Back To School II - CM

optimus
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Drive : Back to School II
Organizer : @alshamsi_m
Level : Club Member
Area : Mahafiz - Fossil Rock
Convoys : 3

First of all thank you @alshamsi_m for organizing the CM drive before the start of the winter season. A big welcome to all the new club members.

It is always nice to see all the new drivers on the meeting point waiting to start their off-road adventure/s.
For some this will be the first & last drive while for others this will be the beginning to an adventure that will last for many years to come.

Bu Salem took the attendance. I was given the opportunity to do the safety briefing.
These 2 parts are the most important elements. They give an insight to the new drivers to understand little about the club (its members and history)
as well as the basic fundamentals of off-roading in the desert.

The drivers were divided in 3 convoys.
I was to leading the one supported by our intermediates @brett @CARLOSS @dorudoru adv @haider alnuaimi & @Barish & @alshamsi_m as floating Marshals.

The drive started from mahafiz to fossil & was concluded at the adnoc petrol station.

It was mentioned during the briefing that priority is every member's safety and enjoy the drive.
We entered the desert from mid-size continuing to smaller dunes. Slowly navigating through the dunes, doing some good number of drops. It was a fun drive.
We had few cars in the convoy struggling to approach & descend from the drops so we decided – no more drops. That way our convoy got to experience the challenges raised in each part of the drive. 2nd tries, rescues using our viking rope along with assisted recoveries served as the drive.

All the drivers did a great job. These stucks, 2nd tries are a part of the game.
Only with frequent participation, dedication and hard work you will end up mastering the skills for becoming the independent off-roaders.

To close my report I would like to thank all the support team and the organizer.
Thank you to all the new drivers, you all did great.

For the ones that are willing to go further don't forget to complete your tools
and get your first star before the next weekend. Sign up for "SET THA HOOK" the drive is on coming sat!

Good Luck!
Optimus
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mcornejo
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Great introduction to Almost4x4 and in such a nice and scenic area.

I was delighted to drive as second lead in Convoy 1, many thanks to @alshamsi_m and Convoy 1 lead @SINGH, as well as to all marshals for taking us safely throughout the drive.

A marshal inspected all tools I have, and I am hoping that they satisfy the requirements to attend future drives. Until then, wish you all a great week ahead.

Here are few pictures of action in Convoy 1 -

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basil
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Drive : Back to School II


I'd like to start by thanking everyone involved for organizing and executing this drive, it was an absolute thrill.

As a driver, always been a very confident in my own skill and my cars capability on the road, but all of that changed when I decided to go offroad. The last few days before the drive, I was doubtful, I was sure of neither my own capability nor my cars capacity to keep up with the rest of the cars offroad. By the end of the drive, I had gained a lot of confidence and was eager to learn more.

As I reached, I dropped the pressure of my tyres and waited for the breifing, it was short and crisp and gave me all the clarity I would need for the rest of the drive. Shoutout to Optimus for the breifing and leading the convoy I was in. We learned to follow and communicate with our convoy over the radio. The floating marshalls kept me feeling safe and confident nothing would go wrong throughout the drive.

The entire drive was very exciting and filled with thrills, and even though I got stuck a few times, everyone was very supportive. I gained a lot of confidence through the drive and will surely be back for more learning and experiences. I was not only taught how to deal with the sand but also to trust my car.

Looking forward to completing my tools in order to join future drives as soon as possible !
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alshamsi_m
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Hello Everyone

The Weather forecast predicted that summer would be over by 22 September grin but I forgot that we don't have 4 seasons you're kidding, right We have HOT summer and COLD summer and the hot one was not going to go easily without a fight brigade.baka-wolf.com.

Although we used to have bigger gathering in our Club Members drives this one was medium size but the reaction of the members after the dirve was promising with a very good turnover...! thumbsup

I was in the same convoy of @optimus who was not shy to give so many drops and in some places even more than 1 at the same time cool Thanks!! Not to forget our watchful guardian @Barish who was ontop of every single dune to give the instructions to our members.

Time flow so fast and we had to call it off for the day, nevertheless, the members were excited and chitchatting in the petrol station.

I was in hurry to leave because I was planing to scout Hameem for our December Liwa drives but this would be discussed in another chat around the fire in the nearest camp.

Till next time stay safe and keep the sand flying thumbsup

P.S : intresting information

Cheers
Shamsi
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Tomvanhouten
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Hello everyone,

CM drives are always great to attend, you get to meet new people and having a chance to see the ones you already know!

I was allocated to the convoy lead by @SINGH and assisted by @Solmaz and @Agalon . Our convoy, was doing a very nice smooth job, with an usual amount of stucks and second tries. This is really normal and absolutely nothing to be ashamed off!

