Leaderboard

Solar Park, Soft Sand and So Much Vegetation This morning could have started better, as I had managed to confuse Ms. Google a little with the start point. Well done everyone, because in spite of this, we were under way by around 5.15am. It had been a while since I had driven Solar Park and I was surprised by the amount of vegetation. Cloud seeding is all well and good ... but it seems they forget that cloud seeding begets plant seeding and the whole terrain is far greener than we would like. With @AKR as second lead we headed cross couuyerntry to the technical dunes that we needed to cross to get onto the wider, higher dunes. @Gaurav deserves a medal for rescuing just about everyone in the convoy, including me at one point or another. @Mehmet Volga you did great after that first crest, I just wish we had known that would be the start of a series of problems for @Chaitanya D, and eventually even @Brette. Once moving again and with a few more refusals, we got going until a pop out for @Lorenzo Candelpergher needed attention. I really commend everyone for the patience of the first hour of the drive where we covered around 1.5 km and we were waiting around for multiple recoveries. And then, the dunes opened out a little and we were able to start moving through, up and down, side sloping where safe and possible and enjoying some uninterrupted cruising through the desert. Amazingly, it was the Pajero club that started overheating so we stoped to take a look at cars from @Anish S @RohanH and @Mehmet Volga to get them cooled down enough to continue. By that stage it was time to turn back in the direction of the amazing architecture of the beautiful Solar Park headquarters 😉 to find an exit. The stand out moment (as we will ignore the stucks as we navigated back) was that @Rajeevan Vickneswaran found his lost rear number plate [chocolates should be delivered 😂 to you know who. Clue @Veedooshee] in the desert after it fell off. For @Magellan and @siddharth maheshwari at the back of this convoy, you did a great job navigating heavily churned up sand. The technical dunes were less tricky on the way out, but still had their claws into us, even though we could not only smell, but see the flat ground. However, we all made it out deflated and made our way home. Big thanks to @Jeepiefor your calm input throughout the drive (and your redirects ...) and helping out as ever with the recoveries. As a learning leader, it was a great experience and I thank everyone for their support and patience. See you soon in the sand.

Thank you everybody for the nice and fun drive. I was glad to be part of this challenge, it was a great opportunity for me to learn more. Today, i had the absolute privilege to drive behind the Legend and i did not lose any chance to observe how @Gaurav was manoeuvering. I kept a close eye on his move, how he was tackling, negotiating and re-routing and i was also trying to understand the reasons behind his decisions made. @Gaurav worked really hard since there was difficult stucks to recover especially the last one before we exit. We also had a tire popped out, which was successfully and swiftly handled by our management team @Wrangeld, @Jeepie, @Gaurav, @Brette...We had some technical issues as well with our Pajeros, the usual transmission over-heating which was solved quickly. Bravo to my co-pilot @Veedooshee for using her investigative skills to find the most probable spot where the number plate of @Rajeevan Vickneswaran got lost, and luckily Rajeevan found his number plate and was spared from the hassle of reporting it to the police and spending money in getting a new plate. I highly appreciate the collaboration and understanding of @Lorenzo Candelpergher for giving space on few occasion where i needed to reroute and to reverse to get more momentum.

