Stickshifts and Safetybelts

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orlantsev
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Strange not to see the trip reports several days after the trip.
I have joined both drives on Friday, but will write about the Intermediate one. Long time since we drove in Al Faqa area. Small worry is that as Covid restrictions apparently get tighter I hope this area will not be closed off again by the test requirements. Coming to the meeting point and seeing the bulldozers on the road side prepared me for worst. Luckily even there were some signs of their work during the drive apparently it was a while ago and by now the nature has taken it back. We were a mixed convoy with some ‘old’ and ‘fresh’ intermediates, some who have come back after a long time, two advance drivers and support from @solmaz, @rapaillo, @optimus. @Agalon was the lead.
As soon as the drive started one of the cars reported issue with 4wd and had to abort the drive. Al Faqa dunes are medium size and it is possible to tailor the drive to almost any level. We did some nice crests. Couple of times we had some chills when some drivers fought gravity, but otherwise it was rather smooth. We proceeded to exit in Al Qudra area which was very convenient for me as I did not have to inflate to get to the afternoon meeting point as it was a short and easy 10 km drive through the desert.
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NahorJP
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Trip Organizer : @Agalon

Marshals & Support team : @Solmaz , @optimus , @rapailo , @Mahmoodyasin , @orlantsev

Good Day Almosters!! cool & and a Happy festive season

This was my first Intermediate trip with Almosters and guess what!! it was amazing. Amazing lead by @Agalon , did lot of cresting at fast pace and not just side crest but also the switches.

Support team & our senior intermediates were everywhere to guide us wherever and whenever needed. Due to which we didn't had much ideal time between the drives. One car had to leave in between due to the issue with his 4WD, @optimus escorted him out of the desert safely and continued the drive.

We finished our drive at Qudra at around 12:20 (noon) with 84km of endless fun and learning.

Though it was my first and last Intermediate trip of 2021 with Almosters (unless there is a drive to be posted for 31st Dec 2021), would like to thank whole Almost 4x4 family for all the support, dedication and time spent together. 2021 year was bumpy but drove me crazy with lot of fun in exploring the desert. See you soon in next drive, till then have fun and if its not fun, you are not doing it right!!

usual suspects : @Mahmoodyasin @orlantsev @dorudoru @CARLOSS @Rathica @Stephan @mpodroid @Germain @Lenny
Thanks
Roan (Night Fury)

See you on Sands!! Sooner the Better!!
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CARLOSS
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Hello everyone!

With some many celebrations and holiday, it has been hard to find some spare minutes to write this trip report…but I have finally made it! cool

So, all started with Agalon posting a drive in the Xmas eve which is the best way to start celebrating Xmas…and it was early morning so no need to negotiate that at home.

I still remember one of the Agalon’s drives when Newbie, also in Al Faqa, and it was challenging (between my wife and I managed to get the convoy disconnected) but I though before this drive that now it could be different because the higher level but I was actually mistaken: The more the level is the more challenging drives are.

Last Friday drive also reminded me the cartoons “Coyote and Roadrunner” blank in which the Coyote (us) is trying hard to catch the Roadrunner (him) and when almost there then the Roadrunner prepares a trap and the whole plan gets spoiled! And this drive was the same: it was quite difficult to follow the pace and when almost there he managed to do something in half square meter and again a huge gap between us. dark mood

I cannot tell for jeepers but for FJs is quite difficult to follow this little grey bullet :ninja: making amazing maneuvers in almost no space…From time to time I needed to go to Jebel Ali and come back to Al Faqa for making the same turn. pissed off

All in all, the drive went well with some second tries and stucks but almost no rope needed. Still a lot of things to be learned and improved from my end but keep on trying. playingsmiley

Thanks @Agalon for organizing and leading, and @Solmaz , @optimus , @rapailo , @Mahmoodyasin and @orlantsev for keeping an eye on us and your valuable advices. And my mates @dorudoru , @Germain , @mpodroid , @NahorJP , @Rathica , @Stephan and @Lenny (sorry for the issue with your car).

See you all soon.
Carlos
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Rathica
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What a lovely morning Perfect atmosphere perfect weather with perfect people despite the speeding ticket as I forgot that I was in AlAin with zero tolerance for speed🤣

Deflation done, we were off chasing @Agalon . This was the first time that I entered Al Faqaa at this point. I expected a lot of small technical dunes but Agalon found all the beautiful dunes. The sand was super soft so we had to use our momentum to make the climbs. It was a great drive for the FJs to challenge their cars up some of the tricky climbs that Agalon marked for us.

I took a challenge where the climb was high (all I could see was sand - not even sky) and straight with a quick switch. I did the climb but I did not like the way I had executed the switch🥺 Definitely more practice needed for those maneuvers.

All in all, it was a beautiful day in the sand❤️
Thank you to my fellow Inters and to the support crew for keeping us safe❤️
And to my gorgeous @Solmaz it's always fun having you with us🥰
Join me drawing in the sand
👑Dauntless 🚙💨
Lenny
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After a short hiatus, I signed up for my 1st inter drive with much enthusiasm.
It was a crisp morning and I was back in the area where we did the exam, what Fun!
Unfortunately to my dismay my 4x4 didn't want to engage mechanically, though on the dash everything looked fine.
So my drive ended after the 2nd crest!! Shit happens:)
Anyway lesson learnt, always check 4x4 capability before you leave for a drive( turns out I had a broken front axle )
Optimus ushered me back to the starting point to park my X there and I rode passenger in Godfather for the rest of the drive with an Eagle eye view of the convoy.
It was a great learning and interesting to observe how different cars react on the same track, thank you Optimus for the ride.
Thanks to Agalon , Solmaz , Rapaillo and my almost brothers and sisters for a fun morning in the sand.
See u soon.
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