Ale Vallecchi

Way to go @Jun Zamora. Congrats for a well earned promotion.

Brava Angela (artistic name @Foxtrot Oscar) !!! Your progression has been amazing. Looking forward to many more drives together.

Great job Jamie (better known as @Desert Dweller) !!! This is wonderful news, for one of the most passionate, enthusiastic and fearless drivers I have seen lately.

Very good @Janarthan. Great drives are awaiting!!

Well done @Hatim Patharia

Good job @Yousef Alimadadi. You've improved greatly, so now it's time for a new positive challenge.

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. Drive Details Level: Fewbie and Above When: 25 September 2020, Friday. Meeting time: 5:30 AM (SHARP - Without any exceptions) Action Plan: We will explore a BRAND NEW AREA, where 2 separate convoys will follow roughly the same path, each leaving at opposite ends, and exiting at the other convoy' starting point. The 2 convoys plan to meet halfway through the drive to exchange a symbolic "baton" (like in a relay track race). The "relay" format is a safe way to drive 2 convoys through the same area, and give more drivers the opportunity of visiting this very new desert location. We will practice controlled driving over technical dunes, side sloping, principles of ridge riding and crossing (low dunes), at a leisurely pace. Meeting Point: https://maps.app.goo.gl/xd5Zhkx4EP9UtM567 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: 09:30 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 Fewbie and above drivers. 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. 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

The Longest Drive (not the movie) - 100 Km Challange As exlpained in the drive's preview, an accidentally long Fewbie drive, of just more than 94 Km (due to an extension for exiting a troubled car), had wet my appetite for an even longer drive: why not 100 Km, at least? Luckily, within the Dubai emirate there is ample choice of long stretches of desert, connected by small and medium sabkhas, to allow the drawing of a drive plan of at least 100 Km. Departing at 5:50 from the northern Faqa area, the convoy moved rapidly along, heading west through the lightly forested area which I call "the Arboretum" (due to the presence of numerous trees, exploiting the existence of subterranean water seeping through the neighbouring sabkha area) . Temperature at departure was the coolest recorded so far this summer (26 C.), and the terrain was still wet from the night-time and early morning humidity, which made the drive easier. As planned, we managed to cover this first stretch in 1 hour and 8 minutes. After a short water break, we headed toward the area of "Little Sweihan", reachable through a mix of sabkhas and more technical dunes. This is an area of long corridors of higher dunes (more like canyons in my opinion), quite close to one another, and filled with bowls full of soft sand, that deposits here after being carried by the wind through the large northern open plain (the one going toward Solar Park). After running to its western end (indicated by a metal fence running along a sand track), we doubled back for half of Little Sweihan length, before we headed north, toward the limit of the Solar Park plain. We concluded this second leg of our drive in exactly another hour. The third leg of the long range drive took us through some lower technical dunes, then, using the faster track along the bike path, eventually to reach the Bab al Shams sector of Qudra. This is a location which we have recently explored quite a bit, enjoying its mix of open and tighter long range dunes, separated very often by flat surfaces from which emerge a jungle of fantastically shaped clay rock formations. The sand in this area turns from the yellow of the two previous places to a bright, almost blinding white, which makes reading the dunes quite challenging. Crossing this area has taken us precisely another hour. The final part of the long trek saw the convoy navigate the western and the northern sections of what is properly known as Qudra. We moved north along the western border, toward a big farm visible from the Qudra-Bab al Shams tarmac road, then turned east to drive along the northern border, until we reached our exit point. As many know about this favorite Carnity paly-ground, the area has a mix of long range, very open white sand dunes, and tighter technical dunes. Due to the nature of the drive we avoided the latter as much as possible, and exploited the former, taking every opportunity to ride the long ridges. In the end we reached the planned exit point, at Qudra Lakes, after an additional hour. The short convoy of @Foxtrot Oscar, @Lorenzo Candelpergher, @J J and @Junaid Sayeed managed to drive in perfect unison, with almost no refusals, and only a couple of stucks (on of mine, on a ridge, which luckily was solved by a bit of A-Trac action), and completed a flawless drive of 106.2 Km in 4:03 hours (of which 3:27 moving), at an average speed of 26 Km/h (and 31 Km/h while moving). As the drive was conceived to cover a lot of ground, we purposefully avoided a lot of specifically marked play areas, and did not purse the goal of climbing the highest dune, but concentrated on moving as quickly as possible through the designated areas. The challenge, therefore, was to face and manage obstacles on the way with speed and control, to reach each way-point in the shortest (and safest) possible time. Hats off to the whole driving crew, for crossing most of the dunes from the slip-face side, which is certainly more tricky than from the harder wind-swept side. This should serve as a footnote to anybody planning a similar drive. The advantage of following this same itinerary in the morning, is to drive without the sun in the face, with the disadvantage of crossing the dunes from the slip-side (except the first half of the Faqa segment). If driving in the afternoon, it should be easier to reverse the itinerary, and drive still with the sun behind the back, plus crossing from the dunes' hard-side.

