Go Fast 5

[Minhaj]

Hello Guys

The night before, we had a camp organised by Ehab. It was my first camping experience. It was cold, but the fire and good company made it a nice night

In the morning, I headed to the Go Fast 5 meeting point. Many cars were already there, and after greetings, Optimus briefed us. There were eight newbies and several intermediates. I was in team 2, led by Carlo, my first drive with him as lead.

The drive had everything fast dune stretches, safari-style trails, and some tricky technical turns. The dunes were challenging, and there were a few refusals to climb that tested our skills. It was a smooth and well-guided drive, and everyone kept safe while enjoying the route.

About 15 minutes in, one car got badly stuck on a side crest. It looked like it might roll over, but Nidal, Ehab, and Scorpio jumped in and got it out safely. The dunes kept coming, each one bigger than the last, making it a real test of driving .

Before finishing, all the cars gathered on a big dune. @Moustafa famous watermelon was shared, intermediates had fun playing around the dunes, and Carlo came over to the newbies saying, “One day you’ll be doing this too,” which felt motivating. After some time, we packed up and headed to the final point.

A big thanks to @optimus for organizing the drive, @CARLOSS for leading,@Ehab , @Scorpio , @nidal78 , and @Mghoneim for keeping an eye on everyone and @siddharthsai for giving me company from the night before until the drive was over . Also, thanks to @brett for helping out during the camp.

Looking forward to many more drives like this .

[siddharthsai]

Camp and a drive. Can't get better than this. Winter is back!!!

See I like camping okay? The whole buildup to camping that is, the conversations the clean, cold air, the fire pit, the quietness of the vast desert. But I'm someone who never liked the sleeping part of the camping. I could till date never sleep at a camping spot properly. So this time I decided to invest in an easy to set up camp and I wanted a bed not something bumpy to sleep on. I went to decathlon and got myself a single tent + an air inflated bed and let me tell you. That was a game changer. More on that later.

I met @Minhaj at the last gas station at exactly 7:55pm. The idea was to comfortably move to the camp following the location. This is when I got a little careless and I missed the entrance point and went ahead straight to point 1. We weren't lost but point 2 was behind point 1. I knew something wasn't right but we easily deflated and made it to point 2. When we reached point 2 we decide to celebrate by lighting a cigarette. While waiting, we saw 4 cars coming our way and the all of us made it to the camp together. There is something very special about finding GPS locations at unknown places at night. That was fun.

Once we were at the spot we sat for a bit, ate some food and was ready to set up tent and sleep away. @brett helped me with the air inflator for the bed and everything was done in about 10 mins.

I remember going to sleep and then waking up at 6am. Sound sleep. For the first time ever. If you ever want to camp, having a soft bed is the key. At least for me. I'm guessing it's the same for everyone. I wanted to keep breakfast light because I don't eat much before a drive.

We took off at 7.22 from the camping spot to the meet up where we met the rest of the 10+ convoy. Since we were already aired down and flags up, there was nothing to do so I went and met everyone.

The drive was spilt into 2 convoys. One led by David and the other by Carlos. I was in the convoy led by Carlos.

Carlos was incredible. Smooth lines, he knows what he was doing, kept the level smooth and clean. Like I always mention in the previous posts, the hardest thing is to keep sure the convoy level is balanced. I'm so looking forward to learn this trait. Navigation etc, you can always have an idea and it's not that difficult to master. But this is more of a mental challenge. Kudos to everyone who made it for the drive. It was such a nice weekend.

Towards the end of the drive, we got to see the intermediates ripping across a huge dune close to our exit. We exited around 10:50.

Once full on gas again, I hit the road with a mildly satisfied mind and thinking how this drive could have been different. 122kms home.

Thanks for reading.

[Haidy79]

Yaai, finally adrive in Nahil ..the weather is amazing actually little cold ...all cars arrived on time as usual the marshals were there and some drivers from previous day camp ...
Many cars ..... Marshals @optimus & @Scorpio @Rashidjass with explorers @Ehab @CARLOSS @David of course with the support of our intermediates @Mostafa @Aljamhi @ajmal.hassan @brett and many others ...
@optimus started explaining that we are going to be 2 convoys 4 newbies with support led by @David , the other 4 with support led by @CARLOSS ...
I was with David.. how gave us full instructions what to expect what do ...and ofcourse remind us all to communicate and keep distance in such fast style drives....
The track was amazing we started fast following each other I was behind the second lead keeping up to the track was abit challenge to me with the speed ...in one of the side walls climbing I took a higher track than the car in front of me due to over speed to find my self on the top of dune I realised gas so the car stopped @David gave me instructions and @Rashidjass came helped me to go down backwards with @optimus watching closely and helping....
We continued the track up and down with s shape turns ...until I was climbing a hill then heard a sound of metal cracks in my car ...I had to stop immediately..and all marshals and rescue gathered ..the decision was to take the car out to be sent to the carage ... thank God ...we all were fine ...I came back as a passgener for the remaining 30 minutes...I sate with @Rashidjass for 10 min until we reached the convoy..then sat with a our leader @David for another 15 minutes that was avery different experiences...
Going out I was with @optimus for 5 to 10 minutes that is another experience ..we all inflated our tires and went home safe and sound thank God and ofcourse with the effort of all Almost4x4 team ....
We can never forget @Mostafa watermelon that is a big joy in desert.....
Hope my car will be fixed soon to see all on sand again

[David]

My first lead with the club a Newbie 10+ in Nahil part of the famous Optimus "Go fast" series.

