Lorenzo Candelpergher

Drive Brief
This drive will allow to discover a beautiful and largely untamed stretch of desert, i.e. the area of Al Fayah in Abu Dhabi, on the south east side of E75 Al Fayah road. This area is known for its bright sand, its big dunes with sharp crests and its large swooping bowls. In such an ideal territory for a Newbie Drive, we will enter at dawn from E75, heading east straight into the rising sun, enjoying the amazing landscape in the golden hours when lights and shadows, thanks to the morning light, enhance the fascinating shapes of the dunes. After reaching an area of stunning rock formations unexpectedly emerging out of the sand, we will loop back to our entry point, getting back on the tarmac of E75, hopefully carrying away a great deal of fun and memories from this inspiring discovery drive.

General Infos

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
• Mandatory Safety Requirements
• Ban from Carnity Off-road Club
• Two Way Radio Guidelines

Drive Details

Level:  Newbie and above (All Levels)

When:  05 Nov 2021, Friday

Meeting time: 7:00 AM (SHARP - Without any exceptions)

Meeting Point: E75 Al Fayah Road - https://goo.gl/maps/pH1UmMLcUUawgqQAA

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, willingness to learn and your own compressor for tire inflation.

Approximate finish time: 11:00 AM

End Point: E75 Al Fayah Road

Limited Spots Available:

• Limited to 12 cars only. 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 EVENT 

22 hours ago, Lorenzo Candelpergher said:

As the sunset time was about to be reached, we made our move towards our last stop, Al Qudra's Moon Lake, where we enjoyed a well deserved, refreshing chill-out:

Dear @Larry Cadden, @Omar ElGamal, @Melenany, @Patrick van der Loo and @Looper, here's the drone shot of Moon Lake kindly taken by the newly made friend Lojain (met there on the spot) who might soon become a new @Carnity member:

See you soon! 

DRIVE REPORT

Dear Desert Wanderers, 

I was a bit skeptical this morning after so many dropouts from the RSVP.. It felt like this drive was not meant to happen, after all! 

I was so wrong!! In fact it was a beautiful drive, with a great convoy, across a wonderful landscape. 

After a quick briefing in the early afternoon warm sun, we started our drive by 2:35pm. 

The short convoy ultimately had only 6 cars, of which two Newbies, @Omar ElGamal and @Patrick van der Loo, driving  their first Newbie Drive after an Absolute Newbie and a Masterclass drive respectively, one Fewbie, @Larry Cadden, and more senior members. 

A shorter and stronger convoy usually means less stucks and refusals, more fun, more distance, more driving time. We actually ticked all the boxes, as we had only one stuck with @Omar ElGamal at the very beginning and very few refusals later on again with Omar and with @Patrick van der Loo. 

@Melenany managed well the only recovery of the day,  towing@Omar ElGamal out of a soft patch he had unfortunately ended in after correctly steering down on a slide slope where he had lost momentum. After this single episode our ropes (and shovels) never left our trunks until Moon Lake, when @Melenany lended his rope to help some sports car get unstuck nearby. 

As we headed west and then progressively south into the desert along a zig-zag route, we started practicing first some small slideslopes, then progressively bigger ones, alternated with smaller and bigger half circles, which allowed our Newbie friends to get the feeling of what it takes to climb up the windside of those long dunes and stay up there, sidelsloping for longer and longer distances, keeping the car afloat on the sand thanks to the right combination of speed (ie momentum), full or gentle throttle, and smooth and round steering up and down. 

Sidelsloping was indeed the leitmotiv of the day. What in the first 30 minutes seemed almost impossible to achieve, became progressively more doable as a result of extended practice: going just outside the comfort zone, in a safe and controlled way, eventually leads to realize how quickly the comfort zone gets bigger! 

It should be said that, while honing our driving skills we went through beautiful dunes and amazing views. 

We crossed multiple rocky formations which were so stunning to deserve a photo stop:

We then made it to the famous Richie's bar, a must-photograph location in Al Qudra for any offroader.. 

