Keep Up The Pace II

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brett
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Dear Dune People,

Finally it was Friday again ! "Drive Day"
I went to bed rather late Thursday night, but managed to wake up before my scheduled 530m alarm.
There was a big day ahead. I was itching to try the rebuild shocks on the Wasp V.II

The meeting point was a good hour from my place but i arrived with plenty of time to spare. deflating tires and watching the -5 Newbie getting befuddled with the automatic gates to the meeting point.
the password is the same for all of these automatic gates - but it is highly secret.

First up a huge thank you to @Scorpio for arranging this -5 Newbie drive in an area that has not been readily accessible overt the past year or more due to Covid border restrictions.

the briefing was done and convoy order advised. we had @Scorpio leading. @alshamsi_m floating. intermediates supporting @Jasper @Tomvanhouten @Mahmoodyasin @osman . they were going to have a busy morning !

As advised in the briefing the highlights of the drive would be some big drops - in preparation for a possible Newbie drive in Liwa later in the year.

So off we headed into the Dunes. I have decided to name this drive "The School Run" drive, I chose this for 2 reasons - One a brave driver decided to bring his whole family along for the drive. with all that extra weight in the vehicle you can image how he struggled in many areas to gain the momentum to cross the crests - kind of like a school bus stopping at every opportunity to let the kids on and off. Second reason for calling it the school run - is due to the fact that the -5 newbies had many opportunities to "Study "and learn on this drive, a day in the desert class room hands on. there were many second tries and recoveries throughout the morning as is expected in this outdoor class room. a few in the field (but necessary) theory lessons from @alshamsi_m complete with allergy tablet box to represent a wayward car in the dunes. @Mahmoodyasin even went as far as to create a popout for the benefit of training the newbies how to fix it in the dunes.

All in all it was a fantastic morning with excellent weather and a sign the cooler months are coming. with clear skies and a temp in the high 20's at the beginning.

@Scorpio thanks for selecting a great track. Thanks for entrusting me with the 2nd lead position - it was a huge learning experience for me.

My Take aways

- leave egos at home
- correct tire pressure is a must to achieve the right traction when you are learning to understand your car and your driving level.
- it is a learning process there are no short cuts
- listen, observe and learn
- no shame in being crested - better than flying
- no shame in 2nd try - safety is the first priority
Until the next Adventure

Brett
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Scorpio
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Hello Everyone,

Al Faqaa area was not approached from this side for quite a while so, I thought to go back to the signature rally ring track.

The drive was meant for 10 newbies but I ended up accommodating 14; thanks to the great support from @alshamsi_m. Before the drive briefing, Bu Salem came up with a fantastic idea to make it a different drive with flavor of 'drops'; giving the practice opportunity to newbies before the, not so far, Liwa marathon drives.

So, I had @brett as my second lead, @Jasper sweeping, @osman and @Tomvanhouten strengthening the middle of the convoy. Bu Salem, all around the convoy to watch and guide the members and @yasin floating around and supporting.

We had a nice fun drive and I was happy to see people enjoying their morning and learning at the same time.

Hoping it was a good experience to all.

Enjoy the video:



See you soon on the sand!

Cheers,
Scorpio
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alshamsi_m
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Hello Everyone

Oh man these early drives are killing me  :you_re_kidding_right:  I'm really waiting for the cold season to start so we can camp the night before and drive in the morning  grin.

I believe by now most of the drivers are doing the third drive with the club so @Scorpio  gave us the excierse of crossing the dunes in straight style which is the first step of offroading.  Also he introduced the arches for us which would be necessary for our planned Liwa drive for the newbies 5+ .

I believe that most of you did really well so well done 👏  . Finally, the chilling out after the drive is the best but since the weather was still warm we had to say  " See you next time ".

