Mini Convoy

[Dave]

Report to follow.....

[Dave]

Unusual to start my Saturday morning with an Almost4x4 drive as traditionally it's been a Friday. But as I only finished work yesterday this worked perfect for my weekend! Second trip in a row I was only quick enough to make the "maybe" list and second time in a row the club bent the rules a little allowing almost everyone on that list to join in. Many thanks guys. You do your best to keep us all happy! So what should have been a "mini" drive lead by Mini Me turned into a 12 car convoy lead by Megatron, though Mini Me still came out to play driven very well by Ladylienka.

Again, the plan was a 7am meet at Al Badayer and 7.30am start and we stuck to it. Only one no show, but 13 is an unlucky number! Besides a Saturday start, the next unusual fact was no marshals present. Fida turned up for support but the brief was to make it to Iftar bowl and back for 10am. As it was a +8 drive I guess we were expected to cause few problems. We would practice a few crests and tackle a few of the bigger bowls.

I was positioned at the very back of the convoy and we set off as the sun was still relatively low over the horizon, the dunes looked fantastic in the morning light and the temperature unusually pleasant! With just one break for a quick chat and drink we made it to Iftar bowl! Not stucks. No issues. However, just prior to parking up for a second break the convoy would drive half way up the bowl from the left side, cross mid way and steer down to the base of the bowl. Here, we almost had a Jeep Wrangler mate with a Toyota Prado! Al Shamsi got very " excited " on the radio as distance was not kept, track not followed and with some cars going too far across losing speed and momentum a few cars "funnelled" down towards the same spot. Compounded by the steep gradient at the base of the bowl I gather it got a little exciting for some!! But no damage and a lesson well learnt. Always follow the tracks of the leader and don't get too adventurous!

A quick debrief by Al Shamsi and we set back to the shops. We all climbed the large dune next to Iftar for one final challenge, where to my surprise everyone made the climb in one attempt! Well done! There was a crest at the top which caused our only stuck...or two!...of the day then a gentle return to the shops as motion sickness hampered on of our passengers!

Over all, at least from my view point at the very back anyhow, it seemed a successful drive yet again. Mission accomplished and back in time for a coconut juice and ice cream before we all said our goodbyes and set off home.

Thank you [MENTION=27]alshamsi_m[/MENTION] for a great lead and everyone else for making my Saturday start off great!

[Dave]

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[orlantsev]

Dave I think you live in one of the Badayer shops that you post the report so fast! Or do you type it on your phone while driving? I really hoped to be the 1st one to write, but it only took me to go down to the store after I came back from the drive and the 1st report has already been posted. Anyway...I had to adjust my weekend routine a bit to be able to do this Saturday drive. Drives with Almost 4*4 always take the priority so some other activities had to make way. Those included house-hunting trip and normal heavy Saturday gym exercise. I was joined by a friend from Colombia. I cannot really blame myself because I told him (and have documented e-mail proof) not to go if he was prone to motion sickness. He said he would be fine and he did commercial safaris before without problems. He started to feel bad almost as soon as we left the shops. Great that at least I had one plastic bag that he used, but unfortunately it had a hole in it, so soon the content leaked on his shirt. I am glad the guy made an effort to let the drops on his clothes rather than the seat :) Sorry if you read this paragraph while eating. So he did not feel any better until the end. I am sorry to the group members for the unpleasant view and if the trip was cut short by this, but really I did all I could in terms of warnings. Just a little reminder to those who plan to take on passengers in the future. Now back to the drive. Bu Salem asked me to be the 2nd car behind him. I always like this position as I think it is best for learning. The drive was fast with nice bowls and crests and I would call it perfect if it was not the smell in the car. As the weather gets cooler the social stops are a pleasant addition to the trip. I think I also start to understand the difference when driving with slightly more experienced drivers as the stucks and as a result lost time are kept to the minimum, so even though the total time was 2.5 hours, the amount of actual useful time was high (driving and voluntarily stops). I am away next two weekends exploring the WWII ship wrecks in Philippines, and wishing all happy holiday next week!

[yassser]

[ATTACH=CONFIG]2081[/ATTACH][quote=Dave;38347]Report to follow.....[/quote]

Ohhhh My God :ORLY: This is me guys ( Land Cruiser )

Thank you dear Dave for this nice shoot:pacman:....when i was climbing i said to my self i really wish if some one could take photo for me ...and it was you that one

From the bottom of line the drive was really 8+ drive and we enjoyed a lot ,,the route was interesting and has some nice challenge

i was the sixth car in the convoy before Tuba and in front of Fida and everything went smoothly with me
....i think im lucky this drive as Fida camera was shooting on all the drive :grin:

Thank you @alshamsi_m for a great lead and everyone else for making my Saturday start off great!

Happy Eid Holiday......see you soon

[momo]

I will call this drive the swiss time drive :yaeh am not durnk:@Yoghybear . We started 7:30 AM sharp we finished 10:00 AM sharp. Thanks for @m_alshamsi for the perfect timing and this amazing drive.

The unusual feeling to drive a Saturday morning made this drive unique. It was very smooth, drivers were all happy. I got a small stuck in a ditch made of soft broken sand, then I did self recovery. By the way, Dave, Mark and me we enjoyed the broken sand we were doing fish tail at the back :005:

@Dave Thanks for keeping eye on our convoy, and I like your pictures.
@Solmaz @Defragmantor Thanks for the GoPro battery rescue
@pradodxb Thanks, allowing me a rescue training.
@orlantsev I read your report while drinking Vimto...no worry :whisper:
@ .superman We felt all secure in your presence :blank:

Wishing you a great week start

Cheers

[cyanide]

Just out of curiosity why 13 is considered unlucky number :blankcopy:

[momo]

[video=youtube_share;nn2biv9a058][/video]

[Dave]

Good question [MENTION=6170]cyanide[/MENTION]. I did a quick google search and it's mainly a western thing. Something to do with 13 moon cycles in a year and other stuff listed also! In Asia, it's the numbers 4 and 9 apparently as these numbers look similar to death and suffering?! Both both add up to 13. Anyhow, realised I am not actually superstitious so will have no issues with a 13 car convoy!

[Defragmantor]

Well it has been a crazy weekend
Friday night waiting in que for the new iPhone got home by 3 am i realized i have to wake up in 3 hours so tried to catch some sleep and tried to be on time
Woke up late by 15 minutes which i shouldn't have but i hope i didn't delay the schedule
The drive was fabulous had a lot of twists and turns.
There were only 2 sticks otherwise it was a very smooth drive .
waiting to get back next weekend
Cheers
Defrag !