Frederic

I would never buy a modified 4x4 unless I would know the owner personally and be sure he didn’t abuse it. Who knows it was flipped before or crappy aftermarket stuff is installed which can make it a potentially dangerous thing to drive. Secondly, a beginner off-roader shouldn’t be buying a lifted or heavily modded vehicle. It will distract him from learning the skill and might even cause him flipping over if he doesn’t know about the higher center of gravity on a lifted off-road car. On top of that, if one can buy a bone stock Wrangler or Xterra that has only seen malls or kids seats and was maintained properly, than you’re certain that the mechanics on that vehicle are still ready for a second life in the desert. So I’d prefer that one. There are exceptions to the rules and I agree that many off-roaders take extreme care of their cars, but I prefer bone stock and making my own decisions on what to install and for what reason I’d install it.

Drive Report The morning started beautifully with a cloudy sky, and I was delighted to see my Carnity family again. Lots of fellow members that have been out of the sands for a while, but all with a hungry desire to scale the dunes and enjoy the scenery Al Qudra has to offer. We deflated and @Brette and @Ale Vallecchi spotted the lack of a front tow hook on @Pickey Singh his Discovery. After some googling we noticed that the bottom plastic lip needs to be removed and alas there was a big black tow hook in the center. Well spotted guys ! @Adam Marston was my second lead, and his calm and composed driving style gave the perfect example for the rest to follow. @George Francis could follow Adam as he came with the same/similar Black Wrangler. We had a good mix of drivers that did some driving before and a few beginners, but the compacted sand was very forgiving so there were hardly any stucks or refusals. We did some minor sideys to practice the steering control and learn to approach and exit a dune in a smooth curve without fighting gravity. @Foxtrot Oscar clearly has prior off-road experience and it showed. She did amazing and I noticed she drove without hesitation to cross dunes or do slopes. Very impressive and we will definitely need to look out for her 👍 The Pajero team, @Anish S, @RohanH, @Yousef Alimadadi drove very well ! Well done guys ! @siddharth maheshwari @J J with the Wranglers also managed brilliantly. @Pickey Singh was still in snooze mode in the morning. You eventually found second gear and drove well. Nicely done ! Having both @Brette and @Ale Vallecchi as support in my convoy is a true blessing. Their calm and patient approach to every problem gives Newbies the confidence that we will always make it out together. A big thanks for that ! We exited around 10:30 as it was starting to get a bit too hot. I hope everyone enjoyed it and we can look forward to many more of these relaxing cheesecake route drives 😅

No worries I hope your Trailblazer gets fixed soon buddy. @Gaurav will be leading this drive so he can make the convoy adjustment.

Sorry buddy, i pulled this out of outdated excel file.

Radio Frequency will be Carnity Channel 1: 446.00625 MHz. Please make sure to bring your two way radio and have it set to this frequency.

DRIVE RSVP IS NOW CLOSED Convoy List Attendees Level Car Pos # Gaurav Crew Mitsubishi Pajero SWB 1 Denizzalbayrak Fewbie Chevrolet Trailblazer 2 Paolo Dassi Newbie Mitsubishi Pajero SWB 3 Tero Vallas Newbie Toyota Landcruiser Prado 4 E.C Tan Newbie Jeep Wrangler SWB 5 Javier M Advance Jeep Wrangler 6 Gregory Perkin Newbie Jeep Wrangler 7 Rajeevan Vickneswaran Newbie Jeep Wrangler 8 Colin Jordan Fewbie Dodge RAM 1500 9 bunty_and_pops Fewbie Jeep Wrangler Unlimited 10 Nikhil Saju Paul Fewbie Ford F150 11 Mels Wolf Fewbie Mitsubishi Pajero LWB 12

DRIVE RSVP IS NOW CLOSED Convoy LIST Attendees Level Car Pos # Frederic Marshal Mitsubishi Pajero SWB 1 Adam Marston Fewbie Jeep Wrangler 2 George Francis Newbie Nissan Pathfinder 3 Yousef Alimadadi Newbie Mitsubishi Pajero LWB 4 Foxtrot Oscar Newbie Nissan Xterra 5 Ale Vallecchi Advance Toyota FJ Cruiser 6 siddharth maheshwar Newbie Jeep Wrangler Unlimited 7 Nizam Deen Newbie Toyota Landcruiser Prado 8 Anish S Fewbie Mitsubishi Pajero LWB 9 JJ Fewbie Jeep Wrangler 10 RohanH Fewbie Mitsubishi Pajero LWB 11 Pickey Singh Newbie Landrover Discovery 12 Brette Intermediate Jeep Grand Cherokee 13

you're in the same boat it seems 😄

Completely agree. Although i am one of the victims of falling in love with my offroad car, and having all the pains and worries whenever there is a scratch or something rattling, or some issue is about to come up.

