When a newbie went to desert without a Marshall/Leader.

Wasif Ahmed
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Dear Rahim

Let me tell you what happened to you.

That crest for starters is too high, nobody except the craziest of locals who are also experts will take that crest head on. Reason being that to reach the top you will need a lot of speed that is hard to control when actually cresting.

cross cresting dunes is best done on moderate height dunes where the aproach is not too steep.

Crests of this height require side cresting and not head on like you did. Believe me I have been there and can tell you by experience.

Dont blame the visibility for the FJ for this as its practically impossible to see the edge of the crest on a dune that height and a angle that you took.

I am sure capri and the other marshals / experts will back me on this.

Going up that slope straight up with the intention to crest was the actual blunder here. You could have attempted a side cresting on this one instead.
BettyPo
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I am not a big fan of FJ's (due to several reasons:030:, one would be driving a JEEP!!) and visibility is not the optimum, however it was your car which you should get to know first. A stock FJ is very powerful already and does not even need modifications if the driver knows how to take the dunes with skills which may build up with time, dedication and the most important with respect to mother nature when off roading. Again, it's not your "beloved 1st wifes" fault but yours! You have circled the place as the video showed and should have seen the height of the dune when you took the run up! Oh my, .......you are alive and thank god for it and yes you have been lucky, and you should not even think of a next being "lucky time" as from now on you will be more careful, right?? Awas Ko ya? Main2 pelan-pelan! JANGAN begitu lagi! :032:

One more thing...keep driving if you enjoy it and don't wait too long joining the next possible Almost drive!
walihali
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BettyPo;13169 wrote:I am not a big fan of FJ's (due to several reasons:030:, one would be driving a JEEP!!) and visibility is not the optimum, however it was your car which you should get to know first. A stock FJ is very powerful already and does not even need modifications if the driver knows how to take the dunes with skills which may build up with time, dedication and the most important with respect to mother nature when off roading. Again, it's not your "beloved 1st wifes" fault but yours! You have circled the place as the video showed and should have seen the height of the dune when you took the run up! Oh my, .......you are alive and thank god for it and yes you have been lucky, and you should not even think of a next being "lucky time" as from now on you will be more careful, right?? Awas Ko ya? Main2 pelan-pelan! JANGAN begitu lagi! :032:

One more thing...keep driving if you enjoy it and don't wait too long joining the next possible Almost drive!

You are right, I am a new in this off road things and also just married her on 25 Jan 2012, then join ALMOST4x4 somewhere in Feb 2012 and took her to the dessert for honeymoon 3 times with Almostx4, that’s all. I have been busy these days so I missed some trips with the family. So I missed the desert, I missed them and missing you, too :021:.

Terima kasih ya, atas nasihat yang baik darimu. Tapi saya akan mencoba lagi lain kali pelan-pelan dan setelah belajar yang cukup dari Almosters. Terima kasih sekali lagi, kamu orang yang baik.
walihali
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[quote=Wasif Ahmed;13159]Dear Rahim

Let me tell you what happened to you.

That crest for starters is too high, nobody except the craziest of locals who are also experts will take that crest head on. Reason being that to reach the top you will need a lot of speed that is hard to control when actually cresting.

cross cresting dunes is best done on moderate height dunes where the aproach is not too steep.

Crests of this height require side cresting and not head on like you did. Believe me I have been there and can tell you by experience.

Dont blame the visibility for the FJ for this as its practically impossible to see the edge of the crest on a dune that height and a angle that you took.

I am sure capri and the other marshals / experts will back me on this.

Going up that slope straight up with the intention to crest was the actual blunder here. You could have attempted a side cresting on this one instead.[/quote]

Thanks a lot Wasif for your help. I am glad my observation is not correct about the bonnet, It was my doubt. I believe, if someone has enough experiences, then he can drive any car in any situation safely, right? I will need to learn on how to do side cresting from you or hope can join the trip with side cresting lesson.
walihali
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[quote=desert_hawk;13156]Although there is an undisputed visibility issue with the FJ, but you will be able to overcome it by practice, that's why everyone says you need to know your car, and that's why there are levels in the club, this way, you are not up in the ladder of upgrades till you know your car very well.

As with my FJ, many tricks to help you see what you can't see, one of them is to have a look before you even start the move, and estimate the distance, and this you should do with all cars, not only FJs, and when you reach the top, not the FJ nor any car will let you see the crest due to the angle.

The bottom line, whether you see the crest or not, it's better to get stuck at the top than fly, this is my rule and what I always say to my fellow offroaders.

Keep it safe.[/quote]

Thanks a lot DH,
I think your bottom line or your rule makes sense. May I take that as an advice? Or a tip? I know there are ‘fake’ club members and ‘fake’ newbie in Almost4x4, actually there many experienced off roader with a club member and newbie attributes. I think you are one of them:057:.
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desert_hawk
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walihali;13192 wrote:Thanks a lot DH,
I think your bottom line or your rule makes sense. May I take that as an advice? Or a tip? I know there are ‘fake’ club members and ‘fake’ newbie in Almost4x4, actually there many experienced off roader with a club member and newbie attributes. I think you are one of them:057:.
Dear Rahim,
you can consider it a tip or an advice, we always learn, from our mistakes or from the experiances of others.
as for the 2nd half, I don't know about "FAKE", all I know is I'm a "REAL" member of Almost4x4, have some experiance in offroading, and that's it. ;)
FSL
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walihali;13192 wrote:I know there are ‘fake’ club members and ‘fake’ newbie in Almost4x4, actually there many experienced off roader with a club member and newbie attributes. I think you are one of them:057:.
Walihali, i think you meant INTERIM :021:
walihali
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desert_hawk;13199 wrote:Dear Rahim,
you can consider it a tip or an advice, we always learn, from our mistakes or from the experiances of others.
as for the 2nd half, I don't know about "FAKE", all I know is I'm a "REAL" member of Almost4x4, have some experiance in offroading, and that's it. ;)
Thanks DH, I will take that advice when I want to try it again. What I mean by "FAKE" is that there are many experience off roaders in ALMOST4x4, but they are still having one star (newbie) or even still a Club Member like you:smile:, but actually they have experiences in desert. I agree with FSL, the correct word is interim :)
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walihali;13252 wrote:Thanks DH, I will take that advice when I want to try it again. What I mean by "FAKE" is that there are many experience off roaders in ALMOST4x4, but they are still having one star (newbie) or even still a Club Member like you:smile:, but actually they have experiences in desert. I agree with FSL, the correct word is interim :)
Many drivers can claim off-roading experience, but our policy is to see them in our convoy. Many can do ra-ta-ta at some big dune and on the way back to tarmac, they get stuck on a gatch road... So the word 'experienced' has many different meanings for different groups...
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alshamsi_m
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desert_hawk;13199 wrote:Dear Rahim,
all I know is I'm a "REAL" member of Almost4x4, have some experiance in offroading, and that's it. ;)
Dear Members

Just for the record, if you see a member in our club with the title " CLUB MEMBER " it is just a small indication to the marshals that this is a member who NEVER DRIVEN in our convoies regardless the experience. Also if you join our club then you have the FULL privilege like any member regardless the number of STARS.

Thanks Mohamed for the nice reply

Best Regards for all
Adventurous League of Mountains, Oceans and Sand Thrills
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