Leaderboard

Big convoy, great drive, excellent learning. @RaYan E @Kailas @Gok Krish @Syed Raza Hussain @Karthik Krishnakumar @Shyam Karat @Mahmoud Asar @Piotr Kolodziej @Nitin Mohan @Yusuf Esaf @Mohamed Abo ElKomsan @Rizwan Waheed Every drive is a learning experience whether you have driven 2 or 200 drives. Today proved that true in spades. A pop out where the whole valve gave way, a deadly pocket needing all our ingenuity and teamwork to get the recovery and proof that the sand is as difficult on the flat as it is on a slope. With 16 cars in the convoy, realisitcally, this was never going to be the drive that covered the most distance, or the fastest. Even within a group of newbies, the level of experience within 2 to 6 drives is quite significant. In the circumstances I think that the whole convoy performed extremely well. Specifically, why? Teamwork was outstanding. I am a big believer in Carnity's view that the better we are as a team, the more effectively we learn. For the pop out, the pocket and all recoveries, teamwork was exceptional. Lessons have been learned and put into practice. We promised practice today, and we did. Crossing from dune to dune, taking slopes confidently, descending without fishtailing, driving through sticky soft sand. Congratulate yourselves. Your confidence was on show for all to see. Watching how dunes were crossed, crests navigated and slopes covered so confidently was a pleasure. Yes, we had some recoveries (including both seniors supporting at one point) and some waiting, but we also saw some beautiful dunes, drove very well, challenged ourselves in technical dunes and started and finished more or less on time. Thanks also for EVERYONE for arriving on time. Also, a special call out to @Foxtrot Oscar @Lorenzo Candelpergher and @Franco Swart for your amazing support. Perhaps it was not totally the relaxed newbie drive you expected, but you did fantastic work with everyone. From my side, this drive will go down in my memory as it was my first independently managed drive as a MARSHAL. So thanks to everyone for allowing me to mark that up as a success. We you soon in the sand.

DRIVE REPORT Another beautiful morning with fellow adventurers ! When i arrived at the deflation point which was a bit hidden due to the fog, i decided to park my car at the road side just to make sure that everyone found their way in. It became quite clear that the offroad season was starting because some other clubs also decided to line up and started deflating nearby. With @Vineeth John Joseph in my second lead, and @Sreejith Sreenivasan as our sweep in the back, we set off around 6:40 and were greeted by a rising sun, a gentle dew, and driving with the windows open was a pure delight which made the early waking up totally worth it. The gentle dunes at the start of the Tawi Nazwa farms lead all the way to the base of Pink Rock, and was easy terrain where everyone was sliding through without any hiccups at all. Once we reached the base of Pink Rock, and noticed the sand was really churned up, with so many other clubs, motorcycles, quads passing by, the going became a bit tougher and we had some stucks and refusals at a few dunes from the base of Pink Rock. @Abu Muhammad with his "Sequndra" got stuck in the soft sand, but showed us some very nice self recoveries in the process. Same for @SyedObaid that used his rear difflock when needed and saved us from the shoveling. Thanks to the whole convoy for waiting while we were dealing with these recoveries. Climbing Pink Rock is every once in a while on our agenda with a Newbie convoy, and @Vineeth John Joseph and @Mukundan Nair went first up and helped to communicate with me to send up the cars one at at time. Thanks guys ! It was nice to see all cars making it up, and this is a perfect excercise to wake up the V6'es and let them roar a bit. We had a few V8's as well and these climbed Pink Rock as it was Sheikh Zayed Road Since we had a bit more time, we decided to play a little bit at the back side of Pink Rock where the dunes are a bit more technical and where you have some nice bowls to drive around (not in). When passing by @Yasas Dharmadasa his Jeep i heard a hissing sound coming from the engine bay, and after shutting down the engine we noticed there was no water anymore in the expansion bottle, and the radiator hose had come off partially. We filled up the expansion tank with a few litres and clamped the hose back into place. Luckily the car did not show signs of overheating so we could make our way back to the inflation point near 2nd December Cafeteria. @Archibald Jurdi you are the first owner of a TJ with a sprinkler system in the back of the car. 🤣 For a second time in the desert you did great, and you've probably noticed the improvement when deflating further. The heavy BF Goodrich tyres are not ideal but for the time being you can drive at 10-11psi as this will help your flotation in the sand. When the time comes to change your tyres a more skinny All Terrain tyre will do wonders (Yokohama Geolandar for example). @Pickey Singh with the black beauty was not finding much difficulties along the way, well done ! @Ranjan Das your Discovery is doing amazing stuff in this terrain, but most of all your precise control and momentum is doing wonders. Keep up the good work ! @Yasas Dharmadasa That Jeep keeps going, even without water Well driven ! @VipinShetty Thanks for your help during the drive, always good to have you around ! @Tariq Niyas that Montero Sport has proved it can do great stuff in the right hands. That self recovery in the pocket where you reversed and built momentum was very well done and with perfect momentum. Keep it up ! @SyedObaid you were the only Pajero member, well except for myself Well driven ! @Sajit Modiyil i remember your first drive in Al Qudra still very clearly. What i see now is a confident driver with a precise steering control and your positive helping attitude will take you far in Carnity ! Thanks ! @Aravind Padmaraju we've missed you today, i hope everything is fine and nothing serious has happened. @[email protected] with your FJ Cruiser you are driving confidently and you are making your way through the dunes with ease. Very impressed ! @Abu Muhammad your positive attitude and unique vehicle always brings a smile to my face, well done today ! @Lukas Lewis your Explorer seems to love exploring, and took you through the terrain with ease. Well done ! @DANIEL NOGUEIRA you always come full of positive spirit to the drive and i hope you had a good time. Seeing your black beast ascending Pink Rock was an amazing sight ! Last but not least @Sreejith Sreenivasan who kept the convoy nicely together and was the perfect communicator so i always knew what was happening at the back of that super long convoy, a big thank you for the help today and rising to the occasion ! See you guys soon in the sand again ! Have a nice weekend !

