Almost4x4

Posted: **Sat May 28, 2022 4:46 pm**

Hello offroaders, what a lovely morning we had today! Still I was amazed by the morning temperature, nice wind completely acceptable, perfect for an early morning start in Qudra

Meeting with all the team near the triple tree area in Qudra, a decent amount of people joining today, and our leader today, Marshal @giorgio . It was and adventurous day unfortunately we lost @AhmedElmahdy from the start, car issue, and I hope the Armada made it in one piece, our best wishes to you guys, hope the cars are fixed soon, and we see you back.

Also was great to see today new driver and friend, @Mafalda , you did an amazing job for first drive, keep it up and hope to see you many times more. @PedroLeal you have now all the angles of your car, as driver and passenger, you just need to see your daughter drive it now

I was today second lead so had the opportunity to see @giorgio at his best, manoeuvring up and down the dunes, was great to be in fron line seat, thank you @giorgio for the great drive and for the opportunity.

Wish you all the best for the rest of the weekend, and safe drive to the guys driving today afternoon. Hope to see you all soon.

@luckeym with the white Prado

Posted: **Sat May 28, 2022 9:00 pm**

A weekend Morning well spent .surrounded by marshalls ( front . back . sides ) we were covered :) , exceptional support made a very safe and enjoyable trip. Look forward to the next one . Thank you Almost 4x4

Posted: **Sun May 29, 2022 10:30 am**

Hello everyone

First of all thank you @giorgio for giving our members the right dose of straight cresting until we marshals cried

.

We had a very decent drive where our members got to know their cars and what expect to come in this kind of hobby.

@Barish & @optimus where allover the place making sure that everyone are safe and sound

hat for you gentlemen. We shouldn't ignore the supporting team @Tomvanhouten & Duroduro who joined although they had another drive in the afternoon

.

It was great to see you all and looking forward to see more before August.

Take care for now and see you in the sand or the mountain & beach

Posted: **Sun May 29, 2022 1:30 pm**

Hello everyone,

Round 1 was for the newly joined people with a fair mix of a bit more experienced guys/girls.
The area chosen for this exercise was Qudra back to Al Ain road, personally I love this area, this is fantastic the learn the first basics and techniques which now may feel like boring or even easy, but this what you need when you grow.
The hammering and constant repeating of these basics is your foundation for what is to come and so incredibly valuable!

In general, the drive went smoothly, besides some unneeded plastic which were removed during the drive.
I think the track from @giorgio made a lot of sense and was great for the convoy.

Thank you all and see you soon again,

Tom

Posted: **Sun May 29, 2022 1:50 pm**

Good morning all.

Yesterday was my first time driving the wrangler in the desert after my CM drive last week and it was fun although my hands and feet were shaking

but as @giorgio said it is nice because it means that I was challenging myself.
@giorgio it was so nice meeting you and what an amazing drive!!

Thank you to all the Marshalls, crew and intermediates who were involved in the morning drive always helping and giving great advices.
As @alshamsi_m mentioned yesterday's drive taught me some important things on how to drive my car.
Three important ruIes I cannot forget for the future.. Momentum, straight wheels on the drops and communication.. Mafalda is clear!!
Also need to thank @PedroLeal for having the patience to sit on the passenger's seat and always keeping me calm!

Hope to see you all in the next drive.

Mafalda

Posted: **Mon May 30, 2022 8:23 am**

Stellar morning out in the sand! Amongst it! Loved every moment, even getting stuck and being pulled out. Appreciate the knowledge and guidance from @alshamsi_m and @Barish

Thanks @giorgio for organising the drive and small technical pieces. Now time to go upgrade the Montero

Posted: **Mon May 30, 2022 10:58 am**

Welcome to the other Side.

As the weather is getting hotter we were lucky to have a relatively nice morning gathering.

The drive was dedicated to the new comments to the club getting a flavor of the off-reading world.

Main points of the drive were radio communication, keeping proper distance (20mts) , maintaining your momentum and always descending with your wheels pointed straight down.

The drive was moderately long (for the level ) with some stucks, pop outs, loss of track, and the convoy got disconnected several times.

Overall the new members did a good job and tried their very best.

I would like to thank my second lead @luckeym for keeping up with the challenges of his assignment, our support Marshalls @alshamsi_m and @Barish @optimus as well as our intermediates @Tom and @dorudoru for their hard work. Finally thank you @brett for taking over the sweepers duties.

Looking forward to seeing you all soon on the upcoming drives. Until them drive safe

Posted: **Mon May 30, 2022 11:59 am**

Dear Almosters

It was lovely weather early Saturday morning, meeting @giorgio well ahead of the posted meeting time. (location is only 20min from home for me).

Once deflated, flag attached etc we settled back in our chairs drinking coffee and awaiting the arrival of the victims - opps I mean fresh Newbies !