Dear Desertnauts. As usual, time for the convoy numbering, and the last minute info about the drive. The convoy will travel with @Foxtrot Oscar in Second Lead, followed by @J J at #3, @Lorenzo Candelpergher in the #4 spot, and @Junaid Sayeed in the Sweep position. As far as recovery duties are concerned, as usual in my Intermediate drives, I'd like all drivers to be involved, so each will take care of the car either in front or behind, depending on the best position to recover from. Junaid, or myself as second option, will always assist the attempted recoveries. Regarding the drive itself, as we are planning a long excursion, I would like to complete each sector in approximately 1 hour (barring any difficult situation we may encounter). The sectors we look to complete at the end of each hour are 1) Faqa (Northern Side) to Little Sweihan, 2) from here to the edge of Solar Park, then on to 3) complete the Bab al Shams area, and finally 4) the Qudra segment, from Bab al Shams (western side) to Qudra proper and the parking area. I am hoping to depart as soon as there is sufficient light (officially at 5:43), so please be as punctual as possible at the meeting point, proceeding with deflating as soon as you reach it. We will tune into Carnity Channel 2 (446.031). Looking forward to seeing you tomorrow, have a great end of the week.

Of course @Chaitanya D. Makes sense. Looking forward to seeing you soon.

Hi @Chaitanya D. What happened to the car? Hope it gets fixed soon.

Hi @Najeeb Mohammed. Understood. Thanks, and hope to see you the following week.

@Kalahari I am really sorry not to see you this week!

@Foxtrot Oscar and @Junaid Sayeed, just a reminder that all drivers need to have read and acknowledged the Covid-19 rules on the web site. If you have not done so yet, please acknowledge by clicking on the "Totally Agree" icon at the bottom of the rules' post. If you have already done so, I'll update my file (and sorry for the oversight). Thanks a lot.

Congrats @Junaid Sayeed. Looking forward to seeing you this weekend.

Complimenti @Lorenzo Candelpergher. Well earned!! Hope to see you very soon for an Italian connection drive 🟩⬜🟥

RUMBLE IN THE JUNGLE - Sea to Mountain Exploration drive's report Exploration was the goal, and explore we did. The drive's idea was to find new locations, off the beaten track, with potential for providing new learning experiences for the members, and the possibility of honing less developed off-roading abilities. This first exploration aimed to find a way from the sea to the mountains of RAK. To face such daunting task, we thought of filling up with some munchies at Barracuda's Thunder Road Grill, before setting off into the little known territory. After meeting up with the rest of the drivers by the Emirates Motorplex, just in front of UAQ's russian plane relic (see link above to witness its last landing), we ventured into the "savannah" like environment that characterizes the first kilometres toward E611. The plants here benefit from the high water level seeping through from the sea, and belong to botanical families which thrive on soils high in salinity. Vegetation is very abundant, mostly of creeping ground plants (gourds), or low bushes, both thorny and succulent. The sand dunes are very low, and covered, for the most part, by the abundant vegetation. Occasional higher cordons rise from the low plain (we are actually below the sea level here), with small goat and camel farms perched on their tops. Even these low dune cordons are tricky to navigate, due to their tightness and the presence of numerous steps and pockets. Moving toward E311 the bushes leave more room to groups of taller Ghaf trees, which become quite abundant once across the highway, giving the area a more forested look. Goat farms, herds of camels, and some small sabkhas, white from the evaporation of saline water, separate E311 from a large, very irregular, cordon of dunes (almost a plateau), beyond which E611 is occasionally visible. Playing on these dunes proved to be a small challenge, due to their tight and unpredictable nature: yet play a little we did, practicing some side sloping in a deep send bowl, with a big Ghaf tree in its middle. With E611 in sight we drove along the eastern side of the sand plateau, on a track jammed between the trees and the dunes, until we found ourselves on an elevated sand ledge, dotted with gnarly trees, where a couple of major stucks on the very churned sand forced us to make a prolonged stop, just while dusk turned into night. That's when the Rumble in the Jungle begun: the whole group came into action, some shoveling, some tying double ropes to the cars, others literally clearing the ares from the sturdy shrubs, or illuminating the very tight spaces where the recovery manoeuvres were taking place. After the successful group recovery effort, the delay meant we had to find our way out of the area with an exiting night drive, looking for, and trying to follow, very faintly marked tracks, away from the fenced area close to E611, and back toward E311, on the other side of the sand plateau. After a couple of failed attempts we did manage to climb the tallest dune of the day (and night), and reached the exit point: it was 4:46 hours after departure, with 38.6Km on the odometer, driven at an average moving speed of 16 Km/h. My hat goes off to all the drivers, for managing very smoothly a very difficult and unusual terrain: good job @Kalahari, @Pancho, @Desert Dweller, @Chaitanya D, @Srikumar (special thanks for your guidance and assistance during the more difficult moments of the drive), @Najeeb Mohammed, @Rinelle Sanaani (you missed the fun night part of the drive), and the Pajeep duo (@Jeepie and @Wrangeld), for brilliantly navigating at the back, on very challenging tracks. See you all soon for Sea to Mountain Part 2: from E611 to Al Khail, at the foot of the Hajar Mlountains. In the meantime, have a great week.

