Leaderboard

LONG TREKS – OBJECTIVES, PREPARATION, AND MANAGEMENT Waking up on the first morning of a long desert trek is always very exciting, and a little concerning (let’s say 80% excitement and 20% concern). While for the group’s members the objective of the trip is to see as much as possible, take nice pics, and have fun (for them it’ll be excitement 100%), from the point of view of the group’s leader and the crew, the objective is to provide the above services while ensuring that the whole itinerary is covered timely and without incidents, with the security and comfort of the passengers as the first and foremost concern. Thus, let’s focus on that 20% of concerns which must be dealt with before the trip starts. These would normally fall under the following headings: local team, local cars, water supply, fuel supply, kitchen, camping equipment. Usually, these tours are managed with the support, and active participation, of a local team. They usually come from local tribes (in the case of Niger, but also Mali, Algeria and Libya, it's Tuaregs), and are headed by a senior, and most respected, member of the local community. The stature of the leader (in an abstract sense, even though Tuaregs are also very tall) is very important, as these trips usually cross areas of conflict, often between local tribes and sometimes between local tribes and national authorities, which require not only a person of experience in desert caravans, but also someone capable of commanding the respect of, and being able to mediate with, anybody interested in making the life of the convoy difficult. This particular itinerary was going to take us to the border area with Niger and Tchad, skirting the foothills of the Tibesti plateau. This is an area of conflict between Niger’s government and local Tebu tribes, which control this territory, and defend it in arms, including land mines. Other conflict areas may be the south of Algeria, the border between Egypt, Sudan and Libya, some areas of Mali, and border areas between Ethiopia and Eritrea. Here we already knew of another Italian convoy travelling toward the Tibesti, led only by their tour leader, who had ventured into a contested area, only to see one of the cars explode on a land mine, and 1 of the group's members losing his life. Their downfall had been the tour leader's wish to stray into an unknown area, and refusal to bring along a local Tebu guide, for the time necessary to cross that particular stretch of desert (these Tebu “guardian angels” stop all convoys along the beaten tracks, and board the leader’s car to escort non-army, non-governmental caravans, through the danger area, in exchange for a “donation”). Remembering this unfortunate accident, we had made sure our team was led by a senior Tuareg, and that he carried also enough money to manage any unplanned detours and carry out any “voluntary” transactions. LOCAL TEAM: Done. Next chapter – Local cars As the group usually travels to these distant locations by air (although I have friends who have driven their own cars, one holiday at a time, from Italy all the way down to these remote places), sourcing local, and most of all, reliable cars is essential. Toyota, with its Land Cruisers, has the monopoly of the Saharan market. The cars are all manual gears, and for the most part with minimal electronic equipment, which enormously facilitates their repairs, if needed, during the trip. Besides a local “chief”, each convoy usually is manned with a professional mechanic (and drivers, as well). Almost all drivers have either an army background, or have driven these routes with commercial trucks, hence are all experienced in impromptu repairs. These may range from simple things such as fixing a punctured tire, to averagely complex things, like changing a belt (there is always an extra belt aboard each of these cars, knotted around the shift lever), to more complex problems such as repairing a leaf spring suspension, plugging a leak in a radiator, or fixing the gear box. The mechanic’s ingenuity is directly proportional to his previous experiences, and sometimes reaches fantastic heights. For example, how do you fix a punctured radiator if you don’t have a soldering iron? Of course, first try with toothpaste: plaster it on top of the puncture, and hope the heat hardens it, and plugs the leak. Failing that (which in this trip, it did), you should clearly put some tobacco from your cigarettes inside the radiator, so that (don’t ask me why, or how), it “boils” up toward the leak, and plugs it from the inside. And this we did, to momentarily solve a radiator problem which occurred in the middle of the Erg of Bilma, for long enough (2 days) to reach the village of Dirkou, and its better equipped mechanic. Therefore, seasoned Toyota Land Cruisers, a good mechanic surrounded by experienced drivers, a minimum of essential spare parts, and a lot of creativity (and some luck) in solving problems: that’s all is needed to face a major desert trek. LOCAL CARS: DONE. Third chapter - Water requirements