.. especially @Melenany:

We then continued across amazing long range dunes, where, besides sidelsloping, we could practice straight up - straight down dune crossing. We first started with some small ones .. 

.. but we quickly built up the confidence of our newbies to do way more challenging attempts:

We got to see oryxes and gazelles, some running just a few meters away, too fast to be captured in a photograph, but we also got to see amazing views in the "golden hour" before the sunset, when the light of the sun becomes warmer and more inclined, painting the sand with amazing colors and shades:

It was at this point that @Omar ElGamal's Pajero started having some apparent overheating problems. Weird case, though, as the temperature gauge showed normal values, the fluid in the tank was well within normal levels and the car was driving perfectly fine. Possibly an electronic malfunction, a faulty sensor or an issue on the radiator fan. As nothing indicated a real problem it was decided to allow Omar to complete the drive while keeping a close eye on the temperature gauge. 

As the sunset time was about to be reached, we made our move towards our last stop, Al Qudra's Moon Lake, where we enjoyed a well deserved, refreshing chill-out:

In the twilight after the sunset, we quickly made our way out through the sabkha, reaching the dirt track to Bab Al Shams and eventually the tarmac by 5:50pm.

Overall we drove the amazing distance of 55.2km over a total time of 3h 13' from start to end, of which 2h 29' spent in motion and 44' stopped, mostly for photos and a quick break as we certainly didn't lose much time on stucks and refusals.

Great kudos to @Omar ElGamal (let us know how your cooling problems got sorted) and @Patrick van der Loo for an excellent performance today, especially considering that, in a couple of places we surely reached good technical levels for a Newbie drive. For both of you the key takeaway today is keep up the momentum and never fight gravity (I must have repeated it a hundred times!). 

Great thanks to @Larry Cadden, an impeccable 2nd lead today, to @Melenany for an excellent support during stucks and refusals and to @Looper for a quiet but yet reassuring sweeping at the back. 

It was a pleasure being with you all, thanks for your company and see you soon again on the sand! 

8 minutes ago, Looper said:

@Lorenzo Candelpergher the meeting point is appearing as a place near Damac Hills 2 to me.  You mentioned that its near Solar Park in the post. Can you please clarify. 

 

Correct meeting point here:

https://maps.app.goo.gl/uSP6NNtqggKT4DgL7

Thanks for noticing. 

@Larry Cadden, @Omar ElGamal, @Patrick van der Loo, @Shyam Menon, @Melenany, @Shantanu Joshi, @Rouaj, @GratefulKRD, @Gerrit Bus, @hasan hamadeh, @Looper, pls notice the correct meeting point above. All references to the meeting point have been amended. 

1 hour ago, Shantanu Joshi said:

Hi Lorenzo, my 6 year old son has started feeling a lil down with a cold etc just now. I am on for sure as of now. But will need to take a final call in the morning once he wakes. I will try to do it as early as possible. In case I cannot leave home then I will remove myself and try to contact 1st waiting list person.

Fingers crossed. 

Dear @Shantanu Joshi, sorry to hear the news. I hope your son will be better. Take all the time you need to decide, family first of course. Just drop me a message when you decide.

36 minutes ago, hasan hamadeh said:

sorry guys. can't make it tommorow.

Dear @hasan hamadeh, sorry to hear you'll miss the drive and thanks you for letting me know. 

Dear Desert Wanderers, 

this RSVP is now closed.

Please find below the convoy order for our drive:

@Larry Cadden, @Omar ElGamal, @Patrick van der Loo, @Shyam Menon, @Melenany, @Shantanu Joshi, @Rouaj, @GratefulKRD, @Gerrit Bus, @hasan hamadeh, @Looper, this drive is going to be thrilling and exciting, as we explore a variety of mid-sized and long range dunes around Al Qudra, with the opportunity to enjoy the beauty of the landscape painted by the sunset light. On the other hand, as many of you are on your very first drive after the Absolute Newbie experience, this will also be a very demanding drive, requiring your full and undivided concentration at every step, so make sure you come well rested and hydrated and that and you don’t have any reason for being distracted. Also, please consider carefully if you wish to bring passengers along with you, and if they do, especially if you are not sure whether they might suffer from motion sickness.

