Emmanuel

Congratulations @Vanessa8580, more than deserved, well done!

Congratulations @Pancho!

Dear @Matthew Ticehurst, @Gavin Hill, @imranaasghar81, @Santhosh kumar Rajasekaran, @Natarajan, @Chris Meir, @Bala Krishnan, @kolinrrj, @Tareq Ghosheh, @Ganesan Kathirvel, @Rajendran D, @Abilash Madhavan, Happy to see you on Friday morning. I just wanted to inform you to make sure you guys have all items onboard: 1) Offroad flag 2) Shovel 3) Pressure gauge / deflator 4) Compressor (gas station nearby has no compressor) 5) Radio with the Carnity frequencies programmed. Please make sure you are equipped with above items, otherwise we won't be able to allow you on the drive. If you have any questions in particular about where to buy, which model, please have a look at below advice:

Congratulations @Denizzalbayrak! Well done!

@Islam Soliman, except maybe the very first dunes, ii was not what we call an exploration drive. Al Faqaa is an area where we all went many many times.

Drive report Yesterday's drive was a pure joy, the kind of joy you can only find in Al Faqaa, these days, as it is one of the very few areas in Dubai and Sharjah where you can expect to find a real desert, literally, without seeing anyone around. Only breathtaking views, amazing long range high dunes, gazels... Pure joy also because I had a very strong convoy, drivers with whom you know from the beginning that you won't need to ask yourself when you do a difficult crossing : Is everyone going to make it? Safely? Yes. Can I increase the pace a bit more? Safely? Yes. Can I consider crossing 5-10 km of continuous slip faces? With no pop out? Yes, no prob. Can I...? Answer is always, or let's say at 95%: yes. Well done everyone, @Ahab Shamaa, @Goutam, @Abu Muhammad, @Jorge Stepniak Felippe, @Mukundan Nair, @Tero Vallas. Of course we couldn't have had such a good drive without the support of @Islam Soliman (fantastic 2nd lead), @Pancho and @Kalahari. This time I introduced a small change in our convoy numbering system. Considering that all intermediates members need to be trained for recoveries, I decided not to put anyone at "Center Forward" position and to make each driver responsible of the car in front of him. The few recoveries we had to do yesterday have been done by regular intermediate drivers under Pancho's and/or Kalahari's supervision. I think that this system works well, but please @Kalahari and @Pancho do share your opinion. Yesterday I also wanted to try a new entry point and explore a specific set of dunes at the beginning. Not a good idea: they were too soft and technical and I got myself crested while trying to crisscross my first ridge... Soon, we left this area behind and reached the first long range dunes where we were able to stretch our legs and follow the rest of the plan, which was to drive along the AD border and exit from the South of Little Sweihan, by the track to Solar Park. The only unfortunate event we had occurred at the end of the drive, when @Ahab Shamaa got an engine light and sudden lack of power in his FJ, but thanks to an incredible team work, we could avoid what I was afraid of: having to tow the vehicle through on several kilometers by night. Cleaning the air filter (strangely covered with sand), disconnecting and reconnecting the battery worked. Engine light was still on but Ahab decided to go with it and drove with no issue till home. Ahab, fingers crossed for your FJ, we all hope it's nothing bad. Please keep us updated. Everyone, thank you. And hope to see you soon.

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 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 Off-roader brings his own radio, programmed to the frequencies described in below advice topic. We will not share spare radios or program your radio on the drive. If you need assistance in programming the radio, post a topic on the Carnity website with your questions and we will help you out. Make sure your radio is fully charged. It will be your only way of communication while driving. Before buying, please carefully read below advice so you are informed properly on which model / cost / shops... No radio = No drive. It is an essential tool and you should make sure you bring it on every drive and learn/practice how to use it. Drive Details Level: Newbie and Above When: 29 January 2021, Friday. Meeting time: 7:00 AM (SHARP - Without any exceptions) Meeting Point: https://goo.gl/maps/tTiYeFbvsuVVoGCA8 Type of Car: Any proper 4x4 with front and back tow hooks and 8-10 inches of ground clearance. What to bring along: Flag, radio, deflator, air compressor, loads of water, snacks (for yourself), face mask, rubber gloves, enthusiasm and willingness to learn. Approximate finish time: 11:00 PM THIS IS A COMPRESSOR ONLY DRIVE. WE WILL STARTING AND ENDING THE DRIVE AT THE SAME POINT, WHICH IS NOT CLOSE TO AN AIR LINE. IF YOU DO NOT HAVE A COMPRESSOR, PLEASE DO NOT SIGN UP FOR THIS DRIVE. IF YOU ARRIVE AND HAVE NO COMPRESSOR YOU WILL NOT BE ALLOWED TO JOIN THE DRIVE. LIMITED SPOTS AVAILABLE: Limited to 12 Newbie and above drivers. 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