DRIVE REPORT As Al Qudra is in in my backyard, I arrived around 4:40 and saw during deflation @Gaurav passing by on his way to the Solar Park. I was really happy to see everyone coming on time, and starting deflation by themselves. After having appointed @marks as my second lead, which he did great, and @Mels Wolf as my trusty sweep, we headed out around 5:30 and the first initial reactions I heard on the first two or three dunes was "I am stuck" from a few guys, as they suddenly came to realize that driving on sand feels totally different than driving on the road. Just to clarify again, a Stuck is only called a Stuck if we need to recover you with a rope or shovel you out. A Refusal is when you're able to recover yourself. Which most of our drivers have did amazingly well today. The first 40 minutes I took the convoy to some small technical dunes, which was actually not my intention but alas on some drives I follow my instincts, and realized that even in this area hardly anyone struggled. Later on, we headed deeper into Al Qudra where the long "Seif" dunes allow for mini side-sloping, which we kept on practicing until everyone was confident and I saw huge smiles on their faces from mastering this essential technique where momentum and steering control is what it's all about. Very nicely done by all ! We covered about 39 kilometers in 3 hours, which is a good average speed and thanks to @Mels Wolf who kept an eye on the entire convoy and deflated some of the vehicles a bit further, we were able to manage this distance by having almost no stucks or refusals. @Nabil Bishara @Incognitoes @h1fny were all driving very capable Jeep Wranglers. @Jeandre Bezuidenhout his Wrangler Rubicon finally felt at home doing what it's meant to do. Serious Offroading. Well done guys ! @Taha Elghuel had a bit of a nose dive coming over a dune, no serious damages, but let's say the bumper is now baptized for Desert driving. @Sreejith Sreenivasan drove very well with the Landrover LR2. The low profile types meant we could not deflate very low but nevertheless he managed without too much effort today. Great work ! @Melenany is the PERFECT example that it's all about technique. He drives the F-150 with so much finesse that again you have amazed me today. @Adam Koster never broke a sweat as his Landcruiser Diesel easily pushed his way through the dunes. @Christian Andras you were the only FJ cruiser today, so you had to prove yourself against the Wrangler, Pajero, and Xterra army. But you drove great ! @Ahmed Farghaly and @Mukundan Nair with the Black and White Xterra was providing the Yin and Yang on the drive. Both drove very well too ! We ended the drive from where we started and said goodbye to the people who went to inflate at the Last Exit gas station. @Mels Wolf called me 10 minutes later that he was doing a recovery at the lakes as two guys were standing at the road looking exhausted and in need for help as their sedan got stuck in the soft sand. I am glad to see the Carnity values being carried forward: we never leave anyone behind, and if a person is in need we will always help out. Proud of you Mels !! Like I always say: Al Qudra never disappoints and the new members I take there never disappoint too: always fun to be had, and always stuff to learn. We will be back !

More than my Pajero, I absolutely love recovering as it gives me special satisfaction to help and also transfer bit of offroad knowledge and burn some extra calories for my Friday Gym. I did this center fwd after ages and Richard, made sure that I get good pay back after a long time gap. Btw, my Pajero was indeed running hot after 9 AM, so switched off the AC and enjoyed little baking. It was nice seeing you after a long time and sadly due to COVID we are now almost forgetting to see each other face.

Maybe your Pajero is trying to tell you something?

Thank you @Anish S for praising my investigative skills... at least I could help in a way as a co-pilot😉 @Wrangeld thank you for suggesting chocolates, the appreciation was already received in this nice drive...I really enjoyed it😊... Getting ready for my drive nw...😳

@Anish S I use a crony and have similar issues. Does not happen all the time but noticed when I keep it in the cup holder and the antenna touches anything metal it starts. Have since started keeping it on the passenger seat and it's been a lot better.

Thanks @Wrangeld for the wonderful drive, first one for me with you as lead and you did a great job of mixing it up, kept everyone on their toes. @Gaurav thanks for being all over to assist with recoveries, not driven with you in a while and brought back a lot of memories of the time when I first started to see the little pajero all over the place zoomin to help where required. For everyone else in the convoy today, well done. It was challenging but you all kept your cool and drove pretty well given the technicality and number of stucks we started of with. Like @Wrangeld rightly pointed out in the briefing, the sand was extremely soft and by the time the second half of the convoy crossed certain patches, it seemed like we were driving through a ton of powder where even slowing down a bit would end up with you being stuck. This won't be the last of it and over the next couple of months we can expect a lot more of this happenning. Good overall learning experience for everyone. Thanks to Sherlock @Veedooshee for her investigative skills in helping find @Rajeevan Vickneswaran number plate. Would never have thought of tracking back pics to see when you last saw it on the car. Simply brilliant. Thanks again guys n gals for a fun morning. See you'll next weekend.

