Paradise City VIII

[Aljamhi]

The Paradise City VIII off-road drive was an exciting and adventurous event. We started our journey with a convoy of 14 enthusiastic members, led by Marshal Daggerfall and supported by 2 marshals who ensured safety and coordination throughout the drive.

The drive kicked off at a fast pace, quickly taking us to high dunes. Key skills emphasized during the drive included controlling the vehicle on crests and executing side-to-side cresting maneuvers. These techniques are essential for safe and effective navigation in dune environments. Abu Salem played a crucial role in monitoring the participants, noting important points such as maintaining proper distance (as highlighted with me) and the speedy members while cresting.

Among the challenges, we had moments of fun. One memorable case involved me got a crest while handling ropes and tools, resulting in a fall from the crest.

The drive with Marshal Daggerfall and the support from advanced members was highly enjoyable. The combination of technical challenges and enjoyable moments made this drive a memorable one. I look forward to more exciting drives, with new challenges and fun.

[Lenny]

Today maps decided to play tricks with me.
From the PM i followed the link to Google maps and for some reason I arrived to the " meeting point" which was at a location closer to sweihan town at around 3pm
Never been to this spot before, and
realised something was amiss & called Daggerfall, but could not reach him.
He was probably deflating.
Went back to the PM and clicked the show directions link , the point was 20 mins away

I was lucky to have made it for this incredible drive.
Request if GPS coordinates could be shared wherever possible to avoid confusion.
Daggerfall returned my call at 3:15, I told him I'm 5 min away
Reached 10 min before takeoff .
Daggerfall explained the worst case scenarios and what not to do, and advise that today we'd be implementing the buddy system and no overtaking.

Daggerfall dished out an amazing drive with Petr in 2nd lead for a bit & then Doru ; a little bit technical in his trademark style.
We followed him from crest to crest at a nice pace , we were promised a fast drive
We had our share of 2nd tries and stuck cars and everyone played safe.
It would be helpful if the members called out their names with the 2nd try, I believe many times only 2nd try was called out .

One of the members had an issue with the power steering mid drive hence had to be escorted out in 2 W drive
Bu Salem always ready with a solution, got him across the fence to the gatch road and then re joined us.

We ended the evening with chilled watermelon (thanks Moustafa)and a beautiful sunset,
Thanks to my felllow intermediates ,the ever watchful Bu Salem & Rashid , Daggerfall for a superb lead & advanced drivers for your support.
See you on the next one.
Enjoy the weekend

[Spyda]

Had the privilege to be invited by our founder to join him in his car on an intermediate level drive led by Daggerfall I was slightly nervous as I have not had much experience being in a car cresting large dunes. The nerves disappeared immediately being in the presence of a master driver and seeing a display of incredible skills. Sometimes riding crests whilst also radio communicating to the convoy. Marshall jass was also floating and it gave me an insight into the work involved and how are Marshalls support and protect a convoy. The higher pace of these intermediate drives means a large gap in the convoy will open up quickly if someone goes off line or gets stuck. Al Shamsi and Marshall jass quickly reconnecting the convoy a few times.

Marshall Daggerfall set out a great course with some challenges for the intermediates, a couple of crested cars and 2nd trys indicating the level was perfect. Unfortunately one car broke a power steering pump, but was safely driven to the gravel track out of the desert in 2wd by al shamsi.

The drive finished at the top of the old lady with a beautiful sunset view over the desert. We had the whole desert to ourselves with not one other car seen all day.

Very thankful to our founder for inviting me to this drive and feel privileged to witness the higher levels driving skills. This will certainly help me with my own progression as I was able to sit back and enjoy the ride taking it all in.

Looking forward to the next 10+ newbie drive filled with confidence and nerves have been settled

[orlantsev]

Hello all,

the drive was opened mid - week by which time I was already expecting a dull weekend. I had a bit of a struggle with an app, because I could not copy the google link. Thanks there was a PM as well.

I suggest that until the app has stabilized the instructions are still shared via PM. Weather was hot, but luckily, not too humid.

For me the 1st hour, when the sun is still high, is a challenge to keep the temperature in check. It requires use of higher gears and occasional use of flat areas to engine down. After 4.30 pm it becomes much better.

The drive is a a familiar area and we did the track last year as well.

The drive started at high pace and convoy did well as far as I could see from the sweep position. One area to improve is to leave the danger zone (bottom of the crest) immediately to clear the area for the cars which follow.

There were slightly more delays in the 2nd half of the drive with 2 stucks which were totally avoidable (keeping the distance and not losing focus in areas which appear innocent).

We finished slightly later than planned, but were rewarded with gorgeous sunset and un-interrupted desert view.

Till next time.

[alshamsi_m]

Hello everyone

Great lead by @Daggerfall and Great looking after the intermediates by @Rashidjass . We had a great drive in overall although the weather was hot but it was clear that we got rid of the winter offroaders . I am not trying to be mean but glad that we the desert the same way used to be in the old days.

My passsenger @Chris69 and I had a blast chitchating the whole drive.

The day wasn't perfect without @Moustafa19 watermelon .

Thanks everyone for joining us and stay safe

Cheers
Shamsi

[dorudoru]

Hello All,

Lets start from the end, I believe this is the first time I truly enjoyed Sweihan! Desert was totally left for us and beyond the gatch road, there weren't any tracks even. It was like a fairytale.

We gathered in the usual spot next to the farms while the temprature was 48 degrees. I was telling all the members that how much I love the summer and at the end of the drive, they understood why

It was nice to see old members @piotr and @Lenny who wanted to witness the comeback of the famous pram driver. Some other members were going to see him in action for the first time...

