the recoveries: They will wear mask and gloves at all times when they are outside their car. They will try to help self recover through the radio guidance. If not they will use required recovery gear and do the needful (shovel, tug or winch, as required). If at any time Marshal require help, then only you are allowed to step out by wearing face mask and gloves at all times. Drive completion and inflation There will not be any gathering or sitting down together for food-break like before. Once drive is finished, after reaching the tarmac, everyone is requested to move away 10-20 meters before starting their inflation. For drivers having no compressor, can head to the near by fuel station. If drive is ending at a place where there is no fuel station near by, then trip lead will inform in advance so that drivers having their own compressor can join only. Strictly no sharing of compressors, radio, shovel or any recovery gear, at any times. Mandatory things you require to attend the drive Face mask - at least TWO face mask is needed in case one get damage or fly away. Disposable rubber gloves - at least two sets are needed. Wear face mask and gloves at all the times, when you are out of your car. Carry plenty of hand sanitizer and object sanitizer (spray). Use your sanitizers generously, whenever you step out to help or recover. Sanitize your hands before getting back into your car. Sanitize your recovery gears, if you have used them. Fully charged and programmed radio - without any excuse - No radio = No drive. Shovel - Must for every car, to do little self recovery Safety flag - Must for every car, like before Compressor - If joining the drives that is ending far from the fuel station. Mandatory precaution that you need to take at all times Do not step out of your car UNLESS/OTHERWISE advised by Marshal / Senior Member / Crew. No shaking hands, hugs or touching each other. No sharing of food, drinks or recovery tools. If you are not feeling well, please stay at home and take a lot of rest. If you have travel in last 14 days, then please do not attend this drive. If you feel unwell during the drive, please let trip lead know so he can plan an early exit. Not more than 3 pax in a car and if all 3 aren't living together, then they should wear the mask inside the car too. Two Way Radio Guidelines Every Offroader brings his own radio, programmed to the frequencies described in below advice topic. We will not share spare radios or program your radio on the drive. If you need assistance in programming the radio, post a topic on the Carnity website with your questions and we will help you out. Make sure your radio is fully charged. It will be your only way of communication while driving. Before buying, please carefully read below advice so you are informed properly on which model / cost / shops... No radio = No drive. It is an essential tool and you should make sure you bring it on every drive and learn/practice how to use it. MUST WATCH: OUR NEWBIE VIDEO BRIEFING: Drive Details Level: Newbie, Absolute Newbie and Above (All Levels) When: July 03 2020, Friday. Meeting time: 5:00 PM (SHARP - Without any exceptions) Meeting Point: Tawi Nazwa Farm - https://goo.gl/maps/LjPWf8DebrAuNSWg9 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: 09:00 PM End Point: 2nd Dec Cafeteria - https://goo.gl/maps/MxnMF2fHeGnKZ4vf7 P.S. Only join if you have a compressor to inflate your tires after the drive. LIMITED SPOTS AVAILABLE: Limited to 15 cars only. RSVP will close on Thursday - 9 AM. 1 Lead Marshal + 2 Senior Members + 12 Members. If the RSVP is full and you wish to join, please mention your name on the drive thread to add on the waiting 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 THE CALENDAR

Thanks srikumar for the drive i had fun and enjoyed myself during the drive. I will definitely try to get the hooks on in my next drive. Thanks

I had missed to join any fewbie drives this week but today's drive was like a fewbie already! Thanks to everybody for such a great time; of course to our leaders @Frederic @Jorge Stepniak Felippe @Wrangeld It is equally fun to read @Wrangeld's drive reports; always look forward to see it after each drive! Photos uploaded to gallery

@Islam Solimangetting stuck and being recovered is all part of the fun and learning excercise. There is nothing to be sorry about. See you next time

It was great meeting you all today and I personally had lost of fun and learned a lot.. @Srikumar what a great coach you are.. thank you.. @sertac thanks for helping pulling me out a couple of times.. everyone, sorry I held you back a couple of times today.. promise next time will be better ISA.. see u all soon

No issues. Family is first. Hope your little one recovers soon

If this is 100 what's the limit on a regular blacktop highway. 1000?

@E.C. TAN Keep impressing us with ur gadgets...fishing rod and now these lights woh...😀 Really looking forward for the drive tomorrow...😇

It might be some sort of natural selection for drivers, whoever bad, normal or average dies. Great drivers live.

SUPERB.

@Yousef Alimadadi we remove you from the list, for the reasons explained above. Sorry.

With the summer coming closer, we will go a little deeper into the dangers of being exposed to the extreme heat UAE brings to us. During off-roading, some activities such as recovery work, replacing tyres, and dealing with pop-outs, are physically demanding, and many of us who are in office jobs are not trained to cope with this amount of heat. Luckily with the help of some basic things, we can minimize the risk of below mentioned issues. The following risks are identified: Heat exhaustion: Warning signs: A person may suddenly look pale. Heart rate will increase and the victim may complain of feeling dizzy and nauseous. A feeling of weakness is also common. What to do: Seek shade immediately and lie down, especially if you’re feeling lightheaded. Apply a cold compress to the forehead and remove extra layers. Heat Stroke: Warning signs: Heat stroke is a type of hypothermia where the body temperature is greatly elevated. If not treated immediately it can be fatal. Symptoms are similar to those of a heart attack, along with nausea, headaches, hallucinations, difficulty in breathing, and agitation, What to do: apply cool water to the skin and place ice packs under the arms to reduce the temperature quickly. Preventive Measures: • Sip some water all day long, rather than just when you are thirsty. If you are thirsty it means you are already dehydrated. • Wear light clothing that can "breathe", but also wear sunblock and keep your head protected with a cap or hat. • Some fruit and vegetables can re-hydrate the body even more than water. Carry some in your cooler. • Water is important, but too much water can be dangerous as it can cause electrolyte depletion. Limit yourselves to 2-3 liters per day. • When recovering a vehicle in full sun, limit your exposure time and take some rest every couple of minutes. Because you are focused on the task at hand, you might completely forget the heat and become dizzy and exhausted. • If at some point you feel unwell, inform your club members immediately. When driving, inform immediately over the radio so the convoy can be stopped. • Keep an eye out for your fellow club members. It is relatively easy to recognize above symptoms in somebody else. Let them take appropriate rest. Please do share your tips, hints, experiences !

Actually people have ego attached to the recovery scenario that let their mind stop using the basic common sense, physics and math. Also they assume if you fail to recover in small 10 tugs then you and your 4x4 is useless, and let someone show you how to do it. Not many are bother to clear the sand around wheels and make a path or hole near the tire so that car can fall into the hole safely than jumping out and increasing the risk of flip.

Great place to unwind on a weekend with family and friends