Frederic

be very careful with K&N filters in this country as these are usually not good for desert sand as they need to be oiled to maintain. I had one in my car but went back to the original filter as this one was easier to clean and i never found any performance difference (little bit better sound and low end grunt but nothing that made difference in the dunes). A better option is a so-called dry filter, which can be cleaned more easily.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/qthksqc5qm5yeup/RPReplay_Final1619334727.mov?dl=0

Happy birthday to our off-road guru and ultimate Jedi master ! 😜

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 DESCRIPTION: Newbie Level Drive with emphasis on learning to cross dunes in more technical terrain. Drive Details Level: Newbie and Above When: 30 April 2021 Meeting time: 6:00 AM SHARP - Without any exceptions) Meeting Point: https://goo.gl/maps/q8noXv4JQnXfaTQx6 Offroad Tools: Shovel, Programmed radio, Pressure Gauge/ Tyre Deflator, Offroad Flag What else to bring along: Loads of water, snacks (for yourself), face mask, rubber gloves, enthusiasm and willingness to learn. Approximate finish time: 10:00AM 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. IMPORTANT THINGS TO REMEMBER You will not be accepted on the drive without your offroad tools as listed above. Your radio is essential, make sure it is programmed beforehand. Follow the COVID rules as described, any violations will result in a ban from the club. We do not accept latecomers to the drive. PLEASE RSVP ON THE BELOW CALENDAR

Drive Report Convoy 1 It was one of those mornings, while deflating in the shadow of the mighty Fossil Rock, that I was realizing how beautiful this terrain is and that I keep coming back with a smile in this area. It had been a while and thanks to Brette’s popularity he was able to organize a second convoy and it was a pleasure for me to lead. We started off with approaching some of the play areas that lie West from the pylon track. This meant we had to go against the slipfaces to reach the area but it was also a little test for me to see how to convoy reacted and how we could scale the drive today. To my surprise all acquitted themselves brilliantly and this meant we scaled it up a notch at some times. Apart from a few refusals which were easily dealt with all went super smooth. As we reached the base of Fossil Rock, @TT_Dubai his Wrangler was showing the check engine light and was suffering from a smelly clutch. Unfortunately that meant exiting Tim on the pylon track and saying goodbye. I hope your car gets fixed soon buddy. From the pylon tracks we headed back in and took a nice photo of the convoy at Camel Rock. It was there that we saw Brette’s convoy approaching as well and after waving them goodbye we set off again onwards to new adventures. We made our way to Faya and were able to play in the bowls on the backside of Faya which demand constant momentum and lies close to Fewbie level. Again the whole team did amazing ! Once we reached Faya we took the side route and climbed the mountain. @Senthil Kumar his Wrangler started to overheat so we had to take a break and let it cool down before continuing. We spent the last 25 mins in the smaller bowls next to Faya and made our way to the inflation point. @Alain Canivet-Abikhalil you were a great second lead today ! @Fabiano Morais you drove great as well today and I’m glad you found the tiptronic as your best help when climbing Faya. @ARAGON your yellow Jeep was easy to spot and took on the terrain and challenges effortlessly. Great work! @Senthil Kumar you also did great today. As Richard mentioned, Jeeps have a tendency of overheating a bit and the additional transmission cooler fan will probably be recommended. The American muscle boys @Russ and @Darren Brooke showed us what massive torque combined with excellent driving skills can do. Great to have you guys ! With @Wrangeldin the sweep I knew i could rely on his experience to keep the convoy moving, and sort out the very few minor issues we faced today. Thank you my friend ! See you guys soon back in the sand ! It was a pleasure being part of your company !

Well deserved @N@ved!!

Well deserved @Lawrence_Chehimi !

Congrats @Chris Wing !

Small clarification: - This is not a Carnity Offroad Drive, it is a meetup session for astrophotography enthusiasts where we will bring our camera and practice taking some nice night photos. Please share which camera gear you will be bringing so we can help you out with the settings. There will be some gentle offroad driving to reach our destination, so any Newbie and onwards can join. Some pics from our previous session in Faqa:

Hahaha well spotted. We will shift to the evening of May 11th.

Good morning @Naim Aoun. If you are new to the club you will need to join our Absolute Newbie drive first. If you have done a Carnity Masterclass, then you can sign up for a Newbie drive. This drive is a Fewbie level drive which is only meant for drivers who have reached this level and were promoted to Fewbie.

Thanks @Niki Patel for requesting this drive. It has indeed been a while and it will be good to get our cameras out of the basement and practice again what @Mikhail Lukichev has taught us.

According to the Moon Cycles, @Niki Patel found out that the evening of 11 May 2021 is going to be excellent for night photography! We will have an almost new moon which will hide below the horizon right after the sunset. The plan is to have a meetup with max. 10 members to practice and enjoy the art of night photography and learn from each other. Bring whatever camera you have and have a look at the advisable settings in your camera manual or ask in the forum. After the event you can publish your photos in our gallery ! Location: Murquab Mosque: https://goo.gl/maps/KQzEFTBcxE83N5qu5 We will be deflating at the meeting point, and then head out to a nearby quiet Sabkha. Please bring your offroad tools as you would do for a regular offroad drive. (pressure gauge, deflator, compressor). What to bring: headlamp and/or flashlight, camping chair, Camera or Smartphone, tripod, film/memory cards, extra battery, Recommended Lens(es). A tripod is recommended for night photography. Note: This meetup session is COVID compliant, hence we strictly ask all members to wear their masks, keep a social distance, and not to share any food.

I would advise the following: 1) calculate the total wattage of LED lights that would be activated at the same time. If you have different switches for different configurations maybe you won’t be switching them all on. 2) Divide the total wattage of the LED lights with 12. That will give you the current in Amps. An example: 450W total LED power divided by 12 Volts gives you 37 Amps. This is perfectly fine for a stock battery but a 75Ah battery will run empty after about 2 hours. Think about the following setup: 1) Powerful setup for off-roading. As long as your engine is running the battery won’t run empty. 2) Economical setup for camping which has lower wattage so it doesn’t drain your battery quickly. A few of those small cubicle LEDs could be good enough. A second battery will require a lot of extra cabling, extra weight, and will need to be installed properly. If you go that direction, Optima Yellow batteries are fantastic but need to be equipped with battery management systems. As an off-road vehicle you’ll need to make certain compromises: if you like dynamic dune bashing and fast pace driving you should think about the fact that every kg reduces engine power. If you want to make a kind of overlanding vehicle where you focus more on crossing the desert safely this is less of a concern.

Nice project @Wadepat2 ! There is a satisfying feeling to bringing a car back to its former glory. In your case a Landcruiser has shown its capabilities already far and beyond and its status in this country means you will always find people willing to service it, supply parts, or help you look for the right solution. With regards to desert driving, the Landcruiser is a very capable 4x4, but i see it more as a vehicle to perform overlanding and cross the deserts, more than a kind of dunebashing vehicle. Good luck and share your progress !

Hi @Ali Abas Correct. For now we have 5 channels, but will be rolling out another 5 in near future. BR, Frederik

And no Carnity convoy in sight ?? What a shame

Hi @Tareck yes this pintle hook is a perfect and adequate recovery point.

Hi @Mario Cornejo i enjoy both landscape and urban photography as well. In my opinion as much as i love the white sands in Faqa area, i do love the red sands that Maliha and Pink rock has to offer equally. I also love visiting abandoned areas like farms to play with the contrast. Some examples below. On Flickr.com you will find many photographers in UAE.

Well done @Watteau ! See you soon in the sands !