Eggs in the Basket Game - Sudden Death Edition 2

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Booy
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kareem.alameldin wrote: Sun Nov 18, 2018 11:44 am

I planned to surf the top of the dunes, putting as less beating to my car as i could, take my time and finish safely, i got called as the second car to enter the playground after @batfink and i got crested!! My fault 100% and trust me, i haven't stopped thinking about that moment since it happened, im even dreaming about it for 2 nights now.. i guess I'm going crazy...

Don't worry about it at all - I did exactly the same thing in my EIB challenge back in the day. I was the first one to go, and after receiving the surprised cargo, GO GO GO... I could not move 1cm. Crested flat on the belly at the start point. Fortunately @Kimoz came to my rescue on the starting line grin
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Sostick
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What a day! First of all, and before I forget this, HUGE THANK YOU to ALMOST4x4 and the organiser. Clearly this was a monumental effort to make it happen. nothing was not thought or prepared in advance and I appreciate it required lots of hard work. so really thank you!

I approached the event with lots of excitement but not clear view of what to expect. I saw all available videos and my expectation was no where near the reality. As an example, I didn't get the egg challenge!

As I approached the starting point, after recovery a guy in front of me who was crested, I've been given the egg: my comment: what the egg to I do with this egg! then the marshal shout "go go go!"! I stopped after 3 meters to prepare a nice and comfortable nest for my egg in the central bottle hanger of the FJ! perfectly balanced in the middle of the chassis! And eventually the egg made it safe.

I pre-loaded the coordinates and started my track. First 2 points with no issues, but I had to adapt the driving style to the area. I approached the event re-thinking the last learning of the 10+ drives, including keep the momentum, don't fight gravity and so on so forth. After 3 dunes, I realised there was no possibility to keep the momentum so the rule has been: attack the dunes one by one, FRONTALLY! a rollercoaster but the safest way in my opinion!

Between point 2 and 3 after a dune I saw a ditch. I though with some power I could have overcome it but I got stuck in a proper V-ditch. I tried self recovery with rear diff lock and managed to shift the car by few angles but then it was really stuck. SO, shovel! and by doing this I realised the sand was heavy and wet after 30 cm. Due to the rain of the past days, the sand was very compacted. SO I shovel my brand new Almost4x4 T-shirt off till I saw the miracle of the one and only Optimus OPTIMUS offering his help! how could I say no! He energetically pulled my car off the ditch from the back and I got out of troubles. thank you [mention]optimus[/mention] I'll never forget you!

SO I approached the other 3 points and eventually finished my track. At the end point, the marshal check the egg and the car like when you do car rental return. They asked me what happened to the from right bumper and I knew my FJ had a stretched angle of the bumper since I bought it so I said it was already like this. When finally I reached the celebration point I saw the infamous angle a bit more than scratched. for the records, I wouldn't call it a broken bumper but just a remodelled bumper! [mention]JockJKU[/mention] who wanted to disqualify me! I attach the picture for transparency :-)

I'll keep my bumper as it is as remarkable memory of EIB!

So, my lessons:
1. when you reverse the GPS reverses too! you drive 1 meter in reverse and you are totally lost. That's why I took a big tangent between point 5 and the end point ;-)
2. adapt the driving style to the situation. the EIB territory is not my favourite, I prefer fast driving with side cresting and long arches.
3. understand the dunes AND the sand! I should have decided to at least partially avoid the V-ditch rather than taking it frontally, I should have tried to keep one side of the car out of it.

In any case, what a day and what an experience! thank you guys! you really rock!

see you in the sand!

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Sostick wrote: Sun Nov 18, 2018 12:53 pm Photo
Your FJ is no longer a mall crawler! grin grin grin
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Bu Zayed
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EIB EIB EIB

A day to remember. Well I guess it all started days before the actual EIB day with a lot of chitchat about it on the chat with people asking about hints and others trying to scare the members about it increasing their pressure. The vibe was great with everyone excited about it. Since I was an observer on the previous EIB I had an idea about the game but not a hands-on playing the game.