INTRO There are extraordinary places that, once visited, leave a lifelong mark on a person's life. Some people catch a "bug" for cities (using myself as an example, that would be Bangkok, or Buenos Aires), for countries (India), even for a continent (Africa). More rarely, it's a natural feature that leaves a lifelong mark on someone's mind, urging her/him to return to it, time and time again. For some, it's being out at sea, for others being up in the mountains. I am sure all of you, Carnity Desernauts, can sympathize with me for being unable to resist the call of the desert. Most people would find this inexplicable, and, bewildered, will say "but there is nothing in a desert", or "what can you do in a desert, don't you get bored with its emptiness?". I surely don't need to give you the answers to those questions (or you wouldn't be reading this post at all). Hence, I would like to take the "opportunity" of my FJ being momentarily "out of action", to spend some time reminiscing those very places which stole my heart and mind, from the very beginning of my desert-going years. In fact, there was a time when I moonlighted as an organizer, and guide, of adventure travels, specialized in desert locations. It was a magic period, when terrorism had not yet taken a hold of most of Northern Africa and other parts of the continent, and extensive travelling was possible, even to the most remote and wild locations. To most people, the sandy stretch covering the north of Africa is simply known as the Sahara. The word itself is self-explanatory, meaning "deserts" in Arabic (in the plural), but also "moon", "wilderness", and "dawn" or "before dawn", with similar variations in different languages. Seven million years old, and with an area of 9,200,000 Km2, it is the largest hot desert in the world. Concentrating on its plural form, "The Sahara" is an assembly of many, fabulous, sometimes mythical, individual deserts: the Adrar, the Ténéré, the Air, the Ennedi, the Tibesti, the Hoggar, the Tassili, the Fezzan, the Nubian Desert, the Gilf el Kebir, the Great Sand Sea, the White Desert, the Danakil, and more to the east, the Sahara's natural extension, The Arabic Desert, with The Rub al Khali. Amidst these legendary deserts, rise cities and oasis just as fabulous, with origins lost in the mist of time: Chinquetti, Ouadane, Mopti, Timbuctu, Gao, Agadez, Arlit, Fachi, Bilma, Djado, Tamanrasset, Djanet, Ghat, Kufra, Dakhla, Dallol, and (why not?) Liwa. These are the magical places I was lucky enough to visit before politics and terrorism closed most of these locations to travelers. I'd like to take this forced period of absence from our UAE deserts, to look back on those times, and share with you some memories, and stories from the campfire. Before getting into the thick of these travels, a few reminders of what The Sahara is, and how it is unique. Contrarily to common belief, only 15% of the Sahara's deserts are made of sand. Inhabited by only 2.5 million people, covering 1/3 of all of Africa's surface, the majority of its landscape is made of "Hamada", or rocky plateau, such as the Algerian Tassili, depicted below. The flat desert pavement, called "Reg", is the second most prominent feature of this region. while the dune fields most associated with the Sahara are known as "Erg". Other geological formations that may be encountered in the Sahara, are the Wadi (dry river), Oued (dry lake), and the Chott (salt flats). Mudflats, usually known as “Sabkha”, are more typical of the coastal deserts of the Arabian Peninsula (as in the UAE), and are not found in the Saharan landscape. Going back to our most favorite feature, the Erg – i.e., the familiar sand dunes we are used to driving on - these associate their names to fantastic Saharan locations. Some of the better-known ones to motorsports lovers have provided a stunning backdrop to the original Paris-Dakar rally: The Grand Erg Oriental, the Erg Issaouane, the Erg de Bilma, these are endless dune fields, which take days to cross, and are only rivaled by our own Rub al Khali, in terms of sheer size and remoteness. Having said all this and sending you to read Fred’s essay on dune formations, for more information on the matter, I’ll get on with lighting the first campfire, and share with you some memories from the Sahara. I will start, on my next post, with perhaps the most legendary of these deserts: The Ténéré. In the language of the Tuaregs who inhabit it, the word means…”desert”. While this repetitive calling deserts by their own common names may seem to reveal a lack of fantasy, to me it implies an utmost respect for their absoluteness: to the Arabs, as well as to the Tuaregs, these locations are THE one and only Desert. Most of the Ténéré is a flat basin, once the bed of the prehistoric Lake Chad. In the north, the Ténéré is a vast sand sheet (a Reg) - the true, featureless “Ténéré” of legend reaching up to the low hills of the Tassili du Hoggar along the Algerian border. In the center, the Bilma Erg forms rows of easily navigable low dunes whose corridors make regular byways for the azelai, or salt caravans. To the west, the black basaltic feature of the Aïr Mountains rise up. To the southeast, the Ténéré is bordered by the Kaouar cliffs running 100 km north to south. At the base, lies a string of oases including the famous Bilma. Periodic outcrops, such as the unusual marble Blue Mountains in the northwest near Adrar Chiriet, or the Agram hills near the oasis of Fachi and Adrar Madet to the north, are rare but notable landmarks. The entry point to the Ténéré is the Tuareg village of Agadez. This city built with mud can be reached after an exhausting 16-hour drive from Niamey, the capital of Niger. Along the way one can meet some of the local tribes, the most stunning of which is the Bororo tribe. The best time to visit this tribe would be during the Gerewol Festival. This is an annual courtship ritual competition among where eligible youths dress up in elaborate ornamentation and, made up in traditional face painting, gather in lines to dance and sing, vying for the attentions of marriageable young women. The feature which wins the lady’s hearts is the whiteness of the eyes and teeth, hence the young men’s grinning and wide open, seemingly psychotic, yet love filled eyes. Back to Agadez, one usually arrives in this mud-built city late in the evening or at night. Nothing better, at this time, then paying a visit to Vittorio, at his hotel, restaurant, camping ground, entertainment venue. Built by this Italian expat (legends say fugitive from the law), who moved to this remote outpost decades ago, the Hotel Telit, and its Le Plier Restaurant, are now local institutions, where Vittorio and his Tuareg wife never fail to welcome the wary travelers, on their way south to the capital, or further north, to the Ténéré, and onward to Algeria. Time to go to bed now, resting for the last time within the safe mud wall of Agadez, before venturing into the endless openness of the Ténéré. Stay tuned for the next installment of “Deserts of the World”, when the adventure begins.