Long story short, @Daggerfall was still on shape to pull out fantastic sequences in the untouched portions of Sweihan. Sometimes he gets into the zone and create amazing connections or back to back side crests. It always reminds me the song "Smooth Operator".

@Petr was the second lead of the first portion of the drive, however due to overheating of the Jeep which is expected in these conditions, I gladly had to take that position. Brought me to the good old days, where @Daggerfall, @Solmaz and @Agalon was appaering in every drive.

Sorry for so much historical references. It is always fun to follow @Daggerfall jfrom ust behind. He picks very elegant lines, there are still so much to learn from him. He played safe at this drive considering the convoy. However, we had hard time to get the rhytm due to second tries and some stucks. Thats part of the game and practice makes everything better.

Thanks a lot for the Founder @alshamsi_m it was great to see you after a long time . He is always there where he is needed the most in the convoy, great communications, to the point corrections. Everyone has something to learn from his vast experience. Thanks @Rashidjass for the support, @Petr and @orlantsev as well.

Thanks to the fellow intermediates to join and make it a really fun drive. @Daggerfall everyone is waiting for you to get your Mojo back to throw you a welcome party.

See you in the sand!

[Daggerfall]

Hi Almosters,

As mentioned, the best part of driving in the summer is experiencing a clean desert with untouched sand, which makes the drive more enjoyable.

Our convoy was a mix of fresh and experienced intermediates, so the challenge was to find the right pace—one that wasn't too slow for the experienced members and not too fast for the newcomers. This balance naturally led to some interruptions in the flow, which are expected and part of the learning process. However, we had the best support from @alshamsi_m and @Rashidjass , along with advanced drivers @Petr and @orlantsev . Whenever there was a disconnected convoy or a stuck car, they immediately intervened and kept the convoy moving. Thank you all for your invaluable support.

Everyone performed well overall, and most importantly, we maintained a safe environment. As I mentioned in the briefing, there would be obstacles that you might not tackle successfully on the first attempt. The key is to fail in a way that allows you to try again and again.

We extended the drive duration a bit to enjoy the breathtaking view from the Old Lady and relished the delicious watermelon served by @Moustafa19 . Special thanks to @Petr and @dorudoru for the excellent second lead, and to everyone who participated.

All in all, it was a great day, and I'm already looking forward to our next adventure.

See you soon!

[Msharhan]

Hi Everyone,

As the name suggests, the drive was at Paradise City. It was a wonderful drive on a very fresh track, as nobody had been there before, or maybe God had reset the previous tracks for us.

Some people can't imagine going to Sweihan at 48°, but to them, I say, "You are missing the real beauty of the desert."

Special thanks to @Daggerfall for this memorable experience, and @alshamsi_m & @Rashidjass for your guidance and support. And @orlantsev & @Petr for the sweep support.

And to all inter's, Thanks for being part of this drive.
Mohamed Sharhan,

[piotr]

Dear All,
The drive name was Paradise City, and it was a name well deserved. I was taken to paradise - then a bit further down, and then back up again :)

With 47 degrees and a quite a bit of wind on Truck Road it was pretty clear it will be just us and the desert - guaranteeing no interference from passers-by and no tracks.

@Daggerfall kept the briefing short (there will be a lot of cresting, "brave souls at the front, chickens at the back" :) guess I was one of the chickens :P) and off we went. The pace picked up immediately as we moved from one crest to another as promised. This time the trajectory was a little a bit different to what a former Newbie and a new Intermediate was used to, with approach angles somewhat more aggressive and crests coming up very fast one after another (it was so much fun though!). Once or twice I found myself a bit too close to the car in front (maintain distance!) which resulted in second tries. The right distance+momentum is everything!

I was enjoying myself immensely, up until some 1h into the drive when I found myself on top of a crest with steering going extremely stiff - abort! power steering gone! It did not feel like I hit anything on the way up, but as annoying as it was, with the power steering seal gone, it meant the end of the drive for me - the only issue to sort out was how to get the car out of the desert :) With @alshamsi_m behind the wheel of the limping car and @Rashidjass assisting, a couple of barbed-wire fences further we managed to reach a gatch road - easy way to the garage from there onwards. With expert help of @Rashidjass the car was back up and running in less than 24h after the mishap - thank you!!

Also, big thank you to @orlantsev and @Petr for your support!

For next 1 month there will be cooler climates for me, but after that - I want more of such drives!! :)

See you in the sand after summer!!

Piotr

[nidal78]

Dear Almosters

Paradise City drive is one of the remarkable drives for me so far
For me this is my second intermediate drive under the lead of the legendary @Daggerfall and I can shout loudly I am a big fan of you brother
Our leader mentioned in the briefing that if we want to survive and enjoy the drive it is all about momentum, safe distance and radio communication
The drive started with a decent speed to let everyone feel the rhythm then @Daggerfall started to increase the pace and as he mentioned in the briefing it was all about momentum, distance and radio communications because if you don’t follow these points you will end up doing second try or stuck and that’s what happened for most of us including me
For example in one dune I got creasted because the car in front of me slowed down on the creast and I didn’t leave too much space between me and him so I didn’t find the time and the space to maneuver ( lesson learned )
Overall the drive was amazing and challenging and the lines of our leader was fantastic and next time I hope to be more closer to leading car to monitor and learn from the legendary Daggerfall
Closing my report with a huge thank to our beloved founder and master of the masters Abu Salim and our guardian angel Rashidjass for their incredible support
Big thanks as well for advance drivers Peter and Orlantsev for their efforts keep everyone safe
Finally to my brave intermediate friends you really did a great job and played safe
Till the next time be safe and see you all soon on sand