In 2008, four ordinary guys with a passion for riding and looking for new challenges decided to take on one of the toughest off-road rally races in the world, the UAE Desert Challenge.
The Challenge is 6 days of riding over 2200kms in a vast desert called “The Empty Quarter”. The terrain is some of the most inhospitable and challenging this planet has to offer.
The UAE CC team make use of a variety of different routes to cover all the various types of terrain we can expect to encounter in the Desert Challenge. Rides can last anywhere from 2hrs to 4 hrs depending on the distance and difficulty of the terrain.
Sean Curnow: The Radisson Blu Hotel on Yas Island Abu Dhabi has committed their support as the official Hospitality Sponsor for the UAE CC 2010. The UAECC Team will use the Radisson Blu Hotel, Yas Island as their official base before and after the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge 2010.
Enjoying a prime location on the beautiful Yas Island, the new Radisson Blu Hotel is a perfect base for business travellers, for business events and for visitors wanting to explore Abu Dhabi.
Fransua Rachmann: With the Desert Challenge just around the corner, friends of mine invited me to join them for a practice weekend in the Liwa desert over the 26th / 27th February 2010. They are also getting ready to do the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge and since Paul is traveling and Sean is still not riding with his collarbone on the mend, I thought it was a good idea to go and see what the terrain looks like.
Fransua Rachmann: We awoke to heavy fog in the morning of Round 6 which did not lift by the time the race was due to start and the race organizers took the decision to delay the start time by 30min for safety.
Fransua Rachmann: Rounds 5 and 6 of the Desert X series were held in the desert near Arjan, approximately 1hr from Abu Dhabi over the weekend of the 12th / 13th February.
After an early start in Dubai followed by a 2hr drive to the bivouac, the UAE CC Team set up camp in time for registration, scrutineering and the start of Round 5 at noon.
Fransua Rachmann: Paul, Sean and I did another GPS ride on Saturday from the Bab Al Shams road. Darryn was hoping to make this his first ride back after snapping his Achilles tendon playing in the Dubai Rugby 7's back in Dec 09. However, whilst the rehabilitation is going well, he is not ready to deal with the rigours of riding in the desert just yet and had to sit this one out.