Thanks Ale, v informative! We need a campfire in the desert to listen to these stories!

Sounds tiny bit similar to our colorful past where we fixed radiators with m-seal and cigg butt, brake caliper with tin can and axle, suspensions and exhaust repair with tie-down straps few times, but nothing close to land mines. These tourist and tour operator are really brave heart. Looking forward for more excitement, soon.

Thanks @Emmanuel for an awesome afternoon!

N@ved @N@ved Ken Hüüdma @Ken Hüüdma Federico De Chirico @Federico De Chirico Federico Galbieri @Federico Galbieri Niki Patel @Niki Patel Danish Mohammad @Danish Mohammad Alphin Aloor @Alphin Aloor Abdul Rahman Abdul Kader @Abdul Rahman Abdul Kader Pickey Singh @Pickey Singh Saneesh Thomas @Saneesh Thomas Explored Dubai @Explored Dubai imranaasghar81 @imranaasghar81 You are all confirmed on the drive

Finally the day has come to hear what is behind Ale's real off-roading spirit. Since we know each other from almost a year and I always use to wonder about your extra humble and accommodative personality when it comes to supporting drives. I strongly remember when you use to join in newbie drives with so much of passion, enthusiasm and "PATIENCE" I really used to wonder whether you are actually a newbie or just new to the UAE desert....? Your attention to detail, catching the right lines from beginning, and finesse with your trail without destroying the path were the significant traits that we all used to notice, but never got a chance to sit on campfire stories. Thank you for taking time to share these beautiful stories about African landscape and Sahara desert variations. I can't wait to hear more stories from your experience with different places, cultures and type of terrains.

