Ale Vallecchi

Dear @Pierre de Maigret, @Dinesh Kumar A, @Gurcharan Mehta. Thanks for signing up. Since posting the drive I have been informed of a business contingency, due to which I'll have to travel away from Dubai on Sunday evening. Therefore I am kindly asking if you would be able to join the drive on Saturday, Sept. 4th, PM, same time. This would be very much appreciated. Same for the waitlisted members, @Ignacio Quindós and @Sunil Mathew. Looking forward to hearing from you, before I change the date. Thanks a lot for your understanding.

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. MUST READ AND TOTALLY AGREE: COVID19 Precautions Mandatory Safety Requirements Ban from Carnity Off-road Club Two Way Radio Guidelines Drive Details Level: Fewbie and above Meeting time: 2:00 PM (SHARP - Without any exceptions) Meeting Point: Dropped pin https://maps.app.goo.gl/LXygnu5HPCZtLgPX8 Action Plan: A drive which aims to both get back into the RHYTHM of dancing on the dunes, as well as getting rid of the BLUES of returning from the summer holidays. The drive will start in Qudra (exact meeting point yet to be decided, with a short warm up segment in Qudra's southern quadrant, followed by a drive south toward Ghantoot, aimed at reaching the Oryx feeding station next to the exit point. If we reach the end of the trail in good time, we'll pause before sunset to sip some tea or coffee by one of the old date trees that dot, like mini oasis, this part of the desert. 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: 6:30PM 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 Friday - 12 PM. 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

L&L: The Lahbab Loop - Drive Report "Dance when you are perfectly free" - Rumi One never knows how a Newbie drive can go. Due to a combination of mostly unforeseeable factors sometimes it gets complicated, moving on at a halting pace, others it flows smoothly and naturally. There was a long period during this drive when the convoy danced, perfectly free of concerns. It danced with sinuous movements on top of smooth ridges, across gentle dunes, in and out of sand bowls from which gazelles darted out of their hidings, in the shade of gnarly trees. For almost an hour, the convoy moved without interruptions, to the music of radio silence, navigating the dunes to the north of the Lahbab pipeline, across it, and first onto the longer cordons west of the gas facility, then through the technical area reaching out to the red sand bowls overlooking Tazi Nazwa. The dance started after the unfortunate incident to @Arshad Roojee's Wrangler, with the gears stuck in parking. After evaluating the situation, considering the complications of carrying out repairs in the extreme heat of that time of day (and the impossibility of towing the vehicle out), it was decided to leave the car there, marked the spot, selected a close-by entry point for the mechanic who had been located in the meantime, and chose to move on, taking Arshad and his passenger with us. The dance ended with a couple of stucks on the same soft ridge, just before Margham's red sand bowls. After a small break, and a quick briefing on how to deal with ridge-riding and criss-crossing, the convoy moved to tackle this interesting area, before closing the loop, and returning to the tarmac, a few meters east of our meeting point. At the end of the day, we covered 56 Km., driving 2:32 hours (and pausing for another hour), moving at an average of 22Km/h (16 Km/h total moving speed). All in all, a well executed Newbie Plus drive. Great job by @Daniel Rodas in Second Lead, and extremely useful and competent support by @Sunil Mathew at Center, and @Waqas Parvez in Sweep. Very well driven track by @Anthony Cupit, @James Lovell, @Usman Basit, @Ali Shah, @Andrei S, @Arshad Roojee (until it lasted) and @salah2u. Looking forward to seeing you soon dancing in the desert.

