Liwa Marathon - Ocean Dunes

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orlantsev
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To make up for my absence during Intermediate drive I will be the first to write a trip report :)
I made a very ambitious plan to attend all three drives. At the time of registration it was still not 100% certain that my wife would come, so the plan was to join second family during long weekend. Wife came in the end and was convinced to join. There were lots of errands to finish on Thursday and work was a bit unpredictable, so after buying all camping essentials and setting up jerry cans on a new roof rack we realized it was too late and too tiring to drive to the first camping in the evening. Woke up at 4 am with enough time allowance to even join morning coffee at the camp. At the last petrol station met @Rooies who had all the coordinate pre-saved and followed him to the camping point.
The first day drive was organized for fresh newbies. As a sweeper I observed good convoy performance in the first hour or so, but towards noon mistakes started to happen here and there. They were mostly second tries, so nothing too dangerous. Around 2 pm one of the cars in convoy had a mechanical problem and after lunch it was decided to head for an exit via easier track. At the end of the drive those who were going to stay for the next day split - some went to refresh themselves at the petrol station while myself, @brett , @Rooies , @Sorin and @Rashidjass went in the direction of Madinat Zayed. When you drive Patrol location you soon know the locations of all petrol stations in country :)
We all had dinner at Madinat Zayed when we were joined by @alshamsi_m and @Victoria. The location for the second night came was familiar to me. It was late, and since all of our camping gear was knew we did not stay at campfire and proceeded to get organized for night rest. I was very happy with the tent from Decathlon made of dark material so you do not wake up at sunrise. After breakfast the convoy comprising of older newbies started to move towards famous yellow track. My GPS quickly showed me it was similar to the track I did in 2016. Compared to the day earlier the drive was much faster, with big drop and arches. During morning when my wife cooked breakfast I thought it was a good idea that she joined. Later in the day I started to search for @Phoenix marriage counseling techniques discussed in the chat few days earlier. I even had to reroute to avoid some bigger drops. When the convoy got to the truck it was shining with fresh paint. The tank was colored in UAE flag colours. Convoy flow was generally good, but some safer techniques during arches still need to be practiced. I took advice from @alshamsi_m on the use of gears to gain more height. When you can find a good distance to run up it makes a difference. When the convoy reached the dirt road we were called back as two cars had mechanical issues about 4 km from the road. The severity of the issue required a support from many people with advanced technical knowledge and some changes to the plan had to be made and we got to the road in smaller batches. It was already dark and my engine light came on in the last few km of the drive. The usual trick of disconnecting the battery did not help this time. Next camp location was some 1.5 hrs drive a way. As a result of this technical issue and fearful wife I decided to pull out from last day drive and we drove back to Dubai. It was still great two days. My only suggestion would be to allow a bit more time for evening camps. Sometimes some events might be outside of our control, but when all goes well I would have liked to eat all that chicken there and not at home for lunch today :)
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brett
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Dear Almost Family

I will write, as @orlantsev has, a single report for the 2 days spent in Liwa.

Tuesday night I was not able to leave Dubai until around 7pm as I had to do a full day in the office, rush home, shower and pack my gear. I met with @Sorin at our gate and off we went headed for the camp spot. Uneventful but long drive !

We reached the campsite to find a few drivers already well settled in with fire burning and sitting around. after some chit chat I decided to head off and set my tent. it was dark and although pretty simple terrain I managed to do the classic move of getting stuck in the soft sand. So that was my camping spot - I set the tent, deflated (as we had not done so before entering the location) this would save me time in the morning. It was a chilly night but the stars were amazing.

630am and my alarm went off. I quickly got myself organized and headed back to the camp fire to have much needed coffee and breakfast. As mentioned because I had deflated the self recovery from the soft patch was simple enough. I left my tent in the hope it would dry off a little before packing it - but alias my campsite was sheltered from the morning sun by a dune so when I returned to pack it up it was still wet and as a result I ended up packing plenty of wet sand in the tent bag as well.