Congratulations @Andrei for reaching the Fewbie Level with Carnity Offroad Club. Looking forward to seeing you growing further and helping others to learn the art of offroading in a safe environment. Please make sure your Carnity user profile is always updated with all the latest Emergency contact details. P.S. Trip lead might deny your participation if you don't have required off-road gear. Fewbie: Drives Attended (Indicative) Minimum 5 Newbie drives are required within last 3 months for Fewbie promotion. What you'll learn Basic dune and sand reading Basic self-recovery techniques Advance side sloping and hill climb Basic ridge riding and criss crossing Basic control over technical dunes Slightly faster pace desert driving Skills required Enthusiastic and positive attitude Willingness to learn and help others Presence of mind and attention to detail Car Worthiness Any 4x4 vehicle with low range gearing Suitable approach and departure angle Off-road gear required Safety flag, tire deflator, tire pressure gauge, shovel, fire extinguisher, medical kit, radio (walkie-talkie), air compressor. Drive teamwork Manage second lead and sweep positions upon request Intuitive and proactive to support Trip Lead Observe recoveries and offer help, when needed Drive Joining Join Newbie and Fewbie drives And Fewbie Plus, after 5 drives at Fewbie level only Forum participation Active participation on the forum Share drive experience + feedback Share drive pictures in the gallery Post trip report after the drive

I am speechless on what I just read. I was imagining in my mind just people sitting around a campfire and @Ale Vallecchi just telling stories. I miss the times where we could all gather in giant group and bbq or make a giant bonfire and talk or listen to music. Inshallah all this goes well and I hope to hear @Ale Vallecchi tell his stories while we eat delicious different types of food. Great story telling!!

Congrats @Andrei !

Dear friends @Anish S, @Nivin, @Abu Muhammad, @Kailas, @Alexander Alcala Please note convoy numbers for tomorrow's drive 1. Chaitanya 2. Anish S - 2nd lead 3. Nivin 4. Abu Muhammad 5. Kailas 6. Alexander Alcala - Sweep Tero is not joining as informed to me. We will use Channel 1 for radio coms. See you tomorrow

Congrats @jodha singh shekhawat. Well done.

800,000 kms. I bought it brand new in 2011 and was using it everyday traversing my different sites but now since Feb after I bought the XTERRA is idling at home.

Congratulations @jodha singh shekhawat. Hope to continue to enjoy learning and honing your skills at this new level.

@jodha singh shekhawat congratulations

Its always a good idea to keep your car clean. This coming from someone who only gets his car washed on special occasions like annual passing. However washing is not going to keep your tire rods or rubbers clean and thus damage proof. Your tire rods will only bend if there are a few hard bumps and not because there was sand from the last drive. Similarly rubber will become hard and crack with time and change in temperature, not because of sand from a few drives back. Cleaning from the underside helps you to get down and visually inspect if there is anything that looks put of place. Although its not a good idea to leave your throttle when you are climbing up a dune, but its not the greatest idea to keep the accelerator pressed to warrant a jump. That is why we encourage people to observe the car ahead and try to repeat the exercise. Once you feel that the front wheels of your car are through, let the accelerator go. The car's momentum will take it through. My opinion is better to get stuck than have an incident, and I'm sure no senior member in Carnity will encourage you to jump instead of getting stuck. Even our tutorial video clearly states try at lower RPM if you fail, reverse and try at slightly higher RPM and so on and so forth until you get it right. Repeat the exercise on each dune and do not go at higher RPM on next dune as each dune is built differently although they might look the same. With experience and repeating this exercise you'll learn the right throttle at the right time. Momentum doesn't mean speed, it means the right speed at the right time. Hope you continue to learn safely and with the patience of all the convoys all around, we don't mind you taking longer the learn as long as you do it safely.

Great write up @Ale Vallecchi. You are not only a perfect dune master but a master when it comes to describing those dunes too!! Fantastic ✌️

What a fantastic write-up, it says a lot about your passion for the desert and the life changing experiences that can be had when exploring these places. Definitely looking forward to more of this !

