Shamil

Hi @Gauravbhai, just a small doubt - since you mentioned we will be starting from dubai and exiting in sharjah but the meeting point is the adnoc station in maleha road which is technically sharjah right?

hi @Gauravbhai and @Rahimdadbhai, @Roshan Abraham is a friend of mine and he would like to join us for the upcoming drive. kindly advise eligibility as he is an experienced driver and i do believe he will be able to keep up with the pace but need you both to approve.

ok then i am in. super exited!!

i am not sure if i qualify for this pace or not. @Rahimdadbhai and @Gaurav bhai, since you both know my level, do advise if i am suitable for this drive

Although these points are usually taken fro granted, it is ncie that we have it all charted out in a format like this so that we can always refer in the future also incase we forget. Thanks @Gaurav

Another exciting and fun drive. I must say, this being my 3rd night drive, I am slowly beginning to get a hang of driving in the night as I found it a bit challenging at first. I would like to take this opportunity to say that us newbies/fewbies are surely learning a lot under the tutelage of the marshals - @Gauravbhai, @Rahimdadbhai, @Srikumar and @Emmanuel  - Thanks for your support and patience. It is truly and highly appreciated. 

Oh yea. Xterra all the way. I have been driving SUVs for about 15 years and I have tried quite a few brands and models. There’s something about the way how an X just handles and you should take a test drive to see what I am talking about. Glad to chime in and help.

i would call upon the seniors to ask about what kind of shoes would be required. @Gaurav bhai, @Rahimdadbhai, @Emmanuel?

I received an interesting video the other day and I realized it would be a good idea to share the same to enlighten our off-road community about the importance of wearing shoes during our off-road drives. In the video, you can see a desert rattlesnake making its way into a gas station and bear in mind that this is a venomous breed. An unsuspecting fuel attendant then, accidentally steps over the reptile after which, it attacks the man on his foot and since he's wearing shoes, he's out of harms way.

It made me realize that this scenario could happen to us whereby we may come across a snake or another aggressive desert creature. They could attack us in a similar fashion and if we happen to be barefoot or wearing slippers, flip flops or anything that keeps our feet exposed, we could be running the risk of being on the receiving end of a nasty sting/bite. So in conclusion, I'd say - its better to be safe than sorry and protect ourselves by wearing shoes.

It was yet another amazing drive indeed. I think one of the most exciting parts of the drive was when we were heading for Suhoor, we tackled some dunes with a little bit of speed and that part was a lot of fun. When we finally stopped by Faya to freely play about and climb that massive dune, i realized that I still have a long way to go before i can become half as good as our marshals - @Rahimdadbhai and @Emmanuel

Looking forward to more exciting drives

i really want to join for this one but sadly i cannot since i am not yet intermediate level.

will join for sure

I would love to join. I was just wondering about 2 things though. First, suhoor is at about 4am so i assume thats when the drive would end right? So not sure why finish time is 6am. Secondly, i havent fixed any offroad lights on my car yet. Is that ok as i assume visibility might be limited with stock lights.

My first fewbie drive was 2 weeks ago(26^th Apr) which was led by @Gaurav. It was a real test for me as I wanted to see for myself, if I had what it took to deserve this newly earned title. When the drive kicked off, I was a bit nervous, because I was not sure if I could keep up. But as we progressed, I realized that this is definitely next level stuff but doable nonetheless. I did get stuck once whereby I had to be recovered and I realized that was due to lack of momentum during the climb. The highlight of the trip was a side slope which I managed to pull off which led to a great feeling of achievement.

Towards the end of the drive, we were at the pink rocks and I attempted a long climb, but however during the run up, I came across a few bumps which affected the momentum and half way through the climb, I lost power, due to which I had to back down straight to base after which I didn’t attempt again. I later realized that I should have perhaps requested @Gaurav to sit with me in my car during that climb and he would have walked me through the essential steps (Will definitely do that the next time though). All in all, it was a great drive, probably one of the best for me till date and I look forward to more drives and more challenges as I would like to climb the ranks with this amazing community and eventually become a capable off roader.

congrats @Emmanuel

On 4/20/2019 at 7:57 PM, Gaurav said:

Pink rocks in Sharjah is a perfect place for fewbie level offroad desert drive, that spans through medium to big size dunes. This area offers plenty of opportunities for offroaders to learn and advance their offroading skills in a very safe and controlled manner. The plan is to start easy through newbie level dunes for first few minutes to get convoy spirit warmed up enough and then get into the more challenging area that offers real adrenaline fix for aspiring dune bashers.

When: 26 April 2019

Meeting time: 6:30 AM, the convoy will move at sharp 6:45 AM

Where: Tawi Nazwa Shops

GPS Coordinate: https://goo.gl/maps/hJGgNgpViK92

Level: Fewbie and above, for a little adventurous morning drive.

Type of Car: Any proper 4x4 with front and back tow hooks and 10 inches of ground clearance.

Plan: Drive, train and enjoy till about 11:00 AM

What to bring along: Snacks, Breakfast - whatever you like with little extra to share, water, liquids, smiles, stories, enthusiasm and willingness to learn.

Approximate finish time: 11:00 AM

Please RSVP on the below calendar:

hi. Just wanted to give a quick shout out to @Gaurav for leading and @edward for sweep. It was a fun filled, action packed drive that kept me on the edge of my seat.Llooking forward to more drives with this lovely group.

1 hour ago, desertdude said:

Excuse Me! Seems like every one got up on th grumpy side of their beds today. 

 

huh? i dont follow..

24 minutes ago, ARS said:

Congratulations @Shamil.

thanks buddy. 

9 hours ago, Rahimdad said:

Congratulations @Shamil. Heard so much about you from your first drive, looking forward to driving with you soon.

Thanks @Rahimdad bhai. Likewise, looking forward to driving with you too

Thanks @Gaurav and @EmmanuelLooking forward to joining you guys next week 👍

1 hour ago, Gaurav said:

@vsmano @ARS @Shamil @Anas Assaf @Yagya

To All Absolute Newbies, please make sure that your car has front and back tow hook for tomorrow drive.

Also, appreciate if you can share which car you drive and if you have any previous sand offroad experience?

 

hi, i have stock front tow point and installed aftermarket tow points in the rear. I drive a nissan xterra and i have basic offroad knowledge (about 7-8 drives)