OutdoorUAE - July 2013

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THE FIRST OUTDOOR MAGAZINE FOR THE THE UAE UAE AND AND THE THE MIDDLE MIDDLEEAST EAST On top of the world

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SHEIKH MOHAMMED AL THANI SUMMITS EVEREST South African

Plenty of

PRODUCTS TO CHECK OUT

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Thumbs Up!

WILL’S HITCHHIKING

ADVENTURE FROM UK TO UAE

Comrades

MARATHON 2013

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Pacific fins

SAILFISHING IN GUATEMALA

Riding Romandie

A SWISS

CYCLING TOUR Get to us on Facebook!

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Issue 31, July 2013

THE FIRST OUTDOOR MAGAZINE FOR THE UAE AND THE MIDDLE EAST

JULY 2013 - WWW.OUTDOORUAE.COM

THE FIRST OUTDOOR MAGAZINE FOR THE UAE AND THE MIDDLE EAST

On the cover: Sheikh Mohammed Al Thani Photo by: Elia Saikaly

‘I love it when a good plan comes together…’

Managing Editor Daniel Birkhofer Editors Glaiza Seguia, Tara Atkinson Designer Oybek Daniyarov Administration Jane Mesina

I’m not talking about the flimsy or spontaneous ones which are better left unsaid or are a “good idea at the time” whilst having a “socially acceptable” evening BBQ with friends, but rather plans that have been lurking in the back of the mind for a few years – most likely filed under the world domination or evil plans section in the brain.

Sales & Marketing (advertisement enquiries) Tara Atkinson Tel: 04-447 2030 Mobile: 055 9398915 tara@outdooruae.com Published by Outdoor UAE FZE In cooperation with D.Events P.O. Box 215062 Dubai, U.A.E. Tel. 04-447 2030 contact@outdooruae.com www.outdooruae.com Distributor Tawzea, Abu Dhabi Media Company P.O. Box 40401, Abu Dhabi, U.A.E. Printed at Galadari Printing & Publishing LLC P.O. Box 11243 Dubai, U.A.E.

It seems that now is the time to come clean and share with you my next plan – or so called “mini adventure.” It has been a great two and a bit years here at OutdoorUAE, and I feel that we have come a long way since the beginning of the concept. The magazine, website and community have all grown from strength to strength over the last three years thanks to its contributors, photographers, journalists, staff and extremely passionate individuals, just to name a few, who want to share their experiences and get involved. Working here definitely had a profound effect on me over the last couple of years; it’s made me change the way I think, met people who are great to be around, whilst trying out new things and experiences. So much so, that in an ironic twist of fate, I seem to have gotten a bit too inspired! (Ooops!)

I would say that OutdoorUAE was just the kick up the a** I needed to make me realise I needed to really start living life and start going on my own adventures, a plan that I’d always had in the back of my mind, but never knew how to reach.

As of the 1st of July, I’m off to find my own slice of the adventure cake and I aim to start in Germany and then see where it takes me. It will be exciting and I will be keeping OutdoorUAE up to date and I’m sure you’ll still see my name pop up here and there. I’m also back in the UAE next year so it’s not the end, but rather the beginning!

I hope that you will continue to get involved with OutdoorUAE and that it can also inspire you one day as well!

Until next time, and all the best for the future OutdoorUAE team, you all rock!

© 2013 Outdoor UAE FZE Issue 31 July 2013

Tara

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BETWEEN THE LINES

Daniel Birkhofer Founder and Editor in Chief daniel@outdooruae.com

Jane Mesina Administration jane@outdooruae.com

The information contained is for general use only.

While we have made every attempt to ensure that the information contained in this magazine has been obtained from reliable sources, however the publisher is not responsible for any errors. All information in this magazine is provided “as is”, with no guarantee of completeness, accuracy, timeliness or of the results obtained from the use of this information. In no event will the publisher, its related affiliates or anyone else be responsible for any decision made or action taken in reliance on the information in this magazine.

WHEN YOU’RE DONE READING, PLEASE RECYCLE!

Glaiza Seguia Editor glaiza@outdooruae.com

Oybek Daniyarov Graphics & Programming oybek@outdooruae.com

Zaid Adham Arabic Editor

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EXPERTS & CONTRIBUTORS

Kit Belen Our fishing pro

Pete Aldwinckle Climber and all-round adventure seeker

Gordon T Smith Desert Diver and wannabe Marine Biologist

Mike Nott The 4x4 expert

John Basson Moto/ATV and all round adventure seeker

Tori Leckie Writer, runner, blogger and adventurer.

Sandy Joy Rubin Pilates and yoga expert and general thrill seeking move-aholic

Darryl MacDonald Photographer, journalist, climbing and hiking junkie currently living in Oman.

Ian Ganderton Kayaker, climber, mountainbiker and snowboarder. Enthusiastic jack of all trades, master of none.

All contents are under copyrights and may not be reproduced in any kind without written permission. © 2013 Outdoor UAE FZE Reg. at Creative City Fujairah P.O. Box 4422, Fujairah, U.A.E.

Tara Atkinson Sales and Marketing tara@outdooruae.com

WANT TO CONTRIBUTE? CONTACT US! contact@outdooruae.com

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THE FIRST OUTDOOR MAGAZINE FOR THE UAE AND THE MIDDLE EAST

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CONTENTS

EVERY ISSUE 05 BEST SHOTS 06 EVENTS CALENDAR 30 PRODUCTS 52 PEOPLE 62 DIRECTORY

EVENT REVIEWS

54 DARRYL’S OMAN ESCAPE

13 OUTDOORUAE & GRAVITY ZONE BUNGEE JUMP DAY

30 TRIED & TESTED: WAVEJET

16 IN THE WATERS OF PALAU

09 IGNITE AQUATHLON 10 CROSSFIT ASIA REGIONALS 2013 12 RAGE SURF AND SKATE JAM

TRAVEL + ADVENTURE 28 SEAN ON MT LOGAN 40 TOUR DE ROMANDIE 42 SAILFISHING IN GUATEMALA

OUR EXPERTS 44 GET THEM OUTDOORS – JOHN BASSON 46 PICO DE ORIZABA CLIMB – MIKE NOTT 48 JIGGING – KIT BELEN 50 MAXI RACE – TORI LECKIE

TIPS + TRICKS 58 PARTNER STRETCHES – SANDY 60 4X4 CHECKLIST

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20 SHEIKH MOE AL THANI’S EVEREST CLIMB

THE FIRST OUTDOOR MAGAZINE FOR THE UAE AND THE MIDDLE EAST

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BEST SHOTS WINNER!

Here are the best shots sent in by you for the monthly

“Want Fame?” photography competition! Thank you for all your entries, they were all great and it was hard selecting the best photos this month. Congratulations to the top 3 winners (who will each receive Buff headwear and 5 free copies of the magazine) Seb Porter, Parvez GS and James Russell. Well done!

WINNER!

Parvez GS A pre-dawn trip to the Liwa Desert just to get a few snaps of the starlit night and the desert, we ended up shooting the beautiful curves of the desert

Seb Porter Skater Jan Hoffman at Canopi Bowl Tashkeel

WINNER!

James Russell Surf & Skate Jam at Wadi Adventure Al Ain

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THE FIRST OUTDOOR MAGAZINE FOR THE UAE AND THE MIDDLE EAST

EVENTS CALENDAR Stay up-to-date with the latest events

Ramadam Jam (Skate and BMX Competition) July 19, 10:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., Dubai World Trade Centre

The Rage skatepark is back at Dubai Sports World 2013 for the BMX and skateboarding championships. Skaters, BMX riders and action sport enthusiasts will be able to escape the heat and keep on shredding inside the World Trade Centre. Rails, grind boxes, fun boxes and a mini-ramp are just a few obstacles this year. For more information, visit www.rage-shop.com.

Ride Club Challenge

Every Friday until August 9, 9:00 a.m., Dubai World Trade Centre Face up to the cycle challenge every Friday at the Ride Club stand in the Dubai Sports World.

The first 10 minutes will be warm up and 30 minutes will be the race. The first place from the top three finishers of the day will be entered into the final race on August 9th where prizes will be given away. The price for participation is 50 AED. For more information, contact Vitor Carvalho at 0529040031.

Train YAS by Activelife

Every Tuesday, 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m., YAS Marina Circuit, Abu Dhabi Activelife is inviting runners, cyclists or casual joggers to take part in this free weekly event and make the Formula 1 racetrack their own personal training ground. The Yas Marina Circuit offers a unique, safe and friendly track to practice on. You just need to register for your Train YAS ID at www.yasmarinacircuit.com.

Revolution Nights

Every Wednesday, 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m., Dubai Autodrome The Dubai Autodrome opens its floodlit Club Circuit for those who want to cycle, jog and rollerblade on this world-class facility. Follow the signs for the Race Paddock to the assigned pit garage from 5:45 p.m. All cyclists and rollerbladers must wear a helmet. Admission is free and kids under 16 must be accompanied by an adult. For more information, visit www.dubaiautodrome.com.

Ultimate Snorkel

Ambassador Lagoon, Atlantis, The Palm Explore beautiful underwater ruins and swim with the sharks this summer at the largest open air marine exhibit in the Middle East. With the guidance of marine experts, guests will have the opportunity to discover interesting facts about the local species in the Ambassador Lagoon and learn how to help protect our oceans. For bookings and enquiries, contact 044261040 or email lostchambers@atlantisthepalm.com.

SUP Islands Experience

1:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m., Yas Island, Abu Dhabi The Abu Dhabi eco-conscious boat tour operator, Capt. Tony, is offering first-time and experienced SUP’ers adventures to off the beaten track islands within the inshore waters of Abu Dhabi. They will set up base on a beach, allowing guests to explore local islands, sandbanks and mangrove forests along the coastline. For bookings, contact 026507175 or email info@captaintonys.ae.

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NEWS + COMMENT

A splashing good time!

World’s Largest Swimming Lesson at Wild Wadi importance of swimming as Around a hundred Dubai residents, young and old, made a splash at Wild Wadi Waterpark on June 18th in participation of the annual global event World’s Largest Swimming Lesson (WLSL). This initiative and World Record attempt, which happens simultaneously across the globe, is aimed at teaching millions of people the

a life-saving skill and to also promote water safety.

This is the third year that Wild Wadi has hosted this event and according to General Manager Chris Perry, WLSL is very significant to our region: “We are in full support of this initiative and driving the importance of teaching people how to swim, especially since we live next to the sea in weather that allows us to swim 365 days a year!”

The event started at exactly 7:00 p.m. and the huge wave pool was filled with energy as kids and adults alike learned how to get comfortable in the water, float on their front and back and practised some

swimming strokes. They also reviewed entry hazards when going into the water and learning how to submerge your face and hold breath. “Wild Wadi follows exactly the same 45-minute plan as other facilities around the world. There are practical safety tips as well as swimming instruction by qualified swimming instructors,” Perry explained.

Participants not only received certificates to prove they helped set a new world record, but they also brought home valuable lessons. This summer, Perry encourages everyone to have a safe and enjoyable time in the water. “Our top tip is to swim in lifeguarded areas, never swim alone, drink plenty of water, and to protect yourself from the sun!”

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NEWS + COMMENT

Go Red for Women

Mt Elbrus challenge The UAE-based husband and wife team – 53-year-old Calin and 51-year-old Jules Miles Lewis – from the inspirational motivators Mountain High, will climb one of the world’s Seven Summits to raise awareness for the global “Go Red for Women” initiative that teaches the public about the risks of heart disease.

They aim to climb Europe’s highest peak, Mount Elbrus, in Russia, which stands at 5,650m above sea level.

“We both love the mountains, they are like food and water to us. We have set a personal goal to climb at least one mountain every year - two where possible,” said Jules.

“Our first snow and ice climb together was on Island Peak, Nepal back in 2008, Calin proposed at the summit so it was a very memorable one! We did Cho Oyu in 2010 for Calin’s 50th and reached 7,000m - avalanches prevented anyone from summiting that year, however it was wonderful to spend so much time in the mountains and it was a new personal best for us!”

Jules also explained why Go Red for

Women charity is close to them. “Heart disease is the number one killer of women.

Awareness plus action has the power to change this. Coming from a Sports Science background, I truly believe in the positive benefits of a regular exercise programme, well-balanced diet, spending time in nature, having fun, a good circle of family and friends to keep a positive outlook, having regular health checks and when you feel something is not right you should get to the root cause of it quickly. I believe we all have a big role to play in leading by example and educating everyone to make exercise, being outdoors and healthy diet a normal part of daily life.”

The couple undertook pre-expedition preparations, with hiking sessions in the icy conditions at Mall of Emirates’ Ski Dubai, swimming in the ocean, yin yoga, as well as specific gym fitness and training at the Yas Island Circuit, Abu Dhabi. Over the course of the next two months, a Facebook page

dedicated to the climb will keep followers updated day-by-day on their progress, via pictures and video clips. The climb will take the couple eight days to complete, with the summit day scheduled for 31st July.

Jules added: “We look forward to returning to share our pictures and stories from the climb at a Go Red for Women event, to be held at one of the Radisson hotels in Dubai. The event will be a great opportunity to share the message of the importance of heart health to a wider audience and inspire others to challenge themselves.”

For the supporting hotels, Radisson Blu St Petersburg and Radisson Royal Moscow, the “Go Red for Women” climb was a welcomed opportunity to partner on helping to increase the public knowledge of heart health globally.

To track Calin and Jules’ progress, and for more information about “Go Red,” please visit: www.facebook.com/GoRedforWomenMtElbrus.

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Q&A

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Are there new travel restrictions for women going to Oman via Dibba border?

It was reported earlier in June that authorities have enforced a strict travel rule for non-GCC female UAE residents who will be crossing the Dibba border to Oman. It stated that female expats must first acquire a No Objection Certificate from their sponsor, either from their employer or husband or father, beforehand unless they are travelling with a male relative. This resulted to complaints from unaware travellers, who usually drive to the Oman for the weekend, and tourism operators. But the Dibba Police clarified later last month, that apart from the standard passport checking, NOC is not required to cross the checkpoint.

EVENT REVIEW

Ignite Fitness & Wellness

AQUATHLON SUCCESS

Ignite Fitness & Wellness hosted the fourth edition of the aquathlon on

14th of June at The Shack, Kite Surfers Beach, Umm Suqeim.

The aquathlon started bright and early with registrations at 6:00 a.m., the conditions were perfect with temperatures unusually low for this time of the year. The event started with a swim followed by a run on the beach. The race had four different categories dependent on age and level of fitness and for the non-swimmers there was a fun run too! As always, there was a mix of participants, some wanting to beat their personal best and others just out for some fitness and fun.

The event was a great success with over 160 children and adult participants on the day. If you didn’t get the chance to enter last June why not enter one or two disciplines on the second series that will

happen on 15th November 2013, or just come down and support the competitors. The event supports Ignite’s philosophy of improving sedentary lifestyles by introducing fitness and fun and making fitness accessible to all.

Kellogg’s are the main sponsor for the event, “Kellogg’s is very proud to be powering the Ignite Aquathlon Series, it is a great event for the whole family, getting adults and kids alike outdoors and active in a fun environment,” said Tanya Sleiman, Brand Manager.

For more event information contact: Guillaume Mariole at guillaume@ignitewellness.com or visit Ignite’s website www.ignite-wellness.com.

Ignite Fitness & Wellness would like to congratulate the following winners: Adult male Adult female Open team Sprint male Sprint female Sprint team

Under Under Under Under

12 12 16 16

male female male female

Life guard team Fun run male Fun run female

Christian Henn Tania Lee Parker “Philips Lewis” (Paul Lewis and Paul Philips) Pamila DeSilva Annie Crooks “Monkey Magic” (James Maltman and Anthony Bugden) Oliver Newton Jasmine Grey Rhyss Bartett Cameron Anderson Wild Wadi 1 (Harith Mohsen and Rodrigo Pilapil) Edward Duncombe Lisa Welsh

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REPORT

Being a region together in sport and competition For the last three years, CrossFitters in Dubai have travelled the sport – CrossFit. It began in 2011 when Marcus Smith, Craig Harriman and Candice Howe travelled to Okinawa, Japan to compete in the 2011 Reebok CrossFit Games Asia Regional.

CrossFit is the Sport of Fitness In 2012 the competition grew, as did the participation from athletes in Dubai, and around the region. The 2012 Reebok CrossFit Asia Regional was held in Seoul, South Korea, a city that was much more easily accessible, and therefore enabled larger numbers to accommodate the growing community.

The 2013 season saw the competition again return to Seoul – bigger and better than ever before. Over 20 individual women, 45 individual men and 20 teams took to the field from across the region, all eager to demonstrate the hard work that they had put into their year’s training. Competitors came from across Asia, Philippines, Japan, Brunei, Kuwait, UAE, India and many more places. The Asia Regional competition is a collision of culture and nationality – a diverse community broad together by a common love for the sport.

Much like the growth of the community, the intensity and physical demands of the workouts also increased. Over the three days, competitors undertook team and individual WODs (workouts of the day).

The WODs were brutal. The Regional WODs were announced in advance of the competition, so every individual competitor and team member knew what was in store for them and, in spite of their past efforts, many people achieved PBs (Personal Bests) in the WODs. Dubai was represented by one individual female athlete: Candice Howe; six individual male athletes: Marcus Smith, Justin Ahrens, Saud Alshamsi, Ali Bin Zayed, Mahmood Shalan and Matt Jones; and two teams from Reebok CrossFit LifeSpark and The Burn Room.

Throughout the weekend, Dubai’s fittest gave everything they had, fighting to climb the leaderboard and stay in the competition.

Some of the highlights saw Candice rounding out Day 1 in first place, having achieved

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Words + Photos Provided By: Candice Howe two first place finishes in WODs 2 and 3. She was not alone at the top of the leaderboard – Justin was sitting in second after a great Day 1. Marcus did the Dubai crowd proud on Day 2 achieving a time of 4:03 in leg-killing WOD 5. Not only did his performance give him first place in the WOD, but his time was good enough for second in the world at that point, a time which is still good enough for top 10 in the world!

The other UAE milestone for the competi-

were able to achieve the required muscle ups in WOD 3, they were allowed to participate in the remaining workouts of the weekend. The standout performance came from the Burn Room’s Laura Matthews, who not only managed to complete one 135lb squat clean (a PB for her) in WOD 7, but went on to complete another five reps!

At the end of the weekend the Dubai competitors placed as follows: The 2013 competition was incredible, by far

NAME

WOD 1

WOD 2

WOD 3

WOD 4

WOD 5

WOD 6

WOD 7

Candice Howe (Ford)

3

1

1

4

8

2

1

(8:12)

(180.1)

(07:14)

(26:31)

(7:30)

(12:33)

(6:00)

3

10T

7

9T

7

13

5

Justin Ahrens

OVERALL 2 4

(5:38)

(245.20)

(6:16)

(25:49)

(5:55)

(14:43)

(6:28)

Marcus Smith

4

19T

21T

35T

1

9T

2

9

Mahmood Shalan

17

26T

12

25

4

32

25T

20

Matt Jones

42

22T

37T

35T

5

37

22T

33

Saud Alshamsi

30T

39

33T

34

38T

36

27

36

Ali Bin Zayed

41

40T

39

38

28

41

28T

37

The Burn Room

5

5T

DNF*

DNF

DNF

DNF

DNF

DNF

(15:40)

(860.00)

10

12T

DNF

DNF

DNF

DNF

DNF

DNF

(16:23)

(780.00)

CrossFit LifeSpark 2

n Did Not Finish (DNF): As the team failed to complete the required for the WOD, they were eliminated from scored competition. the best to date – made doubly good by the tion was the participation of three Emirati men. addition of so many athletes from the UAE. In 2012, Amna Al Haddad competed as part In CrossFit, each athlete takes on the WOD, of the LifeSpark Team, however, Saud, Ali and fuelled by the other competitors’ determinaMahmood were the first Emirati men to comtion, but ultimately they are a group taking on pete as individuals in the competition. the most challenging of workouts. CompetitiveAs for the teams, although neither team ness aside this creates a real sense of camaraderie, rarely seen in other sports. We are united by a common pain and tenacity to take on and conquer the workout that they throw at us!

As well as the competition, the other reason to travel for Regionals is the community.

Meeting the community and seeing how other boxes and coaches operate, as well as how other communities grow and enables us to enrich our CrossFit community in Dubai. We also came home with a real sense that we are part of something bigger. Sport is often said to bring people and communities together. As CrossFit has grown, it has retained its community, individual hospitality and welcome!

For more information about CrossFit, visit www.reebokcrossfitlifespark.com

REPORT

Following on from my last expedition, “Footsteps of Thesiger,” I wanted to take on a completely different challenge that would test me both mentally and physically. It was this that led me to the decision of attempting to conquer K2, the world’s deadliest mountain.

Many people have already asked me “why K2?” I have successfully conquered Everest, and many may believe that the second highest peak will prove an easier task. But the numbers speak for themselves – Everest has now been summited over 5,000 times, whereas only 300 have summited K2.

This will, by far, be the most challenging expedition I have taken on and there will be many obstacles to overcome during the two months journey, most notably the severe weather conditions prevalent on the mountain.

Success is never guaranteed on K2, or any 8,000m peak for that matter, and it is largely out of my hands.

Summiting K2 is a huge goal and a massive challenge. I am extremely driven and it’s a Pandora’s Box that once you’ve achieved some huge goals you want to strive for even more. I have always been a goal-driven character; that has always been my nature. Everyone has big dreams and aspirations; the difference between them and me is I make them happen. I do it simply because I love doing it, I love being in the wilds of the earth and mountaineering and climbing is one of the most inspiring sports. Having that drive and self-belief is a huge part of getting up and making it happen.

K2

b m i Cl Words + Photos Provided By: Adrian Hayes

I’ve been thinking about the expedition for the last three years, planning and prepping for the past 12 months and training intensely for six months. The first step when planning an expedition is simply deciding what it is going to be, what is the goal I am setting out to achieve? Once I’ve set my goal, everything is geared toward getting to the start line and making sure I’m prepared as best as I can be. I started training specifically for this expedition in December, a couple of weeks after I accomplished Ironman Australia.

The initial component of my training was two hours to two days mountain hikes in Musandam, Hatta and Oman, gradually over time increasing the weights on my back and the distance of the hike. The second component of this key training has been stair running up and down one of Dubai’s tallest buildings, again progressively increasing duration and weight – in this case ankle weights. Everything else is supplementary but important – running, cycling, rock climbing and weight training. You need as much strength as possible on big expeditions such as this.

It is a struggle training in the heat of the UAE after April, knowing that the conditions on K2 will be vastly different, but I’ve often recognised that I am and always will be far

fitter living in the UAE than if I had lived virtually anywhere else in the world. I’ve got everything right on my doorstep here – the sea, mountains, the desert, great gyms, cycle tracks and some great clubs and friends to train with. It’s one reason I’m still in the country and I think we are very privileged.

I have discovered a new breathing technique ahead of this expedition called MAT – Muscle Activation Technique. In short, it all comes down to a number of muscles in most people’s bodies being “switched off,” and the body cheating by using other muscles to do the work instead. In terms of breathing, the switched off component in many people is their diaphragm – only when this is engaged can you fully breathe through the stomach. It was painful manipulation, but it really has changed my breathing and my life!

I’m feeling many different emotions which vary daily, but primarily expectation and apprehension. It is a risky venture, but I am aware that all I can do is minimise the risks as much as possible. Apart from that, I’m as fit as I’ve ever been and totally focused on the task. Once we get going I will love most of it, I’m sure.

Follow my expedition on www.adrianhayes.com where I will be updating my blog regularly and uploading video/audio updates.

Like my page on Facebook and follow me on Twitter also for updates: www.facebook.com/AdrianHayes www.twitter.com/adrianhayes

REPORT

om g JuststaofditsdkiVndosklc ateboardin

The fir a storm in Al Ain and surfing jam stirs up

Words + Photos By: James Russell

Sand can get everywhere.

That’s one fate we gracefully and literally brush off every once in a while for both those living here or visiting. Apart from the sand, there is also one other thing that is slowly becoming a trademark of this country, and it’s the ambition to develop huge feats of design and engineering.

It’s clear to see wherever you look in the UAE, and it is well, totally rad. And it’s this shared ambition that has created a truly unique opportunity to organise a revolutionary event, which I will get into as you read on.

So, you have a board. Regardless of what type of board you have, it has to be used somewhere. It seems obvious; snowboards need snow, surfboards need water, skateboards need good old terra firma and so on. So what do we do when the substance we want to shred on is not readily available?

Well, there has already been an outstanding example of a solution to this problem already – plopping a huge artificial ski slope in the middle of a shopping mall, so your dream 360 rodeo flip can become a reality in the most unlikely of places.

You may now have heard of a place called Wadi Adventure in Al Ain. This place houses a lot of similar realities. Wadi Adventure also includes an artificial wave pool. Now, this place has already been established as a huge feat of engineering – giving safe, reliable, programmable waves to perfect your surfing. But,

The grommets prepare for their heat

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Volcom ME Surf Team rider and Under 12s winner Lucas Bay

Men’s winner Nathan Banks

2nd place Women’s Rachael Sherriff

Volcom ME surf team rider Luke Cunningham

the sickest shredding on show for the day.