@Ale Vallecchi this is extraordinary and for this Agree hundred percent very true ! Can’t Wait for the next to come @Rahimdad your guess is right regarding VW Touareg !

@Ale Vallecchi wonderful story telling. Got me hooked. Starting wondering if VW took its Touareg name from one of your stories.

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. MUST WATCH: NEWBIE VIDEO BRIEFING Drive Details Level: Fewbie and Above (No Newbies) When: 18 Dec 2020, Friday. Meeting time: 6.30 AM (SHARP - Without any exceptions) Meeting Point: South Qudra Entrance - https://goo.gl/maps/YLUXK8PfEmShhjc86 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: 10.30 AM End Point: (Depending on convoy performance) THIS IS A COMPRESSOR ONLY DRIVE. PLEASE DO NOT SIGN UP FOR THIS DRIVE UNLESS YOU HAVE A COMPRESSOR. ANYONE ARRIVING AT THE DRIVE WITHOUT A COMPRESSOR, FLAG, PROPER SHOVEL AND DEFLATION KIT WILL NOT BE ALLOWED TO JOIN THE DRIVE. ALL TOW POINTS WILL BE CHECKED BEFORE DEPARTURE. LIMITED SPOTS AVAILABLE: Limited to 10 cars only. RSVP will close on Thursday - 9 AM. 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 below calendar:

Thank you, gents for the messages and of course for your guidance during the newbie drives!! Appreciate evey piece of advice

Already cant wait for chapter three : water requirement ( trying to imagine how goes when out of water supply ...etc ) please Ale can you keep the last one till you get back in action and tell us yourself around camp fire ( covid precaution applied ) 🙏

Thanks @Frederic ! I just saw Srikumar reply. I will try to get the tires as soon as possible to keep joining the drives.

Hi @Foxtrot Oscar, I thought my registration for the Fewbie Plus was not successful, that's why I registered here as well. But thanks for notifying me, I just left the other event and will continue here. Sorry for the confusion.

@Hardik ModyMody you are 3rd on the list

@Tero Vallas @Nivin @Mohamed Seidam thank you for informing in advance, will definitely miss you all and i hope we will meet again soon.

Hey @Arda Yagcioglu you have signed up for both this drive and @Jeepie 's Fewbie Plus Morning Desert drive - Pink Rock - Sharjah - 18 Dec 2020 Can you kindly only RSVP to one drive please, you are free to select whichever one you wish. Thank you

This will be my first drive this weekend if I get on it .Thanks .

🤞 Sir Richard.. Kindly add me on the wait list..

can you pls put me on the waiting list

@Piotr Kolodziej you have signed up for this drive and the Liwa drive. Both are on the same day and 350 km apart. Please remove your RSVP from either one or the trip leads may end up removing you and you could loose your spot on both.

@Hisham Masaad waitlisted @syed salman raza waitlisted

Good morning Can I be on the waitlist for this drive please

The XTERRA has run 90000 kms with me after I purchased it in Feb. Its like choosing which car to drive everyday as I like both of them very much and pains to see I always choose the XTERRA over Altima as having a construction company, I need to carry lot of materials around which the Altima cannot take. Hopefully my son or daughter will take a license soon and take charge of that car.

HI @Asif Hussain ! Unfortunately my plans in family have changed and hence I cannot join this time. Please give my place next to WL. Enjoy the ride !

@jodha singh shekhawat Congratulations!

Congrats Ajay proud of you.

@jodha singh shekhawat congratulations and well done 👍

Stick to that size, have a look at the drive report where Srikumar has wrote some info on your tyres.

