Ale Vallecchi

Rush Hour / 7-Eleven - Two drives against time and space - Report Time is a brisk wind, for each hour it brings something new.” – Paracelsus Dear Desertnauts considering that both these last 2 drives of mine had a similar theme, which unfolded as a challenge through time and space, I'll describe both of them together. Both drives had goals to reach, in terms of maximum time driven, and space to be covered: the first was a 2 hour, late PM drive, while the second was a 4 hour, AM drive, which allowed a greater length and duration. The spirit of both drives was the same: racing against time, and covering as much ground as possible. The skills required were about the same: concentration, perfect execution, making split-second decisions, endurance. Both proved to be fun, interesting, and challenging. The first drive, nicknamed Rush Hour because of its late starting time in the afternoon, diverged from the second not only because of its length, but also for the terrain chosen: more open, less technical, with the possibility of driving fast almost throughout the whole itinerary. We went from Solar Park, through the fastest, less vegetated, stretch of the so called "Middle Earth", to Little Sweihan, and after a few ups, downs and across this area of taller, sharper dunes (the "slowest of the terrains"), we moved on to Faqa's long range dunes. The execution was perfect, with non stop driving, and only one refusal throughout the track. We achieved all the objectives of the drive: we covered 60 Km well before the clock ran out on us, driving 65.1 Km in the scheduled 2 hours, with only a 1 minute break, and a pace of 33Km/h. We stopped the chronometer at the edge of Faqa's sabkha, where we exited with an extra 15 minutes of calm, leisurely, sunset drive. Perfect Second Lead by @Sunil Mathew, virtually inactive Center Forward and Sweep roles, which saw @Looper and @JeromeFJ taking turns, and an immaculate drive by @Naveen Raj, @Santoso Marjuki, @KAMALIO, @Gregory, @Vaibhav and @Fabien Monleau . Thanks for one of the most fun drives I had. The second drive against time and space, the duration of which inspired its 7-Eleven nickname, was expected to be more complex, mostly due to the choice of the terrain where the first segment took place: Murqaab to Faqa is a very diverse driving area, mixing tight technical dunes, strewn with vegetation, with longer range dunes, quite close to each other, which require a bit of tight turning to zig-zag across their cordons. After covering this first area, we proceeded 1) through the southern perimeter of Faqa's dunes (skirting the AD border), then 2) reached and traversed Little Sweihan longer and taller dunes, cut north through the Middle Earth, to reach 3) the Solar Park glass pyramid just as the 4 hour clock expired. With hindsight, the goal of covering 120 km in 4 hours was almost impossible to achieve, both in light of the difficulties of the first segment, and of the assumption of not having any issues with refusals and stucks along the way. Indeed, we had very few of these, except a couple of stucks that required tugs, and a pop-out that needed some time to get fixed. Considering that in 4 hours of total time we had actually driven for 3:25 hours and 93 Km, we decided to keep going for an extra 35 minutes, to reach Qudra's Gas station through the 4) Bab al Shams sector of Qudra's dunes. The day ended with 4:40 hours of total driving time (3:39 moving), covering 115 Km, at a moving speed of 31Km/h (25 Km/h total). As far as the convoy's performance, this was a busier drive, with @Waqas Parvez completing a very precise Second Lead, @Looper and @Alain Canivet-Abikhalil exchanging duties at Center Forward and Sweep, providing very precise instructions, and a perfect monitoring of the convoy, and @Rob S, @Stav, @Tom B, @Mohamad Anwer, @Vaibhav and @Rsjiv Samuel enduring with great concentration and skills my second longest drives (except for full day drives), only 500 meters shy of my longest lead. Thanks to all the thrill seekers who joined me in these two fun drives. See you soon in the sand.

Hi @Mostafa Elbadawi. It's Carnity's rule that any driver, even with previous experience, takes the AN drive, as an introduction to the Club's style and rules of driving. Please look for the next Absolute Newbie drive in the calendar, before joining the regular drives. Thanks for understanding.

Dear @Mostafa Elbadawi. Thanks for signing up with this drive. Upon checking the drive count, I cannot find confirmation that you have already done your Absolute Newbie drive. Please confirm if you still have to take your Absolute Newbie introduction to Carnity. Thanks a lot.