The skateboarding was a huge hit, as the sheltered mini ramp drew crowds from all around, bringing out the awe of spectators.

The jam consisted of a mini-ramp session and a “Game of S-K-A-T-E.”1 It was quite an odd reality, watching someone surfing only a few metres away in water, whilst at the same time, having to dodge out the way of a number of skateboarders cruising past. But this place is where dreams become reality, while at the same time giving the surfing and skateboarding culture the recognition and exposure it deserves.

Congratulations to all the riders and thanks RAGE skateboarding team rider Bruno Santana go out to all those who helped and participated in the event, including Wadi Adventure. there is no sand. Instead, there is concrete.

Thanks to Luke Cunningham, Alex Medvedev Not as harsh as it may sound, but this creates and the team at RAGE for running and organan opportunity for another particular board ising the event. Kader Hadri and Clint Davis sport to rip at the same time just “on shore” for MCing and to Toby “Toaster” Illeris for the – skateboarding. We thought, okay, let’s have video, which can be seen a surfing event at Wadi Advenat our RAGE Facebook ture. But why stop there? Let’s Here were the results for the day: page (Facebook.com/ bring the RAGE mini-ramp SURFING Rageshoppage). A shout Mens over and have a skateboarding goes out to Ryley, Nikki, 1st Nathan “Arnie” Banks jam as well. Why the heck not.

Cairo and their new family 2nd Jayson “I Can Boost So we believe that we are the

Higher Than You” member Daisy. And thank first to implement and run a Laipenieks you spectators! Stay surfing and skateboarding jam 3rd Andy “Frother” Hobson tuned for the next one! at an artificial wave pool. Neat, Under 18s right?

1st Joshus Pickering 1 Game of S.K.A.T.E. is 2nd George Clowes On the day, we had at least a skateboarding game us3rd Dan “My Dad Froths 80 participants, surfers and

More than me” Hobson ing rules based upon skaters alike. This was part of Under 12s the H.O.R.S.E. game the 250+ public turnout, who 1st Lucas Bay played by basketball playwere there to spectate a first of 2nd Alex Sherwin ers. One player sets a its kind event. Support came 3rd Chantelle Hobson trick by doing a particufrom Volcom, Electric, ourWomens lar skateboarding trick of 1st Janice Smith selves at DDE and RAGE and, their choice. If the trick is 2nd Rachael Sherriff of course our humble hosts, not landed, another playWadi Adventure.

SKATEBOARDING er attempts to set a trick.

There were four categories Game of Skate Once a trick has been set, for surfing, which included 1st Sid De La Paz the other player(s) must Men’s, Under 18s, Under 12s 2nd Ghassan Luqman respond by doing the and Women’s. The jams were 3rd Zaki Abdul Shafi same trick in their first try. full of talented riders and every Mini Ramp No trick may be set more heat was a show to behold.

1st Jan Hoffman than once by the same 2nd Alex Medvedev The surfing went into the person.

3rd Roger Nazareth Ordas gloomy evening, but it was worth the wait, with probably

The RAGE skate team

EVENT REVIEW

Why live on the edge, when you can jump off it? and

The sun was bright and blinding, but the crowd were looking straight up and excitedly waiting. Another brave soul was about to jump off a cage hanging by a crane from a dizzying height of 50m and there were hoots of excitement all around.

In a heartbeat, the girl leapt into the air with outstretched hands like Superman, hair flying in all directions and screaming at the top of her lungs – much to the delight of the people. It was just another fun Friday at Gravity Zone.

Words By: Glaiza Seguia Photos By: Daniel Birkhofer

On June 14th, the OutdoorUAE community, adventure-junkies and curious onlookers gathered at the Power Play Football Centre near the Dubai Bowling Centre to hang out with the team and enjoy a thrilling day of bungee jumping. Some of our “rough and tough” contributors and their family dropped by to test their courage and OutdoorUAE readers even got 15 per cent off the price by presenting their coupon from the last magazine copy. There were over 50 jumps booked for that day not counting some of the walk-ins and some, who can’t get enough adrenaline rush, jumped twice within the day.

Going back to the olden times, the idea of bungee jumping is believed to have first appeared on Pentecost Island in South Pacific when young men willingly leap off high wooden platforms with vines tied to their ankles as a rite of passage to manhood. The modern bungee jumping we now know has developed into one of the most popular extreme activities and a common bucket list item.

When we asked one guy, who was nervously waiting in the queue, why he was jumping, he answered “for the experience of trying something new, exciting and nerve-racking all at the same time.” A girl who was shouting as she hurtled down later said, “well, I didn’t expect it to be that high!”

It was a fun way to let go of your inhibitions and drive your fears away. Plus, the competent Gravity Zone crew makes sure it’s safe for everyone from weight measurement to properly briefing customers to double checking equipment and bungee cords. Check out the best moments from the event!

OUTDOORUAE

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REPORT

The Ultimate cycling experience Words By: Sandy Montana Photos By: Richard Cousins

Returning from yet another wet and muddy mountain bike ride in what had been proclaimed as one of Britain’s coldest and wettest springs in living memory, I resignedly got to work jet washing the bike. I was sorely tempted to turn the spray onto myself as I looked in disgust at my filthy cycling clothes. My thoughts turned to cycling in warmer climes and, as fate would have it, I saw a posting on Facebook by an old school friend now residing in Dubai. Richard, a keen cyclist, had recently purchased a Surly Moonlander, the most extreme version of the new breed of fat bikes, sporting huge wide tyres.

As the name implies, the Moonlander is designed to go beyond where normal bikes can go, including but not limited to snow, mud, ice and sand.

He had posted some incredible photos of himself riding the bike in the desert.

It appealed to my sense of adventure and I decided that some desert riding could successfully be combined with road riding as I was also trying to improve my road cycling skills. The road cycling I had researched online looked very impressive, especially the newly opened Al Qudra cycle track, offering loops ranging from 30-100km. Several phone calls ensued and

And away into the distance!

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Yes, starting to enjoy the experience!

I found myself on board a flight bound for Dubai a week later.

As I could only manage a three-day getaway, I knew that I would have to hit the ground running. Feeling somewhat jetlagged and sleep deprived on my first day, all I could muster up the energy for was a 32km loop of Nad Al Sheba cycle path.

The smoothness of the track felt great and I also really enjoyed the feeling of not having to worry about traffic, a constant concern for me in the UK. Dawn the following day (Friday) saw many riders on the Al Qudra track, selecting various distances they wanted to follow. I opted for a 60km loop, but ended up doing just over 90km due to various course changes

along the route. There was the obligatory pit stop at the café towards the end of the loop and a chocolate milk drink had never tasted quite so good! I was looking forward to what I knew would be the highlight of my stay; a trip into the desert and riding the Moonlander.

We drove to a beautiful and remote spot in the desert near the town of Madam towards the boundary fence of the Al Maha desert reserve.

Richard treated me to a demonstration on his bike and made it look very easy as he tackled the sand dunes, appearing to float effortlessly over the sand. Of course the reality was quite different as I struggled up the first dune in the wrong gear! It took me some time to get to grips with how the bike worked, as there were certain lines on the sand that it could follow, but others it didn’t like. It rides very easily on flat sand but also

Me experimenting with different dunes

Enjoying myself now!

Near the Al Maha desert reserve, where all photos were taken

Words By: Sandy Montana Photos By: Richard Cousins

Me getting to grips with the bike

grips well on the crest of the dunes. Slip faces need to be handled at the correct angle depending on your speed. Overall, your speed determines the lines that can be ridden and needs to be adjusted to the different types of dunes, but the steepness is only limited by one’s fitness!

There is no suspension in the front or rear of the bike, but the big tyres provide more than two inches of travel in them giving a very smooth and unusual feel.

The tyre pressure is critical to a successful dune riding, which meant that I rode the bike with very low pressure. A more intermediate pressure would be used on most other types of terrain. The huge tyres facilitate the flotation over soft terrain. The bike is fairly heavy, weighing about 17kgs but handles and turns nicely and felt smoother and lighter than anticipated. I’m not sure I would trade in my mountain bike with full suspension just yet, but the potential for adventure on the Moonlander is endless, so I may have to start saving up for one and hit the mud and ice tracks back in the UK! I became somewhat more confident after a short while and tackled some of the larger dunes, although ending up in the sand on several occasions as I lacked the speed and power to propel myself up the steeper ones. The setting was incredibly picturesque and the colours of the sand and sky very memorable as the day drew to a close and the sun started setting.

Richard has since fitted the bike with lights and taken it into the desert for night riding.

My last day saw me back at Nad Al Sheba for a more moderately paced ride on the road bikes as there was another opportunity to ride the Moonlander on a different terrain – the area behind the track where there used to be a number of camel farms. The terrain was sandy desert scrubland and it was quite different to riding the bike in the desert and made it more like a mountain bike ride. It is very comfortable to ride and, unlike my mountain bike, I felt confident taking the Moonlander over very rugged ground. It handles well on the road too with the tyre pressure increased.

I covered more miles on bikes during the three days spent in Dubai than I normally would in two weeks back at home and thoroughly enjoyed my time spent there. I learnt a lot and came away with newly acquired skills that I have been practicing back in the UK, an altogether more pleasant experience now as the weather has improved somewhat, but the great memories of bike riding in the desert will remain with me for a long time.

Sandy Montana is a freelance writer specialising in outdoor and adventure type articles. She is also an avid skier, mountain biker and trekker, having recently trekked to Everest Base Camp and Mount Kilimanjaro.

Based in the UK, Sandy’s next adventure includes climbing Kilimanjaro again with her 16-year-old son.

Stephen, Richard’s son showing how it should be done!

OUTDOORUAE

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TRAVEL + ADVENTURE

Paradise in

Palau Micronesia

With white sandy beaches, crystal clear water, colourful coral gardens, green uninhabited islands, waterfalls, caves and drop-offs of over 2,000m deep – Palau offers unforgettable moments for even the most experienced scuba divers and travellers. This archipelago, just two hours from the Philippines and Guam, with its mushroomshaped islands, has been named one of the seven underwater wonders of the world, and is now listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site.

This unique ecosystem is home to over 700 species of coral and 1,300+ species of fishes. Scientists and divers are increasing this list regularly as they discover new species, new dive sites and unknown animal behaviour. Just recently, a totally new species of prehistoric eel was discovered in an underwater cave in Palau. A new site was found where Bumphead parrotfish, always thought to pair spawn, come together in the thousands for mass spawning. World War II planes and ships are still being discovered, for instance, a totally intact US Marine Corsair plane was found just last year in 45ft of

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water. Over 200 individual manta rays have been photo ID’d in the last two years and new aggregation sites are being discovered.

The unique sites that have made Palau famous include the one-of-a-kind Jellyfish Lake, where people can swim amongst millions of golden jellyfish, a must for every visitor to Palau; Blue Corner, with its strong currents, large schools of fish and sharks; and the Blue Holes with its cathedral-like atmosphere. The manta ray cleaning stations at German Channel, where mantas come to clean, feed and give birth, have become very popular as well. Everything in Palau revolves around the full and new moon cycles, and annual spawning aggregations, unusual hunting pack behaviour, sharks feeding during the day without any artificial feeding or baiting, and the large schools of fish are

Photos By: Mandy Etpison what keeps divers from all over the world keep coming back over and over again.

Blue Corner Ranked as one of the world’s best reef dives, Blue Corner offers abundant and varied life, and underwater action not seen elsewhere.

Tame Napoleon wrasses swim out to welcome the dive guides, hoping for their favourite boiled egg snack. There are large resident schools of bigeye jacks, black snappers and chevron barracudas hanging off the wall, with dozens of grey reef sharks patrolling back and forth along the wall. Depending on the current, divers can swim along the wall or hook in to enjoy the action playing out in front of them. Unusual hunting pack behaviour can be observed here, when a Napoleon wrasse, white-tip reef sharks, giant trevallies, and sometimes even groupers and morey eels start hunting together right on top of the reef plateau. When Moorish idol and unicornfish aggregate to spawn from December to March, sharks gather from miles around to herd and hunt these schools right on the reef during the day – a spectacular event that can be seen at several sites in Palau. The strong currents also bring rarely seen pelagic species close to the reef here, and giant dogtooth tuna, whale sharks, eagle rays and great hammerhead sharks have been seen here on occasion.

THE FIRST OUTDOOR MAGAZINE FOR THE UAE AND THE MIDDLE EAST

German Channel German Channel was dug out in the early 1900s by the German administration to provide a passage through the southern reef where they were mining for phosphate. The sandy mouth of the channel is like a bottleneck, where plankton is pushed together by certain currents and wind. Manta rays have used this area for many years to come and give birth, feed on the plankton and get cleaned on the coral rocks around the mouth. The sandy slope of the mouth is a favourite hang-out for leopard sharks and different species of stingrays. The most commonly seen species is the feathertail stingray, while the rarest is the beautiful and rarely seen ornate eagle ray.

Every year there are newborn manta rays observed around the channel mouth, and some of the largest female manta rays come back every season and have been photographed here for over 20 years. From being in the water with them every day, local dive guides have learned that each manta not only has individual markings, but also individual characters and behaviour.

A few manta rays are seen around the channel the whole year, but from October to May each year, more come in to mate and form feeding trains around the full and new moons, which can be a spectacular site for snorkellers and divers. When the current dies down, the mantas start making backward loops to scoop up the plankton, and this looks like an underwater ballet. Even when they are not feeding, manta rays can be seen at the cleaning stations, where they are cleaned by small

wrasse fish species. If divers kneel down on the sand and give the mantas space, they will stay around and circle the cleaning rock, sometimes for hours.

If you decide to take the PADI specialty about mantas – the Manta ID Specialty – at the NECO Marine Dive Centre. It´s the only dive centre that offers this course on Palau. You can learn how to identify mantas and position yourself so as not to disturb or spook them. You can also learn everything they have found out about these mysterious rays.

The manta ray is an example of beauty and gentleness, and we still have a lot to learn about this animal and its biology. The more we know about them, the easier it will be to protect and preserve them.

Blue Holes No diver is prepared for the beauty that awaits him at Blue Holes. Four large holes drop down the top of the reef that end inside a big cave called the Cathedral. As in a cathedral, with its blue windows where the light passes through, the holes show divers a rainbow of blues along the whole descent.

The cave is huge and its interior is full of

corals and gorgonians. Between the openings, there is something exceptional: electric clams with their long orange and fluorescent tentacles. On its sandy bottom, sometimes leopard sharks can be seen sleeping peacefully without paying any attention to the divers.

JULY 2013 - WWW.OUTDOORUAE.COM

Jellyfish Lake The jellyfish in Jellyfish Lake are one of the five sub-species of common lagoon jellyfish that have been identified in five different lakes in Palau. Although people think they do not sting, they actually do, but their sting does not penetrate unless you have sensitive skin, then you should wear a long-sleeve swimwear. Scuba is not allowed in the lake because there is a toxic oxygen-free layer down below, and because snorkelling is less likely to damage the jellyfish, which are quite fragile. If you are lucky to dive on a sunny day, the jellyfish stay close to the surface for sunlight, so that the symbiotic algae that grow in their tissues can do their photosynthesis. This in exchange provides the jellyfish with energy and nutrients. Floating around between millions of these golden jellies is a surreal encounter with nature that everyone should experience at least once.

Who to dive with Investing in a diving vacation to this paradise will be the experience of a lifetime and will bring divers closer to nature more than anywhere else in the world. A perfect holiday is made not only by the underwater action and the beauty of the nature, but also by who organises it. To ensure a good experience, Neco Marine dive shop will be the perfect agent in Palau. It’s a five-star PADI dive shop with its own marina and swimming pool. The friendly and professional staff and comfortable facilities will make sure you can enjoy your once in a lifetime vacation in Palau.

Telephone: + (680) 488-1755 Website: www.necomarine.com Email: info@necomarine.com

Ulong Channel Blue Corner has nothing on Ulong Channel. It is a long natural channel bounded by two walls of completely intact hard coral. Once divers get into the water, a garden full of gorgonians of all kinds spreads in front of them. At the mouth of the channel, divers can hook in and observe the sharks, tunas and barracudas swimming along the current. Close encounters and drift diving are not the only attraction of this dive spot. A huge formation of lettuce coral can be found in centre of the channel and is home to hundreds of bigeye soldierfish; as well as giant clams with over a metre diameter.

OUTDOORUAE

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TRAVEL + ADVENTURE

Comrades Uphill Ultramarathon It’s nothing like the RTA Mirdif hills!

Words By: The Dubai Comrades Crew

After the Dubai Marathon in January 13th, around 21 runners, both male and female from the UAE entered and began training for the June 2nd Comrades Uphill 87km Ultramarathon in Durban, South Africa.

For those who do not know about Comrades, it’s the world’s oldest and biggest ultramarathon, with some 20,000 runners entering each year (1,600 from overseas).

The race is ran downhill from Pietermaritzburg to Durban on even years, and uphill from Durban to Pietermaritzburg on odd years. Distance is 87-89km with an uphill elevation from sea level to 3,000ft and vice versa on the downhill. There are five “big” named hills, however neither race is truly up or downhill as it is constantly undulating.

The end is brutal for some, as this race has a strict 12-hour cutoff. At exactly 12 hours into the race, an official goes to the finish line, turns his back on the remaining runners and fires a pistol signifying the end of the race.

At the exact same time, a throng of burly men block runners from crossing the finish line. It’s a crushing blow to many runners that fought it out all day long, and it’s almost as hard to watch as people are streaming toward the finish with the last bit of energy and resolve, only to be stopped just as the gun goes off.

The training guide says most runners should achieve at least 1,000km in training from January to May 12th then taper till the race day. It also says that as this year’s race was uphill, training on hills is a must. Runners living in Dubai don’t have many hills to train on, so we end up running in the early hours of the morning on flyovers, Business Bay bridge, the RTA hills in Mirdif or for real dedication, on the roads in the Hatta mountains.

To get an idea of what was in store for the 21 runners, imagine running up Wadi Bih

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(36km) then run another 50km up and down long undulating hills. There are virtually no flat bits in Comrades.

The Dubai crew of around 11 arrived safely in Durban (via six different flights and staying in four different hotels). We all ventured out for a 4km warm up trot along the seafront the day before the race, everyone looking fit and ready followed by a long day of hanging around, eating pasta and any other carbs available, eventually all falling into bed by 8:30 p.m. ready for the big day ahead.

The race day

We all met up for breakfast at 3:00 a.m., all chatting, all seemed happy, then we met up in the hotel lobby at 4:15 a.m. to have a group photo before walking to the start.

Duncan Ross and Diarmuid O’Malley

One runner was missing, he didn’t turn up until 5:00 a.m. as he was watching Sky News and forgot the time! We all left him behind and got into our pens, awaiting the start.

The first thing everyone noticed was how hot it was, around 22°C and very humid. We all stood in line, no need for throwaway tops.

Then with 15 minutes to go, “Chariots of Fire” blared over the speakers, hairs standing on back of my neck, followed by the South African national anthem then on the stroke of 5:30, a cockerel crows and we were off – 87km in under 12 hours!

Thousands of heads bobbing up and down at the start, it took us around two minutes to walk to the line, then we were off, all chatting amongst ourselves saying hello to other runners as your name is printed on the front and back of your race number (good idea). Lots of banter going on with shouts out to fellow overseas runners, who proudly display their country colours or country name on their running vests.

We reached a hill toll gate at 4km, causing us to all slow down, check heart rates and check the average pace. We continued to run like this for the first three hills – Cowies Hill, long and winding Fields Hill (5km long) and Botha’s Hill – pacing 50 steps, running 50 steps, controlled on the down hills. The weather was getting hotter and more humid as we came to the 35km mark, still all looking good.

The crowd were a fantastic help, all shouting out “Dubai!”, which we had displayed on our vests, along with shouting out our names. Bands were playing, there were parties on the road side, people were drinking bubblies – it was a real festive atmosphere for most of the way.

The halfway point 43.5km brought some relief with a long 3km downhill section then hill number four came into view, Inchanga, a massively long hill up the side of a mountain.

By this time, the wind had picked up, the temperature crept higher to around 30°C and it was bone dry. Drinks were readily available every 2km, but our mouths were dry within seconds, the salt was in our eyes and covering our bodies. Things started to

Chris Whitehead and Dave Morrison

slowly go off the rails for our little group of runners, from five down to three at the top of Inchanga. Everyone was suffering from severe cramps due to salt loss and no amount of training anywhere could have prepared us for this – it was brutal. The strong dry wind of the mountains blew you off your feet, sapping all energy from your legs. We managed to plough on to 60km, with only one member of the group actually running.

The rest were all walking or even waddling like ducks, straight legs, cramps in the front of legs, cramps in the back of legs, taking on drinks, ice on legs every 2km, trotting down hills and walking up. With 28km to go, we all dug deep, very deep

Martin Rogers with Anne Bester who just finished her 10th Comrades and got her much coveted own green number, this was her quickest time and finished in 8:18

and carried on; no thoughts of quitting ever!

We came to the fifth and final hill Polly Shortts – a brutal 3km steep hill with bodies lying on the side of the roads. Everyone was walking up the hill at this stage, most pulling up due to cramps. Up and over the hill, then 7km up and down to home and into the stadium, then that welcome finish line. The UAE runners along with all the international runners all assembled in the international tent about 25m from the finish line. We all cheered for the all the runners, urging the last Dubai runner across the line with 11 minutes to spare. We then all supported the others runners home until the pistol was fired.

Lots of excess salt on Diarmuid’s legs

Nineteen of the 21 UAE runners finished.

Over 5,000 runners who had started the race did not finish and 50 per cent of the runners finished in the last 30 minutes.

We were told the running conditions were the worst in over 50 years. We were also told that until you compete the uphill and the downhill run ideally back-to-back, you have then ran the Comrades. We will let the body recover a bit more before we start thinking about that prospect. If you have ever ran a marathon, then imagine finishing that run and then doing it all over again, up a mountain! If you every fancy running an ultramarathon, I suggest you start training for Comrades, but maybe stick to Hatta hills and stay away from the RTA hills in future.

TRAVEL + ADVENTURE

A st or y about

dreams not mountains An exclusive interview with Sheikh Mohammed Al Thani, who summited Mt Everest along with his climbing friends collectively known as “Arabs with Altitude” Words By: Daniel Birkhofer

Photos By: Elia Saikaly

You would think that a man who just stood on the top of the world days ago would be looking exhausted, donning a long beard and maybe frostbite. But when Sheikh Mohammed Al Thani exited the plane, he looked more like a tourist from a holiday retreat with no signs of the challenges he overcame on Mount Everest, the highest point on earth. Scaling the seven summits with him is a band of friends and fellow mountaineers, who call themselves “Arabs with Altitude” that includes Raha Moharrak (Saudi Arabian) Raed Zidan (Palestinian) and Masoud Mohammad (Iranian).

But rather than looking on the great achievements as a team or into the technical of such a challenge, I wanted to meet the man candidly called Moe Al Thani. Many outdoor sports, especially climbing, are not popular in the Emirates and Qatar, since the region does not have many mountains and almost no history of sports climbing. Now with the developments over the last decades and many outdoorsy people coming to the region, a spark of climbing philosophy is slowly growing and has created the first flames like what the Arabs with Altitude did.

When I met Moe for the one-on-one interview, I wasn’t sure how it will go or how to address him or if he will let me ask personal questions.

But after a few minutes, I recognised,

I’m talking to an avid outdoor lover and the interview turned into a friendly, open and inspiring conversation.

How did you start climbing?

It started with a trek to Everest Base Camp and I said I will never do it again. When I returned, I said I might do Kilimanjaro, so I did it and said never again. This continued after every mountain and, of course, people stopped believing me. I love mountains, I even miss Everest already. Life is very hard on a mountain, but it is so simple and pure.

You are reduced to the minimum and this shows you which things are really important in life and what really matter to me.

How did you prepare?

At Sharjah Golf and Shooting Club, we have an altitude chamber which simulated the conditions in high altitude; this makes it possible to prepare your body for high altitude, which was very helpful. I had no trouble at all to acclimatise at the base camp; I didn’t breathe hard, no headache, no nothing.

Some weeks before, I was even sleeping in the chamber with the oxygen level same as of the base camp. I did do this to maximise my chance, not to speed up the time in the base camp. I didn’t want to miss the trek to base camp with my friends and meet all these amazing people of Nepal on the way there. We had an amazing time walking up there.

Would you say you are a perfectionist?

Yes, otherwise I would not do it. During preparation, people asked why I work so hard, it’s because I just wanted to do the best I could do from my side. But at the end of the day, the mountain has the last word if you will make it to the summit or leave.

You have great respect for the mountain...

I do. There are people who said I conquered a mountain, I would never say this. In my opinion, the mountain allowed me to be there. The only thing I conquered are my fears.