We will be using Carnity Channel 4 (446.08125Mhz)

Our meeting point will be here, along Al Qudra - Solar Park Road: https://maps.app.goo.gl/uSP6NNtqggKT4DgL7

Should you have any difficulties, you may contact me at my mobile: +971-52-8222224.

See you tomorrow afternoon by :2:00pm (sharp). Please do your best to reach on-time (or, possibly, a few minutes in advance), so we can orderly get ready by deflating / mounting our flags and gather for the briefing as fastly as possible in order to enjoy the maximum duration of the drive before sunset.

I will be posting all info shortly.

Dear @GauravSoni, congratulations for your deserved promotion.

It is always a great pleasure to be in your company in a desert drive and if one thing is sure about you is that, should anything happen, you'll be there to help. 

Looking forward to the next drive toghether!

3 hours ago, GratefulKRD said:

Waitlist me as I can’t seem to join

Hi @GratefulKRD, it looks you made it into the RSVP eventually.

3 hours ago, Fabien Monleau said:

Hi Lorenzo, you may remove me from this drive as I will join the Fewbie Drive ? Thanks in advance and have a nice drive… Fabien

Dear @Fabien Monleau I removed you from the RSVP. 

3 hours ago, Shantanu Joshi said:

Look forward to the drive... Cheers

Great to have you in the convoy! 

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:  Newbie Above (All Levels)

When: 29 Oct 2021, Friday

Meeting time: 02:00 PM (SHARP - Without any exceptions)

Meeting Point: Qudra (TBA)

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, willingness to learn and your own compressor for tire inflation.

Approximate finish time: 06:00 PM

Limited Spots Available:

• Limited to 12 cars only. 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 below link

I will definitely join! Ready to jump in, get winched or winch, whatever it will be.. 

Congrats @Aisha S, well done! 

Great achievement @Lawrence_Chehimi and well deserved promotion. See you soon on the sand. 

Congratulations @Raman_Dbx on a well deserved promotion. Looking forward to drive soon toghether. 

4 minutes ago, varunmehndiratta said:

Hi @Lorenzo Candelpergher understand there is some issue with distance from road as well in these insurance. .. or do you have insurance which provide complete coverage...? Believe @Srikumar as well raised same point ..have AXA and i believe it mentions 50mtr.or something. Need to check. 

 

Hi @varunmehndiratta, as I said, it totally depends on the specific policy. When I took mine, I made sure the whole UAE is covered without limitations or exclusions or other covenants such as max distance from the road. 

22 minutes ago, Srikumar said:

Do comprehensive insurance with offroad coverage provide desert recovery? In the past when I did have a comprehensive cover with offroad coverage from Oman Insurance, they mention a clause that recovery will be done a certain distance from the road (or something like that). They covered accidents / rolls, etc in the sand, but not desert recovery. But my information could be outdated as well. 

Yes, proper off-road coverage, if taken under a general comprehensive car insurance, should generally guarantee full recovery from offroad areas. Of course it is key to read the wording of the policy properly before taking it.. 

This below is an excerpt from my RSA Motor Smart policy:

Totally agree with @Srikumar's feedback. On top of it, personally, I would stress the importance of having a proper and comprehensive off-road insurance. 

This is something that very often is underestimated until it is too late. Yes, it is an extra cost but it is also extra peace of mind, whether you damage your vehicle, you damage someone else's one or you have a mechanical failure which requires a professional recovery.

When any of these things happen, that extra cost all of a sudden becomes very small in comparison to the actual cost of the repairs or the recovery. 

DRIVE REPORT 

Dear Desert Wanderers, 

The area of Al Bataeh is always surprisingly beautiful and surprisingly technical everytime a new bunch of drivers accepts the challenge to drive through it with me (as I'm the only @Carnity Lead venturing in this area). 

