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 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 MUST READ AND TOTALLY AGREE: BAN POST Two Way Radio Guidelines Every Offroader brings his own radio, programmed to the frequencies described in below advice topic. We will not share spare radios or program your radio on the drive. If you need assistance in programming the radio, post a topic on the Carnity website with your questions and we will help you out. Make sure your radio is fully charged. It will be your only way of communication while driving. Before buying, please carefully read below advice so you are informed properly on which model / cost / shops... No radio = No drive. It is an essential tool and you should make sure you bring it on every drive and learn/practice how to use it. MUST WATCH: NEWBIE VIDEO BRIEFING Drive Details Level: Newbie and above (All Level) Meeting time: 6:00 AM (SHARP - Without any exceptions) Meeting Point: Next to Murqaab's Mosque https://maps.app.goo.gl/Q6UskoSE7r5b84EJ9 Action Plan: We'll start with the sun at our back, just after sunrise, and we'll continue driving, propelled on by the sun's warmer and warmer rays, directed to Solar Park. We'll face nice yellow long dunes at first, then we'll race on a "highway" of a sand track, carved among a set of very technical dunes, that will allow us to reach the heart of the Lisaili plateau's white color dunes, and on toward the natural conclusion of our sun-inspired drive, at Solar Park. 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 Thursday - 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

Long Range Patrol: Faqa to Bab al Shams via Ganthoot - Drive Report "It's your road, and yours alone. Others may walk it with you, but no one can walk it for you" - Rumi The spirit of this drive was both to revive the nature of desert crossings (long, dusty, hot, tiring) and to recreate the spirit of the caravans of the past, or the patrol units of more recent history, where the road is shared with good, often silent, company, but the journey is really an individual one, no matter how much help and support one gets from the caravan's buddies. The convoy was organized to provide such support and guidance, with each more experience member leading the way for the "younger" drivers, alternating the former with the latter, so that we could move smoothly as a unit, with as few hesitations as possible, and as much time to enjoy the drive in the company of our own thoughts, music, memories, etc.. As planned, we crossed the Faqa plateau in 1:10 hour, diverting slightly along the wat to skirt the eastern border with Abu Dhabi/Al Ain, reached Little Sweihan eastern entry point in 31 minutes of technical dunes, took 45 minutes to cut through the awesome canyons and bowls of this challenging area, drove in just less than 1 hour (circling the southern fenced area of the military shooting ground) to the western-most waypoint, just outside the Ganthoot outskirts (touching again AD's border), and finally zoomed north to the Bab al Shams exit in the remaining 90 minutes, through a mix of long dunes, sand bowls, and a final, tricky, technical area. In terms of "my own walking the road", I have to say the drive gave me a mixed bag of feelings. At times, I felt like I was driving "in the zone", with inspired, total concentration on the track ahead. Other times it opened up my field of vision, widening it to allow me to enjoy completely the landscape, the trees, the oryx and gazelles. There was a moment, in Little Sweihan, when I felt frustration at the forbidding paths that I seemed to be invariably choosing, taking the convoy into closed bowls, or attempting ridges that were proving too soft to cross from the slip-face, and making me change route a few too many times (for my taste). Finally, of course, the sense of satisfaction that comes with the completion of a long voyage, at the sight of the last sabkha, like a mirage through the gaps opening between the last tall and blinding white dunes. I can only hope the day provided each of this caravan's companions their own bouquet of emotions and feelings. My congratulations to all the Carnity's new Long Range Patrols (the small group of those who have completed 100Kms and above through the UAE deserts). Well done to all the Veterans - @MUHAMMAD Kashif RAZZAQ at Center Forward, @Abu Muhammadin Sweep, and @Archibald Jurdi, @GauravSoni, and @Jack Thomas, who kept the group together, and led their younger partners throughout the drive. Hat off to the Rookie Intermediates - @Mario Cornejo (thanks for providing a clean Second Lead), @Niki Patel, @Tariq Carrimjee and @Rob Harper, who faced the challenge with concentration and skills. The final stats say that we drove for 5:08 hours (of which 4:10 moving), covering 114 Km, at an average speed of 22Km/h (and 27Km/h while moving). The maximum drive's speed was 76Km/h. Have a great week, and see you soon in the sand.