You had asthma when you were a kid and you found out at the mountain that you still have it, tell us more about this...

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I felt very tired and could hardly breathe, but I didn’t know it was asthma. When we first reached Camp 3 without oxygen, I was so exhausted despite having the same fitness level as the others. The next day, I went to the doctor in the base camp, he listened to my chest and they got seriously concerned.

They thought I have high altitude pulmonary

Sheikh Mohammed ice climbing

edema (HAPE). I was so devastated because I was so close to the summit and might not be able to do the final push because of my health. I went to see another doctor to give me the final results and she confirmed the same, but she said that we could try one last thing. My heart stopped beating; I was so scared to be sent off the mountain. She gave me an inhaler, I took two puffs and listened to my chest again. She told me my lungs sound free and clear and I don’t have HAPE, but I have asthma. I was so relieved.

We didn’t read about this trouble on your blog. Why did you hold this information back?

My family and friends were already worried enough, so we didn’t talk about this issue while we were there. Before I got the inhaler, I coughed so hard when we were climbing that I sprained a muscle in my back and it was very painful to keep going, but I managed to stay on top of the pain and after getting over these difficult days I was certain I could do it.

How was climbing with friends?

This was one of our biggest strengths. Even our guides told us their biggest challenge

Sheikh Mohammed Al Thani reaching the peak of Mt Everest

is to build a team out of strangers when they come to the mountain. We knew each other well and climbed together before. We took so much care of each other, which was amazing.

How was the summit day?

Everything went according to plan and our guides told us we will not join most of the teams when they do their push in the first possible weather window. We knew we would wait a bit longer and this was also the reason why we didn’t run into the long queues. We took our chances, waited and were privileged to be the only people on the summit. Raha, who went before us, had a busier day and was not that lucky.

We heard you started dancing on the summit?

After I found out about the asthma, struggling some days before and almost being unable to

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finish, I felt so strong after and on the summit day. I just felt so good to be there on top of the world.

This is a dangerous climb, what was going through your head?

It’s not only that you think about it, you see and directly face it on the mountain. At one point, Raed and I were crossing a ladder of an ice crack and I heard a rumbling loud like a thunder. The ice next to us started to fall apart into the black depth of the crack. I started running on the ladder, because I was certain the ladder will fall and we continued running as we felt the ground shaking. You see avalanches and you’re not sure if they will hit you, so you run for cover.

It was more than once that I thought I might die. Then you hear that a day before someone died just where you’re walking right now, so it’s a very present thought, but it is just in God’s hands. One very sad moment was when we were at the summit and we had to pass a dead body of the climber who reached the summit a day earlier but died on the way back down when he ran out of oxygen. There is only one rope, so you need to get around him and face this tragedy. It’s sad because he was just a guy like us following a dream.

Is being in a harsh environment with close friends also a burden? Because sometimes you need to make crucial decisions to save the group.

I seriously thought Masoud is going to die on the mountain. After we reached the summit and on our way back down, we turned around and one of our guides and Masoud were not there. We waited for one hour on a slope in harsh winds and in the dead zone above 8,000m, which was about hundred metres away from the climber who died. Then we saw Masoud together with the guide and one Sherpa, he was walking and falling, and then he fell directly next to the dead body. In that moment I thought, “Oh my God, what will I tell his father? How could I tell him that we left his son on the mountain?” But they managed to reach us and we were shouting at him,

“Walk, Masoud, walk!” He was saying, “I can’t feel my legs.” We made very slow progress and it took us almost double the time than it should and we got very worried. But Masoud kept fighting, falling and sliding on the snow, but getting up again – this seemed to continue forever.

When we reached the camp we were very mad with Masoud because we thought he was drained because he didn’t eat and drink right. On the mountain, it is essential to stay hydrated and you need to eat in regular intervals to be strong enough . So we thought that was the case and we were angry because we thought he risked all our lives since he didn’t eat right. Masoud was my tent mate and in the tent he told me, “I can’t feel my toes.” I said, “I thought you can’t feel your legs, what do you mean you can’t feel your toes?” Because of the lack of oxygen, he said legs instead of toes, but not feeling his toes meant he had frost bite. I immediately called the guides and the doctors in the base camp to know what exactly to do and followed their instructions. At this point, we were not sure if he will keep his toes or not. The next day we went down really quickly and we reached

Camp 2 where he was checked by doctors and later also in Kathmandu. They said he was lucky and he could keep his toes as they will recover.

How much risk are you willing to take to achieve a dream?

There is certainly a limit. I have family and friends and I do these things for fun; I don’t want to die. For example, I would not cross the Cumbus ice falls during the day because it’s more dangerous, so I crossed it a night. I try to minimise the risk wherever possible.

What did your family say when you returned?

No more mountains.

But you still have to climb Mt McKinley to complete the seven summits?

We’re planning to do this maybe next year.

We decided in Kathmandu after Everest that we want to do this together again as Arabs with Altitude. It’s a very busy mountain and hard to get permits, so we most probably need to book soon to be able to climb it.

Did the mountains change you?

The mountains gave me the right perspective in life; what I want to do and exactly where I want to go. It gave me a clear vision of my life. At the mountains, you dream big and you know you can live them.

What other inspiring adventures can we expect from you?

I have something like a bucket list and people always ask me how many more things are left on it. But I tell them that this list has no end and is constantly developing. I know many people become sad after reaching their goals because the quest has ended.

But for me, there are other things to do and I’m certain there are much harder things than scaling Mt Everest. If I succeed with one of my dreams, I will chase the next one.

What’s your motivation?

I’m also raising and funds for the charity Reach Out To Asia, a private non-profit organisation, based in Doha, Qatar aimed

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THE FIRST OUTDOOR MAGAZINE FOR THE UAE AND THE MIDDLE EAST

to bring awareness that education is a right for everyone. We have the target to reach 1million USD. It is really my personal wish to help as many kids in providing them education so they can reach their dreams. Through the charity and my work as an ambassador, it is possible for me to help their situation and hopefully be able to persuade people to support them too. I was able to visit some of the projects and the kids. The stories they told us about their lives were so touching and heart-breaking that it made us all cry.

I always wanted to help and seeing these kids is an eye-opener for us and it’s suddenly something very personal. Now every time I climb, I think of these kids.

We the people of the UAE, Qatar and the Gulf are very fortunate to live a life with lots of opportunities and means; I hope to inspire these people. I know so many that don’t know how to reach their goals or what they want to do with their lives even if they have the opportunity. I hope to impart my philosophy of having a goal, working towards these dreams and realising them, especially to young people. I’m sure they can achieve amazing things if they follow their dreams and aim for a better future.

Why do you like being on mountains?

Many reasons, but one of them is because I’m just a man like everyone else. No one cares that I’m a sheikh, no one is asking me if they can carry my bag. On the mountain, people are very honest and you meet a lot of friends who like me for who I am not for what I am. I love to climb mountains and I was hoping to inspire people about the charity, but since I’m back, I’m blown away

with the feedback and the messages I got from friends and family on my phone.

People I don’t even know sent me messages on social media. This is a really nice thing I didn’t expect.

One last thing you want to tell our readers?

Have dreams, no matter how big or small, and work towards them until you achieve them.

The achievement of Mohammed Al Thani and the Arabs with Altitude is truly an inspiring story and this is just one chapter of it. We

JULY 2013 - WWW.OUTDOORUAE.COM

look forward to following Sheikh Moe until he completes his seven summits. They ignited the dream of mountaineering in the hearts and minds of Arabs and residents of the region; the Arabs with Altitude have achieved many firsts for their respective countries, but they will certainly not be the last.

The OutdoorUAE team would like to thank Sheikh Al Thani, who took time after his return and busy schedule to share this story with us.

Arabs with Altitude on Hillary Step close to the summit

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The long road home

A hitchhikers journey from the UK to the UAE When I finished university, I didn’t see myself settling down with a stable job and model family. There’d be time for that later. It was time to explore, to see the world and its people before responsibility tightened its noose. I’m not talking gap year. I’m talking gap life! Society says that’s not realistic, but society never really had much imagination. Funding my way through seasonal jobs, I set out to hitchhike around the world.

It all started with a journey from England back to the UAE – homeward bound.

So there I was, standing by the ferry terminal in Dover, when suddenly I had a car beside me with four excited guys telling me to get in. It was going to be a lot of fun, they warned me.

Referring to themselves as “urban explorers,” they were off to Belgium for an international gathering of such people – inside a drain. A peculiar invitation I most definitely accepted.

On the ferry, we met up with more urban explorers. They looked at me with curiosity, like some mythical creature, and I was referred to only as “The Hitchhiker.” They were fun people and I was happy to be part of their adventure. Cruising to funky trance music through France and racing the other cars when the songs got exciting, we were soon in Belgium. The “target,” as they called it, was an abandoned subway tunnel from the 80s.

The dark street was quiet except for enthusi-

Alien landscapes in Cappadocia

Words + Photos By: Will Pardoe astic whispering. Groups of two or three would dash from their hiding places and disappear through a grate beside the tramlines. Then we were running and I suddenly found myself in a dark, dank world along with 40 other wide-eyed, excited people, all catching up and having a good chat. This was far from normal.

Avoiding puddles and following the torch beams, we ventured into the tunnel. Lights were set up, beds were laid and people mingled as their dinner cooked. It was a light and happy atmosphere down there in the underworld. As I lay in my sleeping bag that night, in a cavernous concrete subway station under the streets of Antwerp, I reflected on the incredible experiences that come only through hitchhiking. To be invited into people’s lives, to ride their road for a little while; it’s always an adventure. I wondered what awaited me on the road ahead.

I said goodbye to my new friends and was soon picked up by a German family in a campervan. That was a ride I have fond memories of – playing cards with the kids in the back as the fields rolled on by, then joining the family for dinner and being invited to stay for the night.

They became my family.

While in Germany I stayed with some good friends in Bavaria – the most stereotypically German region you could imagine. At the pub, we would eat sauerkraut and sausage over a great stein of beer, while a man with an accordion played jovially and everybody sang.

Out in the forest and meadows, herds of deer sprang about, while chickens ran amok in the nearby farmyards. I was impressed to see how

Leaving England

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much the culture was a part of their lives.

Onwards I went, down through the Austrian Alps and into Slovenia. The contrast between Austria and Slovenia was stark, and I found it exhilarating. It was a totally foreign place. My language didn’t work, and the writing meant nothing to me. I had left the comfort zone behind. That night I pitched my tent behind a truck stop under a sea of endless stars.

The wayward oracle

At less than 200km wide, I had soon left Slovenia behind, only to get stuck in a Croatian petrol station for hours. But every cloud has a silver lining, and it was here that I came across Julian, one of the most interesting characters I have ever met. He had hitchhiked from Bulgaria to Scotland for a wedding, and was returning. After a frustrating day, it was good to have company, and we chatted while trying to catch a ride. He spoke of how incredible it was to be able to make these mammoth journeys; all of the people and acts of kindness playing a piece in a vast puzzle. “A hundred will pass you by, but the hundred and first will take you and how he will make all the difference!”

From Julian, I learnt to approach the drivers.

Crazy Croatians!

Worth a try...

I guess the British in me had told me not to intrude on them – but if you don’t ask, the answer is always no, and that is a philosophy that I have lived by ever since.

The bump in the road

I had soon left Slovenia behind and reached the shores of the Mediterranean. I noticed that the temperature was rising and the sun was shining. I could feel the progress; the movement and the changes – subtle at first, and then becoming louder and louder as the miles passed by. Looking out over the sea, I felt the pull of what was beyond. If I followed the road far enough, it would lead me home. A far and distant land that called my name!

I continued south through the Balkans, until the road ran out in Montenegro and gravel tracks took over. Ironically, Montenegro would be the proverbial “bump in the road.” To

make the following clear, I first should explain an interesting dynamic that comes from hitchhiking: when it is just you and the driver, the car provides a setting for private conversations with a stranger who will never be seen again. As a hitchhiker, you are often a willing ear for them to talk to, and the conversation is your payment for the ride. However, in this case I was picked up by a guy who abused this dynamic. His feelings were repressed in Montenegro and so he was keen to talk to an outsider, but his lewd comments made me feel very awkward. I should have drawn the line and this was a lesson that would prove useful later. There is a limit to the price you pay for a free ride! We arrived in the capital and I was glad to see him drive away.

I pitched my tent in a field and was on the road again by morning. After a while, a guy pulled over. “Taxi?,” he called. “No thanks; auto stopping,” I replied. “Okay, free, free!”

Well, alright then, so I put my bag in the back and got in. He soon started talking prices, despite speaking little English. When he realised I wasn’t going to pay him, he stopped the car under a bridge and turned off the engine.

“Five euros!” he demanded for the 3km we’d just covered. What?! No way. I discussed it with him for a bit until the tension started to rise. Quickly, I retrieved my bag from the back before he had a chance to drive off with it. He got out of the car and confronted me, taking hold of my bag as collateral. That was crossing the line.

Stepping into his personal zone, I put a firm hand on his shoulder and pushed down. “Let go of the bag, get back in the car and drive away,” I said into his face. He was a stocky guy and could have taken me, but my height intimidated him. He didn’t understand my words, though knew exactly what I meant, and soon he was gone. I was alone under the bridge, feeling violated and fed up. I’d had enough with Montenegro.

It was a long wait in the burning sun, wondering if he would come back with cronies.

Eventually a car stopped, offering to take me to the bus station for 2 EUR. Anywhere but here! Soon I was on a bus to Ulcinj, from where I could continue into Albania.

Mafi faloos

Albania was quite an experience. Ordered chaos. Hitchhiking was not possible – payment was expected. When I asked for the bus station, I was directed to a patch of gravel beside a dirt roundabout. “Here, wait.” Public transport was exactly that – the public, driving up and offering a ride for a small fee. With a bit of bartering I had a seat to Tirana, the capital, for 2 EUR. We waited half an hour for the car to be full, then set off. I was sitting next to a friendly old man who was intrigued why I was in Albania, which I explained through my map.

Everyone speaks body language, notebook and map. Beside him was a crazy old woman who amused the men, shouting and causing quite a ruckus. All was going well until the engine coughed and died.

The mother lode of bin food!

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Rumbling through Macedonia in an old Yugo

The passengers piled out, standing around looking a bit lost. Until then, I had been lost – surrounded by a strange language in a strange land. But now I had a plan, taking out the “Tirana” sign I had drawn earlier. They seemed to sense that this was my area of expertise and were soon huddled at my side, hoping to get in on the action! Within seconds a BMW pulled over, driven by the chief of police, who invited me to get in. I ran back and gave the old man my Tirana sign, which they were glad of. Happy for my success, they waved me goodbye.

It all went well until one day in Greece when I realised I only had 20 EUR left, and another 5,000km still to cover! This called for a change of strategy. Leaving my dignity behind, I began getting my food from the supermarket garbage cans. And let me tell you, that was the best food I had eaten all trip! Anything you can find in a supermarket, you can find in the bin – and fresh, too. Eggs expiring that day, bananas, oranges, mushrooms, lettuce, carrots, peppers, onions and bread. Having been living off dry bread and chocolate spread for a week, this mother lode made me feel rich. It’s amazing how such a simple thing as an egg can be so rewarding when you have nothing.

The open road...

wanted to see Istanbul. Amazingly, a few days later I found myself showing her around the city. Together we hitchhiked 750km to Cappadocia, where ancient cave villages were carved out of the mountains. She loved the experience and it was good to show her why I do it.

She flew home and I continued the fun way.

In eastern Turkey I picked up my Iranian visa.

Wow, I was so happy to see that in my passport! People said I was foolish for visiting Iran, but they had an image warped by the media. I wanted to see for myself, having faith that the majority of people in this world are good people, regardless of the invisible lines that separate us. As it turned out, Iran was the highlight of the journey. The Turkish were friendly, but the Iranians were ten-fold friendlier!

I made it to Tehran within two days. Iran may be a very strict country, but the Persians know how to party like anybody else! I was staying with some family friends and I accompanied them to a house party. Behind closed doors, the hijabs came off, the home-brewed drinks were brought out, and the dancing took over.

Towards the end of the night, we sat down for a meal of kebab, mezzeh and salads. It was a

Khalid, who dropped me right at my front door!

great evening, and I was grateful to be able to experience the real Iran. Beneath the culture, we’re all the same.

As I journeyed closer to home, things were getting more familiar; the music, the call to prayer, the humidity. When I reached the port in Bandar Abbas, I tuned my radio to 104.4, and the faint sound of “Wild Ones” crackled across the gulf. Dubai was so close I could hear it! I thought of the people driving down Beach Road listening to the song, and what they would be seeing.

I tried to get a ride aboard a dhow, but security stopped me in my tracks. Instead, I traded my passport for a ferry ticket (which I bought back from the captain upon arrival!). After sailing for thirteen hours, Sharjah emerged through the early morning haze. It wasn’t a pretty sight, but my it was beautiful!

I caught a ride straight into Dubai with a man named Khalid, sporting the cliché aviators, trimmed beard and immaculate kandura – the perfect ride to cap off the journey. It was an awesome feeling to drive down Shiekh Zayed Road, the familiar buildings towering over us.

I’d made it! After an incredible two months, through 104 rides, I was home.

Joining a family for lunch in their farmstead somewhere in Macedonia

Party time in Tehran

The Middle East I carried onwards to Turkey. I found the Turkish to be very friendly and welcoming people.

As I wandered around the Blue Mosque one evening, I was invited to sit and talk by some locals. I returned to them every night to play backgammon, drink Turkish coffee and smoke shisha.

Chatting with my mum on Facebook one evening, she mentioned that she had always

My hosts from Tehran - an awesome family

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My mum and I with Gurkhan, a friendly Turk

TRAVEL + ADVENTURE

Into Eastern

Europe Part 3

Healing Hearts

The journey to the Bulgarian border was not without its drama.

It was baking hot and the city traffic stretched for a good 50km. As the traffic thinned and I hit the motorway to catch up time, the heavens decided to open up and the rain combined with the wind was even worse than the last major storm; even cars were sheltering from the hail under the motorway bridges. I stopped as I was soaked through, unable to see more than a few yards and the wind was really strong. My foot slipped when putting the bike on its stand as there was hail, the road was wet and I was pinned by a car next to me, just able to hold the weight as the handlebar pressed into my lower torso. I bashed on the car window and instead of getting out to help me, the driver started to move off; I bashed even harder and somebody got out and, realising my predicament, helped me to right the bike.

On through Bulgaria and one stop on the Black Sea coast near Sozopol enabled me to appreciate that it really is a bug’s world out there. There were so many mosquitoes, I was bitten anywhere there was exposed skin and I went straight into the tent. In Romania, I visited two places of interest at Brasov and Sibiu, both well worth a visit, it hardly stopped raining all the time I was there. I had been warned about dogs roaming the streets and to be careful, and I had one incident whilst going up a steep road through the forest. As I came upon a coach stop, a dog shot out with no warning

Me with one horse power looking very uneasy in Macedonia

Mountain pass to Thethi with me and bike

and missed me by a foot; thinking I was in the clear, I breathed a sigh of relief, only to find – as I went carefully around the switchback in the road – that two dogs were giving me a chase.

My boot came out and the dog avoided it by inches and in my panicked moment I opened the throttle too quickly and popped a wheelie, not the best thing with 350kg bike on a greasy mountain road.

Two days in Bulgaria, the highlight of which was a visit to Rila Monastery in the Rila Mountains. It had rained so hard and it was so cold that it looked as if the Desert Rose was on fire when I started her up in the morning. Then to Macedonia and into Kosovo in one hit. Kosovo is a very young country still recovering from the ravages of a brutal war and the signs remain, with bombed out buildings all over the place and even the road signs have speed limits for tanks. I met a missionary from the US named David Hemlik, who was setting up his second church in Kosovo and was well connected after five years there. He was also in charge of the local endure and motocross clubs, so we struck up an immediate friendship. Over three hours, we had lunch together and he took me to two places to Camping get my indicators fixed, which had packed up that morning.

He also cautioned me not to go the route I was planning to take as there were locals on that road not friendly to foreigners; perhaps we were meant to meet up? After saying farewell, I was knocked off Desert Rose in the next town by a car. My foot was trapped under the pannier and the engine was racing, so I twisted around and hit the kill switch to stop the engine. The driver was very kind and rushed around and tried to pick up the bike off my foot, but it was too heavy. He got it far enough to slide my foot out and then another guy came along to help and righted the bike. I was fine, hand and arm a bit sore, but my foot had been saved by my sturdy motorcycle boots.

The bike was fine except for some scratches and a broken indicator that had been fixed only 15 minutes earlier! I carried on looking for the Monastery in Deçan, but after passing a Kosovo Force army checkpoint guarding the road to the Monastery, I found it was closed.

I spent two days in Macedonia, where I met some traditional loggers, barefooted and lazing in the sun, waiting for a truck to collect their

Words + Photos By: Richard Mitchell horse-laden wood piles. One of the loggers sat on the bike and he got me to hold onto his horse; I was a lot less at home with one horse power than he was with 60 horse power.

Two days in Greece with a visit to the amazing monasteries placed high up on the pinnacles of rock in Meteora. In one of the monasteries, they display the skulls of the departed in a room below the church, all a bit eerie if you ask me.

Albania was everything I could have hoped for and more. I found the people to be kind, generous and helpful. The roads vary from really good to completely impassable. Berat was an amazing old Ottoman city; on arrival, I lost footing on a steep road with grit and smooth marble cobbles and over went the bike. Two

Rescuing a tortoise from the road in Albania

Italian guys from an Italian rally team helped me right the bike; petrol was leaking from the tank and they smoked cigarettes whilst helping me. The most exciting ride of the trip so far was across the Cursed Mountains, a small remote village called Thethi. The road opened for two days due to the snow and I was told it was fine; there followed the most frightening, exhilarating and dangerous part of the trip so far, with knee deep mud, slippery rocks, large stones and ruts from water erosion and huge drop offs, two and a half hours on the track, needless to say, there was not much traffic!

Staying in a cottage with no electricity and a candle in the bedroom, bread cooked in the wood burner oven, natural honey straight from the beehive and milk straight from the cow was a fantastic experience. I also met some new friends there from Germany and spent a day hiking with them. The journey back over was even more exhilarating than the trip over as the sun was out and I could see the drop offs and mountains in their glory. To be continued...

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mt logan The East Ridge Words By + Photos: Sean James

This article is the second in a series of an ongoing attempt to summit all of the second highest peaks on each continent.

Only one person has climbed all seven.

The East Ridge of Mt Logan is without doubt a classic mountaineering route on a world scale. Located in the Yukon wilderness of Canada, it has a vertical ascent greater than the more infamous Cassin Route on nearby Denali. From where you are dropped on the glacier by bush plane, the summit is over 25km away and 3km above your head. During our expedition we saw only two other people; this mountain is isolated, cold and difficult. As a result, it receives far fewer attempts by any route than nearby Denali. Mt Logan is the second highest mountain in North America.

The peak is named after Sir William Edmond Logan the first head of the Geological Survey of Canada. It is the highest peak in Canada and, with a height of 5,959m, is right in the heart of the Saint Elias Mountain Range. Close to the Gulf of Alaska, the changeable conditions are the only constant. In the winter, the weather may be more stable but between -40°C and -75°C. Add to that the wind-chill, which averages 50-150kph and any route is a serious undertaking. It has been said that the weather here makes Denali look like a summer breeze.

Waiting the arrival of our lift out

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Happy to be at the summit

High on the East Ridge looking down on the glacier

The Logan Massif is situated in the Kluane National Park, a UNESCO heritage site and one of the world’s last remaining true wilderness areas. The largest ice sheet outside of the north and south polar regions is here. The summit plateau is renowned as one of the coldest places on earth constantly blasted by icy winds. The plateau is 20km long and 5km wide and at a height of over 5,000m is a final sting in the tail for potential summiteers.

So infrequently is the mountain visited that dozens of ridgelines remain still unclimbed or even attempted. Logan and superlatives go hand in hand and if you go by base circumference, it can claim to be the “largest” mountain in the world.

The most popular route is The King’s Trench which is regularly skied, but the East Ridge remains the true mountaineer’s prize. It is classic looking and a classic experience.

The first ascent of the East Ridge was by five Americans in 1959. It took them 24 days and they set up nine camps. Although they succeeded in climbing the East Ridge, they stopped at the lower East Peak, still a considerable distance from the main summit. This mountain, although below 6,000m, is a true “Himalayan” challenge.

Maybe some of the climbers who stood in the queues to get their pictures taken on the summit of Everest should test themselves against this beast.

I climbed the East Ridge in May 2010.

We were the first people flown into the range that season and saw only two other people in our time there. The Japanese climbers Yasushi Okada and Katsutaka Yokoyama passed briefly by our tent in a storm on their descent. Later that year, they received the 19th Piolet D’Or for their first ascent of the South East Ridge.