We had a relatively short convoy and a beautiful clear day, with no fog at all, which started with a magic sunrise:

We moved on the sand at 6:15am, a bit later than planned due to a couple of last minute arrivals. Just 5 minutes into the drive we had our 1st stop as @Josh T.'s front left tire had suddenly deflated. After a quick reinflation, we moved again only to acknowledge that the tire was probably punctured or leaking and not sustaining the pressure beyond just a few of mins. It was then decided, as sad as it may be, to drive back to the entry point and let @Josh T. reinflate again and drive on tarmac to the nearest tire shop.

After greeting our friend, we headed back into the dunes to start the journey of the day, across complex mid-sized dunes with unpredictable shapes and lots, lots of large bushes. 

The drive, as always in Al Bataeh, immediately became really technical, requesting all drivers to focus 100% on the driving to control their cars in tight maneuvering spaces, steep climbs, steeper descents, complex passages and tricky slide slopings, all of this while dodging bushes almost everywhere. 

Despite all the challenges, the convoy did amazingly well, with almost no refusal and, for a long portion of the drive, not a single stuck, despite the difficult terrain and the soft sand. 

We smoothly moved north, cruising around way better than I had expected. This gave us the chance to reach quite close to Khorfakkan Road on the north, cross the relatively flat central area near the farms and head south again for a while after climbing on top of the high dunes overlooking the sabkha on the east side. 

The views from there were stunning, and photos don't really give the idea of how majestic the place is:

After a couple of daring climbs, @Mohammed Mansoor, who otherwise did exceptionally well on this drive, his 1st Fewbie one, got crested in a difficult spot which required some winching. 

A few minutes earlier @Daniel Yang had brilliantly self-recovered from another tricky refusal, in soft and churned-up sand. His overall drive was remarkable at the back, given the difficult conditions. 

Other than these two episodes, there were just a few refusals here and they were all brilliantly managed. 

Our 2nd lead @Gregory had quite a lot of work today as I was often forced to ask him to redirect or hold as finding the way wasn't always so obvious. Always responsive and cautious, I couldn't have asked for better. 

At the center of the convoy @Bernard Kalaaniand @munkybizness did both well. A lot of workout today, steering around so much in tight spaces, but both brilliant. 

Last but not least, @Sunil Mathew was an excellent Sweep at the back. Getting through the churned up sand might have not been that easy, but I don't recall a single refusal today. Lots of timely radio communications, on the other hand, very exhaustive and therefore appreciated. 

Around 9am we were doing very very well and I was about to shift more to the west side, to then start our final stint across the complex dunes that lead to Al Khorfakkan Road in the north side. Everything was going as per plans: too good to be true.. 

All of a sudden, coming down from an innocuous descent, I couldn't avoid smashing into a small, hidden and tricky pocket.. Quite a strong impact, I must say, but no apparent damage to the car, however, as we moved further on, I started to hear a strange noise from the front suspensions.

Having no senior support in the drive and having to face quite a challenging last 30 mins stint, I opted to cut the drive a little shorter and avoid any risk. 

By 9.30am we were out on the tarmac on Al Bataeh Road. We overall drove 3h 16', stopping for 40' in total, at an average moving speed of 17.6km/h, not bad given the terrain. 

Eventually, I took my car to Jeep and found out that one engine support was broken, so exiting earlier was the right thing to do.. 

Congrats everyone for the brilliant drive. Look forward to seeing you soon on my next Fewbie drive! 

Congratulations @Mohammed Mansoor on your fast promotion. Well done with your Y62 and very pleased to have led your 1st FB drive this morning 

Dear Desert Wanderers, 

Last minute convoy order for tomorrow:

1. Lorenzo Candelpergher

2. Sunil Mathew @Sunil Mathew

3. Mohammed Mansoor @Mohammed Mansoor

4. Josh T. @Josh T.

6 Bernard Kalaani @Bernard Kalaani

7. Munkybizness @munkybizness

8 Daniel Yang @Daniel Yang

9. Gregory @Gregory

10. Jodha singh shekhawat @jodha singh shekhawat

The meeting point as per a drive post, ie the roundabout at the intersection of Al Bataeh Road with E102 Sharjah-Kalba Road - https://goo.gl/maps/jqJgB18J8xkuQg9t9    

We will be using channel 4

Pls make sure you are ready (deflated, flagged) by 6:00am sharp, so try to reach at least by 5:45am. 