Trip report I left my house at 2.15pm, way too early, but i was nervous and excited at the same time. It was my first official drive lead and although i was prepared and i practised the track this week, my stomach felt a bit weird. I got to the deflation point at 2.50pm and i parked my car, took a few deep breaths and started deflating my tyres. Everyone came on time and we could start the briefing and radio checks at 3.30pm. Of course i forgot half of my briefing, the nerves took over at that point. We started moving with @Srikumar as my second lead and @Desert Dweller as my sweep. I think it was the first time in Carnity history that we had a lady in the front and the back of the convoy !! Girl power all the way !! Once we started moving into the desert, the nerves went away and i started to relax. Murqab is a beautiful area with a lot of amazing long range dunes so we did a whole lot of side sloping. The entire convoy did amazingly well and everybody enjoyed themselves. We had a minimum of refusals and stucks en we covered about 38km in a little less than 3 hours. Thank you so much to the whole convoy for your nice words after the drive and for giving me a fantastic first drive lead, i could not have done it without all of you. Special thanks to @Srikumar and @Desert Dweller for all your support ! See you all next week in the sand

Trip report I arrived at the deflation point at 05:30, on a misty morning, with lots of anticipation. This was my first trip that I had to plan and will lead from start to (semi) finish, and I was quite tentative on what Faqa would dish up today. Thankfully I had the extremely capable @Emmanuel to mentor me on this trip, and a short convoy of very capable Intermediates. We deflated as night turned into day and headed off just after 06:00. Pretty soon we were in moderately technical dunes and we were challenged to use finesse rather than power to make headways. @Mehmet Volga had his first taste of rope recovery, when I (deliberately of course :-)) crested - and he did extremely well, with a very controlled soft tuck to get things going again. We progressed through a very diverse mix of terrains, including semi-highways in dune streets, sharp-crested moderate dunes, long-ranged dunes, and areas of beautiful trees and vegetation. Given the mad congestion at some of the usual off-road hotspots in Dubai, it is always a pleasure to drive in these quite areas where the only other living things seems to be gazelle. We tried to include a few ridges and criss-crossings, and everybody did extremely well. Apart from a few minor refusals, we covered about 47 km to the track to Solar Park, where @Emmanuel took the lead to give us a short taste of Little Sweihan. Unfortunately, by this time the sun was quite bright and the extra-soft sands of LS dished up some unpalatable dessert, mixed with quite a dose of desert sand, with a LOT of shoveling and pushing! At least this provided all of us with invaluable recovery learning, as @Emmanuel showed us multiple ways to attempt self-recovery. Ultimately the use of 2 x kinetic ropes solved a tricky problem - as the convoy of @Ale Vallecchi and @Tbone passed us quietly without even a wave :-(. We exited after a very enjoyable drive (for me at least). All in all 64 km, with the desert mainly to ourselves - what a way to spend a Friday morning! Thanks to @Anish S (on only his second Intermediary drive - you did well!); @Nivin (growing exponentially in confidence in his X!); @Pancho (your dedication to this sport is unparalleled, and you showed some finesse today with your Jeep); and @Mehmet Volga (great job as sweep and supporting the recoveries) - well done do all of you! And thanks @Emmanuel for your advise and support - the worst thing about this sport, is that the more experience you get, the more you realise how little you know! Great to have your experience on hand. Hope to see all of you in the sand soon!