😜 Must be an undiscovered feature of Pajero...I will try to decode the message 🤣...I hope she does not spills any secrets...

Dear Carnity friends. I am sure all of you have safely reached home and are now enjoying the nice buzz from today’s ride. Thank you very much for taking part in this almost exploratory drive, in a lesser known part of Dubai’s desert. Here are the key words of today’s trip: Punctuality – I reached the meeting point at 4:04PM, and to my surprise I found already 3 drivers working on deflating their tires. With the last driver arriving at 4:25PM, we managed to leave in record time. Discovery – It was my second time in this area, and probably the first time for most of the drivers. We entered it after a short drive along the pylons (to avoid an extremely long came track hidden in the dunes), crossing a small technical area. The focus of the drive were the cordons of long-range dunes which make up most of this area, between Al Lisaili’s camel track and Solar Park. While we did encounter some bushes (which this year seem to resist the summer heat and drought like never before), we managed to drive mostly unhindered by vegetation, on surprisingly firm and hard sand. We also enjoyed great views, saw magnificent sandstone formations, and glimpsed at camels, gazelles and oryxes. Speed – The convoy managed to cover 72.9 Km in 3 hours and 17 minutes, at an average speed of 22 Km/h. So that casual readers may not think that we just drove on flat terrain, I should add that we climbed a total of 531 meters, having started from an altitude of 1 meter, reaching a maximum altitude of 97 meters. So we did quite a bit of ups and downs, with the climbing mostly done to criss-cross the long range dunes, and to ride their ridges. Smoothness – Considering the tricky technical dunes, with soft pockets of sand, at the beginning of the drive, and the novelty of the itinerary, where quite a bit of dune crossing is required, I had expected a few stuck and refusals, and planned accordingly, to reach Solar Park at sundown. Instead, apart for a stuck at the beginning, and one at the end by two unnamed drivers (as we say in Italy, mention the sin not the sinner), we proceeded so smoothly, with nobody experiencing any kind of problems, that after 1 hour of uninterrupted and silent driving I stopped to check that everybody’s radios were still on, and to enjoy a drink of water, which I had been unable to have due to the absolutely riveting drive. So, we ended up reaching Solar Park well before sundown, and decided to proceed through the lower part of Qudra, until we reached the exit point west of Qudra Parking Lot. I’d like to end the report mentioning the convoy order: @Kalahari as a precise and cool Second Lead, @Najeeb Mohammed in third, managing his FJ as well as I have ever seen him, @Chaitanya D following in fourth without batting an eye (commendable considering this was his second drive of the day) @Colin Jordan at Center Forward, whose task of practicing recoveries was denied, @Rinelle Sanaani and @Febin Fredericcompleting the Wrangler contingent, in complete control of their drive, @Mels Wolfsweeping an all too clean convoy, and, last but not least, our new Crew member @Srikumarsavoring his well deserved top rank in a relaxing Flying Sweep position. Thanks to all for another very enjoyable adventure, and see you soon out there.

Sounds like the new Rolls Royce that comes with hidden codes for the owner to crack. Looks like mitsubishi beat them to the idea. 🤣

@Anish S I'm glad that my driving was of some help and this is exactly how I personally learn driving behind seasoned offroaders to learn to perfect the line (track entry /exit) instead of fighting with gravity, cross tracks and using excessive rpm. @Veedooshee your contribution with your common sense and attentiveness is beyond anyone's imagination, as I never expected that Rajeevan can find his number plate back in the desert, once lost. I was super impressed with your photo searching and connecting the dots skills to help him. Really well done to be so cautious while off-roading, and im sure with time you will become a very good off-roader. Big thanks and well done to @AKR @Rajeevan Vickneswaran @Magellan for not getting stuck in such a tricky area. Last but least, thanks and VERY well done to our new leader @Wrangeld for leading an excellent and super challenging drive at solar park and kept on playing with drive level based on convoy response. It is not an easy task for new leaders to tweak the level and find a perfect balance between enjoyment and not getting stuck or scaring people.

