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Liwa crossing is always an exciting chapter for any offroader, but this year IM drive has seen a lot more challenging situations that I have not yet witnessed in my decades of experience. We all learn new things every day. In case of any mechanical failure, we always try to rescue the car as much as we can. If we cannot manage the recovery of the vehicle, car owners have to rely on a more professional approach of calling the tow truck or returning back with a mechanic to fix the issue on-site. Yes, we never leave any driver behind, but on some occasions, we have left the car inside the desert as per our roles and responsibilities to keep everyone safe. Thanks to @Dodi Syahdar Raptor's presence whose beast mode is able to drag the dead car through Liwa's enormous dunes. However, luck ended too fast when we were unable to swing past the soft sand patch after multiple failed attempts. Without a rolling momentum, Raptor's beast mode wasn't able to activate again due to extra soft sand all around. Hence we left with a winching option for the last leg and that went in for good 12+ hours, simply because the angle of the dead car was against all physics, and pulling through slip face + wedge pocket made it our worst nightmare. Thanks to @Ranjan Das winch we were able to drag the dead car a little bit uphill, but when the car started to slip into the pocket at night, we left the recovery to restart again with more winches and energy. Thanks @Hisham Masaad and @Bjoern for supporting this extreme recovery with your powerful winches, patience and determination. Without so many winches at hand and 10-15 ropes, this recovery wouldn't have been possible. After the previous night's challenge, we straight away launched the heavy-duty idea to introduce a snatch block with a Hisham winch to 1.5X the winching power at 90 degrees angled pull, through Raptor heavyweight to anchor. It did its magic and failed when the car started to tip off on two wheels, so we secured the B pillar with @Bjoern winch on the right side steep climb. Then after a little while 1.5X winch also failed as the car was getting into the wedge with an even steeper angle to deal with. Now we double down the winch by adding Ranjan's winch to the equation and finally saw the "Yellow Jeep" crawling up the hellhole. It was an unforgettable experience of my life. Thanks @Srikumar, @Asif Hussain and @GauravSoni for all the tactical support, critical thinking and impeccable leadership to deal with this EPIC extreme recovery through Liwa's enormous dunes. Thanks to @Waqas Parvez @Vaibhav @ASAD. @Pacific and @munkybizness for being there at the backend. Big thanks and shout out to @Ishak @Santoso Marjuki @Tharun Kumar V and Asif bhai's friend - Asif for offering EXEMPLARY SUPPORT by handling the most grueling and physically taxing need of attaching and detaching 10's of tow rope multiple times on huge Liwa dunes slip face with soft sand. Without your all great teamwork, this extreme recovery wouldn't have been possible.

Was trying to figure out what happened during the recovery of Anoops car, and found the following. In photo 1, which is showing the situation we had. We put the snatch block as shown. The FJ winch line was going around the snatch block pulley. This means the winch was the only pulling line, with a change of direction of the dead car load. This had added more load on the winch, leading to the failure of effective pull. The second photo, I think is the correct configuration we should have made. FJ should have been moved next to the raptor. The winch line should have been hooked to the raptor through the pulley. The snatch block reversed and connected to the wrangler. This way, the raptor and FJ will share the load. When we decided to have both FJ and @Ranjan Das winches together, with a direct connect to the wrangler, both winches power were fully utilized to pull the car. Does it make since @Gaurav. At the end great team work by all masters @Gaurav @Srikumar @Asif Hussain @Dodi Syahdar @GauravSoni @munkybizness @Tharun Kumar V @Bjoern @Waqas Parvez @ASAD. @Ishak @Santoso Marjuki @Vaibhav @Pacific @Sunil Mathew @Mario Cornejo

Dear Sand Sailors Hope you all have had a productive week and looking forward for the drive this weekend. This has been a special week with some really nice rain shower. While this surely has been fun, would make our drive on sunday (expected to be sunny tomo onward), a bit different. Some special checks to ensure we have a safe and fun drive. a.) Please check your vehicles to ensure its in perfect shape, especially with focus on tyres. b.) Ensure you have a spare tyre in healthy condition with you. c.) Check that all your off-roading gear are in good shape. d.) Be fully rested before the drive. Last but not the least, we still have 3 drivers in WL, so in case any of you have change in plan, please update the RSVP well on time - so that we dont lose a slot, while others are in waiting. I am really looking forward for Sunday, its been couple of months i have been to Faqa and with weather so good, very keen to explore the beautiful terrain. Cheers @Jona @Davie Chase @Pierre de Maigret @Mus_hus78 @Beide Worku @Brett Eicher @Patrick van der Loo @Richard Franks @Felix Obst @Ali Abas @Tareq Al Turq @Gregory @Mohamad Anwer @Chris Wing