We were soon joined by the egar Newbies and the support crew - big thanks to @giorgio for arranging the drive, @alshamsi_m Founder extraordinaire, Commander of Operations @Barish @optimus , Outstanding recovery support from @CARLOSS @dorudoru and @Tomvanhouten

@PedroLeal you are a braver man than me !!

As mentioned it was quite a long drive for first time Newbies and mostly everyone did really well. I am sure it was a big learning experience for all. I am looking forward to watching the development as you continue your almost4x4 journey.
My advice is (try) and relax, learn your car.
Radio communication
Respect Gravity
Maintain the correct following distance
Make sure you have all the right tools
Bring lots of water

The Drive itself was not without some interesting learning situations leading to pop outs, stucks on crests and second tries. all situations that are to be expected as we learn. Don't be in a hurry it takes time to master the skills required and everyone learns at their own pace - its not a race !

Some cars are better suited to the desert than others - but even cars that are "trail rated" can experience issues in the extreme environment. I think I used more duct tape re-attaching number plates, front and rear bumpers, than any other drive.

I was assigned as Sweeper, a convoy position I enjoy as I get to "play" a little bit here and there as the last car in the convoy. Following behind @Tomvanhouten made for a very relaxed morning as I was always confident of him flowing smoothly over the crests - reading the skill level of the car in front is also very important to avoid being surprised if following too close or losing the right track by losing sight of the car in front of you.

EIB (Eggs In Basket) challenge next weekend ! this is an amazing event to attend be it as a Challenger or as a spectator

looking forward to seeing you all at EIB

Posted: **Mon May 30, 2022 6:25 pm**

Hello Everyone,

It was a fantastic morning at the end of May. Surprisingly good weather condition, I was expecting to come back to Dubai and burn in hell but I was mistaken.

It's been a long time I was away and I missed the last CM drive as well, so it was great chance to meet with the lucky fresh newbies which are limited in number

@giorgio took us from Al Qudra to E66. Everyone did quite well, few stucks, some pop-outs here and there. Removal of unnecessary plastic parts have happened for some members earlier than the others. But lets make it clear, every newbie will come to that point sooner or later

I think Eggs in Basket will be helpful for some

Everyone already mentioned the important points but they are so important that I would Echo as well,

Following the correct distance will reduce the troubles you are going to get in.
Climbing, descending, reversing always and always.
Radio communication is paramount.
Do not fight gravity, she has no mercy.

Thanks to our explorer @optimus, marshal @Barish and founder @alshamsi_m for showing up and looking after us. They are our floating angles and do not forget they see everything. Thanks to my fellow rescue friend @Tomvanhouten as well.

See you on the sand!

Posted: **Tue May 31, 2022 9:47 am**

Hey Brett, thanks for the drive report & recognition but actually I was not there...at least physically speaking

I would have loved to but I couldn't make it due to some previous commitments...hope next time I will

Carlos

brett wrote: Mon May 30, 2022 11:59 am Dear Almosters

It was lovely weather early Saturday morning, meeting @giorgio well ahead of the posted meeting time. (location is only 20min from home for me).

Once deflated, flag attached etc we settled back in our chairs drinking coffee and awaiting the arrival of the victims - opps I mean fresh Newbies !

We were soon joined by the egar Newbies and the support crew - big thanks to @giorgio for arranging the drive, @alshamsi_m Founder extraordinaire, Commander of Operations @Barish @optimus , Outstanding recovery support from @CARLOSS @dorudoru and @Tomvanhouten

@PedroLeal you are a braver man than me !!

As mentioned it was quite a long drive for first time Newbies and mostly everyone did really well. I am sure it was a big learning experience for all. I am looking forward to watching the development as you continue your almost4x4 journey.
My advice is (try) and relax, learn your car.
Radio communication
Respect Gravity
Maintain the correct following distance
Make sure you have all the right tools
Bring lots of water

The Drive itself was not without some interesting learning situations leading to pop outs, stucks on crests and second tries. all situations that are to be expected as we learn. Don't be in a hurry it takes time to master the skills required and everyone learns at their own pace - its not a race !

Some cars are better suited to the desert than others - but even cars that are "trail rated" can experience issues in the extreme environment. I think I used more duct tape re-attaching number plates, front and rear bumpers, than any other drive.

I was assigned as Sweeper, a convoy position I enjoy as I get to "play" a little bit here and there as the last car in the convoy. Following behind @Tomvanhouten made for a very relaxed morning as I was always confident of him flowing smoothly over the crests - reading the skill level of the car in front is also very important to avoid being surprised if following too close or losing the right track by losing sight of the car in front of you.

EIB (Eggs In Basket) challenge next weekend ! this is an amazing event to attend be it as a Challenger or as a spectator

looking forward to seeing you all at EIB

Almost4x4

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