Guys, did anybody had interference and noise with your walkie talkie today? This is the second time when i used Channel 2, i got lots of static noise...I feel the noise is present when my engine is on when i go away from the vehicle or turn off the engine, it stops. I am using a Crony CN-888. Your input will be appreciated.

Dear @Wrangeld, dear @Gaurav, This was my 3rd Carnity Fewbie drive, 1st time at Solar Park. I was quite disappointed when I got crested at the very beginning of the ride: I still have to figure out why my diff lock didn't engage while trying to self-recover. I tried later multiple times and it always kicked in. When we eventually managed to drive a bit for real without stopping for some time it was quite enjoyable, until a moment of distraction made me lose control while sliding on a big dune, with the rear of my car literally falling downhill all of a sudden, causing a pop-out on my rear right wheel. My son, a pop-out freak, was excited as usual.., this time I really didn't feel the same way! After the 5th pop-out I am starting to consider shifting to 18" rims with a high profile tyres 265/70, slightly thinner than my current 275/60 but surely better when deflated off-road. I was told there are tyres with a particular shape of the inner edges of the shoulders which may help prevent pop-outs: recommendations would be appreciated. The biggest challenge of the day, for me, more than the soft sand, was the difficulty I experienced in reading the bright sand, despite polarized sunglasses. My latest drives were all in Mahafiz, Pink Rock, Fossil Rock, Area 53, Al Badayer, etc were the sand is much darker and much simpler to read. @Gaurav was amazingly relentless and patient in an abnormous number of recoveries and has all my gratitude for helping me out in the two instances above. I was also amused how he could ride all over the place while everyone else was getting stuck... The path was interesting and, when we had the chance to ride without stops, fast enough to have fun. @Wrangeld and @Jeepie did a great job in leading and routing, thank you both. Find today's track details below. Thanks to the whole convoy for the nice time spent toghether today.

I wouldn’t recommend Pedal Commander. Your Wrangler has more than enough power and your throttle response issue is just yourself that needs to gel with the vehicle and it’s capabilities. A pedal commander might increase response time and will make your car feel more agressive behaving, but it also puts a lot more strain on the drivetrain components. Make sure you’re well deflated on these days 12psi should be ok, going to 13-14 and higher and you’ll start feeling that you need to apply more power to make it through and will struggle more.

Firstly big thanks to @Gaurav for your leadership skills and patience. It was a tough start for you today as most of us called you back to back for help despite you were just one call away . Thank you @Wrangeld @Jeepie for the well coordinated lead and @Brette for backing me up. You all are amazing how you all get on knees in the heat to help in any situation. @Lorenzo Candelpergher tyre popped out today at a sidey at the top of the dune and it was really risky for such big machine but he controlled it very well. It was my first febie drive and i learned a lot. Kudos to those who didnt stuck at all today despite of soft patches . @Rajeevan Vickneswaran you were smartly saved by @Veedooshee . I remember one drive when i was driving in front of @Anish S and they always capture nice pictures 👍. Somehow i felt my jeep was less responsive at times today on loose sand when i needed some quick acceleration or it is an isssue with traction of my stock tyres . Was looking for the thread of pedal commander but couldnt get much out of it. Looking for some suggestions from other fellow jeepers and our leaders . I drive Jeep JL Sahara long wheel base. Would love to share some experiences or advise.

@Gaurav I really appreciate your help, always. Thanks for you help and advise's.

