Enter The Inferno 2021

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Sorin
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Hi everyone,

Today’s drive started on a beautiful morning with temperatures of around 30 degrees in the small farm area behind Al Madam.

Since this was the first drive for the newly promoted intermediates, we were split into two convoys.

Convoy one was led by @Scorpio and was comprised of the new intermediates and convoy two was led by @alshamsi_m with @Mahmoodyasin as support.

It’s always a great deal of fun to drive with @alshamsi_m in this area, who despite all the traffic and no fresh dunes was still able to deliver a great drive.

Thankfully the temperature didn’t go past 46 degrees for the entire drive which is a good thing in UAE summer context :))

Finished at Badayer Shops where we met up with the first convoy and the happy customers

Below is a short video I made:

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brett
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Seeing the video from the perspective of the Yellow Jeep drivers seat is impressive ! Go Yellow !

My drive report for the Newbie Skyline Dunes will follow but just wanted to chime in here and say Awesome

Yellow is the new Black !

Congrats to the new Intermediates

Brett
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Until the next Adventure

Brett
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Tomvanhouten
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Hello everyone,

my first drive as an intermediate and it was a good one. Focusing on the technique, correct approach angles and speed, really great to participate.
Thank you @Scorpio and @giorgio for this valuable lesson!

Looking at the video from @Sorin the step we took yesterday is necessary one and it just once more emphasis the awareness of safety within the club; step by step all will gain in level.

Taking on this new challenge and having my feedback from the exam in mind, I was focused on the correct lines and off course missed it a few times, but that doesn't matter, the fun is in re-doing your mistakes and improving on the next.

I truly enjoyed the drive and can't wait for the next one (seems so far away for now cool )

Thank you all and see you soon,

Tom
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mpodroid
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An intermediate drive after a couple weeks as a passenger. We met early in the morning with fresh graduated intermediates: congratulations for the goal achieved.

@Scorpio  gave us the briefing and reminded us of the technique to approach arches and the importance of proper distance at this higher level.

Then, we split into two convoys: junior intermediate led by @Scorpio  and senior ones with @alshamsi_m.

I had only 5 drives as intermediate and I felt a bit intimidated so I humbly said "I have few drives..." and @alshamsi_m promptly replied "don't worry,  I have no plans to kill anybody today".   :yarr:

Exactly what I needed to hear to gain courage.

Anyway, we started facing the big dunes and it was incredible. We drove almost 3 hours, in radio silence, just a couple of short stops.  After an hour, my sun visor fell down, hanging in front of my face, just while crossing a dune: not pleasant and I had to call for a stop to fix it with some duct tape.

We met a lot of traffic in the middle of the drive, but our leader drove us away quickly, to avoid dangerous encounters.

Amazing drive, I arrived at home tired, with sore arms, but happy and satisfied.

Thanks to the marshals and the support team: @Scorpio, @alshamsi_m, @KIMOz, @optimus, @giorgio,
@Jasper
@Mahmoodyasin

Last but not least, to celebrate the "Enter the inferno" drive, my video with the "Disco Inferno" soundtrack :-)

Last edited by mpodroid on Sun Jul 04, 2021 5:30 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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alshamsi_m
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Hello Everyone

I have been doing these back-to-back drives for the last two weeks in this hot weather. So i decided to join @Scorpio for a relaxed intermediate drive where I will float around the convoy and I'll be having my drive in the afternoon.

I received the call from our organizer with a change in the plan in his mind " I'll take the fresh ones, you take the old " Why!!!!! :lll__: I need more caffeine to wake up totally for the morning drive ... yaeh am not durnk .

We drove from 7:40 am - 10:40 almost nonstop which was a good base, although we encountered few other convoys where I had to abort the arch because of one of them but all in all it was a great day.

At the end , we reached Al Bader safely to find our other group hiding in new inflating spot :yarr: which was a nice to catch up after the drive.