Till next time stay safe

Cheers
Shamsi
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nidal78
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Hi ALMOST4X4 family
Another beautiful day and another nice drive with new members in our big family
First of all I would like to thank our marshal and the organizer of this lovely drive @Scorpio for allowing me to join the drive as media crew for the first time in my journey with ALMOST4X4
Usually I used to film my drives with the club but this time it was different because I was free to move around the convoy in some situations to take better shots from different angles which I really enjoyed it 🤩
The drive was a very good lesson to the fresh newbies and a good preparation for the upcoming drive to LIWA as @Scorpio and @alshamsi_m mentioned in the briefing
We did some straight crest, small and medium drops, climbs and medium arches.
Some drivers had second tries, some get stuck on the crests but this is something very normal is this level and it’s part from your learning journey so no shame on it 😊
Finally I want to thank again our marshal @Scorpio for the beautiful track he designed for us and to our beloved founder @alshamsi_m for all his efforts and instructions and to all support team you did a great job as usual guys 👍
To all drivers you did really good stay focus and listen to marshals instructions and don’t forget the radio communication
Stay safe everyone and see you soon on sand
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Tomvanhouten
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Hello everyone,

coming from my side, waking up at 5am was needed. I don't mind getting up early, as long as something is there to look forward to... and it sure was!
Lovely convoy with great people and marshals such as @Scorpio who brilliantly felt the level, made the people work for it. Still and every time, I am amazed by this skill, in my opinion there is not a marshal in the club who doesn't have that. Thanks for that!

Straight cresting and drops, was kind of the mission of the drive and seeing the healthy amount of second tries and sometimes stucks, this mission was executed very well.

Thank you everyone for the great company and hopefully see you soon again,

Tom
theDanutz
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Dear Almosters,

Very nice drive we had on Friday early morning! I was excited to be back in the tracks, with the new car have a nice day getting to learn it! I needed such drive! :yaeh_am_not_durnk:

Thank you @Scorpio for the excellent track, really beautiful lines, and as @alshamsi_m pointed out, that we had been given the opportunity to run a real rally track.. but at our own pace, safe and sound! I was excited to come on this side of Al Faqqa for the first time as well.
  • The pace was very nice and I know that @Scorpio might have wanted a bit more fluidity.. but we keep learning and improving! Hopefully in few drives we’ll confident enough to increase our pace as well.. all in a controlled manner.
The drive started also with a beautiful de-tour around a camel farm and very interesting @alshamsi_m radio guide over the differences between 2 type of camels. I didn’t know, and it’s definably a very nice touch which I would appreciate seeing it more and more… if possible Psmiley
  • During the drive we had experienced nice crests, sweet arches + safari style convoy -> plenty of things that we need to master before increasing the pace in the higher drives. brigade.baka-wolf.com
I was happy to see the usual suspects @Tomvanhouten @osman , @Jasper , @Mahmoodyasin and very thankful for your support and advices!!
Many thanks to @brett for the t-shirts, new sticker, coffee and @nidal78 for filming us everywhere and giving me some nice shots of my new drive! I appreciate! thumbsup

Overall, for me personally was an excellent opportunity to get back into sand after more than 1 month of pause! I missed it from my routine and now I’m looking forward for next week!!

Thank you very much for all your support!!

Have a great week ahead!

Best regards,
Danutz
Daiyaan
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Greetings everyone!

A little late to the trip report but better late than never. I also realized its quite difficult to put any more input after everyone has already written well elaborate reports.
This was my 3rd drive as a newbie and 2nd time in Al Faqa.
Lead by @Scorpio, this drive was all about getting to know the drops and getting ready for the big drops in Liwa ka boom . Each drive I feel like I’m doing good on the crests but every next drive tells me there’s room to improve.
Mid drive there was a drop followed by an arch and climb, where my car seemed to struggle just at the end, I did have my family with me 4 of us so I’m not sure if the added weight could’ve been a reason, nevertheless, nothing like a good uphill backup and 4LO that can’t solve a climb.
I was happily positioned behind @nidal.a-l-salti in hopes of getting some footage but I think being in front of him would’ve helped pacman .
A big thanks to all the support @alshamsi @Mahmoodyasin @Tomvanhouten @osman @Jasper sorry if missed anyone, everyone was helpful as always.

Hope to have an amazing drive again and see you all in the sand soon!
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Martin
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After a few weeks away because of travel I was super keen to join another drive. I was so desperate I resorted to pretty much begging @scorpio to finding a space for lil’ ol’ me 😂

Everyone arrived on time but there was a little issue for some with the gate for some. Apparently “open sesame” is the secret 🪨➡️

After catching up with some of the Almosters (always a nice friendly bunch) we were ready to go.