This was my life's first experience with a snatch block and based on theory and videos we should've placed FJ in between Raptor and Wrangler for 160-180 degree (most effective) pull. But not to let FJ slip in the same hellhole, I placed FJ at a 90-degree angle to maximize winching power by 1.5X if not double and also to use two car weights to anchor. With a single winch that recovery has reached its limit, as we have learned from Ranjan's winch hitting the max ceiling the previous night. And also when we remove the snatch block and FJ tried to pull alone, it really didn't move. My second observation if we somehow would have elevated the winch line by adding another car in between, the winch line would have taken a better load to pull than slicing through the dune. Just an afterthought...! We really need a winch day out to practice and learn what really works and what doesn't in real-life situations. I already have 5 sign up from winch owners, soon will plan a drive solely for this exercise and test all configurations.

consider me in

Dear Desert Drivers, Last update for the drive tomorrow. Meeting at 07:00 am at https://goo.gl/maps/3AP1mn7ovRJ42KDx9 The convoy order will be We will use Radio Channel 4 Drive safely to the meeting point in case the roads are still wet tomorrow morning. Enjoy the evening, take a good rest, and see you tomorrow morning !

Dear Desertnauts: @Jaro Tuzinsky, @Gary F, @Sunil Mathew, @Abdul Basit Khan, @Stumpy Paj, @Ishak, @Frans M, @Adam James, @Bravoecho, @Stan, @Ahmad Nerat @FARAZ MOHAMMED, @Andrei S @DanielN, @Sebb, @Krishna R, @Murtaza Bhuria @Naim Aoun, @Shahid Mehmood , @Yaseen87, @Vanessa8580 and @Lawrence_Chehimi For those wondering about the weather conditions, YES THE DRIVE IS ON, rain or shine. The clouds will move East from later this evening. I will post the forecast for the Dubai area below. See you all tomorrow.

Dear Desertnauts, latest info in preparation for the drive. MEETING POINT - Will be just past Murqab's mosque, right off the exit on the Dubai-Al Ain Road. Considering the number of drivers, we'll have Convoy 1 lining up on the RIGHTside of the road, and Convoy 2 (@Vanessa8580's) on the LEFT side of the road. As soon as you reach, please start deflating and mount your flags. RADIO CHANNELS - Please set your radios as follows: CONVOY 1 on Channel #2 (446.031), and CONVOY 2 on Channel #3 (446.056). CONVOY ORDER The following are the members signed up with CONVOY 1, who will line up as follows: @Jaro Tuzinsky in Second Lead @Ishak at #3 @Stan at #4 @Bravoecho #5 @Gary F at #6 @Sunil Mathew will be drive as Center @Frans M at #8 @Abdul Basit Khan at #9 @Adam James #10 @Stumpy Paj at #11, and @Dodi Syahdar will take the Sweep's position CONVOY 2, lead by @Vanessa8580, with the support of @Lawrence_Chehimi, will line up according to the order that the Lead will establish, and will communicate on site, prior to departure. The members in Convoy 2 are the following: @FARAZ MOHAMMED, @Andrei S, @Sebb, @Krishna R, @Murtaza Bhuria, @Naim Aoun, @Shahid Mehmood, @Yaseen87, @DanielN and @Ahmad Nerat. It looks like it will be an interesting drive, on an unusual terrain, heavily soaked with the current rains, even though the day is forecasted to be sunny and pleasant. Looking forward to seeing all of you at Murqab. Have a nice end of the week.

Adding my 2 cents to the discussion, eventhough i was not able to participate in this epic recovery. Had to be home by late evening , as family had planned something assuming my attendance if pulling force multiplication was our intention , above was how it should have been rigged, as @Hisham Masaad mentioned The way it is rigged in the photo, only serves to re-direct the pull, and not mulitply it. The static line is to be connected to the pulled load (wrangler) , and the pulling lines should be maximum parallel to each other for 2x multiplication. Any other included angle would only reduce the resultant force on the static line, reaching 1x at 90degree included angle. hope i am not being too technical here. In such case, when pulling line/winch line moves 1mtr, snatch block moves 0.5 mtr only Also, snatch block rating should be twice winch pull

Me too although I don’t have a winch but very much interested

Wow!! Thanks Gaurav for sharing the details of the experience. Nothing will replace the learning gained by being on site. For people like me who were not there, your explanation does help understand the situation. Gald to be part of this club where we really root for each other

The drive through Liwa was an unforgettable experience. The winding roads and towering dunes provided a challenging yet exhilarating journey. We were all impressed by the skill and determination of our drivers as they navigated the terrain with ease. The group cohesion was also excellent, everyone was very supportive and helped create a great atmosphere. The natural beauty of the area was mesmerizing, with the golden sands contrasting against the deep blue sky. We took breaks along the way to take in the views, capture some photos and enjoy the fresh air. All in all, it was a fantastic day and one that will be remembered for a long time. thanks for the lead and support team, 👍

Now let's factor the 60-70 meter distance and the winch line is 30 meters, and tow ropes can't go through the snatch block. Welcome to liwa dunes, lol.