@Anish S Mobile could be the culprit. it causes lot of issues specially when we we are exchanging signals like whats ap messages, calls

Post COVID of course 😜

बधाई हो If this above doesn't mean congratulations, then sorry 😄 Well deserved new rank @Srikumar! Your methodical but yet calm and relaxed nature greatly influences your amazing driving and leading style. Your enthusiasm is contagious and it has always been a pleasure driving with you and learning from you.

My car has feelings you know

Thank you @Rinelle Sanaani. You are improving every drive. See you soon. Thanks a lot @Febin Frederic. We had not driven much together, but I trusted you could handle your car, even if at the back, and you certainly did very well. Good job. Thank you @Najeeb Mohammed. You have improved a great deal, and can now take full advantage of the FJ's potential. Well done.

Thanks @Brette,yes actually it clicked my mind that since @Rajeevan Vickneswaran was ahead of us, the few pictures i took still had the number plate, i zoomed it and yes indeed that's how it was tracked, i am happy he found it...and i could be of some help!

@siddharth maheshwari Thank you so much. That's what teamwork is about! oh ya about the pictures it is as much as we can manage, i did upload some in the gallery however not too many, as the soft sand required us to keep moving. See you on the next drive..if you are ahead of us, get ready to be clicked😉!

Are you narrating any horror story 😂😂 lol

Some cars do that on some frequencies on some radios: @Gaurav and my car doesn’t like Channel 3. Sometimes interference is unavoidable due to other people on same frequency, sometimes it’s indeed the radio (CN888 unfortunately doesn’t have a squelch setting), and sometimes it’s your car engine causing the interference. Next time we drive together I’ll give you one of my spare radios for some testing.

Thank you @Wrangeld, @Jeepie and @Brette for such a great fewbie drive. It was definitely a step up from newbie in every respect - great fun and good learning! Thank you @Gaurav for saving everyone. Your Pajero was kept busy and did not even get a chance to overheat - what a machine! See you all again soon!

@Anish SI did not have any interference, I am using Baofeng uv5. Thank you for @Wrangeld, @Jeepie and @Brette for a nice drive. Special thanks to @Gaurav for tugging almost everyone except a few today. Some pictures uploaded in gallery

@Srikumar congrats buddy. You deserved this and like many others have said, you are a true leader and always there to help and give advice when needed. Been a pleasure driving and learning from you along the way and thanks for all the help and support that has brought me and so many other newbies up the ranks. Well done Sri. Take a bow.

Wonderful news @Srikumar. You are a true leader, never showing off, but always showing the way how to get better, and improve oneself. I feel honored to have you watching over my drive tomorrow. It will be yet another opportunity to learn from you. Congrats!!

Wow, that's indeed a very pleasant and unexpected surprise. I am truly humbled and a very nice way to kick start the weekend. Thank you to everyone at the Carnity Off-road Club for your support and friendship. It truly means a lot to drive with you guys every weekend. I have made so many dear friends here and for me this is really my extended family. The learning never stops and I look forward to more adventures with everyone. @Asif Hussain @Emmanuel @Frederic driving with you and time spent chatting after the drives when the club was in the initial stages are some of my best takeaways of the past few years. To all the new leaders : @Wrangeld @Jeepie @Ale Vallecchi @Javier M @Shamil @Brette @Xaf you have all brought in new thoughts and dimensions to the way our drives are being conducted and organized. Thank you. Finally a very special mention to @Rahimdad and @Gaurav for not only starting this wonderful Club, but for teaching me the beautiful art of off-roading from an absolute newbie. Thank you guys. You are the real Superman (men) of this club. I will end with an image that I once received and it's something that is so true.

