Desert Gazing - Conquer The Night

[optimus]

Hi All,

I left home yesterday at around 2000 hrs thinking that I would be at the meeting point by 2100 so will have some time to pray and set up the things make the car ready for ‘conquering the night’. But things didn’t work out as I had planned. After passing some 15 kms on E311, recalling if I have carried all my offroad gear, I realized that I had forgot the flag pole, one of the most important things for off road safety & that too in a night drive. So, I quickly changed the route went back home. The re route costed me additional 25 minutes. I managed to reach at the meeting point around 2120 hrs, presume I was the last one. Quickly started to deflate etc by the time I heard Bu Salem’s ultimate whistle.It was time for briefing the drive, terrain, safety, attendance etc. The members were divided into 2 convoy’s. One was lead by Solmaz and the other by Jock. I was placed in the convoy lead by Jock, Issa 2nd lead, KIMOz in my front & Kaylee behind me, Booy was sweeping sometimes floating, other advance & inter drivers were placed within the convoy to make sure that we, the newbies always remain safe.

The track was crafted in such a way that it had a bit of everything. It was a combo of Fast paced track, Soft sand patches, medium steep climbs, sudden drops, technical area’s, everything.

All was going smooth till we reach at one medium sized steep dune. The first 3 cars climbed and crossed. The 4th car Aligi got crested & Issa came from front & pulled him over. The 5th car Kareem crossed, 6th Car KIMOz crossed, myself at no 7 couldn’t judge the correct momentum & got crested, Issa came & pulled me over, then Abu Odai got crested, Petr got Crested all at the same place. & we could see the other convoy some 100 mtrs away doing some recoveries at the same dune. It was looking like a party .
After regrouping we continued the game where at one-point KIMOz came down for a 2nd try and found out that suddenly the engine got cut but it was again up after a few minutes, could be some small programming glitch otherwise it would have been a recovery back to tarmac. Happy for your Bro, it was not so serious.

After few more kms, we had to cross a small bowl I crossed the first dune but then I could see Kareem attempting a 2nd try & got crested. Thanks to Kaylee that she waited for my clear otherwise she would have bumped into my car. Coordination over the radio is very very important.

Driving for another few hundred meters, I head Jock saying we have reached the sitting area.
I couldn’t really believe that we drove for 2+ hours. When you love doing something, you don’t realize how quickly the time pass by.
We sat down, had some lovely food, tea & snacks. The sitting area was icing on the cake. The best spot for star gazing, the weather was awesome. One of the best sittings from all the night drives, I must say.

At the end I would like to thank Bu Salem for Organizing, Booy for watching over us, making sure that we are safe, Jock for leading the pack of hungry newbies, Abu Odai, Issa & KIMOz for the support & recoveries you did.

Till Next time! thumbsup

[Scorpio]

Hello Everyone,

It was an amazing night drive; awesome weather, enjoyable drive terrain offering many learning opportunities and above all great company.

There were two convoys made by @alshamsi; one to be led by @Jock with @Booy as the sweeper and the other to be led by @Solmaz with Bu Salem himself as the sweeper.

I served as the 2nd lead in Solmaz’s convoy. We had @Rashidjass, @Singh and @Barish who were floating around and intermediates were within the convoy. We started moving after the first convoy had left the meeting point. The terrain chosen was quite good as the sand was soft in many of the areas and provided good learning opportunity to practice and know about the right momentum to do the climbs, turns and straight cresting. Every now and then Solmaz used to route the convoy to some exciting drop or a soft climb or a straight sharp crest to keep it interesting and challenging killzonesmiley . We had many second attempts and crested cars during the drive and that shows the amount of learning this drive provided to everyone. There was one time when we came closer to the other convoy who was also busy in rescuing their crested cars and I assume they also had their share of fun in good doses thumbsup .

When we finished the drive, the other convoy had already reached to the camping spot by that time and had started grilling so we joined the feast grin . It was a dark night with surprisingly pleasant weather of 28C with clear sky. Looking at the Milky Way with the naked eye was a treat to our eyes and for me this was the first life experience to watch it so clearly!