Drive report After supporting the AN drive in the morning, I decided to stay in the area because I selected the exact same meeting point for my drive in the afternoon. I had a quick sandwich, a drink and some rest at the last exit and I didn't even inflate my tyres again. When I reached the meeting point, I was happy to see I was not the first one. Everybody was very well on time and after a quick briefing, we started driving at 2.15 pm. @Veedooshee was my second lead, girl power in the front. @Tamas Hoffmann was covering the center and @Janarthan was my trusty sweep with his lovely copilot Mira. We went through some technical dunes first before we reached the long range dunes. I kept a quite high pace and that meant we could cover about 60 km in a little over three and a half hours. Everyone did amazingly well and we had a minimum of refusals and stucks. I saw that everyone had a big smile on their face after the drives and enjoyed theirselves. I know I did !! I hope to see you all again very soon.

DRIVE REPORT Thanks everyone for yesterday's drive, it's been very fun ! We entered at the extreme west side of little Sweihan next to the fence. This presented us with very nice untouched and high dunes. We started off at a fast pace and it is a credit to the drivers, @Abu Muhammad, @Rizwanm2, @Shaaz Sha, @Jorge Stepniak Felippe, @Tero Vallas, that we managed to keep going at this pace till Faqaa. Credit also goes to my fantastic support team : @Craig Finlayson, second lead, who managed perfectly in this technical area, @Kailas, center forward, who helped with recoveries under the supervision of @Desert Dweller, who handled sweep duties. Little Sweihan area is incredible but challenging at some points. We were blessed to have no heavy tracks or routed paths, but that presented us with super soft sands. The aforementioned sands created some refusals, but there were no major stucks and we only had to use the rope once, close to our exit point in Faqa, for a quite epic stuck, "wheel in the air" style, from @Abu Muhammad. Thanks @Rizwanm2 for the video. And very well done @Kailas for the recovery. The convoy, including our newly promoted intermediate @Abu Muhammad, all coped very well in the terrain and the fact that we managed to rack up plenty of kilometres is testament to their driving.

Every time I wash my car myself , I save the same amount enough to fuel for the next drive. Rather than the saving what I enjoy the most is one gets to know their cars better, learn and improvise on their regular checks themselves ( like oil / coolant check, air filter cleaning, examining tires for any cracks , leaks from differentials, know which part is where , organize and strap all recovery gear securely etc). This saves you both time and money, allowing you to know your car much better than just driving. You spend a lot of energy enough for a days workout 😂

