The Coyote and the Road Runner
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siddharthsai
- media
- Posts: 36
- Joined: Sun Aug 18, 2024 10:58 am
- Has thanked: 69 times
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It is incredibly difficult to explain this drive, but here you go.
I reached the point much earlier than usual. Maybe 35 mins ahead of meeting time. I met @Spyda at the location. And then slowly people started joining. This time the briefing was very much different from @David and @CARLOSS.
There was a strict rule this time that we follow the exact same route as the second lead, or we would politely be kicked off the convoy. This is enforced because of some dangerous driving by 10+ last 2 drives. Almost is known for their safety, and when the Marshals tell you to do something, you do it.
We started off the drive, and I was confident, but there was an air of uncertainty on the track and how it would evolve over time. The most important thing for the marshals is to keep the convoy at the lowest level of the driver in the convoy, keep testing and then increase the hardness.
There was radio silence for more than 40 mins at a stretch. It was because there was no confusion, and everyone knew exactly what needed to be done. Reminds me of the scene from Interstellar when Cooper enters Miller's planet, and then there is a loud silence when he breaks into the atmosphere. Similar vibes today.
I had a better grip of the 4R today than any other drive before. Just felt extremely confident with the car, which I never felt before. Snowy can climb with 0 effort. But I wanted to rely on my momentum this time and not throttle the whole time, which gave me even more confidence today. We spent some serious time driving today, I think more than last 10 drives (except liwa).
The area was really good too. Long dunes towards the end which was also beautiful.
Thank you All Marshals and Inter for the support.
Ciao,
Sid
I reached the point much earlier than usual. Maybe 35 mins ahead of meeting time. I met @Spyda at the location. And then slowly people started joining. This time the briefing was very much different from @David and @CARLOSS.
There was a strict rule this time that we follow the exact same route as the second lead, or we would politely be kicked off the convoy. This is enforced because of some dangerous driving by 10+ last 2 drives. Almost is known for their safety, and when the Marshals tell you to do something, you do it.
We started off the drive, and I was confident, but there was an air of uncertainty on the track and how it would evolve over time. The most important thing for the marshals is to keep the convoy at the lowest level of the driver in the convoy, keep testing and then increase the hardness.
There was radio silence for more than 40 mins at a stretch. It was because there was no confusion, and everyone knew exactly what needed to be done. Reminds me of the scene from Interstellar when Cooper enters Miller's planet, and then there is a loud silence when he breaks into the atmosphere. Similar vibes today.
I had a better grip of the 4R today than any other drive before. Just felt extremely confident with the car, which I never felt before. Snowy can climb with 0 effort. But I wanted to rely on my momentum this time and not throttle the whole time, which gave me even more confidence today. We spent some serious time driving today, I think more than last 10 drives (except liwa).
The area was really good too. Long dunes towards the end which was also beautiful.
Thank you All Marshals and Inter for the support.
Ciao,
Sid
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Minhaj
- Newbie
- Posts: 30
- Joined: Tue Apr 01, 2025 10:56 pm
- Location: Abu Dhabi
- Has thanked: 139 times
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Hello Guys,
The morning actually began before I even started driving. I received a call from @siddharthsai asking if I had left home, and that call itself set the tone for the day. I left at 6 AM, but the fog was extremely thick, with very poor visibility. For a moment I genuinely felt the drive might get delayed or even cancelled, which was disappointing because I had been waiting for this drive all week.
After roughly 60 km, the fog slowly cleared and the excitement returned. I reached the meeting point right at 7:30 AM and saw a few members already there. I quickly deflated my tires, fixed my flag, greeted everyone, and the energy kept building. Even the drive title sounded exciting.
Before starting, David, Carlo, and Ehab (Three Musketeers) gave very clear and strict instructions. The focus was on discipline and safety, especially never making a bigger arch than the marshal. If uncomfortable, we were told to choose a smaller arch instead. The seriousness of the briefing made everyone quiet and attentive, and at that moment I knew this was going to be a challenging drive.
The convoy was set with @David leading, @Vika as second lead, @Stephan in the middle, @mpodroid as sweep, while @CARLOSS and @Ehab floated around monitoring and guiding the convoy.
The drive started fast and continued with strong momentum. We moved into safari style dunes that kept getting bigger, and later the drive became technical with soft sand and some truly challenging climbs.
It was one of those drives where your focus stays locked the entire time. I was determined to stay clean and avoid mistakes. At one point the convoy flowed beautifully in a perfect single line, which was a very satisfying moment. Carlo and Ehab were constantly observing, guiding, and supporting, which made a huge difference.
We had several short breaks to cooldown before pushing again. At one stage I thought we were nearing the end, but we soon found ourselves climbing soft dunes once more. I genuinely lost count of how many climbs we completed.