Looking forward to see you all at the Eid Fitr drive thumbsup

Cheers!

[Johanna]

Hello everyone,

I reached the meeting point very early and was the first car to arrive. I wasn't alone for long, and we started the drive in time. We got divided in 2 convoys, my one was lead by Jock, the other one by Solmaz. Marshals floating/sweeping around, having an eye on everyone and giving advice and support as usual.
The area was technical as promised and most of the time the convoy drove smoothly with a good pace. I was a bit nervous before the drive as my car is a bit moody and tend to make strange noises or overheat from time to time. After the first kilometers I realized that the car is running fine and from that moment it was a very recreational drive for me. Except on one dune where nearly every second car got crested and a sandy pit close to the end point where some recovery was needed we faced no issues. While the convoy drove smoothly through the dunes I was at one point "in the zone". Concentrated but relaxed, I was able to clear my mind while doing something I love - the perfect way to find inner peace.

We reached the camping area at midnight as planned, the second convoy joined around 20 minutes later. We enjoyed a lot of food under a beautiful night sky with a fresh breeze. It was a great "grand finale" of the Ramadan night drives and I am a bit sad that its over for this year, but on the same time I am looking forward to the next camping season.

So thanks everyone for the great drive night and special thanks to Jock for leading our convoy - good job!

See you all hopefully soon

[Sostick]

Hi all, great great drive last night! I’m already suffering for not having one scheduled for next week. I was in the second convoy led by Solmaz. The area was technical as promised and the sand very very soft in certain areas. Still remember the recommendation of the marshals like “floor it, don’t have respect for our car!”. Sooo much fun. For the first time I managed not to try to follow the convoy against gravity which was dragging me sideways and improvised a new way out. Very proud of it. I have to say, and I don’t know if it has been done on purpose, I found a bit confusing the floating marshals yesterday. I ended up following a marshal rather than the convoy at one point. And lost the track another time. I also experienced for the first time the double soft dunes. Twice. Basically you have to floor it to climb the first one, cross it smoothly because it is steep and then start flooring it to get momentum to cross the second one! That was something!!!! All in all a fantastic Almost4by4 event as usual! Thank you all for organizing it and taking great care of all of us!

Ps. Lenny went very close to the limit of 30 recoveries in one drive! Well done man!!! You helped us all to study the situation before crossing it!!!!

Looking forward to the next drives!
Francesco aka Sostick

[mquadros]

What an awesome drive!

Everything perfect: whether, challenging and exciting route and the usual super organization and guidance from group and its leaders.

I enjoyed a few second tries and like Solstick lost the track once. What I liked the most was the pace and rhythm. At one point I wondered if my radio was working as it went silent for a while as we speeded through a few kilometers and dunes.

We drove almost non-stop for more than 2 hours and it was great.

Want to thank Solmaz for leading our convoy and all the marshals and intermediaries who support us newbies in a very nice and competent way.

Cheers,

Mquadros

[Barish]

It was another Ramadan drive with nice terrain and fantastic weather. It is really cool to see the dedication of the drivers to night drives.

Floating in a technical area is a bit tricky sometimes; thanks to @agalon for his accompany, chat and patience during my continous climb and drops..if i were at his place, i would give up in the first 30 mins.

The convoy did well; some were stuck but always better than to risk yourself. Distance is important in the convoy, not too close in these areas but also not too far..

Thanks to @alshamsi_m for organizing the trip and hats off to @solmaza for her great lead.

One small note to the amazing weather in the sitting area. If the next day was off, i would definitely setup my camp and sleep there..

Lets finish with the usual ending; your change should be supported with your improvement; otherwise your change will not be meaningful..!

Eid Mubarak to all and see you on the sand soonest.

Barish

[Rooies]

I reached the meeting point, driving at snails pace because I was way to early only to find Kalee sitting there already.

One by one everybody came to the meeting point & as usual happy greetings all around.