The area always hits me back to my CM drive and it really brings back those anxious feelings, partly scared and sweaty hands.. believe me, it goes away!

I hope we have gained a lot of new interested drivers and future friends!

Hopefully see you soon again next week!

Tom
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CARLOSS
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Hi everyone!

It is always good to come back to origins, the CM drive, when all get started. thumbsup

I believe that it is my 4th CM drive if I am not mistaken (including mine) and always a pleasure to meet with new members, helping them to deflate and setting up their cars for a nice drive, chit chatting etc. Don't get me wrong, it is also nice to catch up with old friends but meeting new people is even more exciting. ORLY

I was positioned within @optimus convoy leading with both founder @alshamsi_m and general @Barish so there was a lot of interaction with drivers due to second tries, stuck cars etc. Radio was burning!!! you're kidding, right I was at the end of the convoy so I took good care (apart from my son) of a huge black expedition in front of me...it was an excellent recovery training course. thumbsup

We all finished sound and safe in the petrol station around noon time (still a bit hot) with an immense smile in our faces. I hope I can see again most for the CM drivers in their first newbie drive.

See you soon
Carlos
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brett
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Dear Almosters

It was great to see so many Club Members keen to take the first step in driving (safely) in the desert.

As mentioned by both @Tomvanhouten and @CARLOSS attending CM drives brings back the memories of our first drive. the sweaty palms and racing heart beat. Trust us those feelings ease once you learn the basics and start to understand your car and hone your skills.

Many thanks to the founder @alshamsi_m and the marshals for organising and coordinating the the event @SINGH @Barish @Solmaz @Agalon @optimus @rapailo @Rashidjass @presa

I decided it was a good opportunity to take my wifes non-modified Red FJ and see how it performed. I knew I had to be careful or it would cost me plenty if I broke anything. My WASP V2 was used by @presa as a floating marshal in the other convoy. The only recovery equipment I had in the Red FJ was my trusty Viking Rope, it was fortunate I had the rope with me as it got used quite a few times assisting crested cars - I was surprised how well the completely stock tires, suspension etc coped with the challenges.

I was placed in 4th position in the convoy led by @optimus with floating @alshamsi_m and the General @Barish so the convoy remained safe.
Special mention to @CARLOSS for sweeping, and @dorudoru you and @sparrow will be missed - hurry back to the dunes

A great drive with all the drivers finishing with big smiles.
Don't expect to be an expert after one drive - don't be discouraged, attend as many drives as you can and you will be amazed at the level of enjoyment that can be achieved.

Looking forward to seeing many of the new first star newbies at the coming drive this saturday. don't delay, get your tools checked to gain your star

Regards
Last edited by brett on Mon Sep 26, 2022 5:18 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Until the next Adventure

Brett
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Hello all,

I feel I need to start the thread on behalf of my convoy which was expertly led by @rapailo .

I had a passenger with me who is usually prone to motion sickness. I have lots of medicine in the car for various purposes. Issue is after a while I forgot what is what. So coming to the meeting point we had a bit of gamble deciding which pill he needed to take. Dizinill (judging by the name) felt like the right choice ..and it was!

We had a fair share of action in the convoy. We had two heavy LCs in the convoy, in addition to Jeep, Pajero and few FJs.

Some straight crests were a challenge, with many trials so there was plenty of opportunities for recovery. On occasion LCs was too heavy for the FJ, and I had to come for some 'action' to pull the beast off the crest. As usual the Viking rope does magic.

The best way to learn straight crest is practice ...no amount of theory can develop the proper feeling, so keep driving, listening to your car and it will come.
Ehab
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CM drives remind me of my first desert trip where I managed to get a V8 fully loaded with latest offroad tech stuck on flat. And then compare that with what I learned so far, huge thanks to almsot4x4 family.

Its with pleasure and highest level of happiness possible, i join CM drives to welcome new offroaders. Its really a very nice experience to welcome new members to the family.

We had an amazing day in desert and we made a lot of new friends. Cannot wait for next week to see them again.

Enjoy the video and see you soon
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alshamsi_m
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mcornejo wrote: Sat Sep 24, 2022 11:25 pm Great introduction to Almost4x4 and in such a nice and scenic area.

I was delighted to drive as second lead in Convoy 1, many thanks to @alshamsi_m and Convoy 1 lead @SINGH, as well as to all marshals for taking us safely throughout the drive.

A marshal inspected all tools I have, and I am hoping that they satisfy the requirements to attend future drives. Until then, wish you all a great week ahead.

Congratulations for your First 🌟
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