Almost4x4

Hello everyone,

Early morning wake up, gas up, pick up passenger and on the way to have a good time.

We sure had a good time!
@optimus leading, @Rashidjass having a look around and @Mahmoodyasin , @orlantsev as support, good combination! Just missing our organizer @giorgio

Overall, it was a very relaxing drive, happy to have a passenger to chat with and looking at his face from time to time, it appears he had a good time as well.
The drive it self, was full of stops, with second tries, pop-outs and the usual breaks. I had the feeling the flow was not the way it is suppose to be, but that could just be me.

Hopefully see you all soon,

Tom

Dear almosters,

As @Tomvanhouten said it was an early morning wake and drive to the meeting point.

I arrived on time and met @PedroLeal he always seems to be the first one at the meeting point. Does he sleep there the night before ?

Thanks to @giorgio for arranging the drive. It is unfortunate you were not able to join the drive its self. But we were well looked after by our amazing lead @optimus. The ever present @Rashidjass @orlantsev and @Mahmoodyasin

I surely am still a newbie intermediate with alot to learn. But it was a fantastic drive with @mpodroid doing a great job as 2nd lead. My batch mates @ImranFJ and @PedroLeal The more senior intermediates @Petr @dorudoru and not to forget @Tomvanhouten and newbie passengers @luckeym @jcarlosgarme ] along for the ride to see the difference in levels.

Personally for me it was an opportunity to exercise some demons and i felt i achieved that goal gaining more and more confidence in both my car and my own abilities. This area in Sweihan has some amazing dunes, but also has a reputation for mishaps. Towards the end of the drive one car had a mechanical issue and they decided @Rashidjass would escort the car out. I decided enough was enough for me also. As it was approaching that critical “last 10min” period. So i called a day - having achieved my goals for the drive and not wanting to push my luck. I need the car in good order for upcoming Salalah Adventure

I left and drove the 1.5hrs to home i was smiling all the way. In summary a great drive with a fantastic bunch of people. Thank you everyone. See you all soon

Hello all,
Weather was superb for this time of the year. When I started driving at 5 am I even switched off the car AC for a while as it was comfortable even without. I got to the meeting point one of the firsts, but Pedro was already there with a passenger enjoying the drinks. @optimus gave the shortest briefing sharp at 7 am – “@mpodroid will be the second lead. Let’s go”. It was a typical intermediate level drive, but the pace was not that great due to numerous second tries, and pop-outs. At 10 am two cars left and we had a short bonus drive in one of the nice bowls. As we were driving toward the inflation points we passed by the area with some metal poles. It was a narrow passage and cars drifted on a broken track. One of the cars hit the pole and dented the body, and another one nearly escaped. Little advise is if you see a clear danger, there is no harm in avoiding it. In that situation there was plenty of flat space to go around the pole from another side. It took me a while to inflate all 4 tires. In this midday heat my compressor works only few seconds and then needs some rest. It can be helped if you position it in a shade and towards wind, but it is not always possible, so better get a different brand. Best wishes!

Drive : Otherside
Area : Sweihan
Level : Intermediate
Lead : myself
Floating marshal : @Rashidjass
Support : @Mahmoodyasin @orlantsev

Hi All

In this driver we had a mix of old and fresh intermediates therefore the level had to be maintained accordingly. My initial plan was to challenge the drivers with medium level fast paced drive. Every time the convoy was reaching that plateau the drivers were calling for 2nd tries & or pop outs. With no “last man standing” rule in place for this level of convoy, I had to stop and regroup and regain the momentum. Time to time I had the opportunity to see the drivers maneuvering the crests and it was good to see them playing it safe.
There is a good bunch of intermediate drivers loading…….keeping coming and driving would only improve their skills. Wish them good luck.

At last thanks the intermediates for showing up. @mpodroid Even with all the tough time you had but you still maintained the smile on your face. Thanks for being my brave heart 2nd lead.

Also thanks to @Mahmoodyasin & @orlantsev for keeping their watchful eyes on the convoy.
& ofcourse thanks to my brother and our guardian Angel @Rashidjass.

First, apologies for my late report. My work starts on Sundays and I haven't found good time
with a proper focus the report deserves.

I gained some delay at the beginning - there is no petrol station on the way between Arabian Ranches and Sweihan, so I made a detour at the junction from 611 to E75 to reach the station there. Coming back to south on E75 meant driving 6 km north to make a U-turn, so I tried to find a way back across the sand reach the 611. Unfortunately the roadblocks on the 611's shoulder didn't offer any gap and I had to accept the philosophic fact the only way forward is to return back.

Fortunately I reached the meeting poin in time. @optimus's briefing was the shortest I ever heard, and without waiting for any laggards he jump-started the drive, all of us trying to hastily line up. Why wasting time, we all know the drill :). With this sharp start, I saw our marshall for a moment approaching the first high dune, and told myself "haha, an immediate crest to come, a usual challenge for sleepers here". Then I changed focus on the car before me and when I saw he didn't finished the cresting, I thought he is going for a second try, so I crossed the dune exemplarily. Imediately my pride dissolved - there were no tracks on the other side :D. So this was my first, rather quaint second try of the day .

Optimus tried to keep the original sharp pace, but it soon created some flow issues due to many second tries, and he had to adapt. Then we arrived to one high dune, few of us could not reach the top to crest. I attempted unsuccessfully a few times and then decided for the first time to try the trick with 4L gear. And it worked great! I don't know why I didn't try it earlier... I was so happy that I continued the drive on 4L till the end. It really makes a difference, but not sure if it is good for the car.

I was a great drive, keep challenging us @optimus, we will flow smoother gradually. Thanks to @Rashidjass, @Mahmoodyasin and @orlantsev for all your support.