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. MUST READ AND TOTALLY AGREE: COVID19 Precautions Ban from Carnity Off-road Club Two Way Radio Guidelines Drive Details Level: Newbie and above (all levels) Meeting time: 7:00 AM (SHARP - Without any exceptions) Meeting Point: https://maps.app.goo.gl/ZZLZV5xcjEXpwsp9 Action Plan: There is a stretch of desert, running parallel to E66, from Murqab to Faqa, which offers a challenging terrain, with all kinds of dune formations and occasional sabkhas. We'll make our own way along this route, our own Desert 66, where members' technical skills will be tested, alongside with the need for patience, concentration, and resilience. More of a Fewbie itinerary, it will provide the right challenge to Newbies aspiring for a promotion. 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: 10:30 AM P.S. Only join if you have a compressor to inflate your tires after the drive. LIMITED SPOTS AVAILABLE: Limited to 12 cars maximum. RSVP will close on Wednesday - 5 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 below calendar

Hi @Rob S. You are already in the drive 😉. See you tomorrow.

Dear Desertnauts Paraphrasing Churchill's words, tomorrow's drive "will be long, will be hard, and will be unpredictable". The itinerary is divided into 4 segments: 1) from Murqaab's mosque to Faqa's sabkha - mix of technical and long range dunes, some vegetation, the longest of the four; 2) Faqa to the Little Sweihan - possibility of choosing diverse tracks (from technical but straighter, to long range but longer), mostly sandy, could be the fastest; 3) From the souther sabkhas to Solar Park's edges - in the long run, vegetation may be the biggest challenge of this segment (patience required); 4) final dash (Inshallah) to Qudra - familiar terrain, we'll have to worry about some technical areas, and abundant cross-tracks. The time required to cover each segment will not be exactly 1 hour,but may vary. I am counting to reach as far as Solar Park, from 7 to Eleven, with the hope of having been fast enough, and unencumbered by problems, to manage a last sprint home to Qudra, instead of an exit. Breaks will come only as necessary, so bring refreshments to stay hydrated and focus through the drive. @Vaibhav, @Tom B, @Stav, @Mohamad Anwer, @Waqas Parvez, @Naim Aoun, @James Thorn, @Rsjiv Samuel, @Looper and @Alain Canivet-Abikhalil, I look forward to seeing you tomorrow. PLEASE TRY TO REACH THE MEETING POINT AT LEAST 15 MIN BEFORE 7AM, SO WE CAN START EXACTLY ON TIME. Convoy order and radio channel will be given tomorrow morning prior to the start. Have a great Saturday evening.

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: 7:00 AM (SHARP - Without any exceptions) Meeting Point: Dropped pin https://maps.app.goo.gl/om5sMbWJ4Ze6cZME9 Action Plan: Open from 7:00 in the morning, to 11in the evening. That's how the well known chain of convenience stores came to be called 7-Eleven. We'll also open for business at 7:00AM, and we'll be going at it for the next 4 hours, until 11:00AM, providing a non-stop, always open throttle, driving adventure. Our drive plan will be designed to last exactly 4 hours, and/or to cover 120 Km. The drive will end, wherever we'll be (with exit points planned nearby our route), at exactly 11:00 AM, or upon covering 120 Km, whichever comes first. The goal is to drive at a minimum average moving speed of 30Km/h. To make things more challenging, the terrain will entail also a few technical areas, at the beginning, and as many long range dunes as we can find, with a couple of sabkhas in between. 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: 11:00 AM 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 - 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

Mystery Drive - Report "Listen to silence. It has much to say" - Rumi A much delayed report, due to work commitments, where the fun of the mystery drive can finally be recounted. In fact, silence spoke very loudly throughout the drive. It indicated that all were concentrated, and most of all, that nothing warranting support, digging work, or a tugging job, was in demand. After all, my definition of a fun drive, includes seamlessly driving through diverse terrains, at the fastest possible speed that security allows, taking one's mind off any other daily matters, to thoroughly enjoy the landscape, the technical challenges, and the achievement of covering as much "unfriendly" ground as possible, in the most efficient way. The itinerary took us through a new sector of the so called "Middle Earth" (the sand cordons sandwiched between Solar Park and the E14), to a middle entry into Little Sweihan's tall and sinewy dune canyons, which we drove through three times, in all directions, prior to reaching the sabkha that connects this area to Faqa, and the AD border. It was decided to extend the drive to reach the Dubai-Al Ain road, through the yellow sand dunes next to the newest Solar Park development (yes, #4 reaches all the way to Faqa), rather than the more usually travelled Faqa district itself. The extra challenge in choosing this little travelled areas came from the fact that we had to make progress mostly from the slip face sides of the dunes, except the very last 10 minutes of the drive. These slip faces were even more difficult to cross, due to a strata of soft, powdery sand, that had deposited itself onto the ridges, following the windy weeks that preceded the drive. That actually didn't stop the convoy from moving, but made me come down from a few ridges, being "rejected" by the soft sand, back down the slope, to look for a more approachable crossing point. Great driving by the whole convoy, with a well executed Second Lead by @Thomas Varghese, an efficient anchoring by @Jorge Stepniak Felippe, a clean sweep by @Dodi Syahdar, and a very proficient performance by @Charbel, @Zixuan Huang - Charlie, @Anoop Nair, @Chris Wing, @Pacific and @Rawad. Thank you all so much for joining me in my 100th Carnity lead, and for making it a silent, yet very eloquent, virtually perfect drive. See you soon out there.