While offroading, we cross dunes by using different methods, based on how the dune is formed and what the drive level is. Once you have spent some time in the desert, you will slowly start to pay more attention to the dune formations and how we cross them. Once you reach Intermediate and Advance level, you'll need to start learning how to read these dunes in order to navigate and create your planned routes in the desert. As a rule of thumb, the prevailing wind in UAE is blowing from a North-Western direction to South-East direction from 10AM onwards. At night and in early morning it will be reversed and blow from the South-East to North-West. This is something you should remember and you will notice when you zoom into certain areas with your navigation app (Google Maps, Gaia, MotionX, Mytrails,...) you will notice that the wind from that side has caused the dunes to take on their shape. This is a general rule and will not always apply, as you will see that in certain areas where wind is coming from different directions, you will see for example "star" dunes appearing. There are different types of dunes which are separately described below. As you can see in below picture, a dune is formed when the prevailing wind blows on a mound of sand, where the grain will move into the wind direction and create a ridge. The sand which falls on the other side of the ridge, creates a slipface, and this sand is not compacted by the wind. This is the main reason why we generally drive on the prevailing wind side or the convex side of the dunes on the Newbie level. "A dune is a curiously dynamic creature," wrote Farouk El-Baz in National Geographic. “Once formed, a dune can grow. It can change shape and move with the wind. It can even breed new dunes. Some of these offspring may be carried on the back of the mother dune. Others are born and race downwind, outpacing their parents. [Source: Farouk El-Baz, National Geographic, February 1982] The shape of dunes is affected by things like the strength, direction and consistency of the winds; the consistency and amount of sand; the hardness of the terrain and the amount of vegetation. Below we will describe the most common dunes found in the UAE. Different Dunes Crescent or Barchan Dune This is the most common dune. It forms the shape of a crescent moon when the wind blows from one direction. We generally use the words concave and convex to describe both sides of the dune: * Concave is a shape that curves inwards. * Convex is a shape that curves outwards. Crescent-shaped mounds generally are wider than long. On the concave side you will have the slipface. These dunes form under winds that blow from one direction, and they also are known as barchans. Parabolic Dune A parabolic dune is similar in shape to a barchan, but it is just the opposite. The tips of this dune point into the wind, and its main body migrates with the wind, forming a depression between the tips. Because of this formation, parabolic dunes are also known as blowout dunes. These dunes often occur when vegetation stabilizes sediments and a U-shaped blowout forms between clumps of plants. Example of Parabolic dunes near Faya: https://goo.gl/maps/ob8xu3y8VJJvF6hk8 Longitudinal or "Seif" Dunes They are also often referred to to as "sand ridges" or "seifs". Their length can range from a few meters to many kilometers and their height from a couple meters high to a couple hundred meters high. Wind pushes the sand and forms ridges parallel to the prevailing wind direction with slip faces either side of the crest. Linear dunes are straight or slightly sinuous sand ridges typically much longer than they are wide. They may be more than 160 kilometers long. Linear dunes may occur as isolated ridges, but they generally form sets of parallel ridges separated by miles of sand, gravel, or rocky interdune corridors. Some linear dunes merge to form Y-shaped compound dunes. Many form in bidirectional wind regimes. The long axes of these dunes extend in the resultant direction of sand movement. Barchanoid Dunes These ridges are similar to Barchan dunes. They are connected in long crescentic waves as the sand supply is much greater than that which forms a Barchan Dune. Star Dunes These dunes are formed when there are several prevailing wind directions - there is a complex wind regime. Typically there are three or more slip faces, whilst the dunes do not migrate they grow in height. Star dunes are radially-symmetrical, spyramidal sand mounds with slipfaces on three or more arms that radiate from the high center of the mound. They are created when the winds blow equally from every direction, causing the sand dune to grow many extensions and resemble a star. They are rare and are fairly stable and remain in the same place. Some are landmarks with names. Example of a Star dune: https://goo.gl/maps/jRnYghQc8ACzVz6T7 With this knowledge, the next time you step into the desert, you can start looking at the different dune formations, and this will give you lots of knowledge that you'll be able to apply in the future when leading and navigating off-road drives.

