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Tune the dunes

Posted: Fri Jul 12, 2019 11:31 am
by Isfand
A drive that lived up to its name! Tune the dunes. The tune can be thought of as a melody the dunes played as we went high and dropped low ending the drive With a technical track to the exit.

It was an early start. I woke up at 4:45AM. This was my alarm’s 2nd try to wake me up! An hours drive with a beautiful view of the sunrise on E66 (Al Ain road). The sky presented an orange hue as the sun rose on my left. Reach the meeting point and what amazing weather welcomed us to the desert this morning.

Was so happy to see everyone once again. Since [mention]Daggerfall[/mention] was the organizer of the drive, he quickly briefed us and introduced us to the Leaders for the day.
[mention]Barish[/mention] was leading the convoy I was in while [mention]presa[/mention] led the other convoy. I think first Inter lead for both of them but [mention]Barish[/mention] for sure. So it was going to be fun and interesting!!

[mention]Barish[/mention] briefed us and told us the convoy positions where I was appointed 2nd lead. A Heavyweight following a lightweight car. brigade.baka-wolf.com definitely interesting! This was my first time as a 2nd lead in an Official Almost Drive. Well I must say that I really enjoyed it!

Things I had observed in all my previous drives and I applied as a 2nd lead:
- Distance is extremely important as a second lead. You are the last line of defense for the rest of the convoy. The marshal will give you instructions that quickly need to be followed.
- The marshal is taking the best track and its important to follow exactly that to save the rest of the convoy members and their cars.
- Radio communication is very important. The convoy could be spread over a long distance in an Intermediate drive due to the speed and momentum required. immediate communication on a 2nd try or any other situation.
- Barish also told me to “clear” on the radio when i cross bigger dunes.

Being a second lead also teaches you a lot on why the marshal is doing what he/she is doing.
For example I noticed today that [mention]Barish[/mention] will sloow down properly no matter how steep or Not the dune is. It’s interesting because the Jeep has a great approach angle and with 35 inch tires you will virtually not hit anything.
BUT:
It’s a habit. Practice the right habit to save yourself and others. Your car might be able to do it but cars behind you might not. Think about everyone!

The convoy moved like a train except A few members needing a quick 2nd try (1 for me), one popout, and one car needed a little TLC. Nothing major

Thank You [mention]Barish[/mention] for letting me be the 2nd lead and taking us for an awesome morning drive.
Thank you to [mention]Daggerfall[/mention] for the organization and [mention]Agalon[/mention] [mention]haider alnuaimi[/mention] [mention]Issa[/mention] for support. [mention]Youssef.Abdelhady[/mention] sweeped for the convoy.

Re: Tune the dunes

Posted: Sat Jul 13, 2019 2:35 pm
by Rooies
It was a "struggle" to get on this drive, technology was against me. Book a seat the Sunday, got confirmation, went out, booked a seat at the 10+, came back to check & I was gone OSMILEY . Fortunately [mention]Daggerfall[/mention] opened another convoy, this time I will succeed. Sign up time came, opened the app, got ready, joined, got message convoy full omg , how? Closed the app, re-opened, message pop up, UPDATE APP, no no no, not now, closed the message, signed up, went out, went back, yes I am still there, updated the app & poof, everything was gone, no drives, I was a newbie with 22 drives wtfsmilie .

Friday came & I had to get up early, second alarm did the trick getting me out of bed, but I was still not awake. I picked up my two passengers & gave them each a motion sickness pill, just incase....

We reached the meeting point, there was a lot of cars, I quickly went through the drills & got everything ready. The convoys were dealt in & I was in [mention]presa[/mention] convoy, we did the briefing & got ready to move. I gave my one passenger to [mention]Rashidjass[/mention] (he would have been sitting in the back sick ). We hit the dunes, the track was nice & flowing, the convoy was small which made it nice & fast. We did side crest & there was a few second tries, but nothing serious. My passenger did not feel well when we stopped for a break sick . We swopped him with the other passenger with [mention]Rashidjass[/mention] & went back on the road. Some people are just not made for the desert. Thank you [mention]Rashidjass[/mention] for taking care of him.

The rest of the drive went well, it was getting hot & the sun was high making seeing the track a bit difficult, [mention]presa[/mention] called & said that we will head for the gate because of these conditions.

What I learned from the drive, following distance is very important, you need momentum to get over the dunes, too slow & you will not make it. Also make sure of your gear selection, after our stop I could not get up the dune.... OSMILEY , because I was in 4th gear grin .