Hi @Charbel. Thanks for wait listing. I will let you know by tomorrow at 11AM if anybody drops out (if so, you should automatically move into the drive).

Hi @JeromeFJ. Welcome to the drive. I'll have you share duties with Varun and Looper in the management of the convoy. See you tomorrow.

Dear Desertnauts a few more info about the Rush Hours drive of tomorrow. As mentioned in the original post, we'll be driving with a double, alternative, objective: cover 60 km, and/or drive for maximum 2 hours (whichever comes first). With these goals in mind, this would normally be graded more as an Intermediate drive: nonetheless, the idea has been to offer a stimulating, challenging, itinerary, to members who are looking forward to reaching the next rank. Hence, concentration will have to be the utmost, driving skills practiced as close to perfection as possible, while, of course, the route will have to take into consideration that it is NOT an IM drive, but it should still provide the upgraded challenges that will allow us to reach our goals, in a speedy and safe manner. Please reach the meeting point so that all preparatory operations are completed just before 4PM, which will be the exact starting time of the drive. We will decide the radio channel just before departing. The convoy order will be the following: @Sunil Mathew as Second Lead @Naveen Raj at #3 @Santoso Marjuki as #4 @KAMALIO will take spot #5 @Looper will be at the Center @Gregory is going to be #7 @Vaibhav will be #8 @Fabien Monleau #9, and @varunmehndiratta will Sweep. See you tomorrow, punctual for a timely departure. Have a great night.

Sure @varunmehndiratta. Hope you can make it. Thanks

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: 3:30 PM (SHARP - Without any exceptions) Meeting Point: https://maps.app.goo.gl/HxCgwXds3QHjDSdR8 Action Plan: As most people start to crowd the streets to rush back home, after work or school, we'll be rushing through the dunes, with a drive plan designed tom cover at least 60 Km in 2 hours. Departure is scheduled exactly at 4:00 PM (meeting time will be from 3:30 PM onward, so that we'll be all ready to start precisely at 4PM). The drive will end, wherever we'll be (with exit points planned nearby our route), at exactly 6:00 PM, or upon covering 60Km, whichever comes first. The goal is to drive at a minimum average moving speed of 30Km/h. The terrain will entail as few technical areas as possible, and as many long range dunes as we can find, with a couple of sabkhas in between. 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: 6:00 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 Friday - 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

Dear Desertnauts "Mystery is defined as something that is secret".... and a mystery the drive will be. No information as to where we are going, where we are exiting, or when. No info about the convoy order (which is ready, but will be announced tomorrow morning). Just a meeting and deflation point, to be reached as close to 7:00 am as possible: Dropped pin https://maps.app.goo.gl/HxCgwXds3QHjDSdR8 We'll be heading to the main area of the drive, through a novel route, which will lead us to enter it from a new angle. From there on, we'll keep improvising. The Carnity Radio Channel of choice will be #4 (446.081) @Thomas Varghese, @Rawad, @Charbel, @Pacific, @Zixuan Huang - Charlie, @Chris Wing, @Xavier Treasurer, @Anoop Nair, @Jorge Stepniak Felippe, and @Dodi Syahdar, see you all tomorrow morning

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: Intermediate and above Meeting time: 7:00 AM (SHARP - Without any exceptions) Meeting Point: Dropped pin https://maps.app.goo.gl/HxCgwXds3QHjDSdR8 Action Plan: We will surely start within Dubai, and will surely not enter AD. We'll meet all terrains, from technical dunes and sabkhas, to long range dunes and sand bowls. We'll snake around low bushes, zip past tall Ghaf trees, or draw lines on pristine slope. We'll plan a warm up phase, to reach our main area of interest, and we'll extend the drive in the direction we'll find more interesting, for as long as we see fit. We may loop back to our original starting point....or not. We'll also enjoy a major break during the drive, for which you may want to bring refreshments, and most of all, you should bring your good spirit. 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: 11:00 AM 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 - 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

Sorry @Harshal, my mistake. You will take position # 10. See you tomorrow.

