Anticipation for this trip had been building from the moment that our new Offroaders received the results of their graduation drive.

Despite the heavy and unexpected fog this morning, our new Offroaders were ready to embark on  this new phase of their offroading journey, well before the scheduled start time. By the time we had completed the safety briefing and course description, ours was the only convoy in the area.

The starting point for today’s drive was besides high dunes that were ideal for side sloping, cresting and switching. With such a variety of large dunes to select from, one could easily spend the entire morning just speeding around these sand formations in an attempt to unearth the perfect approach, or reshaping the snaking peaks of long crests to perform multiple switches in a single pass.

With complete awareness of all these possible distractions ahead of us, the convoy started warming up on some easy crests near the meeting point and quickly increased pace to side slope the high dunes along the route.  Although the convoy had ample experience with this maneuver on smaller dunes, nothing could have prepared them for the vastness of the massive sand wall that confronted them, and the full throttle approach that was needed to truly imbibe the thrill of the experience. Expectedly, the convoy got a little stretched, mostly due to underestimating the magnitude to the challenge. So we circled around for a second bite at the cherry, and this time the convoy was a lot more connected and made some beautiful lines on an otherwise blank canvas.

A short distance away, the convoy experienced their first Offroader level challenge. It was a long, curvy crest with a with a steep, high approach and a gentle downward sloping departure. This challenge demanded complete focus since the approach and mount required precise gear selection, and thereafter , complete control to navigate the curves of the crest all the way to the end. The convoy had some success with some parts of the challenge on the first attempt, but our new Off-roaders were not satisfied with their execution. By the third attempt, everyone had shown remarkable progress in control and the  ability to make good safety decisions when it was not possible to successfully complete the challenge.

Over the next few minutes we dealt with the case of the mysterious missing front bumper and a breakdown which resulted in a car being towed out of the desert.

The next Offroader level challenge which followed after our return to the dunes proved somewhat challenging and resulted in an incident which led to the decision to end the drive early.

We will return when we are a little more prepared and finish this challenge in true Offroader style.

Thanks Malcom for looking out for the convoy and spotting the missing bumper. Our new Offroaders showed that they have the tenacity to go the distance. I look forward to or next meeting on the sand real soon