Thanks @Gaurav for a wonderful drive. It was quite fun drive. The drive was one of those types that I like most. I never before enjoyed a night drive as much as of last night.
It seemed like @M.Seidam @Jeepie and especially @Rizwanm2had few refusals to take care of. I like refusals in night drives, (sorry to say that) for it gives me time to enjoy the tranquility of the desert in the night.
Being behind the lead I can only comment on my drive. It was my first drive with my new lift and 2nd one with the new tires and I am still new to the changed driving stance. Crossing dunes seemed a lot more easier yesterday, without the usual scooping of sand. I was however a bit worried if I might have a pop out as it happened a couple of times in my last drive and I was driving in a slightly sedated manner.
My first refusal occurred due to the lighter gas than it was required and the recovery issues seemed to be due to 4 wheel drive not engaging properly, since you mentioned that my front wheels were not moving. In my last drive I had a “Service 4WD” message pop up and it came at the fag end while exiting and wasn’t sure what it was doing. Apart from that one time I did not seem to have any issues for rest of the drive. And the second refusals was because I have to live up to my new profile name, and take some loops to come back on track. I just slipped out to the other side of the ridge as I suffered a momentary lack of concentration, since I was looking at my son; who was asleep by then - if he was comfortable or not.
PS: It is important to be able to keep adequate distance while observing what the lead/driver in front is doing, one of the skills everyone must practice. This will help to assess how to proceed with tackling the terrain, while giving enough time and space to not getting oneself stuck back to back in a difficult situation.