The Briefing was done and off we headed in to for most of us "the unknow" Liwa. I was second lead with @alshamsi_m leading.. it was an amazing drive with some technical areas and some BIG drops. Not to mention some of the surprises at the bottom of the drops to keep everyone on their toes !

As Second lead it adds another dimension to the drive, I needed to be on my game following the lead car, not too close not to far back, try and read his next maneuver, listen for instructions - 1 mtr to the left ! 3 mtrs to the right !, stop ! don't follow ! and at the same time keep an eye in my mirrors to ensure the convoy was still with us. at one point I ended up crested on the top of a dune requiring an unceremonious recovery ! I think that was the only (recorded) recovery of the day, lots of second tries but overall the convoy did really well. some gravity issues but Liwa is special and takes some time to adapt to the dunes.

As mentioned above by @orlantsev we ended the drive a bit earlier than planned due to mechanical issues. but all in all a very long drive. My GPS recorded a track of 97km from base camp to inflate point.

We said our goodbyes to the 10- drivers and headed off for the camping point for the 10+ drive, I was thinking ok it shouldn't be too far, it was more that 200km ! so we set off I was using cruise control in the hope of avoiding the Abu Dhabi speed cameras ! they are everywhere.

Along the way we stopped for a much needed break, refueled our cars and us ! again as mentioned we had a quick but nice meal at a local restaurant - @orlantsev @Sorin @Rooies @Rashidjass @Sorin and then joined by @alshamsi_m @Victoria

Eventually we reached the 2nd night camping spot. where we were greeted by the drivers who had arrived earlier, again all set up with fire burning and food cooking. those of us that had done the 10- drive and the marathon to get to the camp spot were tired and so said our good nights around 1030pm.

the sky was amazing - clear with so many stars ! I sat for a few minutes after setting my tent
just gazing at the sky. I slept like a baby ! waking again at 630am, and heading back to the camp fire for coffee and breakfast.

I went back to pack my tent and yes once again it was still wet ! so I managed to fold it up with copious amounts of Liwa sand to add to my car weight and relocate to Dubai on my return.

The drive itself was at another level from the previous day ! lead by @SINGH and @Rathica as 2nd lead. I was positioned toward the back cocooned between @AndreAJ and @Rooies so I felt comfortable. the pace was fast and the sand was very soft in places. on the previous day I had some issues getting the power to do the climbs especially after a drop. @Rashidjass mentioned I try the pedal commander setting. which I did, and the performance was noticeably better. There was however a price to pay ! there were some huge high bowls and long very steep drops that needed to be negotiated with some caution - while descending on more than one occasion the radio was blaring at me "Brett Slow Down, you are Too Fast" . my mind is racing at this point to the newbie rule drummed into us - when descending DONT TOUCH THE BRAKES - if backend starts to float out hit gas lightly. I am screaming down the dune way to fast ! do I touch the brake ?? so I just let it free wheel and hit the brakes at the bottom - mostly this was too little too late and I had some nasty bangs to my skid plate - thankfully no known damage done. then it dawned on me as I had never had this issue before - it was the pedal commander - instead of allowing the engine braking on the decent it was allowing the engine to run freely !
lesson learned !! if anyone wants to buy a 2nd hand pedal controller for more responsive power let me know - its for sale !!

As documented above we did manage to make it to the abandoned Truck where we enjoyed a nice lunch break. however after lunch we encountered a mechanical issue with one car and then another. Resulting in a disjointed end to the drive. the last run down the track was lead by @Mabubaker in lead @Laarni @orlantsev @Tomvanhouten was also at another level driving on the track with almost zero visibility due to the clouds of white dust that seemed to just hang in the air making it impossible to see.

We reached the inflation point only to be advised that this was sort of a restricted area and we should not linger there.

I quickly inflated said my goodbyes and headed back to Dubai - reaching around 930pm ! exhausted but happy.

Many lessons learned over the 2 days. Thank you to all who took part. Thank you almost4x4 family for the opportunity to take part and the sharing of knowledge and experience
Until the next Adventure

Brett
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Tomvanhouten
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Day one finished, let's go for another!!!

And what a day it would be.