TGIF: Margham to Faqa - Drive Report "There is a desert I long to be walking. A wide emptiness; peace beyond any understanding of it" - Rumi It would be a safe guess to say that all us desert wanderers find fulfilment where others see emptiness. The desert draws us to it, in a way that sometimes it's difficult to explain. A drive like last Friday's TGIF certainly quenches the thirst for the desert's emptiness, and stirs up the appetite for more. A nice start at Margham's red sand bowls, followed by a slow dance on the ridges leading west toward Lisaili, across the Dubai-Al Ain Road, along the camel track to reach the technical area at the beginning of Lisaili's long range dunes, through the sabkhas leading to Murqaab, and on to reach Faqa, traversing a mix of tight bowls long range cordons. At the end of the day, we went for 78.7 Km, in 2:59 hours of moving time (and 1 hour of stops and rest), driving at 26 Km/h (total average speed of 20 Km/h). Very well executed drive by everybody, with minimum incidents until the last segment, where fatigue likely took a bit of a toll, causing a few back-to-back stucks. The take away from these issues that arose at the end of the drive was that the approach to the crest remains a crucial element in the success of a safe criss-crossing, and that exiting when finding oneself below the ridge, and unable to reach it, is the best way to avoid getting stuck, and keeping the drive moving. Besides criss-crossing, the other main skill practiced during the drive was ridge-riding: not the straight one, on long range dunes, but the sinuous, almost dancing-like, slow motion ridge riding, along curvy bowls and tight crests. Great support by @DP1011 , Deepak wrangler in Second Lead, @Thomas Varghese at Center Forward, and @munkybizness in Sweep. Not too much work to do, but always ready to run to the rescue when needed. Very well done to @Jose Thomas, @takeshi sobue, @Gertjan, @Santoso Marjuki and @Beide Worku. Looking forward to seeing you all again soon in the emptiness.

@Daniel Rodas you are welcome. See you tomorrow.

Dear Desertnauts. The meeting point just past Lahbab is the following: Dropped pin https://maps.app.goo.gl/srGQfnEFe4epYysu7 Also posted in the drive's page. See you tomorrow.

Sorry @Waqas Parvez. Will put you in the convoy order, of course. Looking forward to driving with you.

Hello @DP1011 , Deepak wrangler. Can you confirm if you are joining this drive? Thanks

Dear Desertnauts let's prepare for our excursion on a very little driven terrain, where mostly locals roam, and where all kinds of off-roading skills will be tested. Thankfully, the convoy will be quite experienced, so we should be able to maintain a brisk pace, and add some learning options to the menu. We'll try to build up the drive all the way to almost its end, when, just before exiting, we'll have fun riding the soft red sand bowls that overlook Tazi Nazwa. The convoy order will be the following: @DP1011 , Deepak wrangler in Second Lead @Anthony Cupit at #3 @James Lovell #4 @Usman Basit at #5 @Thomas Varghese will be at the Center of the convoy @Ali Shah at #7 @Andrei S #8 @Arshad Roojee at #9 @salah2u #10, and @Sunil Mathew in the Sweep. The radio channel will be confirmed at the meeting point, which is just after passing the village of Lahbab, on the way to Badayer. See you all on Saturday PM.

Dear Desertnauts, no specific updates regarding the TGIF drive, other than please note the meeting point, just published, on the road joining the Dubai-Al Ain highway to E44, taking the Margham exit. Please, let's try to arrive as close to 3:00PM as possible, for a timely departure. The convoy order, at the moment, is the following: @DP1011 , Deepak wrangler will be Second Lead @Jose Thomas #3 @takeshi sobue at #4 @Thomas Varghese will Center the convoy @Gertjan at #6 @Santoso Marjuki #7 @Beide Worku will be #8, and @munkybizness will Sweep. Looking forward to seeing you tomorrow. TGIF !!!