Thank you [mention]presa[/mention] for a nice flowing track, thank you [mention]Solmaz[/mention] , [mention]Rashidjass[/mention] & [mention]SINGH[/mention] for looking after us.

Till we meet in the sand again, take care.

Greetings
Rooies

Re: Tune the dunes

Posted: Sat Jul 13, 2019 5:33 pm
by Issa
Hello almosters,

its been a long time that I haven't posted a trip report, but actually this trip deserves a TUNED report.

to start from the beginning, I moved to the meeting point with my senior copilot @ziadng @430 am to make sure to be tighedup and ready for the drive, came out that we were the first to reach the meeting point.

attendance was taken by [mention]Daggerfall[/mention], and the drivers were split into 2 convoys, our convoy was led by [mention]Barish[/mention], and swept by [mention]Youssef.Abdelhady[/mention] , i was floating with [mention]haider.almuaimi[/mention].

the breafing was summed up in 3 sentences by [mention]barish[/mention] and [mention]daggerfall[/mention], " you are all experienced intermediates, have fun, and stay safe"

the drive started on time and it was moving smoothly and i guess everybody was enjoying the drive with some sort of action and second tries.

thanks [mention]daggerfall[/mention] for organizing this trip, [mention]barish[/mention] for the great lead and track, [mention]youssef.abdelhady[/mention] for the sweep, and [mention]agalon[/mention], [mention]haider.alnuaimi[/mention] for the support



Until the next time,
Stay safe, See you in the Sand

Re: Tune the dunes

Posted: Sun Jul 14, 2019 6:14 pm
by optimus
Hi All!

Thank you [mention]Daggerfall[/mention] for organizing the drive!
I was in a convoy that was lead by [mention]Barish[/mention] .
It was his first inter lead and as usual he stressed on the importance of radio communication which ofcourse is a basic and most important tool to communicate with your fellow drivers in case of reporting for 2nd tries, stucks, lost tracks, technical breaks :)) etc!

Barish gave us no time for warm up! headed straight into a zone surrounded by dunes.
I didn't knew a modification to God Father, i had done few days back, he would behave like a bronco, for sometime i was not able to control the torque but before i could realize wtfsmilie is happening, barish hit the first side crest and there you go, just before reaching the top i realized i wont be able to perform it safely, turned down & hit sideways a soft wall. Needed a pull, thanks to my friend [mention]Youssef.Abdelhady[/mention]. After performing that crest more or less i gained the throttle control and the drive went smooth until we had to do a side crest from the soft side. my mistake, i was choosing a wrong line therefore whenever i was reaching the top, i could feel my rear end of the car was sliding hence i had to turn down, did multiple tries but still i didn't felt safe to execute the crest until [mention]Daggerfall[/mention] radioed me and showed me the correct approach angle to perform a side crest from the soft side. Thanks alot [mention]Daggerfall[/mention]. i will always remember that!
Big thanks to [mention]Barish[/mention] who gave us a good mix N match of everything & thanks to [mention]Agalon[/mention] [mention]haider alnuaimi[/mention] and [mention]Issa[/mention] for the support.

I had alot of fun!

Re: Tune the dunes

Posted: Sun Jul 14, 2019 8:01 pm
by Youssef.Abdelhady
Hey Almosters,

Another really early morning in the sand, where you leave the house before the sun comes up. 2 z Z

Personally though I prefer these timings in the summer vs the scorching heat in the afternoon. burnt

Since our marshals & explorers were kind enough to open two convoys, we were a small convoy of 6 inters. ORLY

After a short but clear briefing, we went off to flatten every dune in the area.

We had plenty of sidecresting practice on steep medium sizes dunes. Initially there were several second rounds due to wrong angle or lack of momentum, but as the drive progressed and we were all warmed up, the flow of the convoy improved. cool

Overall I really enjoyed the drive and am a big fan of Al Faqa area. Its a great place for perfecting sidecresting skills. in love

Thank you [mention]Barish[/mention] for a great lead, and thanks to all the supporting marshals, explorers, and advance.



See you all soon. pacman

Re: Tune the dunes

Posted: Mon Jul 15, 2019 12:01 am
by Jasper
Hello everyone!