Dear Desertnauts. Ready to explore an area never seen before!? Do not forget to bring along your adventurer's spirit, as we truly do not know what we'll find in this "Sea to Mountain - Part 2". In fact, while Part 1 had already been tested before the actual drive, this second leg of the itinerary has not been driven, ever. So we may either be satisfied with what we find, and be anxious to bring another convoy along, or disappointed, and never think of driving here again. In any case, mystery awaits us. We are not even sure if the meeting point is the right one to enter the desert. We do hope so, but we'll have to check tomorrow morning, after deflating. Our convoy order will be the following: @Wrangeld will take Second Lead position @Yousef Alimadadi at #3 @Jun Zamora at #4 @Pancho will start at #5 @Desert Dweller will be #6 @Najeeb Mohammed at #7 and @Kalahari will Sweep the convoy Upon arrival please tune in to Carnity Channel 2 (446.031). Make sure you arrive with as full a tank as possible, and with all the necessary gear for this driving level. Each car will be responsible for recovering the cars just in front and/or behind, depending on who's in the best position to assist. Looking forward to seeing you tomorrow morning, I wish you a nice Friday evening.

Big hand to all Carnity team for the awesome day ... big learning ... lots of FUN. Appreciate being not only professional as well being helpful & very friendly @Wrangeld @Foxtrot Oscar @Lorenzo Candelpergher

This is not an Off-road friendly vehicle. I would definitely pass on it.

Amazing @Kalahari ! Really looking forward to be in one of your drives very soon !

@Wrangeld @Foxtrot Oscar @Lorenzo Candelpergher thank you for another amazing weekend drive . Really loved the trail today it was beautiful, I should say one of my personal favourites till now . We had great convoy today , lot of energy and enthusiasm and lot of smiles looking forward to next weekend . Cheers .

@Frederic it’s always pleasure driving with you. We honestly enjoyed our times. Thank you for sharing your fun times with us.

Superb session, thanks @Rahimdad, @Brette, really it's a next level Drive, handled nicely, drive took almost 5 hours +, thoroughly enjoyed,

Short video from today's great drive with many recoveries and refusals:

Thank you @Vanessa8580 for such a nice and enjoyable drive! Well planned and executed 🤗 All drivers did very well, which allowed us to drive almost nonstop. Thanks to everyone for their efforts and following the instructions. Great team work!

Thank you @Kalahari for your wonderful lead and report. I guess everyone enjoyed the drive, even with the last double stuck in LS. I totally agree with you, everyone did absolutely great this morning. Agree also 100% on this:

A big congrats @Wrangeld. Having been in the dunes with a large convoy myself this morning i totally understand how it feels hearing the sweep on the radio saying “convoy is moving again” after you’ve started driving 5 minutes prior 🤣

Thanks to the team who lead us today it was a amazing drive and full of learning. Taming the sand is not easy but it was a worthwhile experience. Thanks to the whole convoy it was a good drive for us. @Wrangeld @Foxtrot Oscar @Lorenzo Candelpergher Great Job

Pink Rock ??? I thought it was Sheik Zayed rd... lol. V8 loud and clear climb that amazing spot. @Fredericthanks for all , your atetion and patience shows clearly how you love the off road.

Thanks @Frederic for the great drive.