The convoys were dealt in, I was with Jock leading & Booy sweeping. Its was a cool beautiful evening, but the pace was hot & fast. The route was never dull for one moment & I had to keep concentrating & focusing on what is ahead, did that so much that I forgot about Petr behind me & lost him in a fast section. Booy quickly reminded me that I am responsible for the person behind me. There were a few people getting stuck on a dune & Solmaz convoy was catching up, but then they had the same fate as us. The rescues were done & we continued.

The route had something of everything, quick twisty sections, steep drops & soft sand. Close to the end I made a judgement error going a bit to far left & paid the price for it (always stay in the tracks ahead of you), I got stuck. With the help & advice from Booy I tried to rescue myself, but without any success faill . We got the ropes out & in no time I was back on the road again. It was not far till we reached the camping spot. Booy guided myself & two other cars back to the road.

Thanks again to everybody that plan & organize the drives, it does not go unnoticed.

Take care everybody & see you all in the sand soon.

Rooies

[JockJKU]

Morning All!

This was my second time leading a convoy, and it was great fun!!!

We met in an area I know quite well now, having driven many times in my lunch "hour"! Everyone was in time for the drive to set off pretty much as planned. It was a great experience, and I hope everyone enjoyed the track!

The pace was quite high for most of the drive, as I was hoping to get to the technical area a little early so we could have some time to play in there, near the campsite. At one point fairly early in the drive we came across a nice crest, i think it was probably the steepest and highest of the night drives so far, and it tested the nerves of the convoy, with several drivers becoming snagged on it's top! The other convoy was approaching us to pass us, however as they tried to cross the same dune a few metres away, they also found it tricky which allowed us to sort ourselves out and leave this area before them!

We arrived at the technical area around 11.30, 30 minutes before the planned end time, so it looked good for being able to test the convoy, who had done really well and flowed nicely till now, and have some fun! As we entered there were a series of crests, including 2 sets of double crests! This caught a few out and i think some good lessons were learned!! After a short pause here to make a few recoveries Booy made the call to head to the sitting area and light the fire. We got to the sitting area at 11.55pm, and set up camp!

The food was great, the company was better, and the stars were out in force! Thank you to all who brought and shared food, it finished off a great night and another set of Ramadan drives perfectly!

Wishing everyone Eid Mubarak, in advance, and i will see many of you on Saturday for the Eid Al Fitr drive!

Till next time,

Jock

[Rashidjass]

[Petr]

This was my first night drive and the first desert ride after a 3 weeks break and must admit I felt it. Before starting, Jock handed over his grill to me for the case we wouldn't drive together, since I was the one with steaks. As it appeared it was not needed since I ended up in the convoy lead by him.

I joined at the end of the convoy. You guys apparently drove easy after your previous night rides. The speed was high and as it usually goes with the end of fast paced convoys, sometimes you go slow and sometimes you have to catch up with a crazy pace. While speeding up to see Sayed back I didn't notice a small dune with a deep ditch after, and flew over it like a clay pigeon in trap shooting. The hit at the end was really hard. Half of my cargo that was under a fixing net somehow found a way out and landed at my back seats, including my sharp chef's knife I was bringing to carve my steaks. Fortunately it stayed wrapped in a bag and didn't end up in my back.

I didn't want to stop to check the damage since the car behaved all right but then I noticed strange flashes as if someone was running around me and playing with a strong lamp. Suddenly I heard Booy in radio "Petr stop, your light bar is off!". Exactly, it was hanging on it's cable, as on it's lifeline, after the brackets tore off the bumper. I rushed to checked the cargo and to my relief Jock's grill survived without damage. We removed the light bar relatively fast, I refixed the cargo and I joined the convoy again.

Another test of my skills was the sharp dune you guys mentioned in your reports. I saw the struggle of the others and I hoped to overcome the crest as I usually did, but I ended up having second and third try, crowned by sticking on the top anyway! This was the last night lesson I needed to take, and luckily I was not a cause of further delays anymore for the rest of the ride.

The final sitting and eating was pleasant and the stars were amazing. Now my light is fixed again and I hope in another night ride soon.

Thanks Jock for the grill and a great lead and to Booy for being my guardian angel!