After a weekend of slow paced, finesse driving, here comes the long trek, high energy adventure. Fast, but not furious, as safety always comes first. The longest possible drive without crossing borders, from the boundary with Al Ain (Faqa) to almost Dubai city limits (Qudra Parking). Four fun areas to cross: Faqa (the "arboretum", northern side), Little Sweihan, then up toward Bab al Shams quadrant of Qudra, and finally Qudra proper. Bring your concentration (we wish the convoy to move in unison), nerve (criss-crossing will abound) and stamina (we hope to drive for about 4 hours....inshallah). More news in a few days.

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. Drive Details Level: Intermediate and above When: 18 Sep 2020, Friday Meeting time: 5:30 AM (SHARP - Without any exceptions) Action Plan: This is a NAVIGATION drive. We will cover as many Km as possible (minimum 100Km), driving at a faster pace, avoiding technical areas (unless impossible) and looking to move quickly across marked waypoints, between Faqa (Sharjah) and Qudra Parking (Dubai), via Little Sweihan, Solar Park and the Bab al Sham sectors. Meeting Point: https://goo.gl/maps/VPfXifBrbtqPhUme6 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: 09:30 AM THIS IS A COMPRESSOR ONLY DRIVE. WE WILL END THE DRIVE AT A 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 Intermediate and above drivers. 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. 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

@Kalahari, @Chaitanya D, @Desert Dweller, @Wrangeld the booking at the Grill has been made for 1:30PM in the name of Carnity. See you soon. @Srikumar, @Najeeb Mohammed, @Rinelle Sanaani, @Pancho and @Febin Frederic you can refill at the Eppco gas station just on the other side of the road in front (more or less) of Dreamland Aquapark. See you all soon.

No worries @asifk. Enjoy your visitors. Will see you on the next drive.

Umm Al Quwain's airport plane's mystery solved. https://youtu.be/PH9PLvHb_jk Hi @Shiju Manuel. Sorry to hear that. See you next time.

SMOOTH OPERATORS - Bab al Shams Newbie Drive Report Not used to leading Newbie convoys, I chose an area that allows to drive smoothly for quite a long stretch, with multiple exit areas, and a relatively forgiving terrain (yet with the opportunity to increase the challenge according to the convoy's potential). All drivers responded brilliantly, completing the excursion with minimum refusals, and only one stuck (quickly dealt with). Congratulations to @Mahmoud Hamzawy for executing his first Second Lead with precision and care, and to @David Ortells for his support at Center Forward, from which he guided the few refusals, and the only recovery. Perfect drive by the Jeep contingent (@Andrei, @Hatim Patharia, @Vijaysekhar, @Shaaz Sha and @Arun Mathew), the other component of the FJ pack @Christian Andras and @Anand Nataraj, the lone XTerra driver: well done all of you. A special mention goes to @Hardik Mody, for managing with great attention his Montero (the less "desert oriented" car of the bunch), overcoming his initial hesitancy, and crossing all obstacles with good care and ease. Finally, special thanks to @Wrangeld for his always vigilant presence, which this time was made easier and more relaxed by the convoy's discipline and smooth driving. Smooth is the word that comes to mind more often when describing this drive, as smooth it was. This should not be taken for granted on a Newbie drive, considering we also traversed a couple of quite tricky technical areas, where I was expecting many more complications. Apparently less "scary" to a greener driver than the big, tall dunes, these technical areas are everywhere in the desert, and their crossing will need to be mastered just as much as the apparently more fun crossing of famous, more spectacular landmarks. The convoy did brilliantly, finessing its way through some small but treacherous steps, without damaging bumpers, digging itself into soft sand, or needing any major redirection. The other technical skill we practiced on the long range dunes of this sector was side sloping, which also went....smoothly, with only a couple of refusals, due to soft sand. My congratulations to the convoy, as I did not see any of the fishtailing, sliding off the dune, or fighting gravity that sometimes are seen at this level: all cars took the correct approach, used the right momentum, and exited with good form. We also enjoyed a bit of night driving, in the last part of the itinerary, through the mud formations and the sand track toward the exit. The statistics testify the smoothness of this drive in terms of its length and speed: 45.4 Km., driven at an average moving speed of 23 Km/h, in 2:34 hours time. Good Job everybody, and see you soon.