RSVP is now closed @Islam Soliman, @Ahab Shamaa, @Mukundan Nair, @Abu Muhammad, @Jorge Stepniak Felippe, @Goutam, @Tero Vallas, @Kalahari, very happy to see you tomorrow at 2 PM. We will use Carnity radio channel 4. Here is our convoy numbering: 1. Emmanuel (White Xterra) - lead 2. Islam Soliman (GMC Yukon) - 2nd lead 3. Ahab Shamaa (White FJ) 4. Goutam (Yellow Wrangler) 5. Abu Muhammad (Secundra) 6. Pancho (red Wrangler) 7. Jorge Stepniak Felippe (White Wrangler) 8. Mukundan Nair (White Xterra) 9. Tero Vallas (Prado) 10. Kalahari (Red Xterra) - sweep

This area is always fresh in my mind! 95% is a perfect score, just to let some kind of advantage to Liwa.

Wonderful contribution @Frederic. Just a small comment: in my opinion, Wagan-Umm al Oush-Bu Tays area deserves much more than 80% for the scenic score. Even after the Chinese seismic prospection campaign that ruined most of it, some parts of this area still have the most breathtaking views that I’ve seen in all UAE, along with Liwa of course.

Drive report We started with a little delay - late comers, not a big deal, but for your next drive plan to reach a few minutes before meeting time so that other drivers won't have to wait for you. Good point is that everyone, including those who were attending their first newbie, managed to deflate, raise the flag and change the Radio channel without asking for help. It's a detail but it tells a lot about your readiness as off-roaders. I was also blessed to have a wonderful support team during this drive: @Harold Roberts (again, congratulations for your promotion to fewbie level) was my second lead, @Goutam, center forward, and @Frederic in sweep. For the first half, we headed to Qudra South side, starting easy till we reached the long range dunes area next to the oryx farm, where we were able to increase the pace and enjoy nice side slopping. Those middle dunes might be a bit scary for really new off-roaders, but as a matter of fact no one has been shy on the gas (nore reckless) at any moment and, honestly, I wasn't expecting to reach such a good pace at newbie level. Well done @Badar Tariq, @ZakWarah, @rajeshkumar rathod, @frederic demolder, @Salty3Arab, @Carlos Fernandez, @Larry Cadden, @Matthew Ticehurst, @Alphin Aloor! Amazing convoy! For the second half of the drive, we came back to our meeting point and continued to Al-Hathmah, which is a bit more technical area. I was very impressed with all the drivers' skills, especially those who have low ground clearance, @frederic demolder and @ZakWarah, as we had a wonderful smooth drive almost till the end. By "almost", I'm referring to the 1 or 2 last kilometers before the track leading to our exit point, in a more technical area that we usually avoid at newbie level... but since everyone was doing so well… Anyways, we had some good fun with shovels, sand tracks and ropes. Excellent opportunity for everyone to learn something. Hopefully, the recoveries and last difficult crossing ended just at sunset, so we were already on the track when night came. Thank you all, supports and drivers. It's been truly a very fun drive for me, well done everyone. See you next time!