Hi, thank you all for a superb drive today . It was a wonderful foggy day to start with and as always a nice start. Thank you @Rahimdad for the new chapter in fewbie coz the terrain was tough and was an adventurous drive . It was a new experience for me since I joined carnity. Excellent jobs from @Brette and @Rizwanm2 in recoveries and tire pressure issues with a few cars. Thank you all and hope to join you soon in upcoming events. Keep cool 😀👍😀

Was an amazing experience. Was able to understand the driving dynamics and how the car responds in the desert terrain. A good combination of obstacles faces. Awesome experience, special thanks @Gaurav and @Jeepie for being patient and sharing their expertise with us. Will definitely see you guys next week

@Vanessa8580great evening drive, I enjoyed the weather as well the challenging dunes as it’s was my first fewbie drive . @Srikumar always there with the helping hand and guidance . Also my first drive in the 5th position on the convoy, Which made it easier to judge the paths laid by the leads . @Desert Dweller thanks for helping with the deflation’s as well the hand water can .Had taken few pictures & have uploaded in the gallery . See you next week and keep safe everyone !!!!

Thanks a lot for a wonderful drive! It was my first time in Sweihan an I loved it! Those dunes are very impressive, so much fun! An, of course, thanks a lot to the leading team: @Asif Hussain and @Srikumar! The whole convoy drove very well, we had only a few stucks at the end of the drive. It helped to keep high pace and cover a great distance! I took several pictures, more is available in the gallery.

Thanks @Frederic. Overall it was a smooth drive today and all thanks to you to manage the long convoy and you made it look so easy. Hope to drive more with you! See you soon. Thank you 🙏

Hi @Yusuf Esaf Once you have completed 5 Newbie drives you can apply for a promotion:

Thanks a lot for a fantastic drive @Ale Vallecchi .. every drive with you is different.. always learning something new . Great job @Tbone leading the second part through a very interesting soft-sand bowls.. was lots of fun enjoy your weekend everyone and see you all soon on the sand IMG_6742.MP4

Dear @Wrangeld This was meant to be a relaxed newbie drive where, having borrowed my wife's LR4 while my Nissan Patrol Y62 was getting fixed, I just had to roam around for occasional recoveries and enjoy the early morning sun. It turned out quite a "physical" drive, with a lot of shoveling, a pop-out to fix + a spare wheel replacement, several tugs and.. the "perfect stuck". It had been a while since I had last put myself in such a nasty place as this morning, however a superb team effort made the recovery possible. For sure to keep on driving would have been preferable, however I think this complex recovery was quite an interesting one to watch during a newbie drive. Thanks to everyone for their great help and patience. I still have to come to terms with the bizarre behavior of my wife's LR4 (first time I was taking her on the sand) pneumatic suspensions, that can be lifted for off-road use but would lower down automatically if driven above 40 km/h. Whenever I got in trouble today it was because I found myself with unexpected reduced clearance, ie on my belly rather than on my wheels. Whatever my wife may say, I prefer my fat and powerful white whale. Everyone did very well today, kudos! I could closely watch @Piotr Kolodziej who was right in front of me: you did great. If you get used to maintain a bit more momentum, you will avoid future refusals as the ones you experienced today. Thanks to @Foxtrot Oscar for the double tug today: your presence is always a warranty of plenty of help for everyone. Track details below:

As we have been respecting authorities guidance & Carnity COVID guidelines to resume desert drives with caution by keeping social distance and wearing mask at all times outside the vehicle Unfortunately few off-roaders have difficulty in understanding and abiding these guidelines. As published in the national newspaper of UAE, everyone need to understand that still there are no gatherings allowed and authorities are issuing fine for 10,000 AED for host and 5,000 AED for attendees. https://gulfnews.com/uae/health/people-caught-violating-covid-19-safety-instructions-prosecuted-1.1591381059748 If you spot anyone stepping out of the car not wearing a mask, please remind them on the radio immediately. As we all are in this together, so we all have to help each other to remind. Failing to abide below list of restriction will result in an immediate ban from Carnity Off-road Club: FIRST WARNING Minimum 1 month ban from joining any Carnity off-road Club drives. Written warning will be issued on your Carnity profile. SECOND WARNING Minimum 6 month ban from joining any Carnity off-road Club drives. Written warning will be issued on your Carnity profile. If you do not like these restrictions, please stay at home and do not join for any off-road drives. Every Carnity Off-road Club Member has to COMPLY WITH THESE COVID19 GUIDELINES FACE MASK IS MANDATORY, WHENEVER YOU STEP OUT - NO EXCUSES. LEARN TO CONFIGURE YOUR RADIO, before the drive. Nobody will teach you or exchange radios like before. Read the detailed instructions posted here - to configure. If you still cannot configure, ask on forum ahead of time. Click "TOTALLY AGREE" Emoji here before RSVP any drive or else trip lead will remove your name.