The East Ridge can be described as a snow and ice climb, some sections are very steep and exposed. There are also short sections of rock. The lower section of the route is characterised by two exhilarating knife-edge ridges. Here the exposure is wild and the drop is direct to the glacier across which avalanches constantly pour. Route finding is key. The landscape is massive and heavily crevassed. Even in clear weather it is easy to get lost. Unlike mountains in Nepal or other more popular regions there are no wands or trails that have been stamped into the snow by hoards of climbers or willing Sherpas. You feel out there. If you get into trouble, sure you can call a helicopter, but how long will it take, will the weather hold and can it get to you. The exhilaration of being self-sufficient and reliant on

Setting up Camp 3 on the high plateau 5,000m

The desolate plateau whipped by fierce winds.

It was easy to lose the tent in a storm

The final 3km long high altitude ridge to the Summit 1

only yourself and your climbing partner is primitive.

We spent four days on the lower ridge. It was a relief to finally reach the wind scoured plateau. Here the ice is as hard as concrete and impossible to dig or build into any form of shelter. It was so cold here that we could not light our stove each night and the points from two of our crampons snapped.

The plateau is so vast that we still needed two days and two camps to cross it before making our final attempt on the summit. At this altitude we suffered from a lack of appetite, oxygen and lethargy. The weather had been reasonable until now, so it was a risky gamble to take a rest and not continue on. We took a rest day. We were lucky and most of our summit day was clear but we could see the skies changing. High, hazy clouds and stillness greeted us at the summit. We raced back to the relative security of our single skinned tent as high winds caught up with us.

The next day we couldn’t leave the tent and it got even colder. During the nights

Waiting at the airfield for the bad weather to clear

More knife edge ridges on Mt Logan

Flying out. We had only been gone nine days but a lot of the lower ice had melted

I woke up hyperventilating, unable to breathe in the super cold air and trying to escape the tent like a madman in search of something to breathe. It is not a dry cold, but damp and pervades every piece of clothing and sleeping bag. Nothing stays dry or warm. Luckily my climbing partner was a doctor and had seen this before. Of course we survived. It was uncomfortable.

Finally, the weather eased and we started our escape down the ridge. Still three days from base camp, the thought of some stashed chocolate and Haribos was enough to keep us going lower. Progress was slow and the route had completely changed in nature. An easy stroll to base camp was not an option. Frequent unexpected visits to hidden crevasses were unwelcome and time consuming.

However, major dramas were avoided.

At Camp 2, we abandoned a huge stash of ropes and gear as we no longer needed them and hoped to get back to base camp in one long day. Back on the glacier, we had surrounded our sleds and equipment with

Happy to be back and trying to regain some of the lost weight

Nearing Camp 1

high bamboo wands before we left, eight days ago. Now they showed us where to go. Everything was completely covered.

The luxury of a large double skinned tent and fresh gas was tempered by the news of bad weather preventing our lift from taking off over 100km away. The storm continued for two days making tempers frayed over the airwaves. Our end was clear and we wanted out. Sometimes you can have too much fun.

In his book Beyond the Mountain, Steve House writes eloquently about why he climbs. He finds the process of working to be the best he can be, the only thing that truly fulfills him. The moment your mind drifts away from the task will be the moment you fail he says. Failure in the mountains can mean the loss of a number of things. Many find this unacceptable. Some find they can’t live without it. Mountaineering can test every facet. This was without doubt one of the hardest climbs I had been on. Before this trip, I had climbed with my partner on a number of different peaks. He was vastly experienced and climbed new routes on 8,000m peaks. However, this was to be our last climb together.

On Logan, we had both felt small and insignificant. When the wind and cold came, it was like an evil force was trying to wipe us from the face of the planet. There was no escape. You can’t say “I‘ve had enough, let me out.” One layer of thin fabric was all that stood between us and being turned into marble statues. A rip from a crampon, a strong gust of wind and it was game over.

Although we both made it back, it was too close a call for him. Now he is married and has rock climbing holidays in the sun. A passion for something new has developed and Logan is but a distant memory.

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D E T S E T THIS

PPROV CT IS A PRODU

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The Wavejet experience Words By: Corey Oliver Photos By: Adrian Watkins

I have been residing in the UAE for the past 10 years and have been an active member of the UAE outdoor physical activity scene for most of that time through owning Original Fitness Company and more recently through Oceanman, a water sports company.

I’ve been an avid surfer and surf life saver/ lifeguard/waterman since a very early age.

Surfing is my passion and I had not been really interested in Stand Up Paddling or kiteboarding, etc. However, that all changed when I started my new company, Water Sports in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. I have watched with anticipation the SUP industry explode! It seems these days that every person on every corner has or would like to buy a SUP board! Which in turn, has also grown the whole surfing community in the UAE, which is a really great thing for the sport. I applaud Scott and Dan from Surf Dubai for pioneering the whole UAE surf and SUP scene.

Just recently, I had been presented with an opportunity to test drive the latest surfboard/SUP technology, the Wavejet! What is that I asked? Well I soon worked it out that it was a motorised SUP or surfboard, much to my dismay, I first questioned why any surfer or paddler would need a motor strapped to their board. Being the open-minded person that I am, I decided to test drive it! The date was set for the product test at the amazing surf pool facility, Wadi Adventure located

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deep in the UAE desert in Al Ain, the Garden City.

The questions kept ringing through my head on the drive from Dubai to Al Ain. “How and why?” I’d seen products over the years come and go and fail at the starting blocks; I had researched the Wavejet quite a lot before my trip to Al Ain and it seemed to be everywhere all over the internet with great reviews and well laid out marketing and videos.

The big day had arrived and I made sure I was in attendance at Wadi Adventure nice and early so I could go through the operating instructions on how best to get the most out of the Wavejet.

The side of the box that the main jets came in was tagged “Wavejet Propulsion.” Hmm, interesting. Then the big moment came – the unveiling of the Wavejet Power Pod System that slides into the bottom of the board and I must admit it looked a little like a very large egg to me. In the bottom of the SUP and surfboard was a crevice dug into it which housed the blank pod, obviously for safe keeping when storing the boards. Next in the box was the Wireless Wrist Controller which looks like three times the size of a G-Shock watch, it too attaches to your wrist and has a big button on the top which is the start and stop button.

There are three flashing sensors on the side of the face of the controller. Then came the Wavejet charging station that resembled a small electrical toolbox, this is where the Power Pod and wrist controller are to be charged for a maximum of 3.5 hours after each use.

The Wavejet tool is a multifunctional tool that assists you to slide the pod in and out. The Power Pod System runs on lithium-ion batteries and will generally last for 50 minutes on full power.

Barry, the Wavejet distributor, gave a few lasting tips before we inserted all the fins, attached the leashes, donned the Wrist Controllers and hit the water. First up, I tried out the 11’0 x 32” x 5” SUP. Now my first thoughts were, “How am I going to move this SUP in such a small space as the wave pool?” I turned on my wrist controller and jumped onto the board in the standing position. The board jets and you could hear it quite easily, then zoom and off we go. I had my paddle with me but it was really only

of a Malibu surfboard except it was a little heavier with the POD installed. I had some great fun also on the surfboard with the next 30 minutes going much the same as the first 30, whereas not one wave went unridden.

How easily the Wavejet got you back into the lineup was the most surprising as I did not have fatigued arms due to paddling!

Storage and charging is super important after use as the system really needs 100 per cent care and maintenance for it to continue to be at its most effective.

VERDICT:

needed for steering and riding the waves.

As I stand on my board out the back for the burst of water to take me on my first wave, I was quite nervous to be honest; I had experienced the speed at which the board took me from the shore to the lineup. In a matter of seconds, the wave has arrived, I have to hit the button to turn on the jets and position the board in the direction that the wave is heading. It is actually quite tricky to put the three together but I managed. In the first wave, I could really feel the Wavejet just take off and power down the face of the wave, bottom hand turn and into the face of the wave.

Wow you can really feel the difference in speed; cruising along the wave, the jets are quite evident especially in the normally slow section of the wave.

The Wavejet gives you more options.

As I zoomed back out with not one paddle stroke, I was lucky enough to turn straight into a wave as it was surging forward; what a great feeling to just swing straight into a

wave. Mastering the Wavejet to get you into the waves was not that difficult, it was mastering the speed once on the wave that was the most interesting. The big blue SUP did not miss one wave coming through in the first 30 minutes; once I had mastered the turning and wave speed I decided that the 9�0 Surfing Malibu was next on my test list. Now obviously, the 9�0 has a lot less volume being a surfboard, which means it can go quicker! The take off was a lot closer to the pool wall and it certainly had the feel

The Wavejet surfboard is a great system for people who struggle with paddling and who would rather spend more energy surfing on top of the board instead of paddling it. It is also great for the really small mushy days in the UAE where waves are very hard to come by and even harder to catch them. I would certainly put a Malibu in my quiver for all of the above reasons.

The Wavejet SUP works really well for a smooth ride with minimal fuss. I think they are great for families who could put one child on the front and motor around the seaside communities.

I really think both products have a really big future here in the UAE considering the conditions that are generally thrown our way.

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PRODUCTS A round-up of quality products available right here in the UAE e Pag

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11ft Pau Hana Big EZ SUP WaveJet and 9ft Steve Walden Longboard WaveJet Available at Waterman Products Trading FZE (contact: 050 844 0796 or email watermanboards@gmail.com) The Big EZ at 11’ long, 32” wide and 5” thick is the most stable SUP ever produced. It is so buoyant that it can take floatation of up to 300lbs, which means it can be used for tandem riding. With the 9ft longboard system being a great contender for some serious surfing fun, both boards are worth a try.

Great for beginner and experienced surfers and paddlers – including those looking to surf big waves, those with limited amount of time who want to have fun even when the surf isn’t that great, and those in flat or fresh water environments. WaveJet propulsion assists disabled or injured surfers and paddlers in getting out to and into waves, and makes up for any lack of ability to paddle. WaveJet can also act as a rescue board for lifeguards, saving lives in half the time and great for resorts and rental Locations.

The WaveJet Power Pod uses: • Renewable, rechargeable lithium ion batteries • Blank Pod (for non-powered riding) • Gives 20lbs of thrust and will take the rider up to 7mph.

• Powered through a wireless wrist controller that utilises Seatooth technology • Recharges into any electrical outlet in just three hours.

• Features an electronic dismount, so that if the rider falls off the watercraft, the power is cut.

• Made from XPS Epoxy which provides a super light (excluding the Pod) and super strong boards.

For more info check WaveJet.com and join the revolution! Eleven models from body boards, short boards, long boards, SUPs, big gun and rescue board system. Products available from Middle East and Africa agents - Waterman Products Trading FZE. Trade enquiries welcome.

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JULY 2013 - WWW.OUTDOORUAE.COM

THE FIRST OUTDOOR MAGAZINE FOR THE UAE AND THE MIDDLE EAST

JULY 2013 - WWW.OUTDOORUAE.COM

PRODUCTS

Alpinestars ATEM Leather Jacket Promotional price 2,550

AED

(original price 2,900

AED)

Available at Al Yousuf Motors Showrooms in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Sharjah, Ajman, Al Ain, Fujairah, Ras Al Khaimah • Alpinestars ATEM Leather Jacket CE certified shoulder and elbow protectors • 1.3mm high-grade leather construction with re-enforcements • External Alpinestars exclusive Dynamic Friction Shield (DFS) technology shoulder protectors • Multiple, external, perforated leather panels with foam protector inserts • Removable security strap, keeps the jacket positioned in case of an accident (feet first slide)

ERGON - Grips GP1 135

AED, GP2 175 AED, GP3 225 AED

Available at Adventure HQ in Times Square Center Ergon’s original and ground breaking ergonomic grips continue to set standards and are available in three styles (GP1 - grip only, GP2 - grip and two-finger bar end, GP3 - grip and three-finger bar end) and two sizes (size S: 6.5 – 8.5) (size L: 8.5 – 10.5). Offering optimal pressure distribution all styles deliver increased grip thanks to the rubberised anti-slip lower grip texture and optimised ergonomics.

Marmot Limelight 3P 1,835 AED

Available at Adventure HQ in Times Square Center The official Distributor of Marmot, is pleased to launch the Marmot spring/summer collection which has new ideas and offerings. The redefined and redesigned ultra light tents are lighter, roomier and still lifetime-durable. The Limelight 3P follows the “keep it simple” principle for quick set-up, weight minimization and camping in style. D-shaped door allows no-step entry/exit; color coded webbing and poles for easier set-up. A roomy side vestibule keeps gear dry in wet weather.

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JP Australia AllroundAir 10’2” 4,255 AED

Available at Go Sport the Dubai Mall The JP Australia AllroundAir 10’2” is a stable all-round board that works in all conditions, from flat water to surf to white water.

It is suitable for riders of all levels of experience and great fun to bring with you on your travels.

This board delivers the quality you have been getting accustomed to of JP Australia. The drop stitch technology used for this board is a proven technique for creating stiff boards that almost mimic the stiffness of “regular” epoxy SUP boards.

A novelty JP has introduced with their new line of inflatable stand up paddle boards is the towing ring on the underside. This way, you can easily tow the board without it diving under water.

• Length: 10’2” • Width: 32” • Thickness: 4.0” • Weight: 9.5 kg • Volume: 204 L • Fins: centre - 9” removable; side - 2x 3” soft/fixed

JP Australia Alloy Paddle 495 AED

Available at Go Sport the Dubai Mall The blade features a narrow shape outline for an easy stroke. The power face of the blade features a comfortable flat into a convex shape while the forward face has a smooth double concave V design. This adjustable paddle features an easy double-pin system with a generous 40cm range.

• Type: adjustable • Shaft length: 68.9-84.6”/175-215cm • Blade width: 7.5”/19cm • Blade area: 87”²/561cm²

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SONY ActionCAM HDR-AS15 1,599 AED (including 2x Adhesive mounts, Underwater Case 60M, Buckle Mount, Tilt Adaptor, Underwater Headband and 16GB SD Card) Available at Jumbo showrooms and selected power retailer Perfect for those users wishing to enter the exciting world of point-of-view cameras, SONY ActionCAM can record your extreme and action sports. The HDR-AS15 is a rugged, wearable full HD video camcorder. Weighing in at just 3.2 ounces (with battery) it lets you capture your adventures on the mountain, in the water and anywhere else you go for your adrenaline fixes.

• Full HD 1080 (60p*1, 30p) HD 720 (60p, 120p) • Steadyshot Image Technology • Built-in WiFi - Smart Remote Control • 16MP Exmor ‘R’ CMOS Sensor • 170 degree Wide Angle Carl Zeiss lens • Waterproof to 60m/197ft with supplied housing

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THE SONY ACTIONCAM A bit about me before we dive in; growing up in Durban

on the east coast of South Africa, I have been an outdoor enthusiast for as long as I can remember – it’s not too difficult to appreciate the outdoors there. Residing in the UAE for almost a decade where conditions are more challenging than back home, I found myself getting good at reading local weather patterns for predicting waves; scanning the landscape on Google maps just to find some hills; and timing sessions to avoid the intense heat.

The more I searched, the more I found that many people out there are looking for the same stoke through sports like skating, surfing, and skimboarding but they just didn’t know how to find it.

So, I started spreading the love about getting outdoors through groups on Facebook and now I am amazed to see how the community is growing!

If you’re interested in learning more about these sports in the region, check out the Facebook groups: n Surfing – on Facebook search for “Surfers of the UAE” n Skimboarding – on Facebook search for “Skimboarders of the UAE” n Skateboarding – on Facebook search for “Skateboarders of the UAE”

Words + Photos By: Sean Jahnig one of these cams (Wifi version) to see how it could work for me.

The timeline for testing was a week, which was a little short, but nevertheless I decided to use the ActionCAM and see just how much action it could capture whilst a few buddies and me cruised around the Emirates and utilised what Mother Nature so gracefully offers us. In the case of this week, this included some surprise swell on the east coast (Fujairah), some skating in the hills (Fujairah), some surfing at Wadi Adventure (Al Ain) and some skating at Canopi Bowl (Dubai).

These tests included high temperature, high speed, low light and underwater scenarios – an average week in the life an outdoor enthusiast.

Design

Ok, so let’s talk about the ActionCAM. It’s small and nice to look at, which is no surprise, given Sony’s expertise and reputation.

I haven’t operated a Sony in a few years, but it appears that not much has changed and is still user-friendly. The back panel slides open to neatly reveal the USB slot and the battery.

On the underside of the camera you have access to the data ports with a cover that feels solid enough to last; at least for the life of the

On our way to Fujairah to catch some waves. Early start and the camera works well in low light situations.

Light, Camera, ActionCAM!

A week in the life of the new SONY ActionCAM. Announced in the second half of 2012 but only recently arriving in the UAE market, the ActionCAM is Sony’s version of an all-purpose, mountable camera – built to have a solid place in the point-of-view (POV) outdoor camera category.

This breed of wearable camera is designed to survive under the strain of adverse conditions, such as underwater and high-speed winds, making it particularly popular in the extreme sports category. Being a lover of the outdoors (and gadgets), I was very excited to get my hands on

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camera. Overall, it has a slick matt finish and that unique Sony touch. Of course, there is always space for some kind of improvement; in this case, the camera having a rounded bottom means it cannot be easily used outside of its 60m water housing. I find this strange because one of my favourite uses for these little cameras is out of the case, where you’ll get the best sound and also eliminate weird glares coming through the front of the water housing.

Performance

The ActionCAM shoots video at a wide angle of 170 degrees and in various sizes and frame rates, the most important being 720/120p (1280 pixels wide by 720 pixels high at 120 frames per second, progres-

Stoked that there are some waves, I use the Sony cam to get the boys in action. The camera’s stabilisation works well here. After, we head in land to pick up speed on the long boards.

Usage

sive) and, after the April 2013 software update,1080/60p. In case you didn’t know, regular frame rate (to observe smooth motion) is 30 fps (frames per second). So if you’re shooting in 720p at 120 fps that means you can slow your video down to a quarter of the regular speed while still keeping smooth motion – that’s pretty awesome – especially for those action shots because you really get to re-live that moment. Sony’s software controlled

It’s easy for your fingers to find the large record button placed on the rear of the case with a small LED on the rear and the rolling counter on the LCD screen. These aren’t exactly ideal indicators that recording was happening but once you know what to look for its fine.

If you’re like me and somehow always end up misplacing the user manual, then Sony have got you covered - whoever thought of putting the user manual on the internal partition of the device was a genius. In the same folder you’ll find other useful info like the Wifi password. Enabling and connecting with Wifi was simple – the way it should be. The name of the iOS app that enables Wifi is called Play Memories, and once I’d installed it, a connection was established and I was very impressed to find that the screen on my iPhone became a live viewfinder without any form of delay (take note other POV cameras). If you’re planning to use your ActionCAM with the water

From Fujairah to Wadi Adventure in Al Ain, I mount the camera on my board and start recording. I also try a couple of other angles in the water of other surfers.

stabilisation system SteadyShot, does a good job of eliminating subtle bumps, but at the expense of sacrificing the wide angle – reducing it from 170 to 120 degrees.

Another impressive feature is the sound, easily the best of any POV camera I’ve ever used. Video quality is good but I was more impressed by the low-light sensitivity. However, when used at night in bright lighting, I found the camera struggled to adjust the shutter speed in order to eliminate flashing from the lights. Still image quality could be improved, although battery life was pretty impressive. Last point – at the moment the ActionCam only offers NTSC, there is no support for PAL but it looks as if this will be added in a future update.

Software / Accessories

When I received the unit, a software update was required in order to qualify for new features. I was expecting a large, cumbersome process – especially since I’m a Mac user – but I am pleased to report that after a few clicks I had downloaded the software that I needed, and within just a few more the update was complete and I was readyto-go. It really was a breath of fresh air. Sony also offers an array of solid mounts for the ActionCAM. I tested the adhesive, headband and tilt-adaptor. The tilt-adaptor got a bit fussy from the sand in the shore break, but it washed out quite easily. In general the mounts are good but they need more and all must be accessible – by that I mean sold within reach of people who own the camera, because not everybody can purchase abroad or online. According to the Sony website there’s more attachments coming, as well as support from third party vendors like RAM Mounts (http://www.rammount.com) which is important. They even have a dog mount!

Now that’s creative.

Final thoughts

housing, then using the mobile app is your only way to change modes/settings because from the water housing there is only 1 button, and that’s to start/stop recording. Apart from the video mode, there’s 1 other mode, timelapse stills. This put the camera into a mode where it’ll take a picture every five, 10, 30, 60 seconds depending on which you choose under settings. An improvement that could be made in the picture mode would to have pictures taken every second or even some kind of burst mode. When dealing with fast paced sports you can’t afford to take a picture every 5 seconds, you’ll definitely miss the action. I’m sure these features will be improved quite easily in the next software update so it’s more a case of when, not if.

Sony have brought a solid competitor to the market, but they can’t lose momentum for a second because they have got some tough opponents. At the time of this review, other POV camera brands have already released updates (although they’re still ironing out the bugs) that offer serious improvements over its predecessor. Nevertheless, the ActionCAM lives up its SONY expectations and delivers a stabilised, full HD 1080p image with impressive sound and a good frame-rate for slow motion. The battery gives you a good stretch when paired with a 32GB micro USB, so just make sure you keep lots of mounts handy and you’ll never miss the action.

View the demo video at: www.outdooruae.com or www.vimeo.com/seanocaster/sony-actioncam.

Sean’s personal profile can be found at www.vimeo.com/seanocaster

Canopi Bowl- a sweet spot in Dubai for skating. Here I use the Sony ActionCAM to record some different angles of me riding.

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The JP Australia ‘i-SUP’ (inflatable stand up paddle board)

Whenever I take my paddle board to the beach, I usually share it with my friends, which inadvertently makes me an ambassador of SUPing. Later they would come back to me and ask what they should buy and generally I would ask the suitable question for all sports: “For what purpose? Flatwater, racing, waves or touring?” But with SUP, I have a different approach, which also directly answers the questions: inflatable or hard board?

The answer to this question in my opinion is fairly easy and can be determined within seconds: Do you have space to store a hard board? Do you have a car to transport the hard board? If you answer no to any of the two questions, you should buy an inflatable board.

Ten feet (about 3m) is a normal size for a board (from 9-13ft ), now try carrying the board into your house or flat – I assure you, it will be a challenge to get it inside, or through any narrow hallway or an elevator.

Alternatively, you can always keep it on the roof of your car if you don’t mind driving it around every day.

In my opinion, the best solution is to get

an inflatable one. Storage is super easy and you can even take it with you if you fly for a holiday.

The performance is comparable to normal boards, but in waves, the inflatables are not as rigid as hard boards. The key is to pump it up to the required pressure. I think, the inflatable is more vulnerable to damages if you hit sharp rocks, but the JP Australia comes with a repair kit which makes it easy to fix leaks. Considering the conditions in the UAE, which is generally flatwater and sandy beaches, there is no real disadvantage for a soft board.

The JP Australia is a great all-around SUP board, ideal for touring flatwater and you can even surf with it. JP Australia is one of the brands currently putting a lot of effort into developing high quality and a rigid

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body for inflatables, which comes at a price.

Yet the price of 4,255 AED for the board is at the lower end for SUPs and worth every single dirham. Spending less will certainly lead to lower quality, which will be recognisable in the performance in water and after being used over time. As mentioned before, key for any inflatable is high air pressure to give the soft body strength.

The Air SUP AllroundAIR 10’2” is available in different colors and comes with a carry backpack, which is actually quite comfortable even for longer walks down to the beach. The main of the three fins is removable and the other two fixed rubber fins are protected by inflatable tubes to not damage the board or bend or break during transport.

The needed pump is also included in the kit and is an absolute essential. The whole

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kit (board, pump, backpack) weighs about 14kg.

If there is any downside to the board it is pumping it up. Any owner of an iSUP knows the hard labour of pumping the board to the required pressure of 15psi (1bar). It usually reads easy in the instructions, but you really need to pump hard, which is especially hard for women to get close to the 15psi pressure. In our test, we could inflate it within five minutes. There is also a convenient solution, a 12-volt electric pump from Naish which fits most iSUP valves and is able to pump the board to the required pressure of 15psi. The pump is available in Go Sport the Dubai Mall and Go Sport Bawabat Mall for 551 AED. Everyone who pumped up an iSUP before will happily invest on this.

Deflating is the contrary, it’s super easy

and the valve can be locked in the position to release all air which takes about 1-2min.

After folding the iSUP, all air should be realeased.

On the water the AllroundAIR feels directly much lighter than a hard board. The iSUP glides more on the surface due to it’s light weight compared to hard boards; this gives first the impression of less stability due to their vulnerability to waves. You can feel every little bump compared to hard boards, but this is just until you get used to the new feel. I usually paddle an 11ft hard board and wear a GPS watch which gives me the speed, with the AllroundAIR, I was 0.5km/h faster in average than the harder board. This proves to me that the board does not only feel faster than my hard board, it is faster.

Since the iSUP has more gliding on the

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surface, it’s less vulnerable to currents, but slightly more to wind.