I had to ask for favours from colleagues at work to swap with me in able for me to be able to attend this one time in a year event. Managed to do that with 16hrs night shift before EIB and immediately going back to work after EIB. Very exhausting plan but totally worth it.

Couple days before EIB I took a drive in the desert marking random locations and trying to see how the GPS behaviour is to different driving profiles (people with Garmin Montana will understand). Learned a lot from this drive and I was confident of my GPS skills. Then I started to think about the weight of my car so I removed the back seat and any item in the car that I do not need for EIB drive even if it is a perfume bottle. So now I am ready with GPS skills and lighter car.

So the day started we gathered up, game explained and we lined up to start the game. I was placed all the way at the end in my group which gave me enough time to entre all the points and create a route. I was nervous to be honest but was determined to get good results. So I started to see cars getting stuck at the starting point so I came to know how and where I should stop at the starting point. Now I am at the starting point @alshamsi_m ask me to open my window gave me the "Package" and shouted GO GO GO. So I panicked with the package on my right hand and I am driving with one hand to point no 5 which was my first point. Made it with no issues and then started to think of a way to keep the package safe, I thought of removing my shirt and wrap it but didn't want to drive shirtless LOL. So I saw a prayer mattress in my car, placed the package in it and wrapped it really nice and secured it. Then moving to the other points was so much fun and challenging as I had to make really fast decision about the route at the same time look at my GPS. I saw my members stuck in my way wished them all the best in my heart and continued driving. Closer to point no 1 I saw car stopped so I thought it is point no 1 but just before I got out of the car I looked at the GPS and it was showing me the point should be 20m on my left, looking left and Johanna was standing so I quickly moved to her to get the sticker. Point no 2 was my last point which was the most far point of them all from the exit point. I started to drive towards the exit when I passed next to the audience and heard on the radio Bu Salm saying if anyone entre the audience area will be disqualified, but honestly the area was not marked properly for the drivers to see. This area had a really soft sand but I did manage to get out and go around stuck cars. So I made it out without getting stuck :-D
The feeling was really great and felt like a good achievement.

Then everyone got out and the results were announced and I was the
---------------------- 2nd :-D ----------------------

We then started fire and had some nice BBQ. Thanks @Booy and @Johanna for the dinner. Thanks James for the chair.

At the end at about 1930, I had to make a move to go home shower change and go to work. However, I did make a mistake before we started EIB by deleting my route coming in instead of pausing it as I didn't want route marking in EIB area for less distraction. Well it took me about 20min to get out to the road and let's just say I did another EIB in my way out. Luckily one other member was lost and we met and continued driving between the dunes together all the way to the road. Well lesson learned on how to handle GPS routes.

All in all was an amazing day and great experience. Thanks to the organizers, Observers and Time takers. Thanks Almost4x4 family for the gift.
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Alright....
Here goes.....
No I didn’t get stuck 17 times.....
No I didn’t get 3 pop outs......
No I didn’t break the car in half....
No I didn’t get stuck at every crest...
Now that I got that out of the way.

It was an interesting experience. I do tend to drive alone quite often on drive less weekends, but never in that area. I used everything I learned to go through the sharp crests in the juggernaut and it paid off.

First time using the Garmin and the funniest thing happened. Basically reached a location, saw a hummer, thought they were stuck, went a bit further but the Garmin was pointing back. Rendered the coordinates and retaliated that it was a checkpoint so that was an interesting blunder.
What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger and I was trying my best not destroy the car while cresting and using all the tools under my disposal which resulted..... drum roll.... in me finishing 3rd BWAHAHAHAHAH *maniacal laugh*
Thanks to all the organizers and challengers, it was definitely a blast!!!
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Mohamadahshan
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Good morning Almosters,

My day started calmly, was chilling by the beach and had a nice short swim. I lost track of time and when i checked my phone.. I was 1 hour away from meeting point.