For those travelling from Dubai, Sharjah and Northern Emirates Please ensure that you book an appointment for the DPI test at Ghantoot for 16 Oct between 4:30 AM to 5:00 AM. Slots are available but are limited. https://ghantoot.quantlase.com/appointment/update-details/ Please confirm on the drive thread that you have booked your slot. This drive is organized in full compliance with the COVID19 guidelines. We expect every member that joins this drive to go through below information and and strictly follow these guidelines in order not to jeopardize someone's health, and to ensure we can keep organizing these drives safely. MUST READ AND TOTALLY AGREE: COVID19 Precautions MUST READ AND TOTALLY AGREE: BAN POST 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. Drive Details Level: Fewbie and Above When: 16 Oct 2020, Friday. Meeting time: 6:00 AM (SHARP - Without any exceptions) Meeting Point: - https://goo.gl/maps/xAtWvj4fmP5U71P46 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 LIMITED SPOTS AVAILABLE: Limited to 12 cars only. 1 Lead Marshal + 1 Senior Members + 10 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 THE BELOW CALENDAR EVENT

I wished I could have joined your drive @Vanessa8580, very well dooooone!

An update from today and from the last couple of days is that in the early morning they are not checking if you have an appointment. So one can take their chances of going there directly in morning without appointment

@Frederic thank you so much and it was really fun ... love to join with you for all drives

All the mail notifications were going on to spam folder and was not aware about that. Appologies for the confusions and thanks for the support.

Hi Everyone, My name is Terence and I drive a white 2017 RAM Rebel. This will be my first time driving in the desert. I have the recommended items including a radio, shovel, tyre deflator, tyre inflator and flag. Look forward to seeing you tomorrow! Regards, Terence

Totally agree... Motorists will be fined if their number plates are hidden or difficult to see, Abu Dhabi Police warned on Thursday. Sharing a photo of a car carrying a bicycle on a special stand attached to its boot, which resulted in the number plate becoming obscured, the police said that such an offence will result in a fine of Dh400. The police also urged motorists to report such violations to the police immediately. Source https://www.khaleejtimes.com/uae/abu-dhabi/dh400-fine-if-car-number-plate-not-visible-warn-abu-dhabi-police

I think @Barry covered the essentials. Motoring is much more expensive than here, so petrol consumption should be in your thoughts as well as your insurance costs. I used to green lane a lot in the UK. You have to have a proper 4x4 for that. An AWD vehicle will not cut it. That's why I had a dedicated car for off road. The roads in the UK are terrible compared to here. Think carefully about the choice of whether road comfort is your priority. Second consideration is all about maintenance costs. Japanese parts are expensive. German less so. If I went back to the UK I would buy a Suzuki SJ413 (not the Vitara) and a road car. The Suzuki is small but great fun for greenlaning and can be modified.

Good evening. We will all have the pleasure of being led by @Vanessa8580 tomorrow with support from myself and @Desert Dweller. Really excited and looking forward to it. We shall be using Carnity Channel 1. See you there at 3:30 pm tomorrow afternoon. Take care

Looking forward...

@Luca Palanca Falsini and @Anand Nataraj you use the SEHA App to do drive in test. https://apps.apple.com/ae/app/seha/id436297690 Appointments are easily available within 1 day span and also after testing we can hit Sweihan faster from E311 or E611 rather than E11 to reach Ghantoot.

I see there are no available appointments in the morning.

@Luca Palanca Falsini based on last week's experience even though the appointments were not available for the required slot, there was no rush at Ghantoot center. As I am presuming many book the slot but don't show up. So if I were you I would take a chance of going there half an hour early and most likely they will complete your test in advance.