Good morning Below you can find the convoy numbering for convoy #2 Position Driver Car Rank 1 Vanessa Nissan X-terra Marshal 2 Ahmad Nerat Toyota Land Cruiser Fewbie 3 Yaseen Mitsubishi Pajero Fewbie 4 Krishna Nissan X-terra Fewbie 5 Murtaza Mitsubishi Pajero Fewbie 6 Faraz Mohammed Mitsubishi Pajero SWB Fewbie 7 Lawrence Nissan X-terra Support team 8 Daniel FJ Cruiser Fewbie 9 Sebb Nissan Patrol Safari Fewbie 10 Andrei Jeep Wrangler Fewbie 11 Shahid Mehmood Toyota Prado Fewbie 12 Naim Aoun Jeep Wrangler Fewbie Plus We will be using radio channel 3 (446.05625)

I can already see that winch day out gonna be a mind-bending exercise with so many great ideas, engineers and experts.

I am trying to visualize the situation and based on the pic and drawing my understanding is that the purpose of using the snatch block was for leverage and not force redirection.. so based on that understanding I believe the best position of the snatch block would be directly connected to the dead car (Snoop’s in the case), and the winch rope would go around the snatch block back to the winching car or another car as anchor.. this would give leverage almost doubling the force on the dead car and reduce helge stress on the winch .. can’t wait to play with this and apply to different scenarios when we meet

Dear @Mbk, welcome to @Carnity. I see your name in the wait list, and I see you have just joined the club. You will see that we have a grading for the level of the drive, with a progression scale from one level to the other. This allows to have an homogeneous group for each drive, to ensure enjoyment and safety for each driver. Even if you have previous experience on your own or with another club, you shall first attend a Newbie drive, where the club rules can be explained, and your level assessed. Then if relevant, you can apply to recognize your previous experience. https://carnity.com/forums/topic/16479-off-road-club-grading-structure-v30/ https://carnity.com/forums/topic/15974-transfer-your-previous-off-road-experience/ My drive on Saturday is Intermediate Level, so you cannot join directly. I will have to remove your name from the waitlist. There are 2 Newbie drives on 29th Jan. They are full already, but if you wish so, you can add your name to the waitlist to these drives. https://carnity.com/calendar/event/1708-morning-newbie-desert-drive-faqa-dubai-29-jan-2023/ https://carnity.com/calendar/event/1710-afternoon-newbie-desert-drive-murquab-dubai-29-jan-2023/ Thank you for your understanding

Confirmed @JeromeFJ

Looking forward to this drive. Ready to overcome new challenges. 👍

Thanks @Gaurav for the advice. I have already given the car to add 2 nos of recovery points in the front and back (each). Tomorrow itself I will check with them and ensure that it will be three-bolt tow points as mentioned.

I am not an engineer, just want to share my thought. When I removed the shackle that night before we left to the camp site, I noticed the tow point design is like this I was thinking that after several tug, this tow point will fatigue due to bending load and crack will start from the weakest geometry which is bolt holes. On this car, the bolts are still fine. compared to this design, we don't have bending load. Need more load to be able to shear the bolts. CMIIW. 😁

That single tow hook went through almost 8 hours of tugs and winching bearing heavy load… m glad it didn’t break during the winching… @Anoop Nair please fix two tow points for recovery on the front.. another reason for not so effective pull during the initial stage was absence of a 2nd tow point which could not prevent the car from slipping..

This should remind us all why we always insist on "Three-bolt" recovery tow points as we have seen many factory's tow points fail with two-bolt systems. Two-bolt is acceptable for medium load but will surely fail under extreme stress. 3 or 4 bolt is the way to go. Btw, the last pull from Raptor was still a medium intensity as Raptor itself was struggling to take the load on the soft patch and still, it broke.

the details felt in between the lines now its clear . thank you @Gaurav for your comments about it . was waiting to learn it from you and i did. qudos to every one . words will allways echo Liwa's dunes :" the Unforgettable yellow jeep "

Hi @Chris Wing since it’s your only drive of the weekend, I have extended the convoy to add you for the same. Please confirm your availability.

@Shinebabu please confirm which 4x4 do you drive, whether your vehicle has tow points at the front and back. Do you have any previous offroading expereince? Please ensure that you go through the below video prior to coming for the drive : Hi Deepak, thanks for the introduction. Please ensure that you go through the below video before joining the drive

Hi @Imteeaz The drive is confirmed for tomorrow. There will be apparently less rain today, and even less Saturday morning. And yes, we will adjust the drive to the conditions. It will be add a bit of challenge to the usual terrain ! See you tomorrow !