I panicked and waved goodbye to my friends, I had to catch my EIB challenger. I rushed to the nearest gas station, pumped some fuel and got a ton of cold drinks.. (to be prepared for the shoveling) grin of course i had no time to go home and change, so I decided to move on with my short swim shorts grin

I reached meeting point, Almost everyone was there, excitement thumbsup in the air. Even a few members were there a long time before meeting time yaeh am not durnk

I started deflating, [mention]kareem.alameldin[/mention] & [mention]Kals[/mention] joined me for a few minutes just to pick on my shorts wtfsmilie and my Jeep grin

Then I was done with deflation, headed to the gathering [mention]alshamsi_m[/mention] was there cracking jokes with everyone, an attempt to calm the nervous souls around him.

I had no Garmin with me, No phone app (I didn't have the patience to learn one). So I decided to use google maps. Type in coordinates, see the point, navigate my way to it. And i found myself the sarcasm material that time grin grin

Then we moved to our briefing point. Everything was well explained and organized. My nervousness started to kick in even more... I have no proper GPS in a GPS Challenge..

Then [mention]alshamsi_m[/mention] smiled at us and said: "Guys, we are here to enjoy and have fun, that's it"

That gave me hope, I decided to go on and enjoy, whatever the consequences are.. I'm sure I won't be left behind grin

As we had 2 teams, I was on the right team "the queue to the right".. we lined up to start the challenge.

Then I saw [mention]kareem.alameldin[/mention] getting crested nicely. I heard on the radio.. whoever wants to volunteer to rescue, please proceed.. and there was silence for about 30 seconds grin

I decided to step in and help our lovely [mention]kareem.alameldin[/mention] grin . rescue done and he was on his way.

While waiting in line, I decided to enter the start point on Google Maps and try to navigate to it, was very tedious and confusing. so i decided to abandon that option. Then I looked at my screen and was like.. Why don't I use this cute little navigation fitted in my Jeep?

I started typing coordinates and Voila.. It works and pretty accurate.

So I went on with the challenge, then [mention]alshamsi_m[/mention] handed over an egg to me grin I was like!! WHAAAAAAT? what should i do with that? he said: Keep it safe and sound.. with a huge smile on his face grin

I took the egg and went, kept it safe in my cup holder, surrounded by my marshmallows bag grin grin and went to the first point.

I saw [mention]Youssef.Abdelhady[/mention] and I was like.. Man i want my sticker quickly I'm excited. He asked to see my paper and went like.. dude you're mistaken. I'm number 2 on your list.. grin grin so I checked,... yep i entered wrong point. Then went on my way correctly.

I got stuck between point 3-4, I went out to evaluate the situation, front and rear axles fully articulated, one rear tire in the air, the other had grip.

I engaged 4-Lo, rear diff lock on and Voila.. I'm out without shoveling killzonesmiley

I was so happy, kept going with the challenge, finished my 5 points, now heading to the Finish Point. I look at my GPS and i see the finish point out of the dunes.

I was like, no waaaaay.. there must be a trick here.. so I went back in the dunes area looking for a finish point inside, couldnt find one.

So I went out followed the GPS.. I saw [mention]Abu Jimmy[/mention] and I asked, is this the Finish point for real? He answered Yes, Congrats grin

Then they checked my car for damage, none thanks God, and the egg was in a perfect shape.. ready to be cooked!

Big shout-out to the Founders, Crew, Marshals and everyone who made this event a success!