Only 2km in the drive, one car had to go out with mechanical issues, then soft patches, another car recovery, another broken down car, two pop outs and a sliced tire......we had to work!
Very very satisfied this day ended up in a zone, we were not suppose to be in, but who cares.. Psmiley

Shortly reporting: we had a blast!!!

Thank you everyone,

Tom
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Hi almosters, what a day and what a drive, huge dunes, very Soft sand and brave marshals, what else offroaders can wish for?
Headed to the camp a bit early, met Rathica and Preggy on the way, we deflated together at the entry point as per Rathica advise as we could go through very soft sand on the way which we did, headed together to the camp site, both Andre and Jone were already there. Clear sky for amzing star gazing, other drivers started to join, unfortunately i could not stay longer, time to sleep, went almost 500 meter far from the camp site and assembled my tent behind a small dune trying to avoid the cold wind of Liwa.

Woke up early morning, the sun still not up, fog was covering the wadis in a breath taking view, we tried to capture the view using all types of cameras we have but nothing could capture this spectacular view which reminded me on how grateful we should be to our creator, no matter where technology has advanced, nothing can reach the level of human body.

Sun is up, everyone is awake making breakfast and coffee while waiting for their tents to dry, quick briefing and Liwa here we go.
Extremely soft sand, as multiple drivers described it, its like powder, we were fishtailing even with very low speed, it took us a while to adapt to the terrain, 2 km far from the starting point and one car has to leave us due to a technical issue and that was only the start.
This was my 21st trip with Almost4x4, i drive with multiple other clubs, i know Almost4x4 marshals has extra courage compared to others, but in Liwa, they unleashed skills that i have never seen, i thought side cresting on high speed and huge dune is the extreme dune bashing, i was wrong, a drop which take almost 1 minute to finish and doing an arch in the soft side of huge dunes for almost 50 seconds, that was courage. Imagine doing a long arch on the soft side of a dune, side cresting at the end and then to a long steep drop, this in a time span of less than 3 minutes, that was mind blowing, i remember the first time we did this combination, i went out of my car and approached Singh saying “what did just happen? Did we really do that? All together?” His answer was “ thats just to give you a flavor on what we do with intermediates” what? There is more? Me “how do you approach such dunes in intermediate?” Singh passenger then told me “do you wanna know what we do in advance? We approach the dunes from each and every angle, its does not matter which side” me speechless 😬😬😬😬
The trip name was ocean dunes, i thought its just a name but i have seen it, approaching the soft side of dunes right after the car infrint of me, you can see the sand moving in waves reaching the bottom, it was a view you only see in the beach.
Gear change timing was key for such a maneuver, my car has 8 gears and it’s challenging to know what gear to start with and when to change gears, i tried to approach the dunes with first gear full throttle till the end, i did not like the load on engine and the speed limit, later started with first gear and then in the middle change to second, better but in many cases i lose momentum and had to steer down, last was to start with second full throttle but did not work, then i realized that this need extra practice and it will differ depending on the approaching angle and speed needed.

We did few side cresting, oh man, that is now extremely easy, we know what is the right speed and momentum, no extra or less power anymore, this only happened after practice and watching our marshals doing it in addition to their advises.
While doing the arches, now i started to understand what other experienced drivers were talking about when it comes to heavy tires, i seems to struggle with my heavy duty tires much more compared to other drivers with softer side walls, soon these tires will need to be changed.
During lunch break we arrived to the abandoned truck site and we were amazed that some Offroaders painted the truck with UAE flag colors, it was amazing, holding lots of paint through Liwa desert for miles to celebrate UAE national day and to show how thankful they are for this country, that was amazing.
Few issues occur, overheating, popout, a car with one cylinder not working and unfortunately at the end one car had a broken steering wheel arm which we had to leave behind and come back to it later. I had my share with one popout and a stuck in a pocket which unfortunately damaged my rear plastic bumper, soon to be replaced with a steel one.
Around 4 pm, one driver was disappointed with the angle of arch and did a second try with little gravity fighting, Rashid over the radio “ steer down, steer down, STEER DOWN” it was too close, then Rashid said “now we go straight line” this is what i like the most about Almost4x4, safety first, the minute a marshal noticed drivers are doing mistakes and not paying full attention to instructions, immediately decided not to take any further risk, this is what family is all about, highly appreciated.

