Ale Vallecchi

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 Ban from Carnity Off-road Club Two Way Radio Guidelines Drive Details Level: Fewbie plus and above Meeting time: 2:30 PM (SHARP - Without any exceptions) Meeting Point: https://maps.app.goo.gl/zxDkhhQHo2jtrgNx5 Action Plan: In preparation for a future drive, I am planning to look at the area East of E55, and south of the Ritz-Carlton RAK Desert Resort. The track should eventually run into an older route, already driven at all levels under the "Sand to Mountain" title. The drive's challenge will be mainly searching for the right path through an area rich with vegetation (trees and shrubs), animals (wild and raised), and with extended longitudinal dunes, with their very powdery, humpy and broken crests. We may often use driven sand tracks taken by locals moving in between farms. The style of driving will be mostly technical, with the overall goal of the drive being that of putting together a potential new route, while enjoying a relaxing afternoon in an unusually (and atypical) Emirati environment. 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: 6:30 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 Monday - 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, as you may have seen, the meeting and deflation point has been added to the drive's post. It's https://maps.app.goo.gl/uL39XkdFUb2rGHMX6 which is in Faqa town, next to one of the mosques, just past Faqa's Police Station. From here we'll move into Dubai's side of Faqa, with the following convoy order: @Thomas Varghese in Second Lead @Sunil Mathew in position #3 @Ashok chaturvedi at #4 @JeromeFJ will be #5 @Looper #6 @GauravSoni will be Center Forward @Matt.T will drive as #8 @Arman at #9 @Lawrence_Chehimi in place #10 @Ranjan Das as #11 @Russ in place #12, and finally @marks will Sweep the convoy. Our communication will be tuned into Carnity Channel #1 (446.006). The meeting time will be 6:00AM, with the plan to leave ASAP, considering that first light will break at 5:43, and the sun will rise, behind us, at 6:04. See you all tomorrow. Enjoy your Friday evening.

Thanks @Rawad. Sorry to miss you.

Dear Desertnauts. A first round of info about next Saturday's drive. In particular, about the route, it'll copy and paste four previously driven tracks (Faqa's lower area, the crossing of a technical area just south of Solar Park, Little Sweihan, and the Ganhtoot route) with a few likely addittions (the approach to Little Sweihan, and the exit toward the Qudra/Ganhtoot road). The length of the drive will be considerable, and will depend, in terms of time, on the quality of the convoy, the amount of concentration we'll manage to keep, as well as our speedy, yet safe, driving skills. You will find a rough drawing of the planned track in the attached image, with the areas circled in red as possible exploration locations. If anything will work against this plan, there are plenty of opportunities to exit sooner. At the moment, I am welcoming to the drive @Russ, @Ranjan Das, @Lawrence_Chehimi, @Arman, @Matt.T, @Looper, @JeromeFJ, @Ashok chaturvedi, @Sunil Mathew, @Thomas Varghese, as well as @GauravSoni as support. Also, @Rawad and @Niki, waiting in the wings, will be welcomed as soon as I can sort out a suitable convoy order and support positions. In the meantime, enjoy the rest of the week.

Sure will @Niki. Thanks a lot.

Thanks to all for your requests. So far, @Rawad is #1 in the WL (being this your first drive), then @Alain Canivet-Abikhalil is #2 and @varunmehndiratta #3, with their second drive of the weekend. Done @GauravSoni. Thanks

General Info 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 Ban from Carnity Off-road Club Two Way Radio Guidelines Drive Details Level: Intermediate and Above When: 9 October 2021, Saturday. Meeting time: 6:00 AM (SHARP - Without any exceptions) Meeting Point: https://maps.app.goo.gl/uL39XkdFUb2rGHMX6 Action Plan: Second week of open borders with Abu Dhabi, and second week of getting back to the fantastic dunes that separate Dubai from its neighbor. This time we'll patrol the areas of Faqa, Little Sweihan and Ganthoot, through a mix of tall, long and open dunes, separated in between by three areas of sabkhas and tighter technical dunes. The meeting and exit points, actually, are not yet decided, as we may travel in either direction, based on how the route will be designed in the course of the week. All skills will be required. 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), face mask, rubber gloves, enthusiasm and willingness to learn. Approximate finish time: 10:30 AM THIS IS A COMPRESSOR ONLY DRIVE. WE WILL STARTING AND ENDING THE DRIVE AT THE SAME POINT, WHICH IS NOT CLOSE TO AN AIR LINE. IF YOU DO NOT HAVE A COMPRESSOR, PLEASE DO NOT SIGN UP FOR THIS DRIVE. IF YOU ARRIVE AND HAVE NO COMPRESSOR YOU WILL NOT BE ALLOWED TO JOIN THE DRIVE. LIMITED SPOTS AVAILABLE: Limited to 10 drivers. RSVP will close on Thursday - 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. 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 BELOW CALENDAR

