Hisham Masaad

6 hours ago, Nilakantan Erode said:

Thanks Folks. Appreciate the feedback. Very useful. Lots to think about. Feels great to get these views and be part of the community already.

@Krishna RThis is my 2nd car. I work from home... so whereas city driving will be there this should be a good off road vehicle especially when i wont have access to my primary vehicle (often used by my wife). I like the Y62 but as stated above...have concerns on the heaviness). 

@Frederic Pajero does look like a good option. Used to own this late 90s (when i used  to live and work in Dubai in a different / simpler times) but that time i was  a light / casual off roader. Don't think Carnity existed that time. Not sure of support / spare parts for Pajero with Mitsubishi deciding to stop production. should be okay for a few years...i guess! The Wrangler is good...but is not passing the wife approval test (critical stakeholder) for city driving!. Nissan V6 VTC..is of course very popular and proven off-road but if i start using this for city  ...not that comfortable. And ..again ...not something that would pass the wife test easily. Titanium V6..seems good for city ...even my wife likes it...but therein lies the catch..as i do feel that stock car may not do for dune bashing. Tough choices!

@Benjaminyes...doing some scenarios on city / off road usage. this is the key. Wrangler is good...just have to get some critical stakeholder across the line.  

@Rizwanm2Am on the look out for good used Prado / LC. not been easy to spot. Not surprised...but search will continue.

@Gaurav Rubicon does sound attractive...but i don't want to be overambitious. maybe can start with Sport / Sahara and have off some $s.  Will think about Patrol SWB. FJ sounds interesting. No new stcok though and will need to looout for used / preowned. Don't understand the visibility issue but will check out. I do like the Prado / LC options but . need to wait for a good one. New ones are anyway 2-3 months away at least.

@Hisham MasaadWill check FJC. Prado ...need to search more...new ones not avalbl readily and need to search more thoroughly for a good used one.

At his point of time...Pajero is one option ...relatively new and lowest cost option in my set.  Wrangler Sahara is another one...off road credentials are good ignoring relatively less city comfort and resale later . Will try to understand Y62 limitations and costs to make it fully off-road capable (cant believe i am saying this about a Patrol). City / casual off-road is fine for the stock vehicle i guess... ignoring fuel efficiency! And not sure i should be locking in this much in a new vehicle.

Need to also explore used vehicle options further. But some of the above feedback and other views in the forum provides a good starting point. Am certainly better off than i was a couple of days back when i was wondering how to start my off-road vehicle buying journey.

Again...lots of things to explore. The forum has given some good points to think about. A week back...I was not sure how / where i should start in my off road vehicle hunt. Feeling much better now!

FJ  2022 used to be available in a very good condition, low mileage and certified. I bought one last few months and as good as new. Hope they are still available, check Al Futaim.

@Nilakantan Erode FJ or Prado only !

We request every member that joins this drive to go through the information below and strictly follow these guidelines, etiquette, and responsibilities.

MUST READ AND COMPLY

• Environmental Policy
• Offroad Flag Guideline
• Two Way Radio Guideline
• Off road Driving Etiquette's
• Emergency details for all off-roaders
• Off Road Driving - Roles & Responsibilities

Drive Details

Level:  Fewbie and Above 

When:  23 June 2023, Friday.

Meeting time: 5:00 AM (SHARP - Without any exceptions)

Meeting Point: https://goo.gl/maps/czhFkdDuhbNMKQyc8

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: 8:00 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.
  • 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

Congratulations @Frans M well done 

Amazing news @Frederic, obviously missed it, and glad you and all enjoyed. Look forward to join another one soon. 

Congratulations @DP1011 well deserved ... well done 👏👏

Congratulations @Simon Dwell done and well deserved

Great drive, with great convoy, kept moving, without any shovel and tug. Everyone was on time, deflated and ready for briefing. Started moving towards pink rock, where we climbed, and all made it to the top easily, and from first attempt. After that started moving towards big red, all went nicely. Only few refusals, managed in no time, with the guidance of great support of @DP1011 and @Sunil Mathew . Thank you very much Deepak and Sunil. Glad to meet new members  @Deepak Eswar    @Cristian  @george charbel  @Juan R who did great. Nice meeting you again @Rk ram @Nadeem Ansari . Thank you @Abdelghani for great SL. Below screen shot of the drive today.

Nice weekend.

Dear friends @Abdelghani @Deepak Eswar @Cristian @Nadeem Ansari @DP1011  @Juan R @Rk ram @george charbel @Sunil Mathew thank you for joining the drive. We will be moving as mentioned below, using radio channel 2. For any requirement you can reach me on 0506318834.  See you tomorrow morning 5:15am.

We request every member that joins this drive to go through the below information and strictly follow these guidelines, etiquettes and responsibilities.

MUST READ AND COMPLY

• Offroad Flag Guideline
• Two Way Radio Guideline
• Off road Driving Etiquette's
• Emergency details for all off-roaders
• Off Road Driving - Roles & Responsibilities
   

DRIVE DETAILS

When:  10th June 2023, Saturday

Meeting time:  5:15 AM - Sharp (Without any exceptions)

Meeting Point:  https://goo.gl/maps/Mh5ELgz5QJkEE5xVA

Action Plan:  From Nahel to Nahel, through dunes, bowls and sabkhas

Approximate finish time: 8:30 AM

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, enthusiasm and willingness to learn.