From media point of view, I completely drained 4 GoPro batteries, and 256 Gb memory almost full, i wish i had more batteries, more than 64 clips with an average of 5 minutes, luckily GoPro was running a 50% discount on their unlimited cloud storage, just in time, Liwa media is here to stay.

Enjoy watching the video almsoters and looking forward seeing you next week.

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alshamsi_m
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Hello Everyone

After finishing day 1 we started driving to the next camping spot with but I reached around 9 pm to see that the party started ahead. quick chitchat and off I went to sleep because we have two more days in Liwa and we don't know what is coming !!!!

Since I'm not leading today, I enjoyed my day off by following the convoy and floating around until a car had to leave early. So I volunteered to escort it out so the others can stil enjoy the drive. Unfortunately, the car couldn't make it halfway and I had to ask for more help and things escalated so fast that we had to call for the whole team brigade.baka-wolf.com

Well when you have a strong team of Marshals then there is nothing to worry about. We gave our members a great time in the desert and we took every single soul out safe and sound back to the road. That is a WIN in marshals book !!

We left White Patrol in the desert for another story !!!! pacman

To be continued .....

Cheers
Shamsi
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Zain
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Hello Almosters!

I am sure many of us are still high on the crazy weekend we've had in Liwa and some of us are in one way or another dealing with the consequences it has had on our cars TT TT .

This being Liwa, the drive itself was mostly arches and big drops, it was a lot of fun and a new learning experience. I was learning a lot about which gear to attack the arches in, sometimes 1st gear was too slow, on some others 2nd gear didn't have enough torque. Even after almost a year in the club, I end up learning a new aspect of offroad driving in every drive.

My drive was relatively incident free for the most part. Some second tries on some of the soft climbs but that was about it. It was only until we were on the gatch road, driving towards the road to inflate when things started to go wrong. While we were on the gatch road, I noticed slight tyre noise from my front right tyre. It wasn't anything significant but it just felt low on air. I thought to myself that we are on the gatch road so it can't be a pop out right? Also I have had 2 popouts before and you can instantly hear the unmistaken sound of a popout tyre. At this point, we were racing towards the road since some earlier incidents had already delayed us. So instead of instantly stopping myself and entire convoy I decided to radio @nidal78 who was in front of me to slow down and take a look at my front right. Just before I got near Nidal, I saw a piece of rubber flying off and realized something is awfully wrong with my tyre. I quickly stopped on the side of the road and as soon as I opened my door, Singh's car drove past clipping my door. He was coming towards me to help with the tyre and I was getting out of the car for the same reason, I didn't see him coming and he didn't know I'll open my door. I guess when one thing goes wrong, a lot of other things follow. Much to my horror, when I got out, the tyre was shredded from a lot of places. While we jacked the car up to fix the tyre, the jack slipped and the car dropped. Luckily no one was hurt and the car was fine too. Eventually we managed to change the tyre and get back to the road. Thank you to all the members in the convoy who helped in the process @nidal78 , @VTC4800, @ivantorrellas, @Kevin, @jjone. Specially @alshamsi_m who took his convoy to safety and then came back for us.

I'd like to thank @SINGH for the amazing drive, he put his confidence in us and took us on big arches which was a lot of fun and more importantly he had to rush home to takecare of his kid but he stayed back to help with my tyre issue. Thanks @SINGH ! Lastly as always Thank you to the entire support and Marshalls team who helped make this drive possible and helped in keeping the convoy safe.

See you all another day, another drive.