Al Jabib to Faqa: The Reopening - Drive Report Be patient when you sit in the dark. The dawn is coming - Rumi Extreme drives are not always synonym with speed and intimidating terrains. Sometimes extreme can be an unexpected adverse condition, or the beauty of an area unveiling itself in front of the convoy. Extreme was the fog that shrouded the Faqa District for most of the early morning, and extreme was our surprise at finding, and exploring, a beautiful. unspoiled, set of long and wavy dunes, where we zipped around with gusto as soon as the fog lifted. In fact, just reaching the meeting point, and doing so in good time, was a small feat in its own right: the gravel and sand tracks leading to it from the Al Khadr exit on E66 had a visibility of virtually zero meters, and occasionally produced small groups of camels walking along the side of the track, making the whole approach both eerie and surreal. After a delay of almost 1 hour, waiting for the sun to rise and the fog to lift, we decided to start the drive anyways, trusting that the very qualified, albeit long convoy, would manage maneuvering almost blind, following the dim lights of the car in front, with patience and skills. Finally, after a snail-paced, and yet exhilarating 1 hour and 25 minutes of driving blindfolded, during a stop top sort out a stuck, visibility started to improve dramatically. Even though we had just passed a rough track that I had marked as the turning point on my previous recce drive, we decided to venture further south, toward E20, enjoying the pleasure of exploring the area. Able to see what laid ahead, after the first timid criss-crossings, the sun burst through the last remnants of fog, bathing with its light and warmth a beautiful area with long, open and pristine cordons. Even though I had initially planned to take just a look around here, we ended up spending almost 1 hour roaming in all directions, simply relishing in the fun of an unstoppable drive. Finally, it was time to turn back up north, to reach the E14 tarmac, from where we would enter Dubai's side of Faqa District. While 4 cars decided to exit, due to time limitations, the rest of the convoy headed into the tall, long dunes south of the Faqa Plateau. The pace, already picked up after the fog had lifted, further increased, as we managed to side-slope and criss-cross our way East, until we reached the tighter dunes and camel farms bordering Faqa Town, indicating our proximity to the exit. A beautiful drive, perfectly executed by all, in spite of the initial adverse conditions, that certainly celebrated in the best possible way the reopening of the border and the possibility of crossing it freely while off-roading. Only 1 tug, 1 digging, and 1 pop-out occurred, while driving almost 89 Km, in 3:47 hours of moving time (4:31 total) at an average moving speed that picked up from the original 12km/h to the final 23km/h (20 km/h total). Great support by @Niki (who managed to keep sight of the lead, and adjust accordingly, through the thick fog), @Wrangeld, who keep the convoy together from the center, and @Alex Raptor, never losing sight of the long convoy, and sweeping all to safety. Perfect driving by @Ehab, @Sunil Mathew, @Mus_hus78, @JeromeFJ, @Chris Wing, @Tareck, @Looper, @PaoloMaraziti, @AlexPol, @darren thompson, @Russ and @Darren Brooke. Thank you all, and see you soon out there.

Well done @Kailas . You rose to the challange with ease and style, and deserve the high rank.

Dear Desertnauts, here's tomorrow convoy order: @Niki will be my Second Lead @Ehab will be driving at #3 @Sunil Mathew at #4 @Mus_hus78 at #5 @JeromeFJ will be #6 @Chris Wing #7 @Wrangeld will be the Anchor of the convoy @Tareck at #9 @Looper will be #10 @PaoloMaraziti will take #11 @AlexPol #12 @darren thompson will line up at #13 @Russ in place #14 @Darren Brooke at #15, and @Alex Raptor will carry a very long broom, to Sweep this giant convoy. I have chosen to increase the length of the convoy, both in consideration of the drivers' quality and experience (with an equal mix of Intermediates and above, and Fewbie Plus), as well as with the goal to share the fun with as many member friends as possible (thanks, also, to the support of very experienced drivers). Nonetheless, in light of the convoy's length, extra caution will be required, not only in choosing a path that can remain drivable all the way to the end of the line, but also in following it safely and attentively. Each Fewbie Plus member will be guided through the drive by an Intermediate or above driver, who will be able to show the best lines of approach, and "tutor" the more junior member throughout the drive, from their position just in front of them. The entry point has been chosen at the margin of an area of camel farms, in Faqa's Al Ain region, off of the Dubai-Al Ain highway, and reachable via very badly paved roads (with lots of pot-holes, so careful driving on them). This is where we'll be assembling: https://maps.app.goo.gl/V1s5p28WZHdvNQp1A Please reach the location below in time for an early deflation, with the expected time of departure as close to 6AM as possible: The Carnity radio frequency will be Channel 1 (446.006). Looking forward to seeing you tomorrow morning.