Recommended off-road gears: Walkie-talkie radio and off-road flag (MANDATORY), plus tire deflator, tire pressure gauge, compressor, walkie-talkie radio, off-road flag, shovel, first-aid kit and fire extinguisher.

LIMITED SPOTS AVAILABLE

• This drive is limited to 10 cars only. RSVP will close on Friday - 12 PM.
• If the RSVP is full, you can add your name to the waitlist, once anyone drops, you will be moved to the RSVP list.
• RSVP will close a day prior to preparing a convoy 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 CALENDAR

Drivers make the drive. You guys were amazing, yes short convoy, but all was keeping the pace, controlling, and with very good driving skills managed to keep moving. Weather was helping to enjoy. Dunes somehow disturbed and got irregular and unexpected after the windy days, but at the end, drive was good and i personally enjoyed, and hope all of you. Thank you @Patrick van der Loo for joining as SL, you did it perfectly. @Tareq Al Turq amazing SW, and @Mark B @Gary F @Ahmad Neratglad to meet you again and thank you for joining. 

Look forward again to see you in sand friends, and wish you a nice week end.

Dear Badayer friends, @Mark B @Patrick van der Loo @Tareq Al Turq @Ahmad Nerat @Gary Fhope all had a good working week, and looking for some relief. Hope with a short convoy our drive will be enjoyable. We will be moving as per below order, using channel 2. Please make sure your radio is already programmed. For any requirement you can reach me on 0506318834. Look forward to see you tomorrow morning 5:15am.

Nice evening.

2 hours ago, Ishak said:

@Hisham Masaad I was sleepy when unintentionally pressed the manage button 😅. Please kick me out.

Will do @Ishak, but in which direction? Towards going or out of the drive😅

Dear @Nadeem Ansari thank you for joining. However your rank is showing FB, and the drive is FB+. Please remove your RSVP. Look forward to see you soon. 

GENERAL OVERVIEW

We request every member that joins this drive to go through the below information and strictly follow these guidelines, etiquettes and responsibilities.

MUST READ AND COMPLY

• Offroad Flag Guideline
• Two Way Radio Guideline
• Off road Driving Etiquette's
• Emergency details for all off-roaders
• Off Road Driving - Roles & Responsibilities

DRIVE DETAILS

When:  3 June 2023, Saturday

Meeting time:   5:15 AM - Sharp (Without any exceptions)

Meeting Point: https://goo.gl/maps/Hh48junesz1v6eiSA

Approximate finish time:  8:30 AM

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, enthusiasm and willingness to learn.

Mandatory off-road gears: Tire deflator, tire pressure gauge, compressor, walkie-talkie radio, off-road flag, shovel, first-aid kit, Tow Rope, 2 Shackles and fire extinguisher.

LIMITED SPOTS AVAILABLE

• This drive is limited to 10 cars only. RSVP will close on Friday  - 10 AM
• If the RSVP is full, you can add your name to the waitlist, once anyone drops, you will be moved to the RSVP list.
• RSVP will close couple hours prior to preparing a convoy 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

Congratulations @Krishna R well done

Congratulations @Patrick van der Loo well deserved…👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼

Congratulations @Ben Lee well done…

Congratulations @Felix Obstwell done…

Expert @Davie Chase congratulations ...well done

1 hour ago, Patrick said:

Hi @Hisham Masaad Not sure if I can recommend it here, but since it's a large brand and not a small shop or garage I will just mention it. Zeiss offers prescription lenses that are extra dark (I think 95% dar). I saw them at the Dubai Hills mall shop. The lead time is 1-2 weeks as they FedEx the extra dark lenses from Germany. I ended up not really needing them but it might be worth checking out if you need Cat 4 prescription. 

Much appreciated @Patrick, will work on it and the other first option. Your option is great, but need to invest in another frame🤭

16 hours ago, Patrick said:

Hi everyone,

Since starting my off-roading journey I have noticed that both of my "standard" sunglasses that I had, whether polarised or not, were way to bright for off-roading. With the sunglasses on, I often found myself pinching my eyes a bit, causing slight fatigue when driving on a bright sunny day.

After doing some research, I found that sunglasses are categorised by lens darkness.

Have a look at the attached chart. 

Your run-of-the mill sunglasses you can buy at the shopping mall typically have a Cat 3 lens which refers to the darkness. You can check your glasses' Cat number  by looking at the inside of your temples/frame. What Cat are you using? Now, the much less common Cat 4 lenses are generally not widely sold and are used more for applications such as winter sports in bright snow. 

After a lengthy journey looking around in Dubai and calling some optical stores, I found that Decathlon sells several models of Cat 4 sunglasses. There are options on the Amazon US store too.

The darker Cat 4 sunglasses have been a game changer for me, allowing me to drive in absolute comfort on a bright day. Only having to switch to my Cat 3 sunglasses close to sunset.

Just thought I would share that, for those that thought sunglasses = sunglasses when in fact different darkness levels do exist!

 

Many thanks for the above @Patrick. I heard once about the Cat4 in one of the offroad groups, and wanted to make more research, but so far no time. Now you have made the effort, thank you again. My issue, is to look for suitable one to use, keeping the power lenses which I can not get rid of. There is no point solving the sun issue, and not able to see the dunes all together 😂. I've seen some military grade ones, large with a space to keep the lenses on. 

Congratulations @premindra rajaram

Hej @Jaro Tuzinsky Congratulations ...enjoy the next

Congratulations @Marketa Dobesova well done