Desert Gazing - Sky Flight

[MoxX]

Hello all,

It was an amazing drive for me last night (best since I joined), but I really feel sad for leaving the last part TT TT , I thought it was going to be a track drive and I thought I have a long drive back to al ain so it wasn't worth it X3 , if I had known that it was technical in some parts I would definitely have stayed for longer...

Big thanks goes to the organizers and support, well-managed event like always.

Also our drivers has excellent time discipline, everyone was there on time, and being the last car in the convoy I had the chance to see everyone ahead of me negotiating their way in the technical areas, very talented drivers indeed, I can only recall very few second tries and stucks.

I was in Daggerfall's convoy and we had a small glitch at the very start with a pop-out that delayed us for some time as Optimus mentioned, but once it was fixed we made up lost time and were able to catch up with the other convoy that was way ahead of us grin

The drive started a bit technical, then we went to high speed stretches and tracks (I managed to reach around a 100km/hour in certain areas), then again went back to technical.

Then we went through the underpass and reached the JINXED AREA grin , same place I was stuck with a few mates a couple of drives back, and when I say its jinxed I say it with full confidence, surprise surprise we had two cars breaking down in the same spot...this unlucky event had us stopping for very long, and when Daggerfall radioed that if anyone wants to leave now is the time, I thought why not, I already had my part of fun for the night, and I prefer technical more than tracks so its better to leave, needless to say it was a dumb decision melt

Two reasons I like this drive is:

1. I now know for sure that I LOVE to drive in technical areas, especially at night
2. Last night was the first time I started to care less about driving smoothly, I always went slow and tender on the car making sure to ease every bump and hit, but last night I just stopped doing that, the suspension can handle it so screw it, let the fun begin Psmiley

I am glad that everyone went out in one piece with a big smile on their faces, good luck with getting your cars fixed before tomorrow's drive (Jock and Issa), and so happy your accident didn't do much damage and didn't do any harm to you and your passenger (Giorgio)

I will be away for three weeks TT TT and I will be counting the days to come back and join more drives and meeting all of you lovely people...until then have fun and keep safe... thumbsup

[Booy]

Hello everyone,

Thank you for the good reports. It's a pleasure to read these, and to get a feeling for everyone's adventures.

It was indeed a great drive, and for sure the second part, once we have crossed the Dubai/Al Ain road, promised to be the technical area, as described in the briefing. These technical areas help you to practice fast thinking, quick maneuvering, the right amount of power to use and to make the right decision without panicking. Everyone one did really well, except for the lack of radio communication from some, and incorrect following distances in these technical areas. Technical areas mean increase your following distance substantially to remain safe.

Once we have reached Skydive Dubai at around 11pm, I was happy to hear that none of our hungry members wanted to exit from there, and the entire convoy decided to follow to the technical area.

Unfortunately the technical area was short lived for Mohanad, and JockJKU. Jock can give the details of his Jeep's minor failure, but unfortunately it could not be driven any further than where it came to a halt. As we leave no one in the sand, (from club member to founder) we decided to merge the two convoys, and I towed the jeep out to the main road. Thank you Mohanad for terminating your drive to give support - this shows true commitment. With that said, thank you also to all intermediates and Barish, who continued to give support until the end of the drive.

Looking forward to seeing everyone in the sand again soon - get ready for the grand finale in the desert gazing series next Tuesday.

Till then... Be safe

[Barish]

The feeling of preparing your food to share and getting on the way to the meeting point after Iftar is really nice.

It was quite a different night than previous night drives of this Ramadan. Weather was quite warmer and humidity was higher. Popouts, electrical problem, belt, stopped cars, dead radios, etc. all created the difference. My star of the night goes to the cable provided by a new Jeeper, @georgio..

I would like to thank @agalon for being my passenger and @daggerfall for the lead. I can confidently say that every single driver did very well and the willingness to contribute in all situations to make the drive a success was to be seen.

So..to remind again; make sure that you chg by improving; otherwise your chg makes no sense.

See you on the sand soonest..

Barish

[Lenny]

Thanks to Daggerfall & Booy for this amazing drive, driving with Almost 4x4 is always a thrilling experience. XD

After attendance and a quick briefing on what to expect.. we were off on our way.
I was in Daggerfalls convoy at #3, and the pace was set with Daggerfall & Kimoz flying away! thumbsup

The start was eventful with technical areas which kept us on our toes & then broke into rally style with us dust storming in the desert….maximum speed with minimal visibility.

Keeping a keen eye on Kimoz`s tail lights & tracks I tried my best to avoid the bushes, tree stumps & rocks and realized that we were really flying @ 100k for a fair stretch..

The last additional hour was a treat with full on technical areas, nice climbs & sharp drops….. I recollect Daggerfall repeatedly saying “no flying”.
Thanks again for making up for lost time.

Thoroughly enjoyed this one & reading the trip reports...Glad everyone is safe!

Thanks to Kimoz, Issa, Baris, Jock , Mohhanad & all the Crew & support team. You guys are awesome!

Look forward to more night drives with all of you!
have a nice day

[mquadros]

I really enjoyed this drive. The beginning was a little challenging as it was my first night ride. I had two dunes which I approached a little faster and was reminded by the car behind me. In a few minutes I felt very comfortable as I realized my 320 watts of newly installed lights was enough to guide me through the night.

When we moved to the flats and were averaging 100KM/hour it was also challenging given the low tire pressure, 4x4 mode and more importantly the dust. i switched the desert lights to check if it would be better and was again alerted by the marshal radio that desert lights should be on all the time.

I appreciate the candor of how mistakes are addressed. This is the best way to learn.

As mentioned by the Daggerfal the breaking of the two cars gave the group a chance to bond further and build strong relationship across the members.

I could not stay for the last one hour drive given early commitments next morning but drove home exhilarated with such amazing experience.

I am really looking forward the night drive this coming week and later the family Eid drive.

Thanks again for the founders, marshals and advance/intermediaries who put an amazing effort every week to teach, guide and lead new drivers like me.

Rgs,

Mquadros (Black Jeep)