Polaris RZR Racer ATV tour with mxDubai
If you’ve been living in the UAE for a few years, you’ll certainly get to a stage when you feel bored, having seemingly done all there is on offer. If you are new or are here for a visit, you may be on the hunt for the best experiences you can get. So for all of you I have something new that involves adrenaline and a ‘big smile on your face’ guarantee.
I have been off-roading and dune bashing a lot. However, after 10 years in Dubai, I rarely get excited about heading for the dunes. Don’t get me wrong, I still enjoy it and it’s great fun, but enjoying something and getting excited about something are two different things. So when I knew I’d be trying out the Polaris RZR racer tours from mxDubai, I was keen to have some fun in the desert, but my excitement was limited. I have previously driven some rented ATVs, from those places at the side of the road. I thought, ‘ATV – the box is checked already.’ How wrong I was.
Polaris builds top models which of course are also the most expensive ones. Most other rental places just get low end or entry level ATVs, so this is the first big difference to mxDubai. An important detail is also the safety gear. Some outlets don’t even provide helmets, but most of them give you a very cheap helmet. I want to stress the importance of safety since all desert activities come with a risk that you cannot exclude but can however minimise. If you get no or poor equipment, it might be wise not to choose that company. mxDubai has only high quality and professional equipment. Also the other places are just rental outlets and not tour operators, whereas mxDubai offers guided tours, which is a completely different story. There is no one with a stop watch checking your time by the minute. mxDubai offers an experience, not a vehicle rental.
So these are all good facts. But the big question: is it fun? As mentioned before, I was not excited. I went to the briefing and instructions — Safety is important for MX Dubai and every ride starts with a briefing of safety rules and detailed instructions how to drive and what to avoid. The ATVs are equipped with 6-point racing seat belts for the highest safety standards and the team makes sure, you are strapped in properly since most clients are not familiar with professional racing seat belts which have a different locking mechanism. The feeling was like being in a race car, and slowly I could feel something in my stomach. There was a small tickle. We started the engines and went through the gate of the farm, and I pushed the accelerator. Now I could feel it. It was not the roaring engine, it was my body vibrating, and I got goosebumps. I was excited and adrenaline started rushing through my veins within seconds. No one could see it because of my helmet, but I had a big smile on my face. This was new and different. The Polaris is made for this; incredible acceleration on the sand and an amazing suspension. We took the same track I took to reach the farm off-road through the dunes. Since it was a desert track, it was super bumpy in the car and I was driving maybe 30-40kmh. With the Polaris, I could reach 60-70kmh on the sand. Driving in 4WD, the ATV was stable and very manoeuvrable. I have driven a lot in the sand with cars and also ATVs and quad bikes, so I have a feeling for the sand. I recommend that anyone going for the first time takes it easy and slowly. Anyhow, your instructor will adjust to your level whether you’re a beginner or a pro, and will set the pace. I have to admit, the Polaris are so fast on the sand that you have to be very careful, as you can quickly enter into a tunnel vision and not recognise what is happening around you. Since the engines are roaring, you will not hear a thing. Keeping an overview can be quite hard, as the racing seat belts strap you so tight in the seat that you can hardly look back over your shoulder.
One more very important aspect is that you can do these tours in summer. When we arrived at 4:00 p.m. it was 40°C, but getting ready was the hottest part of the tour because as soon as you move, you have the wind cooling you and there was no point during the extended tour of 4 hours when I felt too hot. All ATVs have LED lights, so you can drive in the dark, which is an amazing experience in itself.
After four hours I still had not had enough, even though I ate a lot of dust. Finally, I had found something which excited me again. When I got home, I messaged photos to my two brothers in my home country and told them what’s waiting for them on their next visits. Entertaining family and friends can be a challenge if you have visitors coming regularly, so now you know what you can offer them next time.
Of course one thing everyone wants to know is how much it costs. Since there are different tours, I cannot give a price, but the price value is much better than if you opt for the rental places on the road. If you calculate the price per hour, mxDubai is much cheaper and you get a real experience for a few hundred dirhams. Since the ATVs are two seaters, you can even take someone with you and share the ride.
mxDubai provides off-road motorbike rental, buggy rental, quad bikes rental and Jet Skis for rent in Dubai.
For more info you can visit mxDubai.com or contact them at +971 55 209 0832 or info@mxDubai.com
Words + Photos by: Daniel Birkhofer
