To many of us, the desert is synonymous with barrenness, heat and discomfort. While it does not offer the same comforts as your air-conditioned living room, the desert can be quite fun. Driving in Cairo is stressful, to say the least, and no doubt we have all longed to drive in an open highway, with no honking horns, suffocating exhaust or reckless drivers in the next lane. The desert offers this and more - it also presents a challenge, a chance to test your driving skills in different terrain. The ground is not flat and the topography changes, but there's nothing like the thrill of ascending a sand dune and the adrenaline rush that comes as your car descends its steep slope. These feelings are augmented when you go from merely driving to rallying. Rallies appeared as a branch of motorsport in the beginning of the 19th century. More precisely, it was in January 1911 when the very first Monte Carlo Rally kicked off. The sport gained popularity and garnered a large following along the way, and today, numerous types of rallies take place all around the world. Among the most prominent are the challenging Paris-Dakar and the Pharaohs Rally. The former is a global event that attracts drivers and audiences from all over the world. Rallying, in Egypt as well as globally, has matured into a recognized sport, with full-fledged federations that set the rules and organize the calendar. Of course, not every car can dare the desert and race the rally, but no one is born a star and we can still practice at the available four-wheel drives around the city. The Rally School is an out-of-the-box type initiative founded by four young Egyptian rally drivers: Abdel Hamid Abou Youssef, Azam El Farouky, Hossam Moustafa and Ahmed El-Sirgany. Under the patronage of The Automobile Club, the four came up with the idea to organize a training course for any group of people interested to learn about rallying. The course has a theoretical and a practical component, the latter teaches you how to tackle the different aspects of rallying: co-piloting, navigation and handling different terrain. The first course attracted a considerable number of participants - of both genders - and the four are looking forward to setting up another round of the Rally School. So, if the idea of participating in a rally ever intrigued you, now you can find a personal tutor. Indeed the challenge is thrilling, but some safety precautions must be taken. The par gets higher as you move up the scale, but even for amateur desert raiders, the basic standards must be in place. For example, you'll need to carefully calculate fuel consumption as well your own food and water intake. Walky-talkies are essential when in a convoy and it is prohibited to go off-roading solo, two cars at least. With the upcoming Rally des Pyramides (April 25) followed by the Pharaohs Rally (Oct. 5) it's time to discover the world of rallying - it is by far more appealing than hanging around the same old café every night. See you at the start line