Yes you can @Thomas Varghese.

Hi @Thomas Varghese Yes there are. The drive is still open. Copy that @Mobeen Anwar. Thanks

Copy that @I.M.Shousha إسلام أبوشوشة. Thanks

Dear Carnity Long Range Patrols let's get ready for tomorrow's drive! You all know about the spirit and the goals of this drive (BTW, did you read more about the glorious LRP's of Northern African glory?), so let's get into the details of our preparations for the drive. First, the weather conditions may be foggy, which may delay our departure until we regain sufficient visibility. Nonetheless, please be punctual at 6:00 AM, and start deflating and preparing the car for the drive, no matter the fog. Kindly deflate a bit more than usual, as the weather is getting hotter after sunrise, and we may need more traction on the softer sand. To reach the meeting point, make sure you follow Google Maps carefully, and take the exit just before Faqa. If you miss it, you will reach Faqa town, where you'll find the check-points to AD, and will have to turn back, losing quite some time. Once turned-off the highway, you will find our meeting point further up the location chosen by another Carnity, Fewbie group. Our location is past this first Carnity group., just on the sabkha on the left side of the tarmac. Once arrived, please tune into Carnity Channel #2 (446.031). Lastly, the convoy order. I have chosen to follow the example set by @Wrangeld, to scatter more expert drivers with "greener" ones (even though all belonging to the same rank). Therefore, those members with more drives under their belt will each be followed by a new Intermediate driver (we have just enough to scatter the group in this manner). The more expert drivers will "tutor" the younger ones, just by choosing the cleaner lines of approach, finding slightly cleaner tracks, showing them the right speed to build momentum, always, of course, following the track set in front of them (no diversions are allowed). Basically, just like in a true patrol unit, we'll work in pairs, the more experienced tutoring the younger one, each taking care of each other, including with recoveries. Based on this principle the convoy order is the following (next to each member you'll find an V, or R, for ""Veteran" or "Rookie", at the Intermediate rank: @Mario Cornejo #2 (R, will follow me, as SL) @Archibald Jurdi#3 (V), who will be tutoring @Niki Patel #4 (R) @GauravSoni at #5 (V) @Tariq Carrimjee at #6 (R) @Abu Muhammad at #7 @varunmehndiratta at #8 @Jack Thomas at #9 @Rob Harper at #10 while @MUHAMMAD Kashif RAZZAQ , as the last one, will have the responsibility of Sweeping the group. Now, enjoy you end of the week, and get rested for tomorrow morning.

Hello @VipinShetty. You are IN. Please re-confirm. Thanks a lot.

Hello @AlexPol. I cannot find you waitlisted for this Fewbie drive.

Hello @Jack Thomas. There is an open spot for the drive. Would you like to confirm? Thanks

Sorry to hear that @Ilya Golubinsky. Hope to see you soon.

Hello @jodha singh shekhawat. If you would like to confirm, there is an open spot on the drive. Thanks

Thanks for informing @rajeshkumar rathod. @Ehab are you still interested in joining the drive? Please confirm. Thanks

@VipinShetty there is one place for you in the drive. Would you please confirm your interest? Thanks

Sure @AlexPol. You will be #2 on the WL. Thanks

No worries @Thomas Varghese You'll debut soon. See you out there ASAP.

Thanks Gaurav 🙏. Trying to have fun, and add some new angles to the drives. Let's have a nice Advisors' exploration drive soon.

Ta-Da!!! Congrats @Thomas Varghese. I'll see you soon with your new and deserved rank. Enjoy it.