What I truly appreciate is that every drive is designed to teach padawans something valuable. It is always a training session for what lies ahead. What I learned today was simple but powerful. Trust and follow the lead’s instructions without hesitation. I understood the real importance of discipline, clear communication, and maintaining the correct distance. These are fundamentals we are taught from the very beginning of our drives. But as time passes, confidence can slowly turn into overconfidence, and that’s when mistakes start creeping in. This drive felt like a much needed reset a strong reminder to stay humble, stay disciplined, and respect the basics no matter how comfortable we feel behind the wheel.
David selected an excellent layout for this drive. Just like the title, it was fast, technical, and kept everyone fully engaged from start to finish,Amazing and unforgettable drive. A big thank you to David for organising it, Carlo and Ehab for constantly watching over us, and the entire support team for keeping everyone safe.
The morning actually began before I even started driving. I received a call from @siddharthsai asking if I had left home, and that call itself set the tone for the day. I left at 6 AM, but the fog was extremely thick, with very poor visibility. For a moment I genuinely felt the drive might get delayed or even cancelled, which was disappointing because I had been waiting for this drive all week.
After roughly 60 km, the fog slowly cleared and the excitement returned. I reached the meeting point right at 7:30 AM and saw a few members already there. I quickly deflated my tires, fixed my flag, greeted everyone, and the energy kept building. Even the drive title sounded exciting.
Before starting, David, Carlo, and Ehab (Three Musketeers) gave very clear and strict instructions. The focus was on discipline and safety, especially never making a bigger arch than the marshal. If uncomfortable, we were told to choose a smaller arch instead. The seriousness of the briefing made everyone quiet and attentive, and at that moment I knew this was going to be a challenging drive.
The convoy was set with @David leading, @Vika as second lead, @Stephan in the middle, @mpodroid as sweep, while @CARLOSS and @Ehab floated around monitoring and guiding the convoy.
The drive started fast and continued with strong momentum. We moved into safari style dunes that kept getting bigger, and later the drive became technical with soft sand and some truly challenging climbs.
It was one of those drives where your focus stays locked the entire time. I was determined to stay clean and avoid mistakes. At one point the convoy flowed beautifully in a perfect single line, which was a very satisfying moment. Carlo and Ehab were constantly observing, guiding, and supporting, which made a huge difference.
We had several short breaks to cooldown before pushing again. At one stage I thought we were nearing the end, but we soon found ourselves climbing soft dunes once more. I genuinely lost count of how many climbs we completed.
What I truly appreciate is that every drive is designed to teach padawans something valuable. It is always a training session for what lies ahead. What I learned today was simple but powerful. Trust and follow the lead’s instructions without hesitation. I understood the real importance of discipline, clear communication, and maintaining the correct distance. These are fundamentals we are taught from the very beginning of our drives. But as time passes, confidence can slowly turn into overconfidence, and that’s when mistakes start creeping in. This drive felt like a much needed reset a strong reminder to stay humble, stay disciplined, and respect the basics no matter how comfortable we feel behind the wheel.
David selected an excellent layout for this drive. Just like the title, it was fast, technical, and kept everyone fully engaged from start to finish,Amazing and unforgettable drive. A big thank you to David for organising it, Carlo and Ehab for constantly watching over us, and the entire support team for keeping everyone safe.
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Haidy79
- Newbie
- Posts: 30
- Joined: Sun Jun 23, 2024 11:16 pm
- Has thanked: 94 times
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Another 10+ trip from the name @David explained to all of us that it is going to be fast ..but no tolerance with the safty as usual...with @Ehab &@CARLOSS floating watching every body's track and performance to make sure that we are following...supported by @Vika as a second lead and @mpodroid @Stephan ...we all hit the sand on time ...Today drive was challenging on many different levels...
First it is Ramdan and some of us were fasting but @David generously asked all fasting members to stay in theircars if there is aneed for help or rescue
...second the track @David choose was amazing ...he started easily to warm us up then the fun began...climbing dunes ..making arches and as we were about to finish we did some switching and technical manoeuvres .....As I was trying to follow the track I was going on the second gear to have some speed..thus result of my car drifting alittle on small arches... @CARLOSS gave me instructions then we stopped for a break and he explained in details how to manage only on first gear...he even drove my car and I was a passenger to show me how itis done thanks @CARLOSS ...
The second part of the drive was spectacular and I had better control...
@Ehab also gave me educational instructions....
@David took us all out on time ..
Thank you all soo much..see you all on sand soon ....