Very good sized convoy with a high number interm drivers that made my job easier, many thanks to all of the interm and specially to my 2nd lead Hassan for their help.

The aim of the drive was to safely expose the 10+ members to higher than usual pace, trying to find clean lines that did not present high difficulty so they could concentrate on getting used to the speed that surely will be needed when moving forward with their off-roading learning experience.

I think the convoy did a great job, not only they kept the pace if not also they did it safely that should always be the main priority. I hope they enjoyed it and managed to gain some experience from the drive.

Last shout to the supporting Marshalls in my convoy, Rashid and specially Optimus that not only supported the drive if not that he also organised it and gave me the change to lead.

See you on the sand soon!!!

[CARLOSS]

Dear everyone!

Last Saturday drive it was my first official lead in Almost 4x4 under Marshals supervision. The latter might be seen like a normal statement (i.e. “yesterday I did my groceries ”) but only a few understand what is behind this…i) tons of time and dedication delivered for free by many members in this Club in teaching & providing me the tools for me to develop my skills and to grow, ii) dozens of drives and club activities joined and pretty much enjoyed, iii) hundreds of new faces met, some still there some already left, iv) plenty of challenges and, from time to time, doubts on my own capability to reach this point and wondered many times “why do I do these crazy things during the weekend instead of spending more time with my family or going somewhere else”.

In my case, it has been, and it is still a journey of 5 years (it took me less time to get my degree) which now gets fully compensated by the joy of giving to the Club just a small piece of what I have been taking from it ever since.

Last Saturday drive was not as expected. Due to some ongoing things, I did not have the time to think about it too much during the last working days but there was an increasing feeling of insecurity and strong responsibility for doing things right for the safety of the convoy. Drive’s day was not as I imagined (nervous and insecure), more the contrary: Extremely confident, excited (not over) and enjoying every single second of it. Reason why, I do believe it is simple: Almost is a big deal and the training program that delivers is bullet proof , meaning that whoever is reaching this point in Almost is prepared for Almost everything. In the desert I would say that even outside a bit.

All in all, I was very happy with what happened, and I reasonably believe that the convoy enjoyed too. Thanks to Optimus for organizing and giving David and myself the chance to lead and all supporting Marshals, Explorers and Inter. And to our newbie members too.

Nahil was great as usual with plenty of opportunities for exercising our Newbies +10 level. We did plenty of arches, straight cresting, driving on the walls and some side crest with flat dunes on the top. I would recommend our dear Newbie members to remind the 3 "Fs" rule : i) no Fighting gravity, ii) no Flying, iii) no killing the Fun, because the latter is what its all about.

See you soon.
Carlos

[nomi4x4]

Dear Almosters,

It was a lovely drive led by Optimus, David, and Carlos.

We gathered at the meeting point on time, the weather is now lovely 22 degrees in the morning at time of starting,.

We split into 2 convoys one led by David and one by Carlos. I was in the one lead by David.

As the name indicates, the drive was actually fast and we were climbing big dues with high speed. it was an as exciting as it can get.

There was a souple of 2nd tries, and i got stuck on a bush while stopping because of the car in front of me. Got double recovery from the intermediates as i through to give them something for recovery training.

After that we started off again and resumed the pace of the drive and drove fast on big dunes.

As always special thanks to all the marshals and the support crew for their patience and advise @optimus @David A @Carlos . and also special thanks to @Mustafa for the juicy watermelon.

Waiting for the next drive on coming Saturday.

Cheers.

Nomi.

[massaleh]

November 8, 2025 – Go Fast 5 Drive

I almost missed the Go Fast 5 drive this time. Registration opened while I was traveling, and I thought I’d lost my chance. Luckily, due to overwhelming interest, it waxs reopened for registration and I managed to secure my spot.

On drive day, I joined the "Camp With Me" team, having camped with them the night before. Thanks to @Ehab for a quite night as wel as for nidal and brett. We headed straight to the meeting point, fully prepped and excited.

Once everyone had gathered, Optimas began taking attendance. Then came the surprise, the group would be split into two convoys one led by David, the other by Carlos. Optimas himself would be "Flying Eagle."

I was part of @CARLOSS convoy. After a quick but thorough briefing, engines roared to life. Carlos kicked things off with a warm-up that was just intense enough to get our adrenaline pumping.

As we progressed, the climbs grew steeper, the arches more breathtaking, and the challenge more thrilling. Carlos pushed us to build strength and skill throughout the drive. The support team was phenomenal as always ready, always encouraging.

Of course, Mostafa, the gentleman with the watermelon, came through once again with his signature refreshment , juicy, and delicious slices that refreshed us all.

Huge thanks for an unforgettable experience.

Already looking forward to the next adventure!

[Moustafa]

Hello everyone,

As the previous reports covered all the points, I’d like to add that we were extremely happy to see our future marshals leading us

I was with Marsha @David convoy under the supervision of Marshals @optimus @Rashidjass

. The track was great with many challenges to our 10+ , I personally enjoyed it. What made it even better was that the convoy was flowing smoothly and fast despite the challenges along the way.

This trip showed that the club has an excellent group of new marshals who have been well prepared to lead us through amazing safety trips. We also have 10+ members who are performing at a very good level and are excited to keep moving forward.

Thanks for the amazing day specially the organizer @optimus the leading Marshals @Carlos @David support Marshals @Rashidjass @Ehab @Scorpio

See you all soon