Dear Desertnauts, as you know by now, I like to alternate different drives, from relaxing (the Newbie ones) to more focused (Fewbie and Intermediates). All of them aim to visit areas which are as "new" as possible to off-roaders (at least from the international community), where it's still possible to find virgin dunes, and a limited number of old tracks. After a few times, even these areas start to look a bit "old" to me: that's when I start to mix things up, pasting a few tracks together, joining dots of two or more previous drives, to stretch the itinerary into a new challenge. This is how this Long Range Patrol drive came to be. A medley of three previous drives: Faqa Arboretum/The Other Side, Little Sweihan, and Ganhtoot Blitz. The philosophy of this drive stems from my old days as a desert guide (a hobby, not a job 😅), when the convoys were driving for days at the time, from place to place, joining dots on the huge map of Northern Africa, doing the best to simultaneously show our visitors all the beautiful sites, and always reaching the next destination in the smoothest and safest way. Hence, this will be a long drive, broken down in 3, or 4 parts (with a short, relaxing break each time), with the goal to find the most direct, yet enjoyable, route, to reach our final destination (either Bab al Shams, or Solar Park). Our driving skills will not be used to "show off", but to overcome obstacles and cover diverse terrains, in the most effortless and effective way. Great concentration, will be required. Water and some food will be necessary, to keep our attention at its peak. We are aiming to cover more than 100Km, on different terrains, mostly skirting the AD border, until we'll eventually veer toward Dubai, and our planned exit points. No frills are planned, but rather, gritty determination will be our most valuable tool. By the way, the drive's title not only explains its approach, but is also inspired by a real life, long gone, group of true explorers. Some of you, in fact, may know their story. The Long Range Desert Group (LRDG) was a reconnaissance and raiding unit of the British Army during WW2. Originally called the Long Range Patrol (LRP), the unit was founded in Egypt, in June 1940. The group was formed specifically to carry out deep penetration, covert reconnaissance patrols and intelligence missions from behind Italian lines, although they sometimes engaged in combat operations. Because the LRDG were experts in desert navigation, they were sometimes assigned to guide other units Check out this link, to know more about the LRP: Long Range Desert Group - Wikipedia. @Niki Patel, @varunmehndiratta, @Mario Cornejo, @Abu Muhammad, @GauravSoni, @MUHAMMAD Kashif RAZZAQ, @Archibald Jurdi, @Tariq Carrimjee, @Rob Harper and @Ilya Golubinsky, welcome to the unit. Looking forward to seeing you on Friday. Enjoy your week.

Hello @Jack Thomas. You are #1 on the WL. Thanks a lot.

Congrats @Ahmed Wagdy!!

Well done @Rob Harper. Congrats!

Easy peasy for you @Mario Cornejo (you could be part of "The Unstackables"). Well done!!

@varunmehndiratta that time we came from Solar Park, this time we'll go much further, to Ganthoot then back up to Qudra. Should be longer and more fun, Inshallah.

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 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 MUST READ AND TOTALLY AGREE: BAN POST Two Way Radio Guidelines Every Offroader brings his own radio, programmed to the frequencies described in below advice topic. We will not share spare radios or program your radio on the drive. If you need assistance in programming the radio, post a topic on the Carnity website with your questions and we will help you out. Make sure your radio is fully charged. It will be your only way of communication while driving. Before buying, please carefully read below advice so you are informed properly on which model / cost / shops... No radio = No drive. It is an essential tool and you should make sure you bring it on every drive and learn/practice how to use it. MUST WATCH: NEWBIE VIDEO BRIEFING Drive Details Level: Intermediate and above When: 9th April 2021, Friday. Meeting time: 6:00 AM (SHARP - Without any exceptions). Meeting Point: https://maps.app.goo.gl/7zGRqpLqtSCpQAtm7 Action Plan: It will be a long drive, following most of the southern borders between Sharjah, Dubai and Abu Dhabi. We will be traversing the Faqa Plateau, sabkhas and technical dunes to Little Sweihan, and onward around the military shooting ground, toward Ganthoot. From here the last dash will take us to the Bab al Shams road, and Qudra's surroundings. We are looking to drive in a determined and concentrated way, and all our skills will be used to complete the mission of covering well over 100 Km, rather than to show off and play around. 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 only. RSVP will close on Thursday - 3:00pm 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 below Calendar