Dear Desert Wanderers, 

this RSVP is now closed.

Please find below the convoy order for our drive:

@Mario Cornejo, @Rawad, @Alain Canivet-Abikhalil, @JeromeFJ, @Chinthaka Ruwan, @Arman, @Ranjan Das, @Russ, @Shaaz Sha, this drive is going to be thrilling and exciting, going across a terrain that will be new to almost all of the drivers, beautiful and majestic, but very challenging from a technical point of view, with tricky soft sand everywhere. The drive will be very demanding, both mentally for the drivers and mechanically for the cars. It will require your full and undivided concentration at every step, especially when we will reach elevated positions on steep slopes, so make sure you come well rested and hydrated and that and you don’t have any reason for being distracted. Also, please consider carefully if you wish to bring passengers along with you. As far as your vehicle is concerned, please make sure that you have checked its perfect conditions (tow points, tires, fluids levels) as we are supposed to cover over 80km tomorrow.

We will be using Carnity Channel 4 (446.08125Mhz).

Our meeting point is confirmed as per drive post: https://goo.gl/maps/Mf11NJccmLJrgbEv5 . For those who are new to Sweihan, once you exit the E16, you will have to cross a gate, that automatically opens when you approach it. 

Please make sure you come with a FULL TANK.

The nearest petrol station coming from Dubai / Abu Dhabi is here: https://goo.gl/maps/N9dL153xVhABBqJt6
The nearest petrol station coming from Al Ain is here: https://goo.gl/maps/BUrnVktkLWvaVDbs7  

See you tomorrow morning, ready to go (i.e. already caffeinated, deflated, flagged and briefed) by no later than 6:00am (sharp), so make sure you make it to the meeting point at least by 5:45am. 

3 hours ago, Rawad said:

Hello @Lorenzo Candelpergher

I have just changed my tyres and wheels, and I do know for a fact that new tyres cause some trouble offroading in the first couple of weeks until they sit tightly on the wheel bead

Nevertheless, my new wheels are Method with bead grip technology that should be preventing pop-outs better than normal wheels, yet of course not as good as bead locks

I will leave this to your judgment. If you believe its not recommended to be on an intermediate trip when trying new tyres, then I will gladly withdraw

Dear @Rawad, it is true that there might be less friction between tire beads and rims when a new tire is mounted, however if you have already changed your tires a couple days before the drive and driven a reasonable distance (say 100km at least) on the new tires, the extra risk is minimal or none st all and I would be more than happy to see you join the drive.

If, on the opposite, it is a last minute change and you get you new tires tomorrow evening for Friday morning, I'd advise you otherwise, ie not to come.

Having said so, if you decide to come, you should make sure you come driving as usual, ie not scared by the thought you may have a popout, as changing your driving style and adding extra hesitation in the terrain we plan to drive trhough, can only increase your chances to actually get pop-outs or get stuck somewhere. 

On the other hand, you should rest reassured that we will fix as many pop-outs as you may have, as this is part of the game, and you really shouldn't worry about it: your Marshal for Friday is known as the still undisputed "king of pop-outs", meaning I had way more pop-outs myself thananyone else and way more than those I helped fixing for others, so I still have to even my score. 🤣🤣🤣

46 minutes ago, varunmehndiratta said:

Oh dear....was waiting for it since long .. @Lorenzo Candelpergher ny possibility i can be get a  floating attendance pass to this drive..? Have an event this Thursday, not sure if it will end in time for me to get some rest and be there for drive .. so not in position to confirm but really interested to join...so if an exceptional open pass possible? Will surely inform before i hit bed on Thursday night...🙏

Dear @varunmehndiratta, I'll consider you waitlisted for the time being.