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David
- Explorer
- Posts: 234
- Joined: Tue Feb 11, 2020 12:15 pm
- Location: Dubai
- Has thanked: 970 times
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Before anything else a big shout to Carlos and Ehab, amazing to have them as support, most of you will not know but Carlos was supposed to support me alone on this drive, his car suffered mechanical problems last minute and Ehab and him without hesitation decided immediately to come together in Ehab's car to support the drive so I was not left alone, incredible commitment.
The drive. Those who have been driving with me for some time know I love to have fun, we all have stressful lives and jobs over the week and for many of us the desert is a way to release all of that tension, however, this does not mean we can break the rules regarding safety. I did not enjoy a briefing like the one I had to do but I hope you all understand (and nobody takes it personally) that it was needed, sometimes we all require being reminded that the safety of the convoy is everyone's responsibility and that if there are rules it is for a reason.
In the first section we encountered a few convoys that broke the flow but the 2nd section provided cleaner dunes and no traffic, I personally enjoyed this second section better. I think the convoy did much better towards the end in general which is always a good sign, keep on improving, making small adjustments to your driving, ... and everything will come into place.
Big thanks again to Ehab & Carlos, Vika, Stephan and Marco for the support and everyone else who attended the drive for making it possible.
See you on the sand soon.
The drive. Those who have been driving with me for some time know I love to have fun, we all have stressful lives and jobs over the week and for many of us the desert is a way to release all of that tension, however, this does not mean we can break the rules regarding safety. I did not enjoy a briefing like the one I had to do but I hope you all understand (and nobody takes it personally) that it was needed, sometimes we all require being reminded that the safety of the convoy is everyone's responsibility and that if there are rules it is for a reason.
In the first section we encountered a few convoys that broke the flow but the 2nd section provided cleaner dunes and no traffic, I personally enjoyed this second section better. I think the convoy did much better towards the end in general which is always a good sign, keep on improving, making small adjustments to your driving, ... and everything will come into place.
Big thanks again to Ehab & Carlos, Vika, Stephan and Marco for the support and everyone else who attended the drive for making it possible.
See you on the sand soon.
David - Black FJ (0505543626)
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Spyda
- Intermediate
- Posts: 31
- Joined: Fri Dec 15, 2023 2:11 pm
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Thank you David for letting me join the convoy to get more seat time in the Fj. Feeling at one with the car now bring on the intermediate level.
Also my apologies for deviating off the line slightly, mix of excitement and wanting to push the car. I realise my error and as an intermediate I should be setting an example to the newbie drivers and sticking exactly to the line. Learning to drive as support for newbies and keeping to the level is something a skill in itself and I made mistakes.
After the previous two weekends incidents safety was strictly enforced with an iron fist. David adjusted the level as a couple of drivers was struggling, safety is paramount and everybody goes home to there families with there body and car intact.
Found out carloss car was in the garage and Ehab stepped up to support hats off to him. Told me he doesn't really drive much during Ramadan as he is fasting but stepped in to provide the support.
I was positioned at the back in front of Marco sweeping, noticed a few times that some drivers were not stopping when 2nd trys was called on the radio and putting themselves in bad positions. Very important to stop and think about where you stop so not to block the line for the driver making there second attempt.
All in all the drive was kept very safe and nobody got into any dangerous situations.
After the drive I went back to the desert had my friend who is a professional photographer as passenger. We went and hit the intermediate lines and chopped fresh crests. The confidence in my ability and skills the club has taught me I'm very grateful as always. Made some
photos and videos and got my fix of adrenaline.
Thank you as, always to the Marshalls for the training and support
Also my apologies for deviating off the line slightly, mix of excitement and wanting to push the car. I realise my error and as an intermediate I should be setting an example to the newbie drivers and sticking exactly to the line. Learning to drive as support for newbies and keeping to the level is something a skill in itself and I made mistakes.
After the previous two weekends incidents safety was strictly enforced with an iron fist. David adjusted the level as a couple of drivers was struggling, safety is paramount and everybody goes home to there families with there body and car intact.
Found out carloss car was in the garage and Ehab stepped up to support hats off to him. Told me he doesn't really drive much during Ramadan as he is fasting but stepped in to provide the support.
I was positioned at the back in front of Marco sweeping, noticed a few times that some drivers were not stopping when 2nd trys was called on the radio and putting themselves in bad positions. Very important to stop and think about where you stop so not to block the line for the driver making there second attempt.
All in all the drive was kept very safe and nobody got into any dangerous situations.
After the drive I went back to the desert had my friend who is a professional photographer as passenger. We went and hit the intermediate lines and chopped fresh crests. The confidence in my ability and skills the club has taught me I'm very grateful as always. Made some
photos and videos and got my fix of adrenaline. Thank you as, always to the Marshalls for the training and support