@Christian Andras please pick one drive between mine and Sertac’s, and, if you want, add your name on the other drive’s WL, as requested on WhatsApp notification: *NEW CHANGE/REQUEST* To prevent all drives getting full on Sunday by multiple RSVP, we would like to request everyone to please RSVP ONE DRIVE (for the weekend: Friday OR Saturday) initially and then book your second or third drive from Wednesday onward. Sun - Tuesday - Limiting one drive per member (for the weekend: Friday OR Saturday) Wednesday onward - RSVP on multiple drives *P.S. You can waitlist your name anytime for multiple drives too, like below.* Example: Gaurav - Second drive waitlist.” Done @Mohamed Seidam. I also hope to meet you!

Dear @Lucky sAm, I invite you to go through the grading structure and if you feel that you ticked all the boxes, then you can apply for a promotion :

@Lucky sAm if I’m not mistaken you’re not at intermediate level yet. Time will come for sure, but for this drive, sorry, I removed you.

Congratulations @Harold Roberts! Very well deserved!

This drive is organized in full compliance with the COVID19 guidelines. We expect every member that joins this drive to go through below information and and strictly follow these guidelines in order not to jeopardize someone's health, and to ensure we can keep organizing these drives safely. MUST READ AND TOTALLY AGREE: COVID19 Precautions MUST READ AND TOTALLY AGREE: BAN POST Two Way Radio Guidelines Every Offroader brings his own radio, programmed to the frequencies described in below advice topic. We will not share spare radios or program your radio on the drive. If you need assistance in programming the radio, post a topic on the Carnity website with your questions and we will help you out. Make sure your radio is fully charged. It will be your only way of communication while driving. Before buying, please carefully read below advice so you are informed properly on which model / cost / shops... No radio = No drive. It is an essential tool and you should make sure you bring it on every drive and learn/practice how to use it. Drive Details Level: Intermediate and above Meeting time: 2:00 PM (SHARP - Without any exceptions) Meeting Point: https://goo.gl/maps/JVTZn57kETeBFJRn8 Type of Car: Any proper 4x4 with low gear, 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: 6:00 PM P.S. Only join if you have a compressor to inflate your tires after the drive. LIMITED SPOTS AVAILABLE: Limited to 10 cars maximum. 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. Members that do not confirm the terms of the COVID requirements will be removed from the RSVP list. 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

Most welcome @frederic demolder. Here is the link to our gallery: https://carnity.com/gallery/category/498-newbie-al-qudra-dubai-15-dec-2021

Sorry @Dodi Syahdar. See you next time.

RSVP is now closed. @Frederic, @Badar Tariq, @ZakWarah, @rajeshkumar rathod, @frederic demolder, @Salty3Arab, @Goutam, @Carlos Fernandez, @Larry Cadden, @Matthew Ticehurst, @Alphin Aloor, @Dodi Syahdar, @Harold Roberts, very happy to see you tomorrow afternoon. With such a nice and strong convoy, and the route that I have in my mind, I'm sure we will have a lot of fun. As Fred already mentioned, following items are essential for our drive, so make sure to bring them: 1) Offroad flag 2) Shovel 3) Pressure gauge / deflator 4) Compressor (gas station nearby has no compressor) 5) Radio with the Carnity frequencies programmed (if you don't know how to do it, you will find the related link in my drive post). Tomorrow, we will use Carnity Radio Channel 1 (446006.25) We would appreciate if everyone could reach our meeting point a few minutes before time, in order to be deflated and ready to go at 2 PM. Here is our convoy numbering (subject to a few changes during the drive) : 1. Emmanuel (White Xterra - Marshal) - lead 2. Harold Roberts (FJ)- 2nd lead 3. Badar Tariq (Pathfinder 2016) 4. ZakWarah (Black Cherokee) 5. rajeshkumar rathod (Xterra) 6. frederic demolder (LR Discovery) 7. Salty3arab (Pajero) to be confirmed 8. Goutam (Yellow Wrangler - Intermediate) CF 9. Carlos Fernandez (Green Wrangler) 10. Larry Cadden (Black Wrangler) 11. Matthew Ticehurst (Wrangler) 12. Alphin Aloor (XTerra) 13. Frederic (Blue Pajero - Crew) - - sweep

Yes @Kailas, well done! Congrats!

@Salty3Arab, since @syed salman raza signed out, I added you to the drive. Can you please confirm?

Welcome to Carnity Off-road Club @Serafino.