Thanks @Mahmoodyasin for the support and all who joined us today and loking forward to see you soon.

Cheers
Shamsi
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giorgio
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Enter The Inferno 2021
Intermediate drive.

This drive was dedicated as a welcome drive to the new intermediates, helping the older intermediates with a bonus drive.

The morning drive started with two convoys. Old drivers were to follow @alshamsi_m lead while the new comers were to follow @Scorpio .

@optimus was second lead I was flowing and @Tomvanhouten took the duties of sweeping.

The drive started without a warm up (guys get used to this feeling because it will be the new norm now).

The lead car right from the deflating point undertook the biggest for that area dune and here we go.

The level as a start was a solid intem level giving a flavor to the drivers of what the new level will be like. This came as a surprise to the drivers which were trying to collect they are skills and concentration to coop with the demanding drive.

After spending over 30min in the second big dune the leader wisely enough directed the convoy in lower dunes on a faster pace with a series of back to back side crests that put the drivers under pressure.

The second tries and destructions to the convoy flow were unavoidable but the drivers after the initial shock slowly put themselves together and focus on building their new skills.

The intermediate level is a whole new game. Although passing the exam is a big milestone and a great accomplishment it only means one thing. YOU ARE ENTERING A NEW ERA. You are not an intermediate driver you just got qualified to become an intermediate driver. This level is to my opinion the most critical level and one is to take his/her time to practice and improve. All weaknesses from the newbie level now will get magnified and the felling of short coming will be noticeable to the drivers themselves.

It will take sometime to get into a more comfortable position again so it is important to not miss drivers and always review the drive and the mistakes that were made so you avoid the same on the next drive while you are focusing on learning the new skills.

Closing my report I would like to congratulate the new comers and Thank the organizer and leader @Scorpio for the amazing Friday morning on the desert as well as @optimus for keeping the convoy safe as a second lead.
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Jasper
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Hello everyone,

Joining this drive I was excited to see the newly promoted Intermediates how they’ll perform on the new level. I remember when I was in their place the feeling was exhilarating and I am sure they have the same during this drive. To our surprise we were split into 2 convoys. This was a welcome surprise. The older Intermediate drivers were to be lead by @alshamsi_m. We had 8 in our convoy (4 Jeeps and 4 FJs). I was tasked to be second lead, @Rathica behind me, then @Sorin, @mpodroid, @SameRaptoRed, @KIMOz was to sweep and @Mahmoodyasin to float and support our leader. From the very first minutes of the drive I was chasing our leader and he is flying (literally). Told myself this is going to be an interesting morning. It was a high-speed multiple combination of side crests in Badayer. With the visibility of the FJ it is hard to see where our leader decided to go. Going down and up he can go left or right so it is very important to keep proper distance. One incident I lost him and with the help of Yasin I was able to find him again. The area was full of tracks and other convoys present. Had to abort few times for safety reasons. The sand was all messed up but the big dunes in Badayer always gives you a big smile. The convoy did excellent with 1 assisted recovery and second tries but no major issues. Radio silence was there for the majority of the dirve. The other convoy were already inflating when we reached the Badayer shops.

It was an amazing drive. Thanks again @alshamsi_m! Really had a blast. Thanks @Scorpio for organizing and giving us this surprise drive.

Take care and see guys soon!

Regards,
Jasper
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kriskian
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Hi Everyone,

It was a beautiful start to a journey I waited long to join....the adrenaline rush was high and some C4 even made it higher.....the drive....from the word go was a thrill....the most challenging part for me was not to lose sight of the car in front of you and at the same time maintain a safe distance.