@Ale Vallecchi, having some commitments on Saturday, hope u all will enjoy the drive

good point

Totally agree

Thank you thank you thank you everybody for being part of this great trip, special thanks for @Kailas for signing up for this challenging area , I consider it was a succesfull trip as everybody returned safe with cars in one piece. Also a good part was that there were no cellular connections so everybody got a little brake from their phones 😄 and enjoyed the nature closer. Thank you @Lawrence_Chehimi and the rest of the team for extra support, thank you @Gertjan for taking extra time to take pictures for all of us. Hope everybody enjoyed , I will upload couple of pictures and videos later, cause now it doesnt go through on google drive. Now back to work 😔

Oh Liwa !! You Were majestic ! And Our Lead ! Oh @Kailas, You were unstoppable ! Not missing out on anything that offered to make it such a fantastic drive ! Nothing less than what we would have asked for ! Thank you ! @Lawrence_Chehimi.- Always great to have you and thank you for sweeping us, and those few tugs/shovels ! @Gertjan - You were absolutely impressive as a second lead and great judgement of right distance ! U never fail to impress with your professional captures - and am Glad you have some of your captures too this time with your camera .. A fantastic convoy and congratulations to all of us again ! Thanks guys for the shovel support those couple of times, everytime i was revising the learning i had from previous one , always great to have you as part of convoy @Senthil Kumar, @Jona, @Alexanderrr, @imranaasghar81, @Brett Eicher . @Mus_hus78 hope you managed to fix your car and am sure next time hopefully @Sunil Mathew am sure you too had a great time on day 2 with us ! Thanks @Carnity, @Gaurav @Frederic @Srikumar@Gaurav Soni@Hisham Masaad@Vanessa8580 - The masterminds and the leads behind this to be remembered drive for rest of the year untill the next one - Thank you !

Super congrats to all of you for completing this unforgettable challenge ! Amazing job @Kailasfor taking up the lead in this kind of terrain and completing it wonderfully !

Oh Liwa!! Congratulations team FB+ for the Liwa Crossing accomplishment. We had a relatively short convoy as there were few dropouts and @Mus_hus78had to exit very early due to 4WD issues. Couldn't ask for more. Every thing was perfect, the convoy, terrain, camping. There were lots of climbs, huge bowls and drops that were almost 150+m @Gertjan was the prefect second lead. I felt very comfortable driving in front of you. Always kept good distance and your awareness was fantastic. And thanks to all the pictures and videos. @Jona and @Brett Eicher were the only FB+ in the convoy. But you guys allowed me to push to an IM level and handling it so well. @imranaasghar81 looking forward for the 360 clips. @Senthil Kumar & @Alexanderrr had no issues handling churned track. @DP1011 , Deepak wrangler & @Lawrence_Chehimithanks for your support. Thanks to others for supporting the supports. Looking forward for next Liwa drive. Drive Stats We covered almost 180kms in total. We drove very close to Saudi Border taking more of dunes and less Sabhka.

MUST READ AND COMPLY Offroad Flag Guideline Two Way Radio Guideline Off road Driving Etiquette's Emergency details for all off-roaders Off Road Driving - Roles & Responsibilities Drive Details Level: Newbie and above When: 29 Jan 2023, Sunday. Meeting time: 7:30 AM (SHARP - Without any exceptions) Meeting Point: https://goo.gl/maps/m6B8FVm345UEGDySA 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), face mask, rubber gloves, enthusiasm and willingness to learn. Approximate finish time: 11:30 AM P.S. Only join if you have a compressor to inflate your tires after the drive. LIMITED SPOTS AVAILABLE Limited to 12 cars only. RSVP will close on Friday, 2 pm. 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

That’s it . Redirection of pull force @Gaurav When is the plan please for the winch day ? Already revising some Polly physics , I don’t know why I used to hate at school/first year college time but kinda love it now 🤣

@Ale VallecchiI have withdrawn my RSVP two days back.Will not be coming tomorrow.Hope to join the drive next time.

Hi @Srikumar I would love to join the ride if you are able to add me please!

What an amazing experience, Liwa is something else!! Congrats to all of us making it to the other side safely @Kailasyou were an amazing lead, you made it a fantastic drive, challenging yet safe. Thanks @DP1011 , Deepak wranglerfor holding the convoy at the center and for all the help and tugs you gave. Thanks to everyone who supported the support, I guess we were the only ones getting stuck hahaa.😀 Hope to see you all on sand soon.

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/15_5xTRV9E4s0eLY6iKOQY9q8ympO4RJd Couple of pictures and videos for ya

Hi @imranaasghar81 no issues go ahead.

Congrats @fayez enjoy the new rank

Congrats @fayez