Hi @Russ. Are you still OK to join? Thanks

Hi @AlexPol. I will add you. Thanks Dear Desertnauts, as we are getting ready for the drive, here is some feedback from yesterday's recce drive (thanks @MUHAMMAD Kashif RAZZAQ for coming along). The drive will be clearly divided into 2 parts. The first in Al Ain territory, will be on open dune terrain, with relatively high formations, quite close to each other, but strung in a canyon's like fashion. The driving will be made more difficult by the presence of tracks, left by what appeared to be an earth moving machine, and visible pretty much all over the place. Even with these man-made obstacles, we'll make the drive challenging for ourselves by looking to move through the corridors at higher speeds, until we'll reach first the area close to the E20, then back toward Faqa, to arrive at the crossing of E14. This is where the second part of the drive will start, just in the Dubai side of Faqa's border district, across very tall and long range dunes, where occasional groups of trees hide in small valleys. More side-sloping and criss-crossing will be practiced in this area, less marked by recent human activity. Our planned exit will be in Faqa town. @darren thompson, @PaoloMaraziti, @Sunil Mathew, @Looper, @Ehab, @JeromeFJ, @Tareck,@Darren Brooke, @Chris Wing, @Mus_hus78, @Niki, @AlexPol, @Wrangeld (thanks for your extremely valuable and reassuring presence) and @Alex Raptor, Tomorrow the final convoy members and order will be issued, together with meeting/deflation point, and radio channel. Enjoy the end of the week, and see you soon.

Hi @Russ. So far I added Niki and Alex as it would be their first drive. If I get good support I will add you too 😉

Done @Niki. See you on Sarurday.

Dear @AlexPol and @Niki, due to the quality of the convoy, I would like to extend it, and ask if you still wish to partecipate. If yes, I will sign you up. Thanks

Sure @Niki, I am adding you to the WL. Thanks a lot.

Dear Desertnauts. Thanks for joining this drive, relaunching Faqa as a favourite off-roading area. This time we'll finally be able to venture, most of the drive, on the Al Ain side of this border town. Not driven as often as Sweihan's great dunes, we are going to discover what this side of Abu Dhabi and Dubai's desert has to offer. To make sure the drive plan will be well designed, a small Carnity posse will do a flash recce around this area, tomorrow afternoon, searching for the best entry and exit points, and all there will be to discover in between. @darren thompson, @PaoloMaraziti, @Sunil Mathew, @Looper, @Ehab, @JeromeFJ, @Tareck, @Darren Brooke, @Chris Wing, @Mus_hus78 and @Alex Raptor, stay tuned for more in the next couple of days.

Very well done @Sunil Mathew. Steady progress on your part has brought you this far quite quickly. Looking forward to seeing you driving your way up the ranks.

You've come a long way @Mehmet Volga. Congrats!!

Hello @AlexPol. You are #1 on the WL, with @Russ now at #2 (as this would be his 2nd drive). Thanks Hi @varunmehndiratta. You will be #3 in the WL. Thanks.

Done @Mus_hus78. See you on Saturday.

Hi @Russ Yes. I will. You will become #1 in the WL. Thanks Dear @Mus_hus78 good news. There is an open spot in the drive. Would you like me to add you? Thanks

Hi @Chris Wing. You are #1 in the WL. Thanks Hi @Alex Raptor. Yes I will, so I can open up one spot in the convoy. Thanks a lot, and looking forward to your support. Actually @Chris Wing, I can already add you to the drive, as Alex has been moved to the Support tab. Can I confirm you? Thanks Dear @Mus_hus78, you are now #1 in the WL. Thanks a lot.

GRANDE @Lorenzo Candelpergher!! To each drive, at each level, you have always brought a degree of competence, enthusiasm, leadership, and creativity which has rightly culminated in Marshaldom. The flavor of your drives is a great addition to Carnity's bouquet, and I can't wait to taste more.