Once moving the drive under leadership from @scorpio was a great learning experience. I managed to get stuck on the crest a couple of times because my timing was a little off on the soft sand. I’d always rather that than carrying too much speed though. By the end of the drive I had my timing right and will hopefully carry this forward to future events.

I loved practicing the straight drops and look forward to longer and steeper ones in the future so I can learn some more.

The drive ended on time like a Swiss clock.

Was very proud to be told by @alshamsi that he liked my driving style. I guess I must be doing something right 😆

Thanks to everyone who was there to support and allowed us the opportunity to Learn.

@alshamsi
@Mahmoodyasin
@Tomvanhouten
@osman
@Jasper
@Scorpio
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Mahmoodyasin
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Hi All
After along time, We returned to an area we used to drive quite frequently In the past. This track is very special as it has mix bunch of technical Dunes, walls for long arches and high drops to challenge the guts. Infact a good area to practice and improve the Drive level.
@Scorpio did a detailed briefing followed by @alshamsi_m who fine tuned the basics.
We headed towards the rally ring track, moving over small crests to give some warmup to the -5 operators. Initially a Bit of hick ups but Soon the convoy responded Really well.
Few things in the drive were spotted that needed some further coaching, and who could explain better than the founder himself. A very concise explanation of approaching a drop was delivered. After which, the improvement was evident “ well done everyone “
Adding to another lesson, i managed to get a pop-out following a sharp crest that gave an Good opportunity to our newbies to learn on “how to safely and efficiently fix a pop out”.
@Scorpio did very well to touch all flavors of the drive, In order to prepare this lot for up coming liwa trips.
The leader managed to wrap up the drive on time, leaving lot of smiling faces at the exit.
Must mention the support team @Jasper @Tomvanhouten @osman for a wonderful S&R and the 2nd lead @brett for doing very well in that position.
Thankyou @Scorpio for a great morning drive and @alshamsi_m for looking out for us.

Till next time
Mahmood yasin
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xtreeme99
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What a day!
Usually I reach Al Qudra within 40 minutes, but it's first time a drive was planned on Al Faqa side. I reached the area when most of the members were already deflating and the gates closed. I didn't know the password and spotted another gate nearby with a car in front of it and tried my luck there. I was able to pass without a toll have a nice day
Big thanks to @Scorpio for organizing the amazing trip, @alshamsi_m for floating and now-usual-for-me support of @Tomvanhouten @osman , @Jasper , @Mahmoodyasin and @brett
The drive had a good mix of crests, big drops and arches and lived up to its name of keeping up cool
This was my 5th drive and was assigned on the end of the convoy. I had my car shocks upgraded to OME by amazing @Rashidjass. I had my doubts on the highway, but on the sand they really are that great! Coming from my previous drivers where I would have hit my front bumper on a harder decline, this time the OME shocks did a great job at smoothing out the shock and leaving the car untouched and me amazed OSMILEY
Overall the drive had a number of second tries, stuck recoveries (even 2 at same time) and a car full of passengers as an example how extra weight on the car affects it's momentum.
On one of the arches I made a sharp turn before I had finished climbing which is a good recipe on how to get a pop-up ORLY . I was lucky to avoid that and everyone was coached what I did incorrectly. We had a nice crash course on how to fix a pop-out by the end by @Mahmoodyasin
Usually by the second hour I get exhausted by the drive, but this time when the drive ended I felt that I would have wanted more. This is something I might regret in Liwa :scared:

Overall - great drive, I managed to avoid getting in trouble and as always
-listen what marshals are telling you
-leave your ego outside the desert
-second tries and stucks are better than getting in danger of flying and crashing
-COMMUNICATION is very important. One moment I hear radio reporting 'clears' in front and behind myself and was confusing to understand if it's safe for me to go. This gets empowered when drivers forget to report their clearance if they are in front of you.

You can check video highlights from car cam where I believe @Daiyaan was in front of me and can be see a lot brigade.baka-wolf.com
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