The adjustable paddle of JP Australia is well designed and costs 495 AED at Go Sport the Dubai Mall. The size of the fin is great for all-round use, but could be a bit bigger for my taste. My only point of criticism which applies to all aluminum paddles I have used so far is that they don’t float (at least not for long). If you are an experienced paddler you will usually not lose your paddle, but beginners do, and since I’ve paddle with friends they’ve lost three of my paddles so far.

Even though having a hard board and the space to store it, I will certainly consider getting a iSUP like the JP Australia when I go travelling.

Daniel OUTDOORUAE

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TRAVEL + ADVENTURE

Tour de Romandie

A Swiss cycling experience

Freezing conditions on the top of the Col des Mosses, the race route was altered to avoid snow covered roads

Words + Photos By: Grace and Pat Fitzpatrick Additional Photos By: Thierry Favre

Late February, the Skype phone rang. It was Thierry, the Swiss mountain man. Thierry lives in a small village nestled in the Swiss-French Alps; a ski instructor during the winter and cycling guide through summer.

Thierry invited us to join him and his brother Lionel in April on a four-day riding sojourn, to take in the Tour de Romandie (a UCI pro-tour cycling race that takes place in the French-speaking part of Switzerland).

He proceeded to explain that they were creating a “BMC Swiss cycling experience” that included a tour of the Swiss-based manufacturing plant and privileged use of their test bikes whilst riding in some spectacular Swiss scenery and sampling traditional Romandie fare.

“We’re there!,” was our immediate response.

Fast-forward eight weeks and we’re flying over the Swiss Alps on a brilliant day that was bursting with sunshine. We pressed our faces against the windows of the 747 in awe of the snow-covered peaks, as we descended towards Geneva. There are few places in the world that rival flying over Switzerland.

Next morning, we awoke to find ourselves in a typical picture postcard. As we sipped on Chocolat Chaud (hot chocolate), our eyes went from the red and white checked tablecloth to views of lush pastureland through the window. Cows grazed as their bells chimed and the blue sky framed the white pinnacles that surrounded us – we

were definitely in the Swiss Jura Mountains north of Geneva.

Thierry and Lionel soon greeted us with smiles as big as the surprises they had in store for us. We were introduced to the rest of the participants before being issued with the first of many delights – official BMC drawstring backpacks including a pro-team cycling kit, t-shirt and cap.

We quickly donned the contents of our packs to ensure we all looked the part before being introduced to our bikes. It’s times like these that we pinch ourselves. What started as a Skype conversation only two months earlier was in full swing – we were in the midst of our Swiss cycling experience.

The following four days saw plenty of great and varied riding in Romandie – vineyards, lakes and Swiss chalets were the corridors to the spectacular mountains we climbed as we chased the pro tour.

One of the highlights was riding up Col des Mosses and reaching the 1,445m pass within minutes of the publicity caravan arriving. That meant two things: 1) lots of free goodies up for grabs including local delights like Gruyère cheese and cups of Valais Vin Blanc; and 2) the race wasn’t far behind.

Words cannot truly encapsulate the feelings of riding a race route ahead of the pro riders on race day. There’s the time pressure of reaching a set point before the race comes through, mixed with the awe of what they can achieve, the speeds they reach and the conditions they ride in. It’s a mélange of emotions.

Family Favre group shot. Dad Mitch and boys Thierry and Lionel

Painting the BMC Impec frames

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Descending the Col des Mosses in the snow

As we waited for the race to pass atop of Col des Mosses, snow started falling like autumn leaves. We sought refuge in a ski chalet and warmed our bellies with traditional food and beverages until the race drew nearer.

An official event vehicle passed, announcing that the race was only minutes away.

We stepped outside and braved the cold to watch the professionals race past in freezing conditions. Respect.

That evening we thawed ourselves out in a heated outdoor Jacuzzi before being escorted to a small log cabin in the woods.

A crackling fire and several antique gas lanterns were our only light source as we were initiated to a true “Raclette” experience. Our hosts melted Gruyère cheese till it bubbled, then scraped it onto a plate accompanied by boiled potatoes and pickled vegetables.

How can something so simple be so moreish?

Castles aplenty in the Swiss Jura Mountains

Jacuzzi

Crowd at the finish area in Payerne for stage 3

In the following days, we learned that the Swiss tend to keep many good things to themselves. Much of the delicious local food and beverages we were introduced to are only available within Switzerland – a good excuse to return.

As we flew over the Alps once more for our departure, we had time to reflect on the experiences we’d had.

For such a (relatively) small country, Switzerland is a concentrate of what makes a place special – we sampled a lot in a short amount of time and distance. Warm hospitality, rich culture, delicious and often quirky traditions, charming architecture and landscapes which are as diverse as they are stunning.

Our unique BMC experience is also one that we’ll not forget. Receiving our bag of goodies, being treated like VIPs, getting up close to the team buses and meeting local hero and pro-rider, Danilo Wyss, was an honour. Our visit to the manufacturing plant to witness how woven carbon fibres are transformed into complete bikes was both fascinating and gratifying.

The real takeaway from the Tour de

Romandie, was how enthusiastic the locals were in embracing their pro-tour event.

Tents, bands, food stalls, oversized screens showing the race live contributed to an exciting, joyful and carnival-like atmosphere.

The crowds stayed on long after the race to enjoy the music and entertainment as families and friends celebrated the event.

From a pro-cycling perspective, the Tour de Romandie is generally a good indication of who is riding well in the lead up to the big one, le Tour de France. Cadel Evans won Romandie in 2011 and Bradley Wiggins won in 2012. Will the good omen continue for Chris Froome of team Sky the winner of Romandie in 2013?

Grace and Pat Fitzpatrick are professional Tour Leaders for Bikestyle Tours. They were invited by fellow work colleague, Thierry Favre, to sample the Tour de Romandie and BMC experience as a reconnaissance for a potential tour in 2014 run by RIDE Switzerland.

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Part 1

Fish before Baktun

Sailfish in Guatemala Words + Photos By: Antonio Varcasia, Enrico Ghedini and Daniele Macis

Sometimes someone would ask you the 10 things that you would absolutely do in your life, and we can say that for an angler, things like driving a Ferrari or meeting Jennifer Lopez are often overshadowed by things that clearly have connection with fish.

Among these, billfishing is absolutely the most popular and also the secret dream of many anglers. In this issue, we suggest a trip to what you can call the sailfish capital of the world, the hotspot for sailfish, Puerto Iztapa and the Pacific coast of Guatemala!

Numbers and the secret of success We could start this article in many ways, but perhaps the best way is to explain numbers to hand, because the Pacific coast of Guatemala is universally considered the world hot spot for sailfish. To try to go to the specifics, we went to snoop on the logbook of Maverick, a 32-foot Blackfin of Pacific Fins Lodge managed by Niels Erichsen in Puerto Iztapa, where we fished during our stay. The season lasts six months, from November to mid-May, coinciding with the “epoca seca” (dry season) in this period, Maverick catch between 1,200 and 2,000 sailfish. This means that in a normal day when the season has started you have between 20 and 40 strikes per day, although during the peak months, as in February and March, you can also tap to double digit. The absolute record for Guatemala is of 124 sailfishes released

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(11 March 2006), impressive numbers, but absolutely truthful and not comparable to other destinations.

Guatemala is also nestled in a perfect location where you can reach within 35-45 miles of the Pacific Continental Divide, or that line that divides the flow of water between the oceans and creates a highly oxygenated habitat where billfish likes to live.

In particular, the most profitable areas for fishing are the major submarine canyons that start only 10 miles away from the coast. In addition, the Sierra Madre mountains makes this area sheltered from the north winds and so made the fishing very comfortable.

Natural heritage of a nation? Sure, but what is equally true is that Guatemala was the first country in the world to protect billfish, which is very important considering that despite the great progress, it is still a developing country. In 1997, the Guatemalan Congress has approved a law for the protection of sailfish (Istiophorus platypterus), prohibiting its commercial fishing, sale and

export. Sport fishing is allowed only through the use of circle hooks and a strictly mandatory catch and release policy: all the captains are well-trained in the releasing techniques, and a report on daily and seasonal catches is regularly compiled and given to the authorities. This legislation has been strengthened even with the direct involvement of the Office of Tourism (INGUAT) with an intergovernmental task force to enforce the protection of these species, focusing on the main initiatives: the eradication of illegal fishing and sale of the sailfish in cooperation with the Coast Guard, Department of State and Secretary of Agriculture. For example, in May of 2012, 37 raids have been successfully completed and commercial fishermen have been punished and fined according to the law. Another very interesting thing (take note for our waters) has been to provide local communities alternative fishing possibilities through the support of the Guatemalan Club Nautico and the Authority of Puerto Quetzal, more than 2,200 artificial barriers were manufactured and dropped in strategic locations within the Pacific coast to promote new commercial, species-rich ecosystems mainly for snappers and groupers. Seminars and courses on how to fish and exploit these resources have been successfully carried out in the local communities and with commercial fishermen. Finally, the last point of the ambitious project, that as you can see is already giving its results, is to educate children on conservation. The Fishing Club actively supports schools in the community and participates directly in Iztapa to courses relating to the protection of sportfishing species and benefits produced by alternative ways of fishing.

Between natural and artificial...

When we arrived at Pacific Fins Lodge, the goal even if we were at the beginning of the season, was to try to fish sails with the world’s most experienced captains, attempting to catch them with lures and flies. It was a great challenge because it is very hard to find these fish in situations where you can cast over them (like fads, frenzy, etc). Like other billfish such as swordfish, under certain environmental conditions (high pressure, calm seas, warm water), sails spend part of their day on the surface, but when you see them in this

THE FIRST OUTDOOR MAGAZINE FOR THE UAE AND THE MIDDLE EAST

way, it’s very difficult to get them biting our lures because many times they are in a kind of apathy and not aggressive. I cannot forget my experience few years ago in Madagascar: sea as oil, temperature 39°C, surrounded by sailfishes on the surface, casting like mad with lures of all kinds and none of the b******s cared for my lures, even when putting lures very close to their big heads!

So fly fishing and spinning for this species becomes a sort of modified bait and switch, where the whole crew tries to bring the fish closer to the boat with teasers and ballyhoo unarmed, and then let the angler cast over and present his imitations (lure/ fly). It’s very different from our lure fishing concept in Europe, but except rare occasions, it’s the only way to fish for a billfish that swims 120km per hour. Our tackle for this job were spinning rods from 20-30lbs and 7-8ft in length with moderate/fast action and reel with good spool capacity; I would say 8000/10000 Shimano size or 5000-6500 Daiwa size. As lines, 30-50lbs braided lines with a long leader or a wind-on of 70/100lbs.

As lures, we used soft baits rigged like Williamson Live ballyhoo and small konas, but also skipping lures and stick baits of medium size with single hook and double split rings or with a small assist hook. The drag must be preset first, trying not to apply too much

pressure on the fish. In fact, sailfish’s mouth is pretty fragile, and most of all, if the fish feels too much tension, it usually gives up.

Hooking strategies are several, involving bait and switch or casting directly towards the fish, but mainly with the bail opened, holding the line with your finger until the fish bites, waiting 3-5 seconds before manually closing the bail to set the hook while the fish is running out. The fight is always spectacular and should not exceed 15-20 minutes to prevent damages to the fish.

In fact, despite being the top runners of the oceans, sailfish, after a fight, produce a huge amount of lactic acid, and so they are very vulnerable and delicate, so the right handling and release is mandatory! As for fly fishing, we have used a number 14 floating line and a Cam Sigler medium Tube fly as imitation. The strategy is similar to that already described for the spinning, although depending on the captains, it may vary, also on the basis of the angler’s experience.

It’s important to remind that fishing in this way (spinning/fly) it is very hard and tiring, and usually the catch rate is 30-40 per cent (compared with conventional trolling with ballyhoo), this means that you need to be armed with patience and to plan your trip in the top months of the season in order to have better chances. To be continued...

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Links and contacts: Istituto per il Turismo del Guatemala Maria Gabriela Alvarado Sergio Galvez www.visitguatemala.com www.inguat.gob.gt Pacific Fins Lodge, Puerto Iztapa Niels Erichsen www.pacificfins.com.gt Tikal National Park www.tikalpark.com Eulogio (Locho) Lopez, guide and archaeologist (English, Spanish, Italian) lochoguidetour@yahoo.com Tel: +502 49137901 Jades Imperio Maya Bindy Borrayo www.jadesimperiomaya.com

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OUR EXPERTS

Get them outdoors…

John

Moto/ATV and all round adventure seeker

I am sure that most outdoor enthusiasts in the UAE have either been to, or at least know about Snoopy Rock island (Sandy Beach Resort) in Fujairah and that there have been many articles regarding this. Well this article is not so much about the Rock, but rather our responsibility as parents to expose our children to as many outdoor activities as we can, whilst they are young.

For most of us, the outdoor life in the UAE is a lot more “limited” than our home countries. We come from the Zululand coast in South Africa and were surrounded by nature reserves, endless beaches and a subtropical environment. The variety of activities was endless and every weekend was spent outdoors. In the UAE, things are

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slightly different. Here, as we know, they cater for the “mall lovers.” There is, however, still plenty to do for our children and they must be exposed/ introduced to as many things as possible.

As summer is already here, taking the family to the desert is no longer an option, so a coastal destination for the long weekend (June 6th) was inevitable. Due to the limited exposure, Jihan, my youngest, never quite became comfortable in the water with a mask and snorkel. After five minutes, he wants out. Thus, Snoopy Rock was the natural selection to spend some time with Jihan in the water and also introduce John-John to scuba diving (the snorkelling around the Rock is certainly one of the best places for beginners to go and enjoy the water).

We were joined by Kye and Adrienne Allen whose six-year-old daughter, Summer, had done her first ever snorkel only two weeks prior in Oman and loved it. Summer was very excited to hear that they would be joining us for a three-day weekend of “diving!”

On most of our weekend excursions, we always rendezvous somewhere and drive as a group. As we had no time schedule, and the idea was also to relax, it was every man for himself getting to the east coast. This worked great as there was no rushing to try and be on time and the trip started in a relaxed mood.

Arriving at midday, there was a brisk onshore wind with some chop on the water. We opted to rather relax on the beach, swim in the pool and reserve the snorkelling for early the next morning.

With Jihan and Summer up early and rushing us through breakfast, we were in the water by the time most guests arrived for breakfast! They were both immediately comfortable and they truly enjoyed the snorkel.

There were some initial issues with clearing their snorkels and Jihan’s mask leaking, but apart from that, things were great. The visibility was not perfect and limited to about 3-4m, still more than enough for the youngsters to see all the tropical fish and enjoy the water. They stayed in

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the water for more than an hour and crisscrossing in front and behind Kye and I as they were exploring the rock. It was great to see Jihan finally finding his “water feet” and that there would be no stopping now. Summer, well, she was a natural and for only her second time showed excellent skill and talent!

For the rest of the day it was swimming, basking in the sun and again just relaxing. As I had packed all the necessities to “Braai” (BBQ) on the beach, and enjoy the sunset from a different perspective, we were all on the back of the pick-up for the short drive to the public beach next to Snoopy Rock. Apart from the litter strewn everywhere, this was awesome!

We stopped on the high-water mark and only looked towards the ocean. This way we saw no litter and enjoyed a truly great evening of relaxing and enjoying the warm water and pleasant evening temperature.

As I had promised John-John a night snorkel and his first scuba, time was running out

(JJ made sure that I was constantly reminded about these commitments). Thus by about 10:00 p.m., when everyone went to bed after a long day, it was JJ and I for our night snorkel around the Rock. It was an awful dive as the visibility was only about 2-3m and my mask kept fogging up! Our intention to circumnavigate the Rock was thus reduced to get there, see one fish and return! By 11:00, we were back in the room and I think I was asleep even before I hit the mattress.

Shortly after sunrise Saturday morning, JJ blasted away at me with his Nerf gun yelling at me to get out of bed as it was time for his scuba session. The dive operator was fully booked and short of gear. He could however spare me a cylinder if it was returned by 7:30, hence the reason for the early dive.

The plan was to stay at a depth of about 3m and just get JJ accustomed to the breathing with a DV. Sadly, he had difficulty compensating his right ear and the depth was limited to

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between 1-2m. JJ was however very comfortable with the breathing and loved it.

After the dive we spent the rest of the morning in the pool and on the beach. It was again a great weekend with good friends spent outdoors and away from the malls!

With JJ booked for his junior diver’s course and Jihan with some new snorkel gear, we are looking forward to our return in August. Kye also planted the seed with Adrienne to consider an open water dive course. Something I am sure Summer will “convince” her mum to do! Remember that our children “need” to be outdoors and not in malls. Get out there and involve them, they will love it!

Enjoy life and go for gold!

John

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OUR EXPERTS

Pico de Orizaba

North America’s

3rd highest Mountain Mount McKinley (6,194m) is the highest mountain in North America in the frozen wastelands of Alaska.

The second highest is Mount Logan (5,959m) in the frozen wastelands of the Yukon in Canada’s North West. Pico de Orizaba (5,730m), however, is in the balmy tropics of Mexico and only 100km from the Gulf.

The prospect of climbing Pico de Orizaba, in contrast to the other two higher, colder peaks, seems wholly more benign. Thus, finding myself in neighbouring Belize, after five weeks immersed in the Belizean jungle and with a week’s break on hand, it seemed like an obvious plan to go and climb this mountain.

Summit Photo By: Mike Nott

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Traversing the Caldera

All I needed was some willing companions and a means to get there; fortunately neither of these was in short supply. With six volunteers, having carried out a hasty repacking from our jungle adventures and with the loan of a long wheel base safari Land Rover, now packed to the gunnels with kit and bodies, we set off on the tortuous, long drive of 1,300+km to the town of Orizaba. With only a week to drive to the mountain, climb it, then drive back to Belize, with an obligatory few days in Cancun on the way adding a couple of hundred kilometres, we had to press on a bit. So, we drove and drove and on the first day managed to negotiate the Belize/Mexico border and ended up in Villahermosa for the night after nearly 700km of driving. This left us with about the same distance to drive to the base of the mountain the next day.

After 30 hours of driving over the two days, we arrived in view of the mountain. It totally dominates the landscape and stands tall and isolated in much the same way Kilimanjaro does in Tanzania. The comparison doesn’t only end there. Pico de Orizaba is also an extinct, tropical volcano and capped by glaciers and snowfields. The contrast between the oppressive heat and humidity of the Belizean jungle and the high alpine snowfields of the mountain were not to be lost on us. Equipped with a couple of photocopied pages from an old guidebook to the mountain I’d found in the local library in Belize, we now had to find the dirt track that lead up the mountain and to the hut at Piedra Grande (4,270m).

Being something of an off-road enthusiast too, the drive up this 24km ascending, dirt trail was an added bonus. Bearing in mind

Mike

is an avid adventurer. He is also the expert behind the ME4x4 supplements that we have shared with you over the year. We will also be bringing you his ‘opus’, if you will, in the form of a book entitled ‘Advanced Off-Road Adventure Routes for the UAE and Oman’. Available now at www.outdooruae. com and Adventure HQ, Times Square Mall, Dubai.

Distant View By: Mountainguides.com

we’d been at sea level during the drive-in that day, dressed appropriately for the beach and benefitting from the Land Rover’s heater, we enjoyed the ever changing scenery as it moved past; from tropical forest, to alpine forest, to alpine glacial plain. We arrived at the hut by late afternoon and stepped blithely from the warmth of the car’s interior to comically shocking subzero blasts and quickly dived into our rucksacks for our cold weather gear. The large and comfortable Piedra Grande hut was, thankfully, unlocked and empty. It seemed we had the mountain to ourselves, at least on our side. The plan was to sleep that night in the hut, do an acclimatisation walk the next day up to the glacier, about 650m higher up, and then establish a camp on the base of the glacier on Day 3 and knock it off the next day, Day 4.

After a fitful night in the hut due to the cold and altitude, the acclimatisation walk seemed to go reasonably well. All six of us were able to cope with the sudden, and perhaps inadvisable, increase in altitude from sea level, and the terrain was relatively straightforward. We returned to the hut, ate huge amounts of the rations we’d brought with us and slept again, this time better. We packed tents and all the paraphernalia required for the ascent and headed up on Day 3 to establish the camp. As we did this, it became apparent that three of the team were starting to suffer quite badly from altitude problems and so the decision was made for them to return to the hut, realising that to press on would exacerbate the situation, but also realising that a change in plan was required if we were all to reach the summit. It was decided that they would attempt to join us the next morning. The remaining three of us established the camp, had an exploratory walk up the glacier and slept pretty well that night despite the added bonus of a snow storm that obliterated any hint of our tracks and required us to regularly bash the tent’s walls to prevent the weight of accumulated snow collapsing in on us.

After huddling around our stove in the

Route Map By: HG Mexico

Piedra Grande Hut By: Summitpost.org darkness of the pre-dawn morning and eating and drinking well, we emerged into the first light to enjoy a startlingly clear day with fantastic views up the glacier towards the summit. We sat and waited for the remaining three to join us at the campsite. We waited beyond the agreed cut-off time before eventually deciding that we needed to carry on without them. Crampons on, ice axes in hand and tied into a 50m rope, we headed off carrying just one rucksack between us and leaving the tent in place. Climbing, or rather, steep-walking, up the Jamapa Glacier was technically easy, but made slightly more difficult due to the previous night’s snowfall.

We made really good progress and were suffering no effects of altitude; this boded well. As what we thought was the summit approached, we reached instead the knife edge of the caldera. I was really taken aback, I’d completely forgotten that this was a volcano and was shocked to find myself looking down several hundred feet into the base of the volcano rather than the expected solid

ridgeline. After consulting the guidebook copy, we headed anti-clockwise round the lip of the caldera and spotted the real summit some way off, dominated by the ubiquitous metal cross. We’d made really good time and stayed longer on the summit than planned.

The descent was the “highlight” of the ascent. The glacier was perfect glissade territory and once we’d reached the right spot leading down to our previous night’s camp, we glissaded down in no time at all. In fact, it had taken three and a half hours up and just over an hour down; it was a real hoot.

We reached the tent, realised there was no sign of anyone else being there, packed it away and headed down the scree to the hut and rejoined the other team members to find that altitude problems had prevented them heading up again. They had packed the Land Rover, but I was told that the clutch hydraulic system was empty and we had no fluid to refill it. Having a little mechanical and driving experience, I knew that this should not be a problem. We all got in, I checked that the transfer case was in low-ratio, engaged first gear and started the Land Rover.

It lurched forward as the starter motor engaged, the engine fired and we were off but with no clutch.

Then followed 24km of clutchless gear changes as we descended this remarkable track. We pulled in at the first garage we came to, bought a can of clutch fluid and refilled and bled the system on the forecourt with the rudimentary tool kit that came with the vehicle.

The remaining part of the trip was the even longer drive back to Belize via Cancun. Have you been to Cancun? If you have, you’ll know that the adventures to be had there would not fit well in this sort of magazine and the old adage applies! Needless to say, we all arrived back in Belize thoroughly satiated.

Mike OUTDOORUAE

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OUR EXPERTS

Heavy

metal Our fishing pro who shares his experiences and expertise with OutdoorUAE through his regular column. thefishingkit@gmail.com

The waters I fished before were very deep, the currents were strong and dropping bait down the depths meant a very heavy line and almost a kilo of weight. It took a good few minutes for the whole contraption to get to the bottom and when it did, the stretch of the monofilament line made detection of a strike hard to tell, we had to rely on circle hooks so the fish could set the hooks themselves. There wasn’t much of a fight because the fish’s swim bladders expanded before they reached the surface, in fact, you would see the fish floating up before you see the weight. If for some reason

your rig got snagged, you would have contributed a tiny artificial reef in the depths.

A few years later, advancements in fishing technology changed the game. With the invention of super lines, you would be able to reach the depths without stretch on your line, fishing the depths with thinner line and smaller weights created a revolution in sportfishing.

A few years later, jigging was born. Dropping heavy knife shaped lures to the depths and pulling up monsters was the norm.

On the flipside, there are also those that have done this on a micro level. Using the exact same techniques for deepwater jigging in shallower water, with thinner lines

Knife style jigs such as this casting jig from Williamson work well when cast into boiling fish

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and lighter jigs – light jigging not only made it more sporting, it is very productive and, more importantly, it gives you more fun on light line without giving you the muscle aches.

(Light jigging is the same as jigging; only you are dealing with line tests from 20lb (10kg) and under).

I found my preference to be at 10lb (5kg) for use in our waters.

The variety of jigs available is staggering. Like its big brother, light jigging could be expensive, however, I found that if you are not too fussed about your gear, even your drop shot gear could be used with good success.

Aside from the usual knife type jigs, my absolute favourites to use are the Madai and Inchiku type jigs.

I take a few knife jigs with me mostly for casting when there are boils on the surface. Queenfish seem

Inchiku jigs are staples in my box, just cast them out, let them sink and reel in slowly, it’s as easy as that!

THE FIRST OUTDOOR MAGAZINE FOR THE UAE AND THE MIDDLE EAST

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to love the smaller jigs since they are keying mostly on smaller prey. It’s a simple case of casting to the work up and reeling with a straight medium paced retrieve.