@Febin Frederic thank u... urs is beastier than mine, i drive the unli sports JL.. i still hav a lot to learn from.u guys. @siddharth maheshwari most of the time i only used D. I only used gear 1 and 2 in the playground and somtimes in refusal. .. i just never hold back my JL. Just enough momentum and throttle. . i just believe it has the power.. just like febin said, never understimate the jeep... .

To clear your doubt about throttle response on Jlu, being an owner of one, i never felt this. i always use stick shift, not "D". mostly on 1st and 2nd gear, it conquers any tall dune like a champ. Jlu has better gear ratio than Jku (non rubicon models), that said you don't need any throttle response controller. instead you can get a good set of tires (not more than 33") for good traction and may be an axle back exhaust/cold air intake. i bolted my jeep with these. @Rinelle Sanaani drives a complete stock jlu and it is an absolute monster. Never underestimate a jeep !

Congratulations! I had the pleasure of joining his drive today and he was unselfishly and patiently sharing his knowledge and help to all especially to newbie like me.

Thanks @Srikumar for the amazing drive and i the wonderful experience given me as a second lead. Also wonderful job done by @Vanessa8580 and @Tbone to guide the convey at the back and helping for recoveries, even though it was a newbie drive felt all newbies drives well and managed the soft sand really well. See you all soon. Pcs uploaded in gallery.

Convoy numbering Gaurav - Silver Pajero - Crew Yousef Alimadadi - White Pajero - Fewbie Lisa Pemberton - Black Pajero Absolute Newbie Siobhan - Absolute Newbie Kieran McKeown - Renault Duster - Absolute Newbie Heisem - FJ Cruiser - Absolute Newbie Jeepie - Green Wrangler - Advance Veedooshee - White Pajero - Newbie Edgar - Black Wrangler - Newbie Biju Abdul - FJ Cruiser - Newbie VipinShetty - Red Jeep Cherokee - Newbie tjsingh - Red Pajero - Fewbie

A little when under the pylons but otherwise not too bad. Motorola not Crony.

Hahaha. Yes. That's the right word. Thank you.

Congrats @Srikumar!!!

Great drive this morning! @Frederic will share the trip report! Hereby already the trip video with some pics I’ve taken during the drive IMG_3799.MP4

Great fun today! Thoroughly enjoyed it. Thanks guys.

@Frederic Impressive article indeed👍...

@Heisem it will depend on the FJ's year. Later models (at least since 2011) should have buttons to switch these features off. For the lateral airbags use the RSCT button: https://youtu.be/jd7tppopYcc For the ABS, if you don't have a button, you may disable them by detaching a cable, as shown in this link: https://youtu.be/ATjp85tWn-k The best option is to have a "kill switch" installed to disable the electronic features in the car. You should make sure the kill switch also disables the airbags, as it often doesn't, in which case you may have to install an "ad hoc" button. Enjoy the drive.

Dear Carnity Members @Kalahari, @Najeeb Mohammed, @Chaitanya D, @Colin Jordan, @Rinelle Sanaani, @Febin Frederic and @Srikumar Below is the convoy numbering for this Friday afternoon drive in Al Lisaili: DRIVER CAR POSITION Ale Vallecchi FJ 1 Kalahari Xterra (you cannot miss it) 2 Najeeb Mohammed FJ Extreme Black 3 Chaitanya D Xterra Black 3 Colin Jordan Jeep Wrangler Red 5 Rinelle Jeep Wrangler Black 6 Febin Frederic Jeep Wrangler Orange 7 Srikumar Cherokee XJ 8 Please remember the following: MEETING TIME IS 4:30PM SHARP. We plan on a quick deflation, with the goal to leave as early as possible, to enjoy as much driving in daylight as possible. Please deflate to 12-13 PSI. DRIVERS MUST BE EQUIPPED WITH THE MINIMUM FEWBIE GEAR AND HAVE FUNCTIONING FRONT AND BACK TOW POINTS. Those who do not comply with these requirements will be asked to leave the drive. If anybody needs to still purchase necessary items such as shovels, they can do so at minimum cost at any Speedex (if DM is too far). The compressor is recommended, as we'll try to exit near Solar Park, which is a bit far from Al Parking. Please have your radios fully charged and tuned into CHANNEL 2 (446.031). You may fill up the tank at the Eppco gas station just before the exit at Al Lisaili: https://maps.app.goo.gl/GcdgZCK5eKqfNBUR6 Enjoy the end of the week and see you on Friday.