I was in [mention]Barish[/mention]' convoy as number 3 car following [mention]Isfand[/mention]. The briefing was quick and we attacked the dunes after the first convoy left, which was led by [mention]presa[/mention]. [mention]Barish[/mention] gave us a very good track to practice side cresting on medium sized dunes in Al Faqa. This is first time for me following a Jeep lead and the experience is totally different. While [mention]Barish[/mention] is doing the climb and the side crest I always try to see how he does it. I tried to follow the same lines and speed but the FJ can’t. Maybe my lack of experience (or needed a wake up warm up ORLY ) but I have to do some second tries and learned to approach it in a different angle. Few minutes into the drive it was all okay and doing the crest nicely and safely. A lot of learning and definitely a very exciting morning. I really liked the timing as it was perfect – before it gets too hot.

Thanks to [mention]Daggerfall[/mention] for organizing and support team [mention]Agalon[/mention] [mention]haider alnuaimi[/mention] [mention]Issa[/mention] @Youssef.A[mention]Youssef.Abdelhady[/mention]

Stay safe and see you guys soon!

Re: Tune the dunes

Posted: Mon Jul 15, 2019 8:55 am
by Johanna
Hi all,

as it is all said about the drive in the other reports, here just some key facts of the drive:

Area: Al Faqqah
Duration: 6:30 - 9:30 am
Level: average Intermediate
Lead: Presa
Driving Position: Sweeper

Convoy issues: few second tries only
key technique: driving on top of the crest
personal challenge: balance the car on the crest, keeping it stable on side slops
personal mistakes: fighting gravity while approaching a side crest without enough momentum
lessons learned: DONT FIGHT GRAVITY!

[mention]presa[/mention], great lead, I really enjoyed your driving style grin

Re: Tune the dunes

Posted: Mon Jul 15, 2019 11:50 am
by Agalon
Another nice morning gathering with Almosters.

I was with [mention]Barish[/mention] as support along with [mention]Daggerfall[/mention] , [mention]Issa[/mention] and [mention]haider alnuaimi[/mention] . Our leader gave us a nice track with some good challenges for our intermediate drivers. Overall performance was good but in addition i have some advises based on my observations.
By this level, you should be familiar with your vehicles behavior like how to climb the crests, which angle and which speed etc. Al Faqaa is one of the best and forgiving areas where you can practice your skills on this manner.
Second tries are part of the game, there is no shame on that. It is much more important to abort the crest at the soonest without fighting the gravity and making the next try in the flow of the convoy. This is another habit that we expect to be autonomous in this level.

Thanks to all for attending the drive and making it another success.

Re: Tune the dunes

Posted: Mon Jul 15, 2019 5:11 pm
by Barish
Al Faqa is really amazing for an intermediate level skills practice. Dunes are so convenient from both sides to climb but we selected the opposite side to bring a challenge.

We had all our experienced intermediate drivers in the convoy and new advanced drivers floating around; they accepted the challange and started to Tune the Dunes. Always make sure of your angle to the crest: the goal is to Tune the Dunes gently.

Thanks to [mention]Daggerfall[/mention] for the organization of the drive, support team and the intermediate drivers that made it happen.

Keep in mind, you should improve when you chg the gear.

See you on the sand soon.

Barish

Re: Tune the dunes

Posted: Mon Jul 15, 2019 8:18 pm
by Daggerfall
Hi All,

Another early morning drive and felt very comfortable till the end of the drive which was around 09:00 (We finished on time) so I am still a big fan of morning int drives! (And woke up on time grin )

As mentioned before, the dunes in Faqa has a forgiving nature where you can practice how to have the right initial speed & momentum and right angle and even if you make a mistake at top, the other side is relatively flat to tolerate your mistakes.

I was supporting [mention]Barish[/mention] with [mention]Agalon[/mention] and our leading car gave us a nice ride which he put our member's skills from all levels to the test in couple of dunes where they need to make everything perfect to tackle those obstacles and exposed some weaknesses needs to be addressed with more practice. brigade.baka-wolf.com I guess.

In this level you are driving at the limits of your cars and skills so sometimes small adjustments needs to be done on angle , speed etc according to the type of your car, position in the convoy etc. So follow the lead but also think! to overcome different type of obstacles.

And remember to have right initial speed so you can release the throttle at the top and have a better control. If you are still on full throttle at the top it means you didn't have the right speed and the car can easily loose control because some tires loose contact with the ground during cresting.

It was another nice day in the desert and thanks to all supported and participated.

See you next time