Dear soon to be Desertnauts, as mentioned in the previous post, please reach the meeting point as close to 7:00AM as possible, to allow as swift a start as possible. You can refuel, if needed, at the Al Qudra's Last Exit ADNOC station. Please, be watchful of bikers coming through the bike lane just off the turning point on Saih al Salam Road, before crossing it. You will find myself and @Kailas just to the right of the turn-off, waiting for you, and ready to assist in checking your cars for appropriate clearance and tow hooks. The Carnity frequency we'll be using throughout the drive will be channel #1 (466.006). Once deflated we'll proceed to approach the actual entry into the sand, where we'll have a detailed driving briefing before starting the actual drive. The convoy order for the drive will be the following: @Aghabi in Second Lead @fayazc as #3 @Salvador Perez in place #4 @Sreenath Giridharan at #5 @Ravi Kumar will be #6 @JDub at #7 @Riyas Mohammed in place #8 @Yerem Davtyan will be #9, and @Kailas will sweep the convoy. Enjoy your Saturday evening, and see you tomorrow morning.

Yes @JDub I will. I will send the last info tomorrow afternoon. Thanks Hello @Aghabi. I will be there to inform you, but you can start deflating as soon as you arrive. Thanks

Dear soon to be Desertnaut @Aghabi, @fayazc, @Salvador Perez, @Sreenath Giridharan, @Ravi Kumar, @Harshal, @Yerem Davtyan, @Riyas Mohammed, @Followthehippo and @JDub - Welcome to Carnity! As you are aware of, this is a drive strictly for who has never been off road with Carnity. In preparation for it, it is important that you inform us if: you have any prior off-road experience (some of you have already answered); your vehicle has front and rear tow hooks / eyelets (as above); if your car has the required ground clearance of min. 8 inches (21 cm) between the ground and its bumpers/undercar. Before joining the drive on Sunday morning, you will need to have viewed the introductory videos (links above). Please also make sure you are equipped with a tire deflator and a tire pressure gauge (sometimes they are all in one tool). You will need these. If you have an off-road flag as well that would he great. In case you do not have a flag mount on your car, you may look for a flag with suction cups, which can be easily placed on one of the rear windows. Even if the drive should end near a gas station, where they have an air compressor, if you have your own please bring it along, as it may be quicker than waiting in line. So, to recap, useful tools to carry would be: tire deflator (must) tire pressure gauge (must) radio (recommended) off-road flag (recommended) air compressor All these items should be available at any ACE or Speedex store, as well as at Dragon Mart (at this latter location you can find especially the radios, where I advise you ask to set on manual inputs - you can memorize the channels later, as Carnity uses channels which are different from the ones that are usually memorized at Dragon Mart's outlets). Regarding the area of the drive, we will access the desert from an entry point along the Saih al Salam Road, going from Qudra Parking (where you can use the ADNOC gas station to fill up your tank), toward the Bab al Shams Resort. Follow carefully the Google Maps directions: once you turn off the tarmac road (after circling a roundabout next to a mosque), you will cross through the bike track. Myself and @Kailas will be waiting for you just to the right, past the bike track. We'll likely have to drive around a very big water puddle, left by the recent rains, to access our final entry point. Once arrived at the meeting point, we'll conduct a final inspection of your cars (sufficient clearance and accessible tow points are a must, without which you'll be turned back). Following a detailed technical briefing, we'll be ready to enter the dunes, and start your off-roading adventure. This area is rarely used by other clubs, and the sand is much cleaner ad smoother, so this is an ideal ground to move your first steps in the desert. Any new member who's planning to join this introductory drive, please contact me on this thread for any preparatory question. In the meantime have a great rest of the week.

@Eli Zandro Hamoy, I believe you have already done an Absolute Newbie drive, with @Gaurav, so you must have inadvertently signed up for this AN drive. I'll sign you out, so you may sign into an available Newbie drive. Thanks