The Madai and Inchiku jigs are probably the easiest jigs you would ever get to use. Just cast them out as far as you can and reel them in slowly – you will feel small pecks on your rod, but keep reeling until a fish comes tight. The smaller fish pecks on the skirts of these jigs till a big one climbs on it, you don’t need to set the hooks, the small assist hooks that come with these jigs are designed to hook the fish without setting the hook, just reel until the fish comes tight.

Fishing them from shore and breakwaters is quite productive, but combined with the stealth that kayaks bring us, these jigs are dynamite on bottom fish and are very good alternatives to fishing for them with bait.

Give it a shot and see what you get yourself into, don’t worry, the worst that could happen is that you get another lure, small price to pay for a better mousetrap!

Till next tide change,

Kit

Madai jigs are a great alternative to fishing with bait when targetting bottom feeding fish

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OUR EXPERTS

e r u t n e v i h C ck Ad e at the mercy of th

mountain gods

Tori

runner, writer, blogger & adventurer PS. My email address is tori@fitchicksandfastwomen. com for thoughts, ideas, and suggestions… or just to say hello!

The day before I left the land of sand once more, back to the cool alpine air of Europe, I got a text from my running buddy, Gary, saying “this weekend is going to be unpredictable but for sure, it will be epic and memorable…”

Wow, I thought. Epic is a big word, as is memorable and I felt a shudder of nervous anticipation and childlike excitement.

The days prior had seen a flurry of emails amongst our little French running team with regular bulletins about the plummeting temps, incessant rainfall and predicted snow at just 800m. In May? Yes, In May! We were signed up for the Maxi

Pre race day clouds

Race, one of the biggest events in the French running calendar with a vertical race on day one followed by distances from 15km to 80+km and up to 5,500m ascent.

I flew to Zurich and spent a night in a plush hotel where I spent twelve hours being totally indulgent, lounging around in a big fluffy robe, eating expensive food washed down with the juice that comes in a flute. The following morning, I took a beautifully picturesque train to Lake Annecy near Geneva. Annecy is a beautiful part of the world – a gorgeous lake overlooked by majestic mountains, hundreds of houses that give you total home envy,

The fantastic four

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towering pine trees and a pace of life that really makes you feel on holiday.

I woke on the eve of the race and opened my lake-view window only to be confronted with a mass of cloud and rain, which high up where our race route would be heading, would mean snow, cold and pretty adverse conditions. Have I brought enough warm clothes I wondered?

As per my wardrobe choices came more down to colour co-ordination and featuring this seasons colours rather than staying as warm and dry as possible.

All seemed business as usual. I went to collect our “dossards” or bibs mid morning then went into town for a long lunch with my friend Rosemary, a fellow runner I met in 2011 running the 200km Balaton Supermarathon. I remember her being a godsend in running alongside me for the last 30km or so when my short attention span had peaked and I was feeling restless and eager to finish. The bonds created through the sweat and toil of the trails transcend time and distance with ease.

Sign of a good trail run!

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Me with awesome ultra runner, Rosemary When we met, I could spot her a mile off as she hobbled along with a pained look on her face and compression tights under her mini skirt! You see, she’s fresh back from completing the 10 in 10 – a phenomenal achievement involving 10 days and 10 marathons to raise money for the UK’s BrathayTrust.

And then, all started to unravel. Gary called followed by the others to announce the news – the race had been cancelled.

Despite thousands of runners now in Annecy, having come from far and wide, the plug was finally pulled as the course was deemed too dangerous. “What now?” I thought. This wasn’t in my grand plan!

In the end, we four got the best of both worlds. We wined and dined, to excess of course, in a fabulous little wine bar in Annecy, left at the bitter end, then shook off the cobwebs the next morning with a great trail run ourselves. We went through wideopen fields, dense forest, gentle hills, steep mountains and finally arriving at Le Semnoz, amongst lots and lots of snow. The chair lift and the ski station definitely did not look out of place!

We warmed up in the ski chalet, rubbing shoulders with no shortage of other oughtto-have-been competitors then started the long descent back into Annecy. I don’t think I even felt disappointed after the weekend we had. It certainly demonstrated with perfection that whilst things always do work out, they don’t necessarily do so in quite the way we expected them too.

And from a race point of view, I guess my

Beautiful Annecy

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Gary et Tori takeaway was that we can prepare all we wish: train, organise, research, plot, plan, dream and scheme, but ultimately, we are at the mercy of the mountain gods and must respect that weather conditions really do represent real dangers at times and if a race is cancelled, it has been done so for good reason. As cliché as it may be, ’tis far better to be safe than sorry and this applies to any of our sporting passions.

I spent the week that followed chez Gary in Lyon and enjoyed some fantastic urban runs. It rained a lot but then again, now that the summer temps are truly upon us in Dubai, the rain and cooler weather was a welcome respite and it was a joy not having to wake up at the crack of dawn just for the sake of a run. There’s no better way to discover new nooks and crannies in a city than on foot and lovely Lyon is a pretty incredible city to do this in, thanks to its mass of steps, canal boats, cobbled streets, ancient churches, stately buildings, glorious parks and not one but two big rivers. These runs brought back wonderful memories of so many cities I’ve discovered on foot, too many to mention, but I’ve long thought that there’s no better way to discover the true heartbeat of a place, its people, its colour, character and culture than via daybreak or sunset runs. Bliss! They also reminded me of the beautiful French word “flaneur.” Coined by the French philosopher, Baudelaire, the word means to stroll, to saunter, to explore without purpose or pursuit, rhyme or reason.

It refers to discovering a city at a leisurely

Running back down the hill pace, taking in the surroundings with no particular destination in mind. As JRR Tolkien so perfectly put, “Not all those who wander are lost.”

To stretch and flex post all the running, I discovered a great little yoga school in my neighbourhood. I went several times and enjoyed some wonderful Vinyasa sessions, not least because it’s always a treat discovering new teachers and their vastly alternating styles, but because I could scrub up on my French yoga vocab – an area I would say was previously scant! Despite my love for immersing myself in new cultures, I miss my yoga practice when not in Dubai, so seeking classes elsewhere makes perfect sense. Still, you can pick any country in the world, any people in the world and you find that yoga in all four corners is very similar no matter what language you speak. You take a pose, you learn how to do that pose, you learn how to unlock its energy, how to deepen it and well, the same format applies beyond all borders. Yoga so definitely transcends the level where our cultural identities reside which makes it all the more inclusive for those who practice it together.

I popped back to Geneva before returning to Zurich for my return flight. Turns out lots of Dubai’s sporty contingent were in town for the 70.3 Ironman. That too was cancelled due to a landslide on the bike course. Seems this year hasn’t been the best for European races being affected by adverse weather conditions. But hey, what can you do?

There’s little point feeling angry or frustrated. Just let it go and enjoy whatever other adventure you can conjure up. Besides, that’s when the best ones tend to happen…

Love Tori x OUTDOORUAE

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PEOPLE

Roy Nasr Occupation: Chief Operating Officer at Abela & Co,

and Co-founder of TriDubai Nationality: Lebanese Age: 49

TriDubai club was created to help triathletes reach their full potentials. Now, more volunteers are lending their support and there are over 100 members taking part in the free training sessions. Co-founder Roy doesn’t only aim to help triathletes reach the finish line, but also make the journey a valuable experience.

How did you get involved with TriDubai?

As a keen triathlete for almost twenty years, you come to realise that this sport is as much about the community and camaraderie as it is about achieving your goals. Ian LePelley (co-founder of TriDubai) and I set about creating a club that would give people a platform in which to share information on events, training, techniques, nutrition and equipment and to organise group sessions – basically a social and training forum for those with a shared interest.

What does TriDubai aim to achieve?

First is to create a supportive and interactive community, encouraging and linking people interested in triathlon. Second is to promote safe and structured training sessions for everyone. TriDubai has an open door policy so that no matter what your level – whether

you are a complete novice or a world champion – all are encouraged to join. Third is to provide insight and share our experiences, as we believe a lot of value can be gained from race reports or user reviews on certain products or recommendations on services providers. Fourth is to develop awareness of the sport in the UAE. What happens during training?

The swim is generally in the sea or a lake.

Simply working on your technique in the pool will not prepare you for the experience of an open water swim comes race day.

Bike sessions are held at the Camel Track cycle path at Nad Al Sheba on Mondays, the Autodrome on Wednesdays and at the Al Qudra cycle track on Fridays. Periodically we also arrange bike rides at Jebel Hafeet or Hatta, as it offers additional diversity.

Run sessions are geared towards improving endurance, rather than technique and they are held on a Saturday at The Springs, and a Sunday on the Palm Jumeirah.

What’s the atmosphere like?

Surprisingly enough, despite our training sessions starting anywhere between 5:00 to 7:00 a.m., the mood amongst the members is always one of enthusiasm, energy and encouragement. It is competitive but with great sportsmanship. It’s not always the easiest thing in the world to get up at five and cycle 100km round a track in the desert, or plunge yourself into the cool ocean waters for an hour and a half, but they have a great attitude, good sense of humour and the support amongst the members is tremendous.

What’s the best part of training and joining triathlons?

You can’t overlook the sense of achievement as you run across the finish line – it makes all the hard work worthwhile. Moreover, I would say the camaraderie during the training sessions or midway through a race; there is great respect and support between

triathletes. We are lucky to have such a strong group, whose members are not only extremely talented, but lend their support to all levels.

What’s your personal goal?

I have been fortunate to have won many national and international races over my career, having raced and represented my country and the UAE around the world, including three world championships, ranging from sprint to half Ironman. But my ultimate objective is to take part in the full Ironman World Championship which takes place in Kona, Hawaii in October each year. In order to do that, I need to qualify by finishing top three in another international Ironman. So I am preparing to race in Ironman South Africa in April 2014 hoping to qualify for Kona.

What is your training advice for beginners and experts?

Lindt dark chocolate Intense Orange before, during and after your race – I’m kidding, although it is my weak point. I would say the key thing is consistency in training. Pull together a training schedule that is easily manageable and fits into your life. If you can repeat it for several weeks in a row consistently (and it may not be much training to start with), then you can possibly start adding to it, or tweaking the volume and/or intensity.

If not, then reduce the sessions on your schedule and try to do the plan consistently!

What’s your training advice for triathletes and outdoor sports enthusiasts this summer?

Be sensible. Although the conditions here in the UAE are challenging during the summer months, people continue to maintain their training program, albeit at somewhat unsociable hours to beat the heat. Obviously, staying hydrated and protected from the sun’s rays is critical and preferably don’t train alone.

To join the group, just fill out our waiver form and visit our Facebook page. No membership fees! All the details here are at www.tridubai.org/membership and training location and timings are available at www.tridubai.org/training-with-tridubai.

PEOPLE

Richard John Palmer Occupation: Environmental engineer Nationality: British Age: 34

Rich, along with JM Laventure, have been a force to be reckoned with in local adventure races. After winning the Musandam Adventure Race and Wadi Adventure Race 3 group category, they would like to raise more awareness about outdoor activities and get more people involved, so more challenges are definitely in the pipeline.

What attracted you to the great outdoors?

I have my parents to thank for this. I was brought up in the rural landscape of South East England, and our summer holidays involved camping and hiking in the national parks of UK, from the Lake District to the Yorkshire Dales to the moors in Devon and Somerset. It’s been ingrained on my psyche from an early age.

How long have you known your race partner JM? I first met JM in a fitness class in Abu Dhabi in 2009. We were both gunning it and I think our competitive natures came through with each of us trying to outdo the other. By the end of the class it was obvious I was the better athlete, but JM wasn’t bad either!

What makes adventure racing more exciting and challenging?

Adventure racing adds a factor of the unknown. In most events, you can map out a course in your head and know where you want to be at a certain point. However, with adventure racing, you also have to be ready

for the challenges the great outdoors throws in your way, be it the weather, physical obstacles or simply an error in navigation. I love the outdoors and if I can challenge myself physically in that environment, even better.

The great thing about a multi-disciplinary sport is that you get to experience the outdoors from a different view point, like sitting in a kayak with bioluminescent plankton splashing up over your paddles or flying down a mountain side on your bike with a field of donkeys as your spectators.

How was the Musandam Adventure Race experience?

Unlike the year before, when torrential rain had obliterated the field, it was a mechanical bike malfunction that almost ended it for us.

When we went to fit in JM’s front wheel it was proving a little more challenging and after 50 minutes of messing around with it, we realised we had a fundamental decision to make: do we press on knowing we would have serious mobility issues or call it a day? To be honest it was a fine line, but the good thing about doing it as a team is you always have someone else to motivate you, and you don’t want to be the person to let the team down.

How about the WAR3?

It was 10km, so in terms of adventure racing it’s a baby, however it packs a lot of fun! The great thing is Wadi Adventure is a playground for outdoor enthusiasts and fitness buffs and it showed with the great range of people and abilities present. We ended up just going for it and although we are not the strongest swimmers, we managed to pull through on some of the other stages of the race. It was a lot of fun and we are looking forward to the next instalment.

These are tough races, how do you push yourself and each other when met with obstacles?

An old SAS motto is “train hard, fight easy.”

We apply the same type of attitude to racing. Many a time during training have I felt like stopping, but it’s the attitude you adopt during training that pushes you on during the actual race.

How do you train for a competition?

Adventure racing is multi-disciplinary and you work the muscles in different ways from one discipline to the next, so I try and apply this to my training programme by incorporating as many different types of activity as possible from running and swimming to CrossFit classes and bike interval training.

Prior to the Musadam Race we did a lot of hill training at Al Wathba Endurance Village.

I have two young girls now so I have to be pretty regimental when I train. I tend to keep to early morning, which is fine as after having two kids you forget what lie-ins are all about!

Do you have any advice for those wanting to get into adventure races and the outdoors, also training during the summer?

There are plenty of outdoor events in the region to suit all levels, therefore I would suggest taking on one of these either as a team or a relay team and see if you like it. As for training during the summer, swimming is great for muscular strength and cardio and there’s the added advantage that you can keep cool. There are some great free swimming programmes on the internet.

What’s the best and worst part of working in teams?

Working in a team means you’ve always got someone to motivate you or to work out a problem with. On the flip side, you’ve got to be comfortable with living in each other pockets on multiple-day events and not be adverse to other people’s body odour!

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OMAN escape

Words + Photos by: Darryl MacDonald

Summer is here again. As the temperatures rise and the humidity sets in, it becomes more and more difficult to find outdoor activities that are bearable in the swelter. Ocean activities are still generally okay, but with the water temperatures nearing 30°C, it’s not always that refreshing. Besides, it’s nice to have some variety in your summer activities. In times like these, my wife and I need insight on new places to explore, so we call upon our friend, Alan. He’s a primary school teacher that has been living in Oman for six years. During that time, he has seemingly explored more of this country than anyone else I have yet to encounter. He also has the uncanny ability to remember his way to the most remote locations, through a maze of back roads and mountain paths that would have me hopelessly lost without a GPS. So a few weeks ago, looking for some inspiration, we called Alan, begged him to take us somewhere nice, and he obliged.

We left Muscat late Thursday afternoon, driving north past Barka towards Masnaah, then heading west towards Rustaq and continuing on into the mountains beyond.

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s

The entire journey to our campsite was approximately 2.5 hours. As we approached our destination high up in the Western Hajar Mountain range, we watched the thermometre in our trusty Prado decrease from 37°C in Muscat to a balmy 26°C at our final destination. High up on a ridge, overlooking the town of Bilad Sayt and Al Hajir to the north and Al Farra’ah below us to the south, the views from our campsite were outstanding! We set up camp, enjoyed an evening under a spectacularly starry sky, with lights from the nearby villages filling the valley below, and eagerly started a campfire when the temperature dropped to an unexpected 16°C. The following morning after breakfast, Alan made us privy to our plan. It all seemed a little counter intuitive to me. The plan was to leave one vehicle at the top, drive down over 1,000m to the bottom, only to hike back to where we left the car.

At this point, I found myself asking, “whose idea was this?” Never one to complain though, we packed up camp and headed on our way. Driving a short distance from

our campsite, we left one of our vehicles in a carpark near a new hotel under construction just on top of the ridge. We then continued down 45 minutes of derelict, dirt roads to the picturesque, mountain hamlet of Bilad Sayt. The village is located at the bottom of a steep escarpment towering over 1,000m above. It’s surrounded by green, terraced gardens of date palms and fruit trees and is constructed mainly of traditional style stone and mud dwellings that

In The Bag

3 litres of water per person Sunscreen Camera gear First aid kit 4 carabineers 4 slings Snacks Phone Torch

rise above the narrow maze of streets giving this town a distinct charm.

Starting from the school, we began our ascent, straight up with no shade to be found for the first 200m. It was grueling. The trail was well marked with the distinctive yellow, white and red flags and is moderately technical. This means a person should be in reasonable physical shape (enough to climb 1,000m), sure footed and comfortable with heights if attempting this climb. As we progressed up the mountain side, the views behind us became increasing more amazing, which gave me more than enough reason for frequent rest stops to sit and enjoy the scenery and re-hydrate. Further up, the trail narrowed in areas, some places requiring light scrambling. In one section in particular, there is a metal cable only a few metres long, bolted into the cliff side to assist hikers while maneuvering through an area of questionable safety.

The bolts and gear seem to be in excellent condition so we were comfortable crossing over the area without concern. The final 200m of the ascent seemed to be the steepest section of the hike and left a lasting impression on my calf muscles for several days after. At the top, the

trail links into another path and headed back towards our car. The trail along the top ridge was a refreshingly easy walk, as it meandered across the ridge, offering stunning views of the valley below. There was a welcome breeze at the top, making the end of our hike much more pleasant. Adding to the stunning scenery, several Egyptian vultures cruised along the cliff edge looking for prey. After reaching the car, we found a nice spot on the cliff to sit and enjoy a snack before retrieving the other vehicle and continuing back to Muscat, back to the heat.

All in all, this was a great hike with some of the best scenery to be found in the Omani mountains and a wonderful escape from the summer heat. If you decide to undertake this weekend adventure, you can follow our route, W10 and W8, with route details at www.trekkingoman.com. If you follow these marked routes, remember this top tip: you will always see the next paint marker from the last, and if not, you’re off track. As we like to say in Canada, get out there, stay hydrated, have fun and “keep your stick on the ice.”

Darryl OUTDOORUAE

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LOCATIONS

Finding At lant is

Ultimate Snorkel

at Atlantis, The Palm An almost ethereal beauty engulfs me as I plunge head first into the sparkling blue waters. Colourful fishes lazily swim by, batoids – big and small – glide just below and sharks rest by the ruins of a sunken city.

But I’m not a deep-sea explorer in some uncharted reef solving ancient mysteries. Or am I? It took a few breaths into my snorkel’s mouthpiece to pull me back to the reality that I’m actually in a manmade lagoon inside a hotel. When Atlantis, The Palm invited us for their new Ultimate Snorkel experience in the Ambassador Lagoon – which houses 65,000 marine creatures including sharks and rays – a mixture of curiosity, fear and excitement swam (pun intended) inside my head.

But in the spirit of adventure, I wanted to know how up close and personal I could get with the denizens of the deep.

We arrived in time for the introductions, and our group – composed of tourists and families with kids – immediately got a whiff of the saltwater as we headed to The Lost Chambers back passage that lead to the lagoon. We learned that this is all natural sea water pumped and filtered from the sea and back, and the water is temperature controlled to keep it comfortable for both fishes and folks even in the hottest of weathers. Our guide Stefanie briefed us on what we can expect to see in the 11-million-litre and 10-metre-deep open air marine habitat: golden trevallies, cobias, crescent angelfishes, grey reef skarks, bowmouth sharks, zebra sharks, marble rays, cowtail rays and other species indigenous to the Arabian Gulf. Stefanie gave us snorkelling tips like the mask should sit above the ears and it should not touch the hairline so water won’t drip in. As they started distributing the blue wetsuits and bright yellow swimming vests, she reminded us to avoid touching the fish not because they might bite, but more not

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Words By: Glaiza Seguia Photos By: Daniel Birkhofer

to spook them. Atlantis’ Maraika, who has enjoyed the snorkel experience herself, helped strap my blue-rimmed mask and snorkel in place and assured me of a really awesome time.

Once submerged, I was instantly transported to a stunning new world, and based from the giggles from the kids, they must’ve felt the same way too. It was a dramatic seascape teeming with a variety of fish life and at the bottom were pillars, rubbles and a batterd looking astronomical model of what could have been from the fabled city of Atlantis that vanished beneath the waves. For about an hour, I relaxed and just floated around the 24°C lagoon with the gentle current, pretending I found Atlantis. I was delighted to have a curious Napoleon wrasse brush past me and came close to an unsuspecting giant guitar shark. I also waved to the glass walls hoping to give the guests watching from behind the

aquarium an underwater hello. When we got out of the water still exhilarated from our snorkelling safari, Stefanie handed us towels and directed us to the shower for a quick rinse and told me that guests can take home the mask and snorkel as a souvenir – nice!

The massive exhibit, operated by 165 fulltime animal marine specialists – gives a great opportunity for kids and adults to marvel at the beautiful, strange and sometimes even “scary” marine life in a safe and fun environment. Guests can also learn about different species living in our local waters and be more aware on how to care and preserve our oceans. It was an excellent way to start the morning and, to be honest, I was a little hesitant to return to the office after, but with the salty scent still lingering and my snorkel gear peeking out of my bag, I’ve become pretty motivated to finish work so I can plan to go back there again.

THE FIRST OUTDOOR MAGAZINE FOR THE UAE AND THE MIDDLE EAST

TIPS & TRICKS

Dive Gadget:

JULY 2013 - WWW.OUTDOORUAE.COM

At the end of your dive just use your smartphone equipped with the My bluebuddy App to wirelessly retrieve the log of the dive you just completed. Edit it with more info, such as dive site, gear configuration, buddies and images. From dive to log in just a few easy steps. No cables required!

Now you don’t need to wait until you get home to share your dive log with your friends. As soon as your dive is over, just tap the share icon and select the service you want to use: Twitter, Facebook, email, divePAL. And yes it is as easy as that!

The App is easy to download and synch with the bluebuddy, which is good, I hate synching things via Bluetooth as I usually have problems, but this works well and as you can see below from a dive on Car Cemetery the depth and time are recorded as a graph.

Bluebuddy These days most divers use dive computers to plan their dives (hopefully and perhaps with tables) and monitor their dive to ensure that they do not exceed their NDLs (No Decompression Limits). However, not many people download the data to their main computer.

Frankly, I find it easier to write up my logbook and rarely download the data onto my PC, but when I do, it is more of a curiosity as to how my dive profile was on a specific dive. You need a PC, cables and it takes time.

Enter bluebuddy. This device records depth and water temperature over your dive time and after the dive this data is transferred via Bluetooth 4.0 to iPhone 4s/5 or any other device with this version of Bluetooth.

As soon as the dives are downloaded, all you have to do is add a few details (EAN settings, dive site, etc.) and the results are instantly available to share on your mobile device with anyone who is interested.

Currently, this product is only available through DiveNav in the US, who launched the device in May this year. Fortunately, I had a heads up and managed to purchase one of the first hundred, in fact number 97 is mine.

The instructions on the DiveNav website are as follows: Attach bluebuddy to your BCD, or put it in your pocket, then go diving. While you enjoy your dive, bluebuddy will be busy keeping track of your dive profile and monitoring the water temperature. Measure - Convert - Store - Repeat. All while you are enjoying your dive.

breathed for the nitrogen loading, the App is defaulted to air (21%). Once that is entered the calculation also shows Surface Air Consumption (SAC) rate for the dive.

Nitrogen loading in the tissues is based on the Buhlmann algorithm.

Other details upload automatically once the dive site is selected, however, as there are no UAE dive sites currently on the database, you will have to create your own.

You can send the data from the App to an email address, but not all of the information that is displayed is sent!

Recently Imported Log Dive Number: 2 15 Jun 2013 - 13:30 Location: Car Cemetery Max Depth: 16.0 m Dive Time: 70 min Min. Temperature: 29.3°C Visibility: 10.0 m Buddies: Solo dive Description: Car Cemetery, dive number 1167, good viz, little current Dive Log created with My bluebuddy App - Powered by DiveNav

A nice bar chart is produced after the analysis button is pressed (after entering gas mix otherwise it will show air analysis for the dive) and it is possible to note the nitrogen loading on the tissues in an animated format (which unfortunately cannot be shown on paper) but the pre and post tissue saturation is shown here.

Start and end tank pressures need to be entered manually as well as the type of gas

Technical Data – source DiveNav Parameter Operating Range

Pressure Accuracy Temperature Accuracy Sampling Interval Memory Capacity Battery Autonomy Measurement System Activation Download Identification Size MSRP

Conditions Depth Temperature 0-5 bar 0-10 bar 0-14 bar T = 68F (20C) * ** *** * **** *****

There are a series of tutorials on the App that demonstrates clearly how to use the bluebuddy, the App itself, and manage your dives, all of which are in video format, again simple and easy to use.

