Oman Road Trip | Drive-by Snapshots by Sebastian Motsch (2015)

Fishermen’s Friends

Flag OmanImagine you’re driving along a brand new and perfectly fine highway which, without prior warning, abruptly ends at a beach. Mind you, the beach was not the intended destination!

Oman Road Trip | Drive-by Snapshots by Sebastian Motsch (2015)

The Batinah Coastal Highway is not finished yet in the Barka region and two stretches are still missing. The last couple of meters before the drop-off to the beach are black from emergency braking maneuvers – now accompanied by our set of solid black lines. Once on the old coastal road, we did our best to avoid hitting a herd of flat-back dwarf camels.
Further down the road, you can spot carport-like shelters on the left side. These shelters are indeed used to protect vehicles from the scorching sun.

Oman Road Trip | Drive-by Snapshots by Sebastian Motsch (2015)

Driving a vehicle that is not clean may lead to being issued a citation from the police. You think I’m kidding? Well, I’m not. We actually tried hard to get one such ticket to prove it, but somehow failed at that. Maybe the rule only applies to locals and they spare tourists? Well, most of the vehicles in the beach-side sheds looked a little well past the sell-by date and all of them are equipped with front bumper modifications.

Oman Road Trip | Drive-by Snapshots by Sebastian Motsch (2015)

We eventually learned, that the local fishermen use the 4x4s to push their boats into the water and also to pull them out after they return to the shore. In the early stages of their duty cycle at Shumaisa Beach, the 4x4s look just like any used vehicle in the last row of a used car dealership. A little rust here and there, some missing trim part but no major problems.

Oman Road Trip | Drive-by Snapshots by Sebastian Motsch (2015)

The Isuzu Trooper in the previous picture and the Jeep Cherokee XJ in the following picture are the odd ones out, though…

Oman Road Trip | Drive-by Snapshots by Sebastian Motsch (2015)

… because most fishermen at Shumaisa Beach prefer more reliable Nissan Patrol and Toyota Land Cruiser. Getting as many years of reliable service as possible out of a vehicle is the most important thing to the cost-conscious entrepreneurs. This Nissan Patrol still looks fine, apart from a few rough spots here and there.

Oman Road Trip | Drive-by Snapshots by Sebastian Motsch (2015)

His older brother, however, looks like he’s got a lot more experience to show in his résumé.

Oman Road Trip | Drive-by Snapshots by Sebastian Motsch (2015)

Some prefer the Nissan Patrol Pickup for added utility.

Oman Road Trip | Drive-by Snapshots by Sebastian Motsch (2015)

Either in the factory colors as seen above, or repainted in white to match the color of the boat.

Oman Road Trip | Drive-by Snapshots by Sebastian Motsch (2015)

If your Nissan Patrol pick-up begins to suffer from massive corrosion…

Oman Road Trip | Drive-by Snapshots by Sebastian Motsch (2015)Oman Road Trip | Drive-by Snapshots by Sebastian Motsch (2015)

… you may as well modify a 60-Series Land Cruiser into a pick-up. Quite a common modification actually, as we found a number of shortened Land Cruisers near the Wahiba Sands desert.

Oman Road Trip | Drive-by Snapshots by Sebastian Motsch (2015)

And while a Nissan Patrol might be alright – there is only one vehicle that deserves to be called THE BEST 4×4 EVER: the 70-series LandCruiser and its predecessor. These awesome 4x4s just last…

Oman Road Trip | Drive-by Snapshots by Sebastian Motsch (2015)

… and last…

Oman Road Trip | Drive-by Snapshots by Sebastian Motsch (2015)

… and last.

Oman Road Trip | Drive-by Snapshots by Sebastian Motsch (2015)

And when all other 4x4s are long dead and gone to the junkyard, they just soldier on like the true Fishermen’s Friends they are 🙂

Oman Road Trip | Drive-by Snapshots by Sebastian Motsch (2015)

But hey… while everybody else is using tried and tested material of Japanese heritage, some feel they want to have something else nobody ever thought of. A 6×6 is arguably better in soft sand than any 4×4, don’t you agree?

Oman Road Trip | Drive-by Snapshots by Sebastian Motsch (2015)Oman Road Trip | Drive-by Snapshots by Sebastian Motsch (2015)

How and why this Pinzgauer 6×6 ended up doing boat duty on a beach in Oman will remain a mystery for the time being, as there was nobody around to answer questions on the subject. It must have had an interesting life preceding the retirement job on the beach, that’s for sure.