Emmanuel

Congrats @Mikhail Lukichev! Well deserved. Hope your busy work schedule will leave you some time to join soon and grow up as an off-roader.

Che bravo @Ale Vallecchi ! Congratulazioni !

Congrats @Thomas J !

I bought Michelin Primacy SUV basically because I also use my car a lot on-road. They are OK on the sand, but weak and slippy on rocks. So, as you said, definitely not a good option if you want to drive in wadis, I mean off the tracks.

As I wrote, I started slow for the first high dunes, just to check that you were comfortable with your JGC, but after that, trust me, we were cruising at the usual intermediate level pace.

Congrats @Halit Mert Issever ! Very well deserved.

TRIP REPORT Another amazing drive in Sweihan, thanks to @Frederic, @Javier M and @Brette ! We met almost on time at deflation point, all very excited in spite of early morning temperature - I don't know to how much it dropped, but I was shivering even with my fleece jacket. After a short briefing mainly about safety and driving in wet sands, we took off, maybe a quarter of hour before sunrise. As it was Brette's first intermediate level drive, I thought it was better to start at a moderate pace, but as soon as we crossed a few high dunes, I understood that our one and only Grand-Cherokee new shape driver had became a confident and skilled off-roader. All in all, on a distance of 60 km across Sweihan dunes, sometimes with very technical crossings, Brette got crested only twice, I guess, maybe 3 times max. Very well done, buddy. As we increased the pace, we reached Nagrah hill in no time (at about 7:30). Climbing to the top wasn't possible because the place was completely messed up, with big bumps and cross-tracks everywhere - not to mention the garbage, shame on those people who can't see the difference between a dune and a dump yard ! Anyways, Javier and I barely reached 80% of the hill, but this time, I have to admit that Xterra has been beaten by Wrangler, since Javier was the higher and won our little challenge... After Nagrah, Fred took the lead for a while and of course it was amazing. We crossed a sabkha to continue in another set of very nice dunes. At one point Brette had a pop out, problem solved in 5-10 minutes, thanks to a perfect team work - well, to be honest, I smoked a cigarette watching Fred, Javier and Brette working ! Another surprise, and this one was really nice : we had the chance to see a massive griffon vulture (see in the gallery) proudly standing at the top of a dune. We were very lucky since this particular vulture is one of the endangered species in UAE. At a few kilometers of E95, Brette unfortunately found that he couldn't engage his 4 wheel anymore and he got a check signal on his dashboard. We tried to disconnect the battery but this didn't solve the issue. Time was close to 11:00 am, so we decided to exit. Again, thank you guys for your amazing support. You made this drive so smooth and fun. BTW, sorry that @Shamil couldn't make it and that @Atif was afraid for his bumper 😜. You missed us. Waiting for both of you another time.

Thanks, corrected...

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No worries @Shamil you will be missed in Sweihan but you’re right, better to join Newbie if you have your young son with you. See you next time.

Ah ok sorry. Then see you maybe on the way !

@Fuad sorry buddy, but if you want to drive at intermediate level with Carnity, you will have to join a few more fewbie drives, and then get promoted...

@sertac, @Atif Gentlemen, come on, Prado and Cherokee are metal, not paperboard.

The weather forcast is very promising for Friday, so if (and only if) everyone is OK we may exit later than 11:00...

Not sure he could have crossed, maybe, maybe not. Better here to steer down TMO.

So how was it ? Have you done the test drive ?

After a few exploration drives in Sweihan area, and with the last intermediate drivers promotion (congrats @Shamil, @Brette and @Atif), it's time to go back to the classics... let's pay a visit to Nagrah hill (yes @Javier M, challenge accepted) and enjoy the most beautiful high dunes this area can offer. When: Friday 15th October 2019 Meeting time: 5:45 AM sharp Where: In order to earn time, we will meet at deflation point. GPS Coordinate: https://goo.gl/maps/Gx6siB64s8U5fTKG6 Last petrol stations : 1. ADNOC Al-Hiyar (if you come from E66) https://goo.gl/maps/FU1LJn8bfaJ4AQXw5 ; 2. ADNOC Sweihan (if you come from E16, with a small detour) https://goo.gl/maps/kfRXapzVXqgp2F6E9 Level: intermediate and above Type of Car: Any proper 4x4 with front and back tow hooks and 10 inches of ground clearance. Plan: Drive and enjoy till about 11 AM. What to bring along: Snacks whatever you like with little extra to share, water, liquids, smiles, stories, enthusiasm and willingness to learn. Please RSVP on the below calendar:

Well deserved @Brette !!! Congrats. Very happy to see you there.

Congrats @Atif !!! Welcome to intermediate level !