@paolo dassi @Tero Vallas @Mels Wolf @E.C. TAN @Rajeevan Vickneswaran @Denizzalbayrak @Lorenzo Candelpergher @Colin Jordan @Gregory Perkin @Nikhil Saju Paul There is no fuel station nearby the exit point. The nearest one would be the ADNOC at the E102, which is 20km away. A compressor will be a necessary tool to inflate after the drive.

Hi Jun, i hope you are fine. I heard there were some issues with your radio last time ? If i remember correctly, you are using the Baofeng 888 which does not have a display. They work ok as spare unit, but are not that great, and due to the lack of a display you can't really see which frequency you are one, or if the battery is still ok. I remember programming your radio with laptop and cable, i think it's either like this: Channel 1: Carnity Channel 1: 446.00625 Mhz Channel 2: Carnity Channel 2: 446.03125 Mhz Channel 3: Carnity Channel 3: 446.05625 Mhz Channel 4: Carnity Channel 4: 446.08125 Mhz Channel 5: Carnity Channel 5: 462.8875 Mhz (Carnity Backup Freq). Or like this: Channel 1,2,3,4: Carnity Channel 1: 446.00625 Mhz Channel 5,6,7,8 : Carnity Channel 2: 446.03125 Mhz Channel 9,10,11,12 : Carnity Channel 3: 446.05625 Mhz Channel 13,14,15: Carnity Channel 4: 446.08125 Mhz Channel 16: Carnity Channel 5: 462.8875 Mhz (Carnity Backup Freq). So for this week's drive on Channel 4, you will need to put the channel selector on Channel 4, or on Channel 13,14, or 15. These radios have sensitive channel selector buttons, that's why i remember programming some of those radios to have channel 1,2,3,4 on Carnity channel 1. So if you accidentaly hit the channel selector, you will still be on the right frequency. PS Dragon Mart still has the promo running for the Baofeng UV5-R, which is on sale for 75AED. It might be a good alternative to get this one if the Baofeng 888 keeps giving you troubles. The Crony MT777 is also very good, slightly more expensive (130AED).

Hi @Lorenzo Candelpergher i've noticed that you have signed up for 2 drives on Friday. With the large number of newbies we currently have and the limited drives, we are requesting to book/select only one drive. So please select one drive and unsubscribe from the other one so that space becomes available. Thanks for your understanding. Fred

To stay in compliance with Sharjah curfew from 8 PM, we are planning to reach the exit point (2nd December Cafeteria) by 7 PM. Radio Frequency will Carnity Channel 1: 446.00625 MHz. Please make sure to bring your two way radio and have it set to this frequency. @paolo dassi @Tero Vallas @Mels Wolf @E.C. TAN @Rajeevan Vickneswaran @Denizzalbayrak @Lorenzo Candelpergher @Colin Jordan @Gregory Perkin @Nikhil Saju Paul

Very sad to see. This has been mentioned time and time again but unfortunately still these things seem to happen.

the pads come with bolts so you can basically bolt anything onto it.

Hi @Yousef Alimadadi Have you done already a drive with us ? Can you please clarify which 4x4 you are driving and if the towpoints are in good condition ? Please also make sure to go through the Video briefing posted here above, and that you have the essentials such as deflation tools, a radio, and flag.

The viscous fan will indeed regulate the fan speed:

Hi Matti, Every drive (and definitely newbie drives) will make you learn something. We have seen time and time again that offroaders who join and support the newbie drives learn the skill much faster. A testament to this is @Xaf and @Ale Vallecchi , but also @Jeepie and @Wrangeld, who join every week and give their support where needed. During the newbie drive you have a bit more time to learn to observe the sand, navigate, observe recoveries, and getting yourself accustomed to your car. Well deserved promotion !

Ridgid and Baja designs are the premium brands, but they are quite pricey. I’ve heard the brand Auxbeam is decent, and looks more affordable. https://www.amazon.ae/Auxbeam-Waterproof-Off-road-Military-Equipment/dp/B00T9GBWYE/ref=mp_s_a_1_4?dchild=1&keywords=auxbeam%2Blight%2Bbar%2Bwith&qid=1590549166&sr=8-4&th=1&psc=1 Having the Chinese branded ones all year round on the car will limit their lifetime. That was one of the reasons I went for the magnetic pads.

Hi Angela, As you have joined our previous drives before, we can allow you to join us. I’ve added you to the RSVP. Please do clarify which car you will bring and if Jamy will be your co-pilot that day. See you on Friday!