Murquab maruaders, Another great drive this weekend - even through it was yesterday it seems like it was weeks ago! After the Fewbies had assembled in our midst (and then disappeared to their staging post) it was a great start to the day with an outside [socally distanced] briefing and departrure for our drive a few minutes after the Fewbies had disappeared. The dunes that follow are a great opportunity for Newbies to test the basic skills as they are neither too hgih or too simple to cross and have all the challenges of larger dunes with out the danger of failign and falling. And, to boot, there are plenty technical dunes we can enter where the challenge is completely different and while not having the adrenalin of fast paced crossing and rises, have the chance to develop essential dune driving skills for later stages in a 4x4 journey. The Sheikh Zayid Sandway is always fun - but the soft sand at the Solar Park/Qudra area was too soft for our troop so we had to redirect a little and because of the number of recoveries we did not make it all the way to last exit. Having said that, we also got to work on an unusual 'pop out', as the shredded tire from Rakesh necessitated a wheel change and there were soem interesting opportunities to dig people out or help them out of trouble. Specific feedback: @Luca Bregni: excellent job as 2nd lead. Impeccable control and care. You really know how to make your jeep sing how it should. @pramod: You need to use the power better in the car. I know it was your first drive as a newbie and so a struggle ebcause it's all still new, but you need to use the power better (i.e. don't be scared of it) and you'll fly through all the sort of places where you got stuck. @Arun Mathew: I am delighted fo you that the car worked out and passed this shaledown - get back to Fewbie drives. they are just waiting for you. @Nihal17: A good drive for you, but a few times you need to be in better control of the power delivery, espceially when climbing hills and getting enough momentum. @Aus Alzubaidi: I am glad you made if from the reserve list to get on the drive as you did a great job and followed up your previous drives with a good controlled drive showing that youa re learning every time you get behind the wheel into the sand. @Sai Baskaran: I think that the fact that I really did not notice you on the drive (that's a good thing) says just about all I need to know in your development. You really are in control of the Pajero and using the power well. Your control improves each time I see you on a drive so keep it up. @Explored Dubai: I feel a bit guilty Rakesh that it seems your car always comes out a bit worse for wear on these drives. The 2014 tire, was probably due for renewal as it really should not shred the way it did on the drive. In some ways, better to blow out in the sand than on the highway. Apart from that, great to see you are not getting stopped in the palces where you were before and much more controlled drive than the last time we were in this area. @Niki Patel: I really think that you under estimate your and your car's capabilities. Yes, there were a few times that you failed and tried again, but that's how you learn and how you understand that things you thought impossible or scary are all acheivable. I am looking forward to the next time we get to drive together because then I can give special focus to the one ot two things in a drive that will transform your experience just that little bit more. @ALI ALMOUMAR: I really like the way that you are driving the prado - you use the power when you need to, you are not scared to push you are managing the challenges really well and I can see you are enjoying the drives more and more each time, as we are enjoying your company more and more each time. @patrick noack: Brilliant - I simply love that Defender and the family adventurers inside made the day super fun for us all. You seem to use the torque at your disposal to float on the sand in ways that the raw power of the petrol engines cannot match. I especially like how you redirect to find the route that makes sense for the vehicle instead of trying to match the way that some of the other cares perform. Really admirable. @Ken Hüüdma: Firstly, I hope that you got the compressor sorted. What I have seen in the drives Ken is that the practice youa re doing with us and in friend drives is really paying off. You are great in the technical dunes because that is a challenge you set yourself and decided you would conquer. For the rest, I have to admit, I love seeing the Y62 out in the convoy because it shows just what that vehicel was actually designed for. Next time out - I propose you are a 2nd lead. So you can show just how controlled you can be rather than ploughing and playing and leaving a large wake in your path. @Janarthan and @Jeepie thanks for both keepoing everything moving, sorting out the problems, supporting in your brilliant and effective way and making sure that everyone, as ever, got out safely and having had great fun. @Rahimdad and @Foxtrot Oscar thanks from coming by to check everythign was alright in our drive especially after you guys had had your own challenges earlier in the day. It's always great to see other Carnity convoys in the area and for the different levels to see what awaits them. See you soon in the sand. @Arman - your apologies noted. It's a great shame when this happens because, yes, it denies another club member the chance to join. On drives like this where extending the convoy is not possible (because of the risk of more stucks in soft sand) and then in the morning having to wait and wonder if people will arrive, absences really do impact other people.

@Asif Hussain bhai unfortunately i have to work in Dubai on 18th afternoon. Exiting the drive will see you soon!

Hey Team, I bought a 2nd hand Jeep wrangler JKU. The previous owner added a 2.5 inches liftkit and a huge 35inches tyres. I do realize now that this is not the optimal setup for climbing hills or getting the best performance and milage out of this car. I'm also struggling with deciding on the best jack for this car. A hydrolic jack seems not efficient. A hi-lift needs to be mounted, and it needs a stable surface and a good lifting angles. Is a hilift jack my only option? What about the x exhaust jack?

Many thanks @Gaurav and @Frederic for the golden tips as usual. I will follow your advice and try to get a hydrolic floor jack with an extension.

OFF ROAD JACK EXTENSION from Pro Eagle seems even better solution.

You can use any floor jack with extra wooden plank, as mentioned above OR buy additional few inches of rubber or metal adapter to suit your lift.

I am glad you realize 35inch tyres will rob you from a lot of power in desert driving, and in combination with the lift kit it might be a bit high for a hydraulic floor jack. But have you tried it already ? I have lifted quite some cars already with my floorjack and if the height becomes an issue i just add some extra wooden planks. Eventually its good enough for fixing a pop out. The Hi-Lift is an amazing tool if you know how to use it, but not so easy and can be extremely dangerous. Exhaust Jacks will probably not work, the biggest model i have soon (from Australia) was fine but this was a 1000+ AED jack, and the risk of burning the bag when you put it too close to your engine or exhaust is there.