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. MUST READ AND TOTALLY AGREE: COVID19 Precautions Mandatory Safety Requirements Ban from Carnity Off-road Club Two Way Radio Guidelines Drive Details Level: Fewbie Plus and above Meeting time: 3:00 PM (SHARP - Without any exceptions) Meeting Point: Dropped pin https://maps.app.goo.gl/JUGAmDnkLhxhgtYx9 Action Plan: According to Not One-Off Britishisms, a restaurateur in New York is said to have named his very first establishment based on the expression, “Thank God! It’s Friday!,” which he heard during his time spent at Bucknell University. This origin is disputed; nonetheless, the expression is almost universally used to celebrate the arrival of a new weekend. This is also true in the UAE, at least from this year (as previously it would have needed to be changed to TGI Thursday 😉). So, what's better than an afternoon drive to unwind from work, and get excited for the upcoming days of fun and relaxation? This time we'll start somewhere between Lahbab and Margham, will cross the Dubai-Al Ain Road, direct the convoy to Murqaab, and try to reach out to Faqa, where we plan to exit in time for the weekend's celebrations. 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: 7:00 PM P.S. Only join if you have a compressor to inflate your tires after the drive. LIMITED SPOTS AVAILABLE: Limited to 8 cars maximum. RSVP will close on Thursday - 19 PM. 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

L&L Lisaili to Lahbab - Drive Report "Let silence be the art you practice" - Rumi Toward the end of the drive, while stopped to take some photos of a camel herd resting in front of the sunset, someone noticed how silent the drive had been, needing to check if all was well with their radio. I take this observation as the best compliment for the success of a drive. Silence is the desert's main feature. Even in a "crowded" desert country as the UAE, anyone who has spent a night out on the sand has heard the sound of the most profound silence that can be heard anywhere on earth. To truly be in the desert is to be in silence. An art we did practice during our drive, mostly thanks to the drivers' ability to go through the different terrains we explored. A flawless driven itinerary, first through Lisaili's long range dunes, then across the sabkhas closer to Margham, then on the other side of the Dubai-Al Ain road, on a more technical terrain, much richer in vegetation and animals, eventually into the red sand bowls overlooking Tawi Nazwan, and finally to Lahbab exit point. The key to such a clean drive, differently from the one of last week, in occasionally similar terrain, was the respect of the convoy's distance between cars, which managed to follow each other's tracks with care and perfect adaptation to each situation. The drive took us for 88 Kms , in 3:18 hours of driving (with only 20 minutes of breaks), at a moving average speed of 27 Km/h (and 24 Km/h total). The Second Lead was well executed by @Gertjan, the supervision of the convoy from the center was carefully done by @Ashok chaturvedi, while @Tom B Swept the convoy clean. Great driving by @Gerrit Bus, @Amr Aydin, @KAMALIO, @Santoso Marjuki, @Imteeaz, @Beide Worku and @Karthik Raptor. Hope to see you all soon in the silent sands.

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. MUST READ AND TOTALLY AGREE: COVID19 Precautions Mandatory Safety Requirements Ban from Carnity Off-road Club Two Way Radio Guidelines Drive Details Level: Newbie and above Meeting time: 3:00 PM (SHARP - Without any exceptions) Meeting Point: Dropped pin https://maps.app.goo.gl/srGQfnEFe4epYysu7 Action Plan: A loop from Lahbab to Margham and back, on a great variety of terrains, with all kinds of dunes - long range, technical, and bowls - through a diverse landscape, dotted with trees and shrubs, across several sabkhas, for a complete drive, that will test every off-roading skill. Usually a den for local's nights out, falcon training, and camel herding, this area is always surprising and rewarding. 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: 7:30 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 Friday - 12 PM. 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

Sorry @Imran Kashif. Just saw your post. If you can make it sure.

Thanks for updating @Imran Kashif. See you next time

I have added to the drive @Thomas Varghese. See you tomorrow.

Hi @Imteeaz, it shows on Google Maps's cell application. Just click on directions, and it will give them to you. Let me know if it works.

Thanks for the info @Gertjan.