Cheers,
If it's deep, call a friend with a Jeep grin grin
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Hi All,
The week started with a funny feeling of anxiousness and it got bigger and bigger by the time it was Thursday it resembled the feeling I use to have before any big exam I wrote.
I went thru a couple of tutorial and video during the week on how to save and use waypoints, it did come handy as I had no experience in doing this in the field.
I reached the meeting point quite early and got ready, slowly all the reaming participant's observers, timekeepers arrived, the whistle blew and were all started to drive towards the starting point.
After a quick briefing session on the does and don’t from AL Shamsi we all got inline to get the waypoints I was on Convoy two and got page number 1 I was so happy that I will be the first to entire only to realize later that I will be the last to enter which has its own pros and cons
You will be given seven coordinates in the format the club use you need to save 6 of them only the way the coordinates are given will ensure you get mixed up with the numbers as the game planner wants you to make these mistakes no space between the coordinates and printing it the smallest font possible was all intentional.
After I saved the coordinates I double checked what I had entered and realized that I had saved two waypoints incorrectly being last in the convey it gave me the time to double check this which saved a lot of time for me later.
Waiting in line to entire we could see that at the starting point the drivers were being asked to stop at a crest and were receiving some instructions this was also the point where couple of the drivers crested and were assisted by fellow drivers, believe me the volume and pitch at which they asked you to stop on the radio made you brake hard and crest especially Abu Salem was very loud and clear.
We were all given a special item to carry in our car it was handed over just after the start point on the first Crest, we were informed that if it breaks you are disqualified, believe me at that moment I did not have words to express my feeling as I was going to do something that I had not done ever for the past one year I have followed the car in front of me and recorded the track that we drove on, this time I had to decide and drive based on my choice of track.
I entered the drive area and saw numerous tracks which one to choose was the dilemma on the GPS I could see that to reach the first waypoint I needed to go to my left so I started, it took some time to get use to choosing the path of least resistance and moving in the direction of the waypoint, after couple of minutes of driving I reached the first waypoint and was happy that I managed to reach at least one waypoint, believe me, all waypoints have a tricky entrance and exit get it wrong and you will be stuck.
After getting a sticker at selected my second waypoint but my GPS was not able to route and kept recalculating the direction and distance after numerous tries and with every ticking second I was getting nervous as I could not understand why I could not see the second waypoint.
It then dawned on me to try and enter the coordinates again which I did and two my surprise I could see the DOT on my map and started to drive towards it on the way I saw a fellow driver stuck and digging and decide to help him out after a quick pull from behind he was free and I was on the move again to my next waypoint.

After reaching the second waypoint my confidence level got a boost and I quickly maneuvered my way thru the remaining waypoints ensuring that all my eggs are safe considering the terrain and the speed.
When I crossed the finish line the feeling of accomplishment was surreal. I instantly had a flashback of my first CM drive the first Pop out, the first Crest and many other lessons that I learned from the Marshal and other club members.
You will not release but everything they share and teach us is for a reason, the most important one being to be safe and never to fight gravity no matter what your level or skill may be.
A Big thanks to the Founders, Marshals & everybody else for the opportunity and experience till next time.
kriskian,
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Johanna
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Hi everybody,

I was really looking forward to this event, this time to be observer and watch the show from my chair with cold drinks ;)
Honestly I was a bit afraid to get stuck on the way to my point... but no difficulties at all.
From my checkpoint I could see the starting point and some got already stuck there, but all got help from their fellow competitors and so no one was left behind. Soon after the first cars started, first customers reached my point. It was interesting to see how different people react to this situation - while some drivers where total relaxed others seemed to be stressed, some even still with the egg in their hands thumbsup
With 23 drivers I was quite busy as 19 reached my point, good job guys.
[mention]thursday[/mention] was really unlucky, he got stuck right in front of me after leaving my point, he tried to climb a dune and ended up stuck in soft sand, but with his shovel and fighting spirit he freed the car and continued, very well done, you showed the right spirit!
[mention]Rashidjass[/mention] paid me a visit and [mention]JockJKU[/mention] was passing by as well - beside this I could see sand fountains and crested cars in the field from time to time, following the radio communication and enjoying the game.
Everyone did well, congrats to the people who made it - but at the end its all about having fun and gaining experience.
We ended the day with chit chatting and some food, so as always a perfect day with the family.
[mention]Daggerfall[/mention] your video is fantastic, hope to see more like this in the future.
Thanks to the Marshals & Explorers to make events like this happen and to keep everyone safe as usual.

Looking forward to see everyone soon again in the sand.
BR, Johanna

If it excites you and scares you at the same time, it probably means you should do it.
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Johanna wrote: Mon Nov 19, 2018 1:00 pm some even still with the egg in their hands thumbsup
XD XD XD
" I feel the need, the need for Speed " cool

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