The drive had everything in it....got good practice on the small and big crest....and also realized what I still need to work and improve on...having your orientation and bearing correctly is a must...a second of distraction will lead to you missing the line or track completely...we all had a couple of second try’s and were supported by the Advance and explorer ...whenever needed

Thanks to all who were part of the drive
kriskian,
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osman
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Hi everyone,

My First Intermediate Drive Report:

My report has three parts and I like to start thanking to the our founder @alshamsi_m and the marshals - including the old marshals who left the country or not being active recently - for bringing an ordinary road driver like me to an intermediate level offroader. The culture of the club is set from top town, making the safety as number one priority, sharing the knowledge, providing feedback, helping the ones in difficulty, observing every single person with eagle eyes from every direction and intervening immediately in risky situations. All of this is without any sign of ego, and hence building the "almost4x4 family". Having said that, I also witnessed some "cowboys" to challenge the marshals (and the founder) that they were superior. When the challenge was accepted, I believe they thought they were lucky to be able to drive back home - not their wreck is on top of a tow truck. Then they never to be seen again. I am very much proud of carrying the orange triangle with a scorpion in the middle; thanks to our high ranking family members..

Regarding to the drive, we were convoy of eight cars: @Scorpio leading, @optimus as the second lead, @giorgio sweeping and the rest were the fresh intermediates. In the briefing, @alshamsi_m explained the protocol for tackling the large & high bowls and @Scorpio reminded us the side cresting technique and the importance of using the gravity as friend not fight against it. Then we hit the large dunes, climbing up high, fast turn downs and side cresting. We kept a fast pace except we had the interruptions of second tries and a pop-out. We had some instances that we have to work on the right momentum & speed and also keeping-up with the correct track. I truly enjoyed every single moment of it, and when we finished everyone had a big smile on the face. Thanks @Scorpio for making such a nice lead. I have now tested the first glimpse of what is going to come but unfortunately I will be out of the country for almost two months. I hope I will be able to catch-up once I am back.

The last part of the report is for thanking to @alshamsi_m and @james for helping me out for my tyre burst. I made less than 20Kms after I left the Badayer shops bound to home, my front tire went flat in a second. While I was pumping up the tire, which was slowly inflating, fellow club members stopped and offered help and I told them I was OK, also trusting the petrol station is only few hundred meters away. Some minutes later Alshamsi and James stopped and we discovered that the tire was unrepairable condition and it had to be changed with the spare one. Over 45 degree of temperature, Alshamsi almost single handedly did all the heavy work and at the end gave us cold fruit juice to refresh!! When all fixed, James was behind me just in case. Thank you both...

Until the next drive, be safe and enjoy the sand...
Warning: Sand is addictive... and also the sea salt.
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Scorpio
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Hello Everyone,

Welcome to the new batch of intermediates have a nice day

First of all, I would like to thank @alshamsi_m for the great support and taking care of the older intermediates which allowed me to expose the fresh ones with the inferno gate :yarr: .

From the start, we had a great drive and enjoyed some nice run on dunes. I hope every member in the convoy got his share of both direct and indirect learnings. As you have entered the intermediate level successfully therefore, I have the following advices for you:

1. Do not consider crest as a threat and do not approach it unless you have full control on you and your car
2. Do not rush to go to the other side of the crest
3. Your momentum and angle to approach the crest makes all the difference
4. Come as parallel to the crest as possible before committing to touch it
5. When you are on the crest, enjoy the moment for 1-2 sec and then go down to the other side
6. If you follow the above steps, you will enjoy the side crest and will develop confidence
7. If you don’t enjoy it and don’t feel confident then it means you did not follow the steps
8. If you keep practicing Point 6, it will become your habit and soon you will start doing it by default (through subconscious mind)
9. If you keep following Point 7, then you are trying your luck
10. Give yourself time to learn but ensure that you are learning the right habits
11. Keep reminding yourself that gravity is your friend

With every intermediate level drive you will get exposed to newer challenges and scenarios so, keep learning and keep enjoying the fun level thumbsup .

Thank you @giorgio for keeping the convoy safe and reconnecting it whenever it used to lose the track. Thank you @optimus for being a safe 2nd lead and all the intermediates for your lovely company.

Cheers
Scorpio
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