Hi @Chaitanya D I've noticed that you signed up for two drives on Friday. Please select only one drive so we can provide the opportunity for as many as possible to join us.

Welcome to the COVID 19 "new normal" lifestyle with restrictions and precautions for everyone safety. Moving forward and respecting authorities guidance all desert drives will be done under strict control. No Gathering | No Briefing | No BBQ | No Eating Together | No Touching | No Hugging MUST READ: Not following these rules and precautions = Not allowed to drive. We are only allowed to drive through the desert, as we are driving on the road now. So we will only do the desert driving just by sitting inside our cars at all the times and leave the drive without socializing or coming close to each other. Just like before we like to continue our desert drives through out the year, but this time we need your immense support to understand the strict control and to help everyone follow them all the time. For members who are fasting, they can break their fast discreetly and convoy will be stopped during that time and until they offer their prayer. How to maintain "STRICT" Social Distancing Meeting point will be set slightly (100m - 200m) inside the desert track. So, that you individually deflate your tires on the tarmac before reaching the meeting point. While deflating tires, stop cars 10 meters away from any other car. Drive signup on calendar will be closed on Thursday morning by 9 AM. Convoy numbering and briefing will be posted here on this drive post before 6 PM on Thursday. All participants need to read & acknowledge the briefing by clicking "Totally Agree" reaction Switch on your radio when you reach the meeting point on the set frequency advised by the trip lead in the critical briefing here. Once everyone reach to the meeting point, everyone stay inside the car at all the times. Trip lead will do the roll call, convoy numbering recap, critical briefing over the radio. Any suggestions or issues will be discussed over the radio too. You can also speak to other members through the radio only. So please make sure that your radio battery is fully charged. Once all set, trip lead will start the drive as before. Refusal and Recoveries with Social Distancing Every drive will have 1 lead Marshal and 1 or 2 supporting senior members/crew. Whenever there is a stuck or refusal, only Marshal / Senior Member / Crew is allowed to handle the situation. Everyone else including the stuck car driver, stay inside the car - AT ALL TIMES. Marshal / Senior Member / Crew is only allowed to step out to access the situation and do the recoveries: They will wear mask and gloves at all times when they are outside their car. They will try to help self recover through the radio guidance. If not they will use required recovery gear and do the needful (shovel, tug or winch, as required). If at any time Marshal require help, then only you are allowed to step out by wearing face mask and gloves at all times. Drive completion and inflation Now, there will not be any gathering or sitting down together for food-break like before. Once drive is finished, after reaching the tarmac, everyone is requested to move away 50-100 meters before starting their inflation. For drivers having no compressor, can head to the near by fuel station. If drive is ending at a place where there is no fuel station near by, then trip lead will inform in advance so that drivers having their own compressor can join only. Now Strictly no more sharing of compressors, radio, shovel or any recovery gear, at any times. Mandatory things you require to attend the drive Face mask - at least TWO face mask is needed in case one get damage or fly away. Disposable rubber gloves - at least two sets are needed. Wear face mask and gloves at all the times, when you are out of your car. Carry plenty of hand sanitizer and object sanitizer (spray). Use your sanitizers generously, whenever you step out to help or recover. Sanitize your hands before getting back into your car. Sanitize your recovery gears, if you have used them. Fully charged radio - without any excuse - No radio = No drive. Shovel - Must for every car, to do little self recovery Safety flag - Must for every car, like before Compressor - If joining the drives that is ending far from the fuel station. Mandatory precaution that you need to take at all times Do not step out of your car UNLESS/OTHERWISE advice by Marshal / Senior Member / Crew. No shaking hands, hugs or touching each other. No sharing of food, drinks or recovery tools. If you are not feeling well, please stay at home and take a lot of rest. If you have travel in last 14 days, then please do not attend this drive. If you feel unwell during the drive, please let trip lead know so he can plan an early exit. Not more than 3 pax in a car and if all 3 aren't living together, then they should wear the mask inside the car too. Drive Details Level: Newbie and all above - NO ABSOLUTE NEWBIE ALLOWED. When: 29 May 2020, Friday. Meeting time: 4 PM (SHARP - Without any exceptions) Meeting Point: Tawi Nazwa Farm: https://goo.gl/maps/zL4pr8XAuFF4BPCx5 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), smiles, face mask, rubber gloves, enthusiasm and willingness to learn. Approximate finish time: 7PM End Point: 2nd December Cafeteria https://goo.gl/maps/7yJRP9Q73Y9kM1mY6 LIMITED SPOTS AVAILABLE: Limited to 12 cars only. RSVP will close on Thursday - 9 AM. 1 Lead Marshal + 2 or 1 Senior Members + 9 or 10 Members. 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