This year's Al Awafi festival, in Ras Al Khaimah, has attracted a large audience. Wam.
This year's Al Awafi festival, in Ras Al Khaimah, has attracted a large audience. Wam.

Steep competition as dune drivers bid to conquer the sands



RAS AL KHAIMAH // More than 20,000 people travelled out to the desert to watch as scores of supercharged 4x4s attempted to power their way to the top of steep sand dunes at the annual Al Awafi festival.

The brave drivers roared their modified vehicles up the 70 metre-high dunes at the weekend in the hope of winning prizes worth up to Dh200,000, as well as cups and trophies – not to mention the respect and admiration of fellow drivers.

Forty four competitors from Oman, Kuwait and the UAE took part, with Emirati Khalid Al Bloushi taking first place in the V8 category, scaling the dune in 4.361 seconds. He also won the V6 automatic transmission category with a time of 4.703 seconds.

Second place in the V8 category went to Yousef Al Ali, with a time of 4.496 seconds. In the V6 manual transmission with turbo section, Obeid Al Rayihi won first place, while second place went to Khalid Bin Turki.

Extra measures were taken by the organisers this year to ensure vehicles did not become stuck in the sand and also to limit the amount of damage caused to the 4x4s during the tournament, said Ahmad Altenaiji, general supervisor.

The huge number of attendees caused a long traffic jam on roads near the tournament. Al Awafi festival, which also features traditional Emirati events, will be held until Saturday.

tzriqat@thenational.ae

TEAMS

EUROPE:
Justin Rose, Francesco Molinari, Tyrrell Hatton, Tommy Fleetwood, Jon Rahm, Rory McIlroy, Alex Noren, Thorbjorn Olesen, Paul Casey, Sergio Garcia, Ian Poulter, Henrik Stenson

USA:
Brooks Koepka, Justin Thomas, Dustin Johnson, Patrick Reed, Bubba Watson, Jordan Spieth,​​​​​​​ Rickie Fowler, Webb Simpson, Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, Bryson DeChambeau ( 1 TBC)

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Ticket prices
  • Golden circle - Dh995
  • Floor Standing - Dh495
  • Lower Bowl Platinum - Dh95
  • Lower Bowl premium - Dh795
  • Lower Bowl Plus - Dh695
  • Lower Bowl Standard- Dh595
  • Upper Bowl Premium - Dh395
  • Upper Bowl standard - Dh295
Scores

Rajasthan Royals 160-8 (20 ov)

Kolkata Knight Riders 163-3 (18.5 ov)

COMPANY PROFILE
Name: ARDH Collective
Based: Dubai
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Sector: Sustainability
Total funding: Self funded
Number of employees: 4
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Gulf Men's League final

Dubai Hurricanes 24-12 Abu Dhabi Harlequins

UAE - India ties

The UAE is India’s third-largest trade partner after the US and China

Annual bilateral trade between India and the UAE has crossed US$ 60 billion

The UAE is the fourth-largest exporter of crude oil for India

Indians comprise the largest community with 3.3 million residents in the UAE

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi first visited the UAE in August 2015

His visit on August 23-24 will be the third in four years

Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, visited India in February 2016

Sheikh Mohamed was the chief guest at India’s Republic Day celebrations in January 2017

Modi will visit Bahrain on August 24-25

COMPANY%20PROFILE
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The specs

Engine: 1.4-litre 4-cylinder turbo

Power: 180hp at 5,500rpm

Torque: 250Nm at 3,00rpm

Transmission: 5-speed sequential auto

Price: From Dh139,995

On sale: now

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The burning issue

The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.

Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins

Read part two: how climate change drove the race for an alternative 

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