Thank you @Chaitanya D. Very nice to have had you in the drive. You are now in total control of your new car. Well done. Hope to see you next week.

Yes the Rear Diff Lock is very useful for getting yourself unstuck. Once you are stuck, engage your 4LO, and activate the switch. You’ll hear a humming sound for a few seconds as a small built-in compressor will lock the rear axles together. Once the light stays on it’s activated and you can try using gentle throttle in short bursts to see if you can get the car to move. Do not ever use it while driving, as it could result in a broken axle.

Hey guys, Regarding ABS and airbags fuse, not sure about the location of that as I never done it, is it necessary for this drive? On another note, I got a bracket for the flag pole installed, Ramy garage employee told me its better than the suction one from AOR because those can fall off but i haven't tested it though. Has anyone tested it? Lastly when do you guys use the option 5 narrow frequency ?

Of course. I was debating between burgundy and maroon, than decided just to go for unique 😊. I'll use your color descriptor of choice 😇

@AKR @Rajeevan Vickneswaran @RohanH @Janarthan @Anish S @Mehmet Volga @Lorenzo Candelpergher @Jorge Stepniak Felippe @Foxtrot Oscar @Chaitanya D @Magellan(@Brette) Briefing #2 - SOLAR PARK The move, change in pace and different types of obstacles faced when moving from Newbie to Fewbie is sometimes under estimated. At Newbie you learn the basics of how to get over a dune safely, how to behave in the sand and the start of how to control your vehicle. At Fewbie, the expectation is that mind and vehicle will be stretched - challenging you as a driver into situations you might not have been before, situations where you feel more uncomfortable and helping you understand the characteristics and potential of your vehicle. To put it more succinctly: fewbie is not about using more power, it's about using the power you have more effectively. Solar Park includes some technical dunes: Small dunes, closely packed where you need to take care not only to avoid getting stuck but also avoid the hard sharp bumps in them - and longer range dunes, which provide plenty of opportunities for sideys. As well as sideys, the hope is that we can start to learn the techniques for and get some practice with ridge riding and criss-crossing. For many Fewbies this is quite scary. To make the day more fun for everyone, here's a few thoughts on what you can do to make your time in the sand more fun: IF THIS IS YOUR FIRST OR SECOND FEWBIE DRIVE- You'll need all your wits about you and need to concentrate. Think carefully if this really is the ride on which you want to bring the whole family. We want to give everyone the chance to drive as much as possible and good focus usually means less potential for refusals, stucks, and other incidents. IF YOU ARE A MORE EXPERIENCED FEWBIE - These drives are a chance to hone your skills, control your entry and exit points better, make sure you use enouch, and not too much power. DON'T FORGET YOUR EQUIPMENT - Please see my previous post COMMUNICATION - The rules are clear, bring a fully charged, audible device with you. If your radio is not working, you are not driving. The second rule is slightly less clear. Use the radio. It is the only way you can tell a lead that there is a problem: whether that is a refusal a stuck or 'can you please help me get through this obstacle. Do not be afraid or ashamed to inform the convoy leader that you need some assistance. Seniors are on the drive to assist. If we hear nothing, we assume everything is OK. Why bring these up? The sand is incredibly soft in the summer. Recoveries are part of the game, we all know that, but we all also know that we really want to be moving more of the time than recovering. These little points should help us all keep moving. See you soon in the sand.