Thanks for updating @Daniel Rodas. @Santoso Marjuki you are IN (please confirm). At this stage I'd also like to add @Ashok chaturvedito the drive, if ok (also,.please confirm). Thanks

Dear Desrtnauts let's prepare for tomorrow's drive. Firstly, it plans to be a long drive. Therefore, I'd like to start as early as possible. Even though it will be hot, I have moved the meeting time at 3:00PM (considering that half an hour more or less is not going to make it any cooler). Secondly, the reason for anticipating the meeting time is that I'd like to close the drive beyond the initially planned exit location (at first in the general Lahbab's area, between Margham and Nazwa), exploring an exit path reaching out as close to the actual Lahbab's village as possible. Thirdly, about the meeting point, it used yo be easily accessible, on the left side of the Qudra Lakes to Solar Park road. However, now that the road has been doubled, and a partition is separating the two double lanes, we'll probably have to turn around at Solar Park itself, and trace the way back to the pylons close to the indicated entry point, which is on the dirt track coming from Lisaili. Please consider some extra time for this now unavoidable detour. The drive will cover a lot of ground, first through Lisaili's plateau, then on a stretch of dirt track going from the Lisaili exit point, across the Dubai-Al Ain Road, into the dunes leading to Margham first, and further onto the exploratory track to the new planned exit point. The convoy order, barring some last minute drop-outs and additions, will be the following: @Gertjan in Second Lead @Imran Kashif at #3 @Gerrit Bus at #4 @Amr Aydin #5 @Daniel Rodas at Center Forward @KAMALIO at #7 @Imteeaz will be #8 @Beide Worku at #9 @Karthik Raptor #10, and @Tom B in the Sweep position Radio channel has not been chosen yet, and will be announced at the meeting point. Please, remember the new, earlier, meeting time. Looking forward to seeing you tomorrow.

The Scorch Trials Part 2 - Drive Report "If you find all your roads blocked, He will show you a secret way that no one knows" - Rumi A most challenging start, perhaps the most difficult one I had so far as a leader, tested the mettle of the convoy from the very moment we entered the sand, just at the end of Lisaili's camel track. That stretch of dunes is notorious for being quite tight and soft, but this time the change of weather of the past days had greatly softened and sharpened the crests, adding some soft sand to the bottom of the alternating bowls. This made for an unusually irregular terrain, where the convoy kept getting stuck, for an impressive total of 15 times, requiring 1 and half hour to sort them all out, over a staggering short stretch of 600 meters. The reasons for the stucks were also partially to be found within the convoy itself. I will highlight the main ones. First of all, lack of distance between cars, causing problems to those following the drivers with refusals (or stucks). Secondly, some hesitancy with building or maintaining the right momentum when exiting a bowl, or while riding a ridge, which caused some slipping off the ridges, a pop-out, or the inability to exit the bottom of a soft sand bowl. Lastly, I noticed the occasional tendency to force the way onto the ridges, even though with little room to maneuver, especially with short wheel based cars, causing a few cars from getting crested, in the typical transversal position due to counter-steering onto the ridge. I trust that by reading the report, and especially by going over the drive in one's mind, all will find it in themselves to recall each mistake, and bring to mind the proper remedy, for the next drives. The second part of the drive, once exited the technical area, was the exact opposite of the first difficult part. After a very useful break, the convoy regrouped, and proceeded through Lisaili, toward the sabkhas near Murqaab, and back into the Lisaili tall dunes, with perfect unison and coordination. Ridge riding and criss-crossing were executed perfectly, and virtually no incidents took place (other than a quickly solved pop-out). In spite of the initial slow start, the day ended with just less than 51Km covered, in 1:42 hours of driving, over a total of 3:37 hours, at an average moving speed of 28Km/h (14 Km/h total). Thanks to @Prakash Anoop for his first Second Lead (just remember to perfect the safe distance from the leading car), @Thomas Varghese and @Ashok chaturvedi respectively in Center Forward and Sweep position, and to @Imran Kashif, @Haitham Khattab, @AlexM, @Shaker, @salah2u, @Amr Aydin and @Gertjan for joining the drive. See you all soon in the sand again.