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Mabubaker
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I totally remember the days, 4 year ago, when I joined Liwa drive with ALMOST4X4 for the first time. I was looking at the leading car, @alshamsi_m at that time, doing the great arches, while Im like O#$#!T, how the hell Im going to do this! And my strategy was, just memic the speed and exact track of the leading car and you are fine.
@SINGH did great by increasing the level gradually making sure all drivers are safe, this is an art guys. I believe by the time, @SINGH was able to make the driver get closer to how it feel in the intermediate drives.
I believe generally all drivers did relatively good for such an endurance drive, except that some drivers were poking gravity trying to make a fight, guys you need to be friends with gravity trust me.
Thanks to all marshals and support team for the great leadership and support
Until we meet again
Bye bye
M Abubaker
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nidal78
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Hi ALMOST4X4 family
What a marathon day it was in liwa
I heard a lot about liwa desert but this is my first time to see it’s beauty so a very big thank to @alshamsi_m for organize this amazing drive
A very big thank as well to our marshal @SINGH for leading us in this drive and give us an amazing route full of big arches and big drops 🤩
I would like also to thank the amazing support team for keeping everyone safe and making sure that no one left behind as usual 💪🏻
I will let you with my video of the drive to tell you the story of our adventure
Stay safe everyone and see you soon on sand
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Rooies
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It was a long drive from where we left the desert on the first drive, we made our own little convoy & headed to the next camp site. We stopped in town for a quick bite 7 headed to the camp. @AndreAJ suggested to me via whatsapp to deflate when we go through the gate but I think we were all tired & we just kept going. @Sorin was in front of me, his little Jeep bouncing around with the hard tires grin , I drove Asterix if I had stolen it, suddenly the soft sand & the small deep ditch got hold of @Sorin & I quickly had to swerve not to hit hi. I made it through, then stopped to check on him & we all decided to deflate there grin grin . We reached the camp & found a nice fire burning & all the drivers for the next day. We discussed the area a bit as they were there early to try & find a nice sleeping spot. Not long after that, I found a nice flat open area & prepared for dreamland.

Next morning we were greeted with a beautiful sunrise & low lying fog. I headed over to the fire to make some coffee while more people joined.

After the briefing we headed out on the track. Not long & we had the first breakdown. We regrouped & the fun continued. In the beginning following distance was a bit of a problem & we stopped/started, but later the convoy rolled nicely. We did lots of big arches & drops thumbsup thumbsup .

Somewhere during the drive there was a pop out & @Tomvanhouten made quick work of fixing it. We continued to the Yellow Truck & found a nice surprise, another club came, cleared off all the sand & painted it nicely. We all grouped for a photo then headed to a flat area for lunch.

@Nabeel had issues with his Nissan, something was wrong, but we could not find the exact cause. @alshamsi_m started to escort him out the desert. The rest of the convoy continued on with the track. Shortly @alshamsi_m called me on the radio to come & help..... We had to recover his car by doing a tandem pull wtfsmilie . @Mabubaker was infront pulling me & I was pulling @Nabeel . To honest I was a bit nervous as I have never done it before & the area was not user friendly, big drops & climbs you're kidding, right . The going was ok/good, but it was tricky. We were driving into the sun which was also not helping. The rope in front of me slacked a bit & with the sun in my eyes I did not see it & drove over the rope, @Mabubaker floored it through the soft sand & I heard a loud noise, we stopped to find the rope around the front diff & stuck in the knuckle. We had to cut the rope, then we saw the ABS wires were cut (don't need them anyway grin with the kill switch) I tried to move the car, but nothing happened. On closer inspection we saw that the steering tie rod & knuckle was broken wtfsmilie TT TT , Asterix "broke" his leg. The whole convoy was called back. The only option we had was to leave Asterix in the desert (not a nice feeling). I loaded my most essential thing into @AndreAJ 's jeep & we headed out of the desert. The plan was to try & find a secondhand/scrap knuckle & replace it the next day.

Eventually we got out the desert, started inflating, some people left & the inters for the next drive headed to the last fuel stop & then headed to the next camp. @Tomvanhouten said we would try & get a welding machine & his welder to come the next day, but there was logistical issues with that.

At the last fuel station we found @mpodroid & @Tomvanhouten , from there we stopped at a local shop for something to eat & headed to the last comp site.

We reached the last campsite & found @CarlosLof , @dorudoru & @David there. They already heard that my car broke down. We chatted for a bit then headed to bed, we were all tired & there was another long day ahead.....
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