The only part I found a bit tricky initially was entering the dive site, of course once they are in then no need to change them, but it will take a little time for me to enter in all of my local dive sites manually and the GPS format is different from what I use in my GPS. However they are in the same format as the book by Carol Harris and Tony Schroder.

The easiest way to download the dive site location is with the phone instantly when you are at the dive location, but I rarely take my iPhone with me on the dive boat.

Perhaps something to try on my next dive trip provided I have 3G coverage.

Memory storage is apparently good for 300 dives, (300 hours), which is a lot more than my current dive computer that only stores 40 hours of dive information.

The battery should last five years.

bluebuddy 131ft (40m) 32-120F (0-50C) +/- 20 mbar N/A N/A +/- 1.44F (+/- 0.08C) 2-180 sec 300 ~5 years Imperial/Metric 2-pin wet sensor Bluetooth 4.0 LE Unique MAC Address 2.7x1.6x0.6” (68x41x15 mm) $149

Tech Buddy 426ft (130m) 32-120F (0-50C) +/- 20 mbar -40/+20 mbar -100/+20 mbar +/- 1.44F (+/- 0.08C) 2-180 sec 300 ~5 years Imperial/Metric 2-pin wet sensor Bluetooth 4.0 LE Unique MAC Address 2.3x1.28x0.46” $179 (59x33x12 mm)

Further information can be found at DiveNav’s website: www.divenav.com/products/bluebuddy

Gordon

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TIPS & TRICKS

PARTNER stretches

This month we look at stretches to open the chest and back. The nature of modern living means we spend the majority of our time in forward flexion of our spine, with our arms in front of our body. These partner exercises will allow you to open your chest and bring your arms behind your body, balancing you out.

Partner hip opener – intense

Easy backbend

Supported backbend

Sit back to back with your partner. Reach the arms up and take a wrist to wrist grip.

One partner gently leans forward and pulls the partner with them. Keep communicating throughout.

Partner hip opener – mild

One partner brings the soles of their feet together and begins to lean forward. The partner behind leans back. If your inner thighs are tight this may be a big stretch so keep communicating with your partner to ensure you don’t overstretch.

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Same as partner hip opener mild, but the partner leaning forward brings the legs wide into a straddle. Keep flexing the feet to protect the hamstrings.

One partner sits up with their legs extended out in front of them, then leans forward slightly with their upper back. The other partner comes to kneeling, with their feet either side of their partner’s hips. Gently lean back and rest your upper back on your partner’s. Hold your heels and lift your chest to the sky.

Wide leg boat pose

Child’s pose traction

After backbends, it’s always a good idea to take a forward fold to even out the spine.

One partner rests in child’s pose (siting on the heels and folding the body over the thighs). The second partner leans over their back and allows them to sink deeper into the pose.

Sit facing your partner and hold wrists to wrists, with your feet on the ground either side of your hands. Lift one leg and then the other and press into your partner’s feet. Draw your abdomen in.

Log onto www.phoenix-rising.me for more info.

Sandy

THE FIRST OUTDOOR MAGAZINE FOR THE UAE AND THE MIDDLE EAST

TIPS & TRICKS

, n a D the Desert Gardener

loves

Chamaedorea The time is the turn of the 20th century, you are in London having an afternoon tea of cucumber sandwiches, scones strawberry jam and clotted

JULY 2013 - WWW.OUTDOORUAE.COM

cream. On the wall is a picture of beloved Queen Victoria and on the plant stand is a short, clustered, dark green palm commonly known as the Parlour palm or to me it is Chamaedorea elegans.

In the Palm world they are short palms as in their natural habitat of Central American Rainforests, they only grow to approximately 4m in height; as an indoor plant they won’t grow higher than 40cm.

Chamaedorea prefers medium to high humidity and bright indirect light, but they are one of the most tolerant indoor plants ever and will adapt to low levels of humidity and light. This is the reason they were so popular in Victorian times as they adapted to the low light and cool temperatures of those big houses. They will do the same in your airconditioned homes as long as they are not in the direct line of cold air.

Chamaedorea must have a moist soil but they also must have drainage as they don’t like to be waterlogged, this will rot their roots. How much water they need is dependent on how much light they get, but generally speaking they are known as a good indoor plant for beginners because their leaves will droop if they need water and once watered will recover.

In the pot they grow in clusters of slender, cane like stems with lovely long tapered

leaves. As they are very slow growing you will not need to repot them for at least a year or two, and they will be in your UAE home for a long time.

Not only are Chamaedorea elegans the most popular indoor palm in the USA, but in the UK, it also has gained the Royal Horticultural Society’s Award of Garden Merit.

Now as an indoor plant you can’t do better than that! The Dubai Garden Centre stocks Chamaedorea elegans.

THE FIRST OUTDOOR MAGAZINE FOR THE UAE AND THE MIDDLE EAST

JULY 2013 - WWW.OUTDOORUAE.COM

TIPS & TRICKS

Car Checklist

This month, we will give you a few tips on what to take with you in your car if you’re going on a long trip or an off-road adventure. Any pack or equipment list is unique and we are only focusing on the essentials. If you are interested in a long and comprehensive list as shown in the photos, pick up Mike Nott’s book “Off-Road Adventure Routes: UAE and Oman” as he also dedicated a whole chapter about the topic.

We have separated the list in two versions since some equipment is specifically for offroad trips.

What you should carry in any car: Warning triangle (this is now compulsory in the UAE) Car lift jack A wrench fitting the bolts of your wheels (some alloy wheels have a wheel lock to make sure you have the key for it in the car) Your vehicle tool kit (this usually includes the wrench for your wheels, some pliers, screwdrivers and maybe some other basic tools specific to your car) Spare wheel (make sure there is a spare wheel and that it’s fully functional) First aid kit Spare fuses and light bulbs Fire extinguisher Mobile phone (basic tool to call for help) Torch Additional things for long trips: Engine oil at least one litre Water at least five litres Transmission oil Jumper cables Tyre pressure gauge A complete tool kit Towing rope Cable straps and duct tape Additional things if you go off-road: Jacking board Recovery strap/rope Shovel GPS Additional drinking water for at least one day

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Vehicle tools

Minimum recovery and safety equipment

General recovery and safety equipment

Vehicle spares

None of the equipment mentioned will help you if you don’t know how to use it or if it’s in bad condition, so make sure you are familiar with how to use all these things and always

maintain always in good condition. Of course, you can extend this list infinitely. We focused on the essentials and tried to make sure that stuff is not taking up too much space.

OutdoorUAE has launched the unique guidebook by driving expert Mike Nott to introduce and educate 4x4 drivers about different challenging routes in the region. It features 18 advanced routes for the seasoned off-road driver, a plethora of helpful information including satellite maps and waypoint tables. It also shares useful tips and things to remember before and upon embarking on an off-road trip such as recovery procedures, survival guides, equipment checklist and terrain type descriptions. The book also includes a free CD containing coordinates of each route in .GPX file format, which you can load on your computer or GPS tracking device for navigation convenience.

TIPS & TRICKS

Rock Republic

Words By: Pete Aldwinckle

I first arrived in the UAE some nine years ago and six months later moved into the Springs. Frustration at the lack of climbing training facilities led to our crude home wall built in our carport. For 18 months, ‘Pete’s Garage’ became a focal point for the very small UAE climbing community with some training, some brews (regularly), a film night on a neighbour’s wall and regular traffic disruption as motorists slowed and gawped at half-naked, sweaty men and glowing women working out in a carport on 8sqm of plywood.

The original Pete’s Garage wall, Springs circa 2005

Since then, Guida and I have started Global Climbing; spent five years in RAK. I have failed miserably to persuade an institutional investor to build the large climbing gym that a city like Dubai warrants and climbing training facilities have not developed.

Last August, on a long brutal overnight drive back from the Saudi border, I had an idea. As Walltopia’s regional representatives, we should have a sales centre to showcase some of their world-class products. Designed correctly, we would also be able to train; the Rock Republic seed was sown. After an overly long gestation period, the Beast is about to be born – the 250sqm of state-of-the-art bouldering built to international specifications. As per the original Pete’s Garage wall, we will be sharing with serious climbers who want to train hard and have some fun. Regrettably, we have to do this through a membership scheme and at a cost. It will be interesting to see if the Dubai climbing community is serious about its need for quality climbing training facilities or whether it is just more Dubai resident hyperbole.

Visit at Rock Republic at www.facebook.com/rock.republic.dubai

THE FIRST OUTDOOR MAGAZINE FOR THE UAE AND THE MIDDLE EAST

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DIRECTORY General Sports Equipment Megastores

Adventure HQ, Dubai Times Square Center, Sheikh Zayed Rd, toll free: 800-ADVENTURE, www.adventurehq.ae Decathlon, Dubai, Mirdif City Centre, +97142839392 Go Sport, The Dubai Mall: +97143253595; Ibn Battuta Mall: +9714368 5344; Mall of the Emirates: +9714341 3251; Mirdif City Centre: +97142843034 InterSport, Dubai, Times Square Centre and Dubai Festival City, +97142066587, www.intersport.ae Sun and Sand Sports, most shopping centres, +97143504444, www.sunandsandsports.com

Adventure tours and desert safaris

MMI Travel, Mezzanine Floor, Dnata Travel Centre, Shk Zayed Road, Dubai, +97144045888, www.mmitravel.ae Alpha Tours, +97142949888, www.alphatoursdubai.com Bike and Hike Oman, PO Box 833, Ruwi, Postal Code 112, Oman, +96824400873, www.bikeandhikeoman.com Cyclone Tours & Travels, Abu Dhabi, Khalifa Street, +97126276275, www. cyclonetours.com Dadabhai Travel, Sama Bldg. next to Al Mulla Plaza, Dubai-Sharjah Road, Dubai, +97142209393,www.dadabhaitravel.ae Desert Rangers, Dubai, +97143572200, www.desertrangers.com Desert Road Tourism, Al Khor Plaza – 503, Dubai, +97142959429, www.arabiantours.com Dream Days, +97144329392, www.dreamdays.ae Dream Explorer LLC, Dubai, +971433198801, www.dreamexplorerdubai.com Dubai Relax Travel, Dubai, +97144221776, www.dubairelaxtours.com Element Fitness, Dubai, +971502771317, www.element-fitness.net Explorer Tours, Umm Ramool, Dubai, +97142861991, www.explorertours.ae, Gulf for Good, Dubai, +97143680222, www.gulf4good.org Gulf Ventures, Dnata Travel Centre +97144045880, www.gulfventures.com Net Group, Dubai and Abu Dhabi, +97126794656, www.netgroupauh.com Oasis Palm Dubai, Dubai, +97142628889, www.opdubai.com Rahhalah, Dubai, +97144472166, www.rahhalah.com Relax Tours Travels, Dubai, +97144221776, www.dubairelaxtours.com Wild Guanabana, Dubai, +971567954954, www.wildguanabana.com

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Clubs Abu Dhabi Fishing, Camping, Kayaking, & Adventure Club, +971504920860, mohammed.almahrouky@gmail.com

Air

Ballooning Adventures Emirates, Dubai, +97142854949, www.ballooning.ae Jazirah Aviation Club, Ras Al Khaimah, +9716139859, www.jac-uae.net Seawings, Dubai, www.seawings.com Sky Dive Dubai, Dubai, +971501533222, www.skydivedubai.ae

Boating & Sailing

Manufacturer Al Fajer Marine, Dubai, Al Quoz, +97143235181, www.alfajermarine.com Al Shaali Marine, Ajman, +97167436443, www.alshaalimarine.com Al Yousuf Motors, Al Quoz, Dubai, +97143475744, www.aym.ae/yamaha Gulf Craft, Ajman, +97167406060, www.gulfcraftinc.com Al Jeer Marina, RAK border Musandam, +97172682333/+971504873185, www. aljeerport.ae Distributors and Dealers Art Marine, Dubai, +97143388955, www.artmarine.net Azure Marine, Dubai, +97143404343, www.azuremarine.net Leisure Marine Beach Street, Dubai, The Walk JBR, +97144243191 Luxury Sea Boats, Dubai, +971505589319, www.luxuryseaboats.com Macky Marine LLC, Dubai, +971505518317, www.mackymarine.com Nautilus Yachts, Sharjah, +97165576818, www.nautilusyachts.com UAE Boats 4 Sale, Dubai Marina, +97144471501, www.uaeboats4sale.com Western Marine, Marina Yacht Club, Dubai, +97143039744 The Boat House, Dubai, Al Quoz, +97143405152, www.theboathouse.ae Equipment Ali Khalifah Moh Al Fuqaei, Deira, Dubai, +97142263220 Al Masaood Marine, Dubai, Sheikh Zayed Road, +97143468000, www.masaoodmarine.com Blue Waters Marine, Shop 11, The Curve Bldg., Sheikh Zayed Road, Dubai, +97143808616/+971553899995, C info@bluewatersmarine.com, www. bluewatersmarine.com Extreme Marine, Dubai, +97143992995,M www.extrememarine-me.com Y Japan Marine General Trading, Al Garhoud Road, Liberty Building, Dubai, +97155 9299111, +97142828255, uday@japanmarine.jp, www.CM japanmarine.co Rineh Emirates Trading LLC, Dubai, Al MY Quoz, +97143391512, www.rinehemiratesme. com CY Repairs and Maintenance Extreme Marine, Dubai, Dubai Marina, CMY +97143992995, www.extrememarine-me.com Rineh Emirates, Sheikha Sana Warehouse K 1, Al Quoz, +97143391512, info@ rinehemiratesme.com, www.rinehemirates. com SNS Marine, JAFZA Techno Park, Jebel Ali, Dubai, +971501405058, info@snsmarine.ae, www.snsmarine.ae The Boat House, Dubai, Al Quoz, +97143405152, www.theboathouse.ae Cruise Operators 4 Yacht Arabia, Shop No. 5, Dubai Marina Yacht Club, 800 92248, www.4yachtarabia. ae Al Bateen Marina, Abu Dhabi, +97126665491, www.marinaalbateenresort. com Al Marsa Travel & Tourism, Dibba, Musandam, +96826836550, +97165441232 Leisure Marine Beach Street, Dubai, TheWalk JBR, +97144243191 Bateaux Dubai, Dubai Creek opposite the British Embassy, +97143994994

Bristol Middle East, Dubai Marina, +97144309941, www.bristol-middleeast. com Captain Tony’s, Yas Marina, Yas Island, Abu Dhabi, +97126507175, www. captaintonys.ae Delma Industrial Supply and Marine Services, Al Bateen Jetty, Abu Dhabi, +97126668153, www.delmamarine.net Eden Yachting, Dubai Marina, +971504586171, www.edenyachting.com Emirates Yachting, Dubai, +97142826683 El Mundo, Dubai, +971505517406, www.elmundodubai.com Four Star Travel and Tourism, Dubai, +9714 2737779, www.fourstartravels.net Fujairah Rotana Resort & Spa, Al Aqah Beach, Fujairah, +97192449888, www.rotana.com Ghantoot Marina & Resort, Abu Dhabi, +971529933153, www.ghantootmarina. com Happy Days Sea Cruising LLC, Dubai, +971558961276, +971503960202, www.happydaysdubai.com JPS Yachts and Charter, Room 225, Emarat Atrium building, Sheikh Zayed Road, Dubai, +97143437734, www.jpsyachts.com Khasab Divers, Oman, +97156 7255889, khasab.diver2@gmail.com Khour Shem Tourism, Oman, +96826731919, www.khourshemtours.com LY Catamaran, Dubai, +971505869746, +971566506683, www.lycatamaran.com Marine Concept, Dubai, +971559603030, www.marine-charter-concept.com Nautica1992, Dubai, +971504262415, www.nautica1992.ae Noukhada Adventure Company, Villa 332/7, Al Meena Street, Abu Dhabi, +97126503600, www.noukhada.ae Cycle RAK Marine LLC, RasHub_proof Al Khaimah new.pdf City Hilton Marina, +971504912696, +97172066410

Marinas Abu Dhabi International Marine Sports Club, Abu Dhabi, Breakwater, +97126815566, www.adimsc.com Abu Dhabi Marina, Abu Dhabi, Tourist Club Area, +97126440300 Al Jeer Marina, RAK Border, Musandam +971 7 2682333 or +971 50 4873185 www.aljeerport.ae Al Mouj Marina, Muscat, Oman, +968 9423 9777, www.mourjanmarinas.com Dubai Creek Marina, Deira, Dubai, +971 4 380 1234, www.dubaigolf.com Dubai International Marine Sports Club, Dubai Marina, +97143995777, www.dimc. ae Dubai Marina Yacht Club, Dubai, +97143627900, www.dubaimarinayachtclub.com Dubai Maritime City Harbour Marina, Dubai, +97143455545 Dubai Offshore Sailing Club, Dubai, +97143941669, www.dosc.ae Emirates Palace Marina, Abu Dhabi, +97143388955 Festival Marina, Dubai, Festival City, +97144498400, www.igy-festivalmarina. com Festival Marina, Dubai, Festival City, +97142085100, www.mourjanmarinas.com Four Seasons Marina, Doha, Qatar, +97444948899, www.mourjanmarinas.com Fujairah International Marine Club, Fujairah, +97192221166, www.fimc.ae Intercontinental Abu Dhabi Marina, Al Bateen, Intercontinental Hotel, Abu Dhabi, +97126666888, www.intercontinental.com Jebel Ali Golf Resort and Spa Marina, Jebel Ali, Dubai, +9714814 5555/5029, www.jebelali-international.com Lusail Marina, Lusail City, Qatar, +9745584 3282, www.mourjan-lusailmarina.com 1 5/2/13 2:43 PM Muscat, Marina Bandar Al Rowdha, Oman, +96824737286 (ext 215), www. marinaoman.net

OUR MEGA STORE IS NOW OPEN!!!

Great opening specials in store!

Dubai Motor City Next to Dubai Autodrome

Sea Hunters Passenger Yachts & Boats Rental, Dubai Marina, +97142951011 Sheesa Beach, Dibba, Musandam, +971503336046, www.sheesabeach.com Smoke Dragon Of London Yacht, Abu Dhabi International Marine & Sports Club, +971507011958/+971504546617 Summertime Marine Sports, Dubai, +97142573084 The Club, Abu Dhabi, +97126731111, www.the-club.com The Yellow Boats LLC, Dubai Marina Walk – opposite Spinneys, Intercontinental Hotel Marina, +8008044, www.theyellowboats.com

+971 50 552 8872 sam@thecyclehub.com www.thecyclehub.com

Pavilion Marina, Dubai, Jumeirah Beach Hotel, +97144068800 The Pearl–Qatar Marinas, Doha, Qatar, +9744965801, www.ronauticame.com Umm Al Quwaim Marine Sports Club, Umm Al Quwaim, +97167666644, www.uaqmarineclub.com Dragon Boat Groups Dubai Dawn Patrol Dragon Boating, Dubai+971508795645 (Michael), www.dubaidawnpatrol.org Dubai Diggers, Jumeirah Beach Hotel, pier next to 360, Dubai, +971501547175 (Nick Hando), www.dubai-diggers.com

THE FIRST OUTDOOR MAGAZINE FOR THE UAE AND THE MIDDLE EAST

UAE Dragon Boat Association, +971507634008 (Jason), www.dubaidragonboat.com

Camping & Hiking

Equipment Blingmytruck.com, +971505548255, www. blingmytruck.com Jack Wolfskin Mirdif City Centre Dubai, +97142840228; Al Wahda Mall Abu Dhabi +97124437802 Picnico General Trading, near Sharaf DG Metro Station, Sheikh Zayed Road, Dubai, +97143951113 Tresspass, The Dubai Mall, 2nd floor above ice rink, +97143398801 Tour Operators Arabia Outdoors, Dubai, +971559556209, www.arabiaoutdoors.com Absolute Adventure, Dubai, +97143459900, www.adventure.ae Libra, +971559228362, www.libra-uae.com Mountain High Middle East, Dubai, +97143480214, www.mountainhighme.com Sheesa Beach, Musandam, Dibba, +97150336046, www.sheesabeach.com Desert Road Tourism, Al Khor Plaza – 503, Dubai, +97142959428, www.arabiatours.com

Caving

Muscat Diving & Adventure Centre, Oman, +96824543002, www.holiday-inoman.com Mountain High Middle East, Dubai, +97143480214, www.mountainhighme.com Oman World Tourism, Oman, +96899431333, www.omanworldtourism.com

Climbing

Equipment Global Climbing Trading LLC, Dubai Investment Park 1, Dubai, +97148829361, www.globalclimbing.com Adventure HQ, Dubai Times Square Center, Sheikh Zayed Rd, toll free: 800-ADVENTURE, www.adventurehq.ae Barracuda Fishing and Outdoor, Dubai, Street 13A 1, Al Safa 1, +97143466558, www.barracudadubai.com Jack Wolfskin Mirdif City Centre Dubai, +97142840228; Al Wahda Mall Abu Dhabi +97124437802 Services Absolute Adventure, Dubai, +97143459900, www.adventure.ae Adventure HQ, Dubai Times Square Center, Sheikh Zayed Rd, toll free: 800-ADVENTURE, www.adventurehq.ae Al Shaheen Adventure, Abu Dhabi, +97126429995, www.alshaheenme.com Arabia Outdoors, Dubai, +971559556209, www.arabiaoutdoors.com Dorell Sports Management, Dubai World Trade Centre, +97143065061, www. climbingdubai.com E-Sports UAE, Dubai, +97142824540, www.esportsuae.com The Club, Abu Dhabi, +97126731111, www.the-club.com Information UAE Climbing, +971506456491, www. uaeclimbing.com

Atrium, Motor City, Dubai, +97143697441, www.rcdxb.com Sportz Unlimited, Sheikh Zayed Road & Jebel Ali, Dubai, + 97143388644 Tamreen Sports LLC, Khalifa Street, Abu Dhabi, +97126222525, www.tamreensports. com The Cycle Hub, Motor City, Dubai, +971505528872, www.thecyclehub.com Trikke uPT, Dubai, +971 4 508 1202, +971 55 609 6757, www.trikkeme.net, info@ trikkeme.net Trek Bicycle Store, Seih Al Salam, Al Qudra Road, Dubai, +97148327377 , www. trekbikes.ae Fun Ride Sports, Rm no. 4, Mezzanine flr, C-13 bldg. Khalifa A City, Abu Dhabi, +97125566113, www.funridesports.com Peak Performance, Mall of the Emirates, Dubai Mall, Dubai, +97143413056/+97143308023 Wolfi’s Bike Shop, Dubai, Sheikh Zayed Road, +97143394453, www.wbs.ae Operator Absolute Adventure, Dubai, +97143459900, +971506259165, www. adventure.ae, info@adventure.ae Clubs Abu Dhabi Tri Club, www.abudhabitriclub. com Cycle Safe Dubai, Dubai Autodrome www.cyclechallenge.ae Dubai Roadsters, www.dubairoadsters. com

Diving

Equipment Al Boom Marine, Abu Dhabi and Dubai, +97142894858, www.alboommarine.com Al Masaood Marine, Dubai, Sheikh Zayed Road, +97143468000,www. masaoodmarine.com Al Yousuf Motors, Sheikh Zayed Road, Dubai, +97143390621, www.aym.ae/ yamaha Blue Waters Marine, +97142232189, Dubai, www.bluewatersmarine.com Gulf Marine Sports, Abu Dhabi, +97126710017, www.gulfmarinesports.com Premiers for Equipment, Abu Dhabi, Sh. Zayed 1st. Road, +97126665226, www.premiers-uae.com Al Hamur Marine and Sports Equipment, Jumeirah Beach Road, Dubai, +9714 3444468 Scuba 2000, Al Bidiya Beach, Fujairah, +97192388477, www.scuba-2000.com Scuba Dubai, Al Barsha, Al Khail Road, Dubai, +97143414940, info@scubadubai. com Diving Centres 7 Seas Diving Center, Khorfakkan, +97192387400, www.7seasdivers.com Al Boom Diving (equipment), Dubai, Al Wasl Rd, + 97143422993, www.alboomdiving.com Al Jeer Marina, RAK Border, Musandam,

Mountain Biking & Cycling

Equipment/Dealers Cycle Sports, Shop No. 1, Al Waleed Bldg., Al Barsha 1, Dubai, +97143415415, www.cyclesportsuae.com Fun Ride Sports, 301, 3rd floor, Mushrif Mall, Abu Dhabi, Rm. 4, Mezzanine floor, C-13 Bldg., Khalifa City A, Abu Dhabi, info@funridesports.com, www. funridesports.com Micah’s Bike Shop, Warehouse no.4 6th st.

Al Quoz 3, Dubai, +97143805228 Probike, Dubai, Al Barsha 1, +97143255705, www.probike.ae Rage Shop, Dubai Mall, Mall of the Emirates, Dubai Festival City, +97143369007, www.rage-shop.com Ride Bike Shop, Dubai Mall, Festival City, Oasis Centre, Mirdif City Centre, Sheikh Zayed Road, Dubai, +97143750231, www.ridebikeshop.com Revolution Cycles, Shop G05, Apex

64

OUTDOORUAE

Walltopia’s ME Sales Showroom will be opening in late May ‘13.

Climbers’ training memberships for Out of Working Hours bouldering, now available.

Special Summer Sizzler membership now available. facebook.com.rock.republic.dubai or vanda@globalclimbing.com

JULY 2013 - WWW.OUTDOORUAE.COM

+97172682333, www.aljeerport.ae Al Mahara Dive Center, near Muroor St across from main bus terminal, +97126437377, info@divemahara.com, www.divemahara.com Al Marsa Musandam, Dibba Harbour, Musandam, Oman, +968 26 836550, www.almarsamusandam. com Arabian Diver, Hilton Marine, Ras Al Khaimah, +97172226628, +971502428128 www.arabiandiver.com Arabian Divers and Sportfishing Charters, Al Bateen Marina Resort, Abu Dhabi, +971506146931, www.fishabudhabi.com Coastal Technical Divers, glenn@ coastaltechnicaldivers.com, www. coastaltechnicaldivers.com Deep Blue Sea Diving, Dubai, International City, +97144308246, www.diveindubai.com Desert Islands, Sir Bani YAs Island, Abu Dhabi, UAE, +97128015400, www. divemahara.com Divers Down, Fujairah, Rotana Al Aqah Hotel Resort & Spa, +97192370299, www.diversdown-uae.com Emirates Divers Centre, Abu Dhabi, near Meena Fish Market, +97126432444, www. edc-ad.ae Euro-Divers Oman, Muscat, Oman, +96895035815, www.euro-divers.com Extra Divers Ziggy Bay, Oman, Musandam, +96826735555, www.extradivers.info Freediving UAE, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Fujairah, contactus@freedivinguae.com, www.freedivinguae.com Freestyle Divers, Dubai, Al Wasl & Dibba, Royal Beach Hotel, +97143944275, www.freestyledivers.com Fujairah Rotana Resort & Spa - Al Aqah Beach, Al Aqah Beach, Fujairah, +97192449888, www.rotana.com Global Scuba Dive Center, Civil Aviation Club, Oman, +96899317518, www.global-scuba.com Khasab Divers, Oman, www.khasabdiver.com Le Meridien Al Aqah Beach Resort, Dibba Road, Fujairah, +97192449000, www.lemeridien-alaqah.com Moonlight Dive Center, Madinat Qaboos, Oman, +968 99317700, www.moonlightdive.com Muscat Diving & Adventure Centre, Oman, +97150 3289642, www.holiday-in-oman.com Neptune Diving, +97150 4347902, www.neptunedivingcentre.com Nomad Ocean Adventures, www.discovernomad.com, +971508853238, Dibba, Oman Oman Dive Center, Muscat, Oman, +96824284240, www.omadivecenter.com Pavilion Dive Centre (equipment), Dubai, +97144068828 Scuba 2000, Al Bidiya Beach, Fujairah, +97192388477, www.scuba-2000.com Scuba Oman, Oman, +96899558488, www.scubaoman.com Scuba UAE.com, +971502053922, www. scubauae.com Sharjah Wanderers Dive Club, Sharjah, +97150 784 0830, www.bsac406.com Sheesa Beach, Dibba, Musandam, +971503336046, www.sheesabeach.com Sky &Sea Adventures, Dubai, Hilton, Jumeirah Beach Road, +97143999005, www.watersportsdubai.com The Pavilion Dive Centre (equipment), Dubai, +97144068828 The Dive Shop, 34G, European Center, Green Community, Dubai, UAE, +97148135474, www.thediveshopdubai.com Clubs Atlantis Underwater Photography Club, Dubai, +97144263000 Desert Sports Diving Club, Dubai, www.desertsportsdivingclub.net Emirates Diving Association, Diving Village, Al Shindagha, Dubai, +97143939390, www.emiratesdiving.com Filipino SCUBA Divers Club (FSDC),

Dubai, UAE, +971 56 6952421, www.thefilipinoscubadivers.com Freediving UAE, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Fujairah, contactus@freedivinguae.com, www.freedivinguae.com Sharjah Wanderers Dive Club, Sharjah, +971507840830, www.bsac406.com

Fishing & Kayaking

Equipment Al Boom Marine, Abu Dhabi & Dubai, +97142894858, www.alboommarine.com Al Yousuf Motors, Dubai, Sheikh Zayed Rd, +97143390621, www.aym.ae/yamaha Al Hamur Marine and Sports Equipment, Jumeirah Beach Road, Dubai, +9714 3444468 Arabian Divers and Sportfishing Charters, Al Bateen Marina Resort, Abu Dhabi, +971506146931, www.fishabudhabi.com Blue Waters Marine, Shop 11, The Curve Bldg., Sheikh Zayed Road, Dubai, +97143808616/+971553899995, info@bluewatersmarine.com, www. bluewatersmarine.com Al Masaood Marine, Dubai, Sheikh Zayed Road, +97143468000, www.masaoodmarine.com Barracuda Fishing and Outdoor, Dubai, Street 13A 1, Al Safa 1, +97143466558, www.barracudadubai.com Global Climbing Trading LLC, Dubai Investment Park 1, Dubai, +97148829361, www.globalclimbing.com Leisure Marine Beach Hut, Dubai, The Walk JBR, +97144243191, www.leisuremarine-me.com Ocean Active, Dubai, Garden Centre, +971502898713, www.oceanactive.com Operators Al Boom Diving, Le Meridien Al Aqah Beach Resort, Fujairah, +97143422993 Absolute Adventure, Dubai, +97143459900, www.adventure.ae Al Hamra Marina and Yacht Club, Al Hamra, Ras Al Khaimah, +97172434540, www. alhamramarina.com Al Mahara Dive Center, Downtown Abu Dhabi, +971501118125, www.divemahara.com Al Shaheen Adventure, Abu Dhabi, +97126429995, www.alshaheenme.com Al Wasl Charter & Fishing (Al Wasl Passenger Yachts and Boats Rental LLC), Airport Road, Al Owais Building, Dubai, +97142394761, www.cruiseindubai.com Arabian Divers and Sportfishing Charters, Al Bateen Marina Resort, +971506146931, www.fishabudhabi.com Arabia Outdoors, Dubai, +971559556209, www.arabiaoutdoors.com Barracuda Diving Centre, Fujairah International Marine Club, +9719222558 Belevari Marine, Abu Dhabi,+97126594144 Captain Tony’s, Yas Marina, Yas Island, Abu Dhabi, +97126507175, www.captaintonys.ae Fun Beach Water Sports, Dubai, +97153244550, www.funbeachsports.com Happy Days Sea Cruising LLC, Dubai, +971558961276, +971503960202, www.happydaysdubai.com Hiltonia Beach Club, Hilton Abu Dhabi Hotel, Abu Dhabi, +97126811900 Le Meridien Al Aqah Beach Resort, Dibba Road, Fujairah, +97192449000, www.lemeridien-alaqah.com Nautica 1992, Dubai, +971504262415, www.nautica1992.ae Noukhada Adventure Company, Villa 332/7, Al Meena Street, Abu Dhabi, +97126503600, www.noukhada.ae Ocean Active, Dubai, Garden Centre, +971502898713, www.oceanactive.com Sheesa Beach, Dibba, Musandam, +971503336046, www.sheesabeach.com Summertime Marine Sports, Dubai, +97142573084, www.summertimemarine.com Soolyman Sports Fishing, Dubai, Umm Suqeim, +971508866227, www.soolymansportsfishing.com Xclusive Yachts, Dubai, Dubai Marina, +97144327233,

THE FIRST OUTDOOR MAGAZINE FOR THE UAE AND THE MIDDLE EAST

www.xclusiveyachts.com Clubs Abu Dhabi Camping, Fishing & Kayaking Club, mohamed.almahrouky@gmail.com Dubai Surfski & Kayak Club, Kitesurfers’ Beach, Umm Suqeim 1, Dubai, +971554986280, www.dskc.hu

General Sports Equipment Distributors

800 Sport, Al Quoz, Dubai +971 4 346 7751 www.800sport.ae Adventure HQ, Dubai Times Square Center, Sheikh Zayed Rd, Toll free: 800-ADVENTURE, www.adventurehq.ae Al Yousuf Motors, Sheikh Zayed Road, Dubai, +97143390621, www.aym.ae/yamaha Flip Flop Arabia, flipme@flipfloparabia.com, www.flipfloparabia.com Global Climbing Trading LLC, Dubai Investment Park 1, Dubai +97148829361, www.globalclimbing.com Goal Zero, +971509128353, www.goalzero.ae Jack Wolfskin Mirdif City Centre Dubai, +97142840228; Al Wahda Mall Abu Dhabi +97144437802 Ocean Sports FZE, +971559352735, www. kitesurfsup.com Sakeen General Trading, +97147094224, www.sakeen.ae Sport in Life Distribution, Nad Al Hammar Rd., Ras Al Khor, Dubai, UAE, +97142896001, +97142896002, info@sportinlife.ae, www. sportinlife.ae Tresspass, The Dubai Mall 2nd floor above ice rink, +971 4 339 8801

Horse Riding

Equipment Al Asifa Horse Equestrian & Requisites Trading, Al Khawaneej 1, Dubai, +971554733110, www.asifa.ae Black Horse LLC, Abu Dhabi, +97126422237, www.blackhorseuae.com Bonjour Equestrian Supplies, Nad Al Hammar Rd., Ras Al Kho, Dubai, UAE, +97142896001, +97142896002, info@bonjourequestrian.com, www.bonjourequestrian.com Cavalos Equine Care and Supplies, 16th Street, Al Khalidiyah, Abu Dhabi, +9172 2222433, www.cavalosuae.com Emirta Horse Requirement Centre, Sheik Zayed Rd, Dubai, +9714 3437475, www.emirtahorse.com Horse & Carriage Equestrian Equipment LLC, Dubai, +97142895069, www.horseandcarriageuae.com Mirzan Equestrian Equipment, Dubai, +971 4 4472808, www.metdubaihorse.com Equestrian Clubs/Centres Abu Dhabi Equestrian Club, Al Mushrif, Abu Dhabi, +97124455500, www.adec-web.com

Al Ahli Riding School, Al Amman Street, Dubai-Sharjah Rd., +97142988408, www.alahliclub.info Al Forsan International Sports Resort, Abu Dhabi, +97125568555, www.alforsan.com Al Jiyad Stables, Behind Dubai International Endurance City, Dubai, +971505995866, info@aljiyad.com, www.aljiyad.com Al Sahra Desert Resort Equestrian Centre, Dubai, +97144274055, equestrian.centre@alsahra.com Dubai Polo Academy, Dubai, +971508879847, www.dubaipoloacademy. com Dubai Polo & Equestrian Club, Dubai, Arabian Ranches, +97143618111, www.poloclubdubai.com Desert Equestrian Club, Mirdif, Dubai, +971503099770, +971501978888 Desert Palm Riding School, Near Al Awir Road (going to Hatta-Oman), Dubai, +97143238010, www.desertpalm.peraquum.com Emirates Equestrian Centre, Dubai, +971505587656, www.emiratesequestriancentre.com Ghantoot Polo & Racing Club, Exit 399, Abu Dhabi/ Dubai Highway, Abu Dhabi, +97125629050, www.grpc.ae Golden Stables Equestrian Club, Al Khawaneej, Dubai, (Nouri) +971555528182, www.goldenstables.ae HoofbeatZ, located just inside the Dubai Polo & Equestrian Club, Dubai, +971501810401, www.hoofbeatz.com Mushrif Equestrian and Polo Club, Mushrif Park, Al Khawaneej Road, Dubai, +97142571256, www.mushrifec.com Qudraland Community, info@qudraland.com, www.qudraland.com Rahal Ranch, Al Wathba Racing Area, Abu Dhabi, +971566127914, www.rahalranch.com Riding for the Disabled, Dubai, lessons@ rdad.ae, www.rdad.ae, Sharjah Equestrian & Racing Club, Sharjah, Al Dhaid Road, +97165311188, www.serc.ae Racecourses Abu Dhabi Equestrian Club, Al Mushrif, Abu Dhabi, +97124455500, www.adec-web.com Ghantoot Racing & Polo Club, Exit 399, Abu Dhabi/ Dubai Highway, Abu Dhabi, +97125629050, www.grpc.ae Jebel Ali Racecourse, off the main Abu Dhabi - Dubai Highway (Sheikh Zayed road) beside the Emirates Golf Club, Dubai, +97143474914 Meydan Grandstand and Racecourse, Al Meydan Road, Nad Al Sheba, Dubai, +97143270000, www.meydan.ae Sharjah Racecourse, Al Dhaid Road, Sharjah, +97165311155, www.serc.ae Equine Hospitals/Clinics Dubai Equine Hospital, behind World Trade Center, Zabeel 2, Dubai, +97143178888, www.dubaiequine.ae Gulf Vetcare, Al Wathba, Abu Dhabi, +971508617590, www.gulfvetcare.com Sharjah Equine Hospital, Bridge no. 6, Al Dhaid Road, next to Sharjah Equestrian & Racing Center, Sharjah, +97165311881, www.seh.ae Central Veterinary Research Laboratory, next to Dubai Equestrian Hospital, Zabeel 2, Dubai, +97143375165, www.cvrl.ae

Jet Ski

Dealers Al Masaood Marine, Dubai, Sheikh Zayed Road, +97143468000, www.masaoodmarine.com Japan Marine General Trading, Al Garhoud Road, Liberty Building, Dubai, +97155 9299111, +97142828255, uday@japanmarine.jp, www. japanmarine.co Liberty Kawasaki, Dubai, Interchange 4, Sheikh Zayed Road, +97143419341, www.libertykawasaki.com Al Yousuf Motors, Dubai, Sheikh Zayed Rd, +97143390621, www.aym.ae/yamaha Rentals Fun Beach Water Sports, Dubai, +971 5 3244 550, www.funbeachsports.com The Cove Rotana Resort, Ras Al Khaimah, +9717206000, www.rotana.com Xventures, Dubai, +971555404500, www.x-ventures.ae

Motocross & ATV’s

JULY 2013 - WWW.OUTDOORUAE.COM

Dealers Al Badayer Rental (Rental), Dubai-Hatta Road, +971507842020, www.albadayerrental.com Al Shaali Moto, Ras Al Khor, +97143200009, sales@alshaalimoto.com. www.alshaalimoto. com Al Yousuf Motors, Dubai, Sheikh Zayed Rd, +97143390621, www.aym.ae/yamaha KTM, Dubai, Sheikh Zayed Road, exit 42, +9714323151, www.ktm.com Golden Desert Motorcycles Rental (Rental), Dubai-Hatta Road, Dubai, +971551532550, www.goldendesert-dubai.com Polaris UAE (atv’s), Ras Al Khor, Nad al Hamar Road, Al Ghandi Complex, Dubai, +97142896100, M4, Sector 13, 10th Street, Mussafah Industrial, Abu Dhabi, +97125555144, www.polarisuae.com Liberty Kawasaki, Dubai, Interchange 4, Sheikh Zayed Road, 04-3419341, www.libertykawasaki.com Sandstorm Motorcycles (Rental), Al Quoz, Dubai, +97143470270, www.sandstorm-motorcycles.com Sebsports, Al Quoz Industrial Area 1 Dubai, +97143393399, www.sebsports.com Wild X Adventure Shop, Dubai, +97148321050, www. wildx.ae Equipment Desert Road Tourism, Al Khor Plaza – 503, Dubai, +97142959429, www.arabiantours.com 2XWheeler, Motorcity Dubai, +97144548388, www.2xwheeler.com Sandstorm Motorcycles (Rental), Al Quoz, Dubai, +97143470270, www.sandstorm-motorcycles.com Sebsports, Dubai, Al Quoz Industrial Area 3, +97143393399, www.sebsports.com Wild X, Dubai, Um Al Ramoul Industrial Area, +97142852200, www. wildx.ae

Motorcycling

Distributors and Dealers Al Yousuf Motors, Dubai, Sheikh Zayed Rd, www.aym.ae/yamaha Ducati, Mussafah 4, Street 10, Abu Dhabi, +97125535771, info2@ducati.ae, www. ducati.ae Duseja Motorcycles, Dubai, Al Quoz, +97143476712, www.dusejamoto.com Harley-Davidson, Mussafah 4, Street 10, Abu Dhabi, +97125540667, hd.auh@ harley-davidson.ae, www.harley-davidsonabu-dhabi.com Liberty Kawasaki, Dubai, Interchange4, Sheikh Zayed Road, +97142822144, www.libertykawasaki.com Polaris UAE, Al Ghandi Complex, Nad al Hamar Road, Ras Al Khor, +97142896100, www.polarisuae.com Tristar Motorcycles, +97143330659, www.tristaruae.com Workshops and Services 2xWheeler Adventures, Dubai, +97144548388

Dune Bike, Dubai, Al Khail Road, +97143272088, www.dunebike.com Duseja Motorcycles, Dubai, Al Quoz, +97143476712, www.dusejamoto.com Gecko Motorcycles, Dubai, Al Quoz, +97143413550, www.gecko-moto.com Sebsports, Al Quoz Industrial Area 1 Dubai, +9714 3393399, www.sebsports.com Clubs Dubai Motocross Club (DMX), Jebel Ali, Dubai, +971506950764 (Tom Wynn) www.dubaimotocross.com

Motorsports

Al Ain Raceway International Kart Circuit, Al Ain, +97137686662,

www.alainraceway.com Al Forsan International Sports Resort, Abu Dhabi, +97125568555, www.alforsan.com Dubai Autodrome, Dubai, +97143678700 www.dubaiautodrome.com Emirates Motorplex, Umm Al Quwain, +97167681717 Yas Marina Circuit, Abu Dhabi, www.yasmarinacircuit.com

Off-Road

Dealers 4x4 Motors LLC, Shk. Zayed Rd, Dubai, +97143384866, www.4x4motors.com Bling My Truck, +971503634839/+971505548255, info@ blingmytruck.com, www.blingmytruck.com Liberty Automobiles, Dubai, 8005423789, www.libertyautos.com Repairs and Services Off Road Zone, Dubai, Al Quoz, +97143392449, www.offroad-zone.com Icon Auto Garage, Dubai, +97143382744, www.icon-auto.com Saluki Motorsport, Dubai, +97143476939 www.salukimotorsport.com Equipment Advanced Expedition Vehicles, Dubai & Abu Dhabi, +97143307152, www.aev.ae Al Yousuf Motors, Sheikh Zayed Road, Dubai, +97143390621, www.aym.ae/yamaha Bling My Truck, +971503634839/+971505548255, info@ blingmytruck.com, www.blingmytruck.com Icon Auto Garage, Dubai, +97143382744, www.icon-auto.com Wild X Adventure Shop, Dubai-Hatta Road, Dubai, +97148321050, www.wildx.ae Yellow Hat, Nad Al Hamar, and Times Square Center, Dubai, +97142898060, www.yellowhat.ae Tour Operators Desert Road Tourism, Al Khor Plaza – 503, Dubai, +97142959429, www.arabiantours.com Arabian Adventures, Dubai & Abu Dhabi, +97143034888, www.arabian-adventures.com Oasis Palm Dubai, Dubai, +97142628889, www.opdubai.com Clubs Abu Dhabi Off- Road Club, www.ad4x4.com ALMOST 4x4 Off-Road Club, +971507665522, www.almost4x4.com ME 4X4, www.me4x4.com JEEP Wrangler JK Fun Club, suffian.omar@ yahoo.com, www.jk-funclub.com Dubai Offroaders, www.dubaioffroaders.com

Running

kawasaki@liberty.ae

Clubs ABRasAC, Dubai, www.abrasac.org Abu Dhabi Tri Club, Abu Dhabi, www. abudhabitriclub.org Al Ain Road Runners, Abu Dhabi, +971504188978, alainroadrunners@yahoo.co.uk

OUTDOORUAE

65

THE FIRST OUTDOOR MAGAZINE FOR THE UAE AND THE MIDDLE EAST

Mirdif Milers, Dubai, www.mirdifmilers.info Abu Dhabi Striders, admin@abudhabistriders. com, www.abudhabistriders.com Dubai Creek Striders www.dubaicreekstriders.org

Stand up Paddling, Kite & Surfing, Wakeboarding Equipment Al Boom Marine, Abu Dhabi & Dubai, +97142894858, www.alboommarine.com Al Masaood Marine, Dubai, Sheikh

Zayed Road, +97143468000, www.masaoodmarine.com Picnico 04 3941653 Jumeirah Beach Road Opposite Sunset Mall, Dubai Pearl Water Crafts, Dubai Marina Yacht Club, +971553749398, www.pearl-watercrafts.com Surf Dubai, Dubai, Umm Suqeim, +971505043020, www.surfingdubai.com Surf Shop Arabia, Building 1, Al Manara Road (East), Interchange 3, Dubai, +97143791998, www.surfshoparabia.com UAE Kite Surfing, +971505626383, www. ad-kitesurfing.net Distributors Ocean Sports FZE, +971559352735, www.kitesurfsup.com Kitepeople Kite & Surf Store, International City, Dubai, +971504559098, www.kitepeople.ae Operators Al Forsan International Sports Resort, Abu Dhabi, +97125568555, www.alforsan.com Dubai Kite Surf School, Dubai, Umm Suqeim Beach, +971 504965107, www.dubaikitesurfschool.com Duco Maritime, Dubai, Ras Al Khaimah and Abu Dhabi, +971508703427, www.ducomaritime.com Dukite, Kitesurf Beach, Umm Suqeim, Dubai,+971507586992, www.dukite.com Kite Fly, Dubai, +971502547440, www.kitesurf.ae Kitepro Abu Dhabi, Yas Island and Al Dabbayyah, Abu Dhabi, +971505441494, wwww.kitepro.ae Kite4fun.net, Abu Dhabi, +971508133134, www.kite4fun.net Nautica1992, Dubai, +971504262415,

JULY 2013 - WWW.OUTDOORUAE.COM

www.nautica1992.ae Shamal Kite Surfing, Umm Suqueim Dubai, +971507689226, astrid@shamalkitesurfing. com, www.shmalkitesurfing.com Sky & Sea Adventures, Dubai, Hilton, Jumeirah Beach Road, +97143999005, www.watersportsdubai.com Surf School UAE, Umm Suqeim Beach and Building 1, Al Manara Road (East), Interchange 3, Dubai, +971556010997, www.surfschooluae.com Watercooled, Jebel Ali Golf Resort and Spa, Dubai, +97148876771, www.watercooleddubai.com Clubs Abu Dhabi Stand Up Paddle, www.abudhabisup.com, abudhabisup@gmail.com UAE SUP www.uaesup.com

Water Parks

Aquaventure Atlantis, Dubai, Palm Jumeirah, +97144260000, www.atlantisthepalm.ae Dreamland Aqua Park, Umm Al Quwain, Emirates Road, +97167681888, www.dreamlanduae.com Wadi Adventure, Jebel Hafeet, Al Ain, +97137818422, www.wadiadventure.ae Wild Wadi Water Park, Dubai, +97143484444, www.wildwadi.com

Other leisure activities

Abu Dhabi Golf Club, Abu Dhabi, + 97125588990, www.adgolfclub.com Al Tamimi Stables, Sharjah, +9716743 1122, +97144370505, www.tamimistables.com Blokart Sailing, Nad Al Sheba, Dubai, +971556101841, www.blokartme.com Children’s City, Creek Park Gate No.1, Dubai, +97143340808, www.childrencity.ae Dolphin Bay Atlantis

Dubai, +97144260000, www.atlantisthepalm.ae Dubai Dolphinarium Dubai, Creek Park Gate No. 1, +97143369773, www.dubaidolphinarium.ae iFly Dubai, Dubai, Mirdif City Centre, +97142316292, www.iflyme.com Sadiyaat Beach Club, Abu Dhabi, Saadiyat Island, +97125578000, www.sbgolfclub.ae Sharjah Golf and Shooting Club, Sharjah, +97143999005, www.golfandshootingshj.com SkiDubai, Dubai, Mall of The Emirates, +97144094000, www.skidxb.com Spacewalk Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi, +97124463653, www.spacewalk.ae

Health, Safety & Training

Safety Lessons Marine Concept Yacht Charter & Sea School, Rania Business Centre, Dubai, +971559603030, www.marine-charter-concept.com Safety & Leisure Training Middle East, Dusseldorf Business Point, Al Barsha 1, Dubai, +97144502418, www.sltme.com Sport and Health Centres Bespoke Wellness, Dubai, +971553724670, info@bespoke-wellness. com, www.bespoke-wellness.com The Physio Center, Suite 405, Building 49, Dubai Healthcare City, Dubai, +97144370570, www.physiocentre.ae Original Fitness Co., C6 Tower Al Bateen Bainunah St, Abu Dhabi, +9712406 9404, info@originalfitnessco.com, www. originalfitnessco.com Orthosports, 5B Street, Jumeira Beach road, Dubai, +971 4 355060, www.orthosp.com