Editor’s note: Jon Crowley traveled to the United Arab Emirates in January 2009 to attend the Liwa Festival and ride the dunes surrounding Moreeb Hill. This firsthand report documents an early chapter in both the festival’s growth and the international expansion of the sport UTV market.
Liwa was already an established desert motorsports gathering by 2009, but it had not yet grown into the multiweek international event held today. This trip captured Moreeb Hill at an important point in that evolution—and showed how quickly newly introduced sport UTVs such as the Polaris RZR S and Kawasaki Teryx were reaching enthusiasts outside North America.
Why the 2009 Liwa Trip Matters
The Liwa Festival traces its motorsports history to 2001, when local drivers gathered at Moreeb Hill for the inaugural event. By January 2009, it had developed into a substantial celebration combining desert motorsports with camel racing, horse racing, falconry and other elements of Emirati culture.
Contemporary reporting indicates that more than 5,000 visitors attended the opening day of the 2009 festival. Approximately 770 competitors registered for its camel, horse and falconry events, while the motorsports program included car and motorcycle competition at Moreeb Dune. Organizers had also established approximately 30,000 square meters of festival space for camps, restaurants, coffee shops and entertainment.
That places this trip at a meaningful point in Liwa’s development. The event had progressed well beyond an informal gathering of local drivers, but it remained considerably smaller and more motorsports-focused than the major winter destination it would later become.
The UTVs we encountered were equally significant. Polaris introduced the original RZR for the 2008 model year and followed it with the wider, long-travel RZR S 800 for 2009. Kawasaki’s original Teryx had arrived for the 2008 model year, while the Yamaha Rhino was already supporting a rapidly expanding recreational UTV aftermarket.
Against that timeline, finding two new RZR S models at a Liwa gas station, counting 14 RZRs gathered near Moreeb Dune and seeing customized Teryx and Rhino builds was remarkable. It showed that the emerging sport UTV movement had crossed the Atlantic almost immediately.
Long-travel suspension, custom cages, aftermarket wheels and tires, audio systems and custom paint—the same trends transforming destinations such as Glamis—were already visible in Abu Dhabi.
The UTVs in this report do not appear to have been entered in a dedicated UTV racing class. Instead, owners were using them as recreational dune machines and transportation around the festival. That distinction makes the photographs particularly valuable: they document organic adoption among enthusiasts rather than a manufacturer-organized demonstration or formal UTV race program.
Today, the Liwa International Festival is one of Abu Dhabi’s largest annual winter events. It typically spans several weeks and combines the Moreeb Hill Climb with drag racing, drifting, dune activities, concerts, cultural exhibits, family entertainment and Liwa Village. Abu Dhabi tourism officials say recent editions can attract crowds of up to 40,000 visitors.
The photographs from 2009 therefore capture two histories intersecting at once: the growth of Moreeb Hill from a regional desert competition into an internationally promoted festival, and the rapid worldwide expansion of the modern sport side-by-side.
An Invitation to Ride Abu Dhabi’s Dunes
In early January 2009, I received a phone call from Grant George at Funco UTV asking if I wanted to join him on a trip to the sand dunes near Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates.
I had always wanted to see the dunes there, but my first reaction was that I couldn’t make it. My family was in the car and heard the conversation. After I hung up, my wife and kids told me that “I can’t make it” wasn’t an option.
What a cool family I have.
Three weeks later, I was on a plane headed halfway around the world from my home in Northern California. The journey from Sacramento to Dubai was incredibly long, but the hospitality shown to us by our host, Khaled Bin Shaiban, made it all worthwhile.
Discovering Abu Dhabi’s UTV Scene
I had seen a few photographs from the area and expected to find plenty of ATVs and sand cars. What I didn’t know was how popular UTVs had already become.
My first clue came when we stopped for fuel in Liwa. Just as we finished filling up, two new Polaris RZR S 800s pulled into the gas station.
Many riders in other parts of the United States are accustomed to seeing street-legal UTVs, but that was not something I encountered at home in California. Seeing two brand-new RZR S models being driven to a gas station in the UAE immediately told me that something interesting was happening there.
Riding From Liwa to Moreeb Dune
Our group made several rides from Liwa to Moreeb Dune, where the sand drags and hill-climb events were held. Depending on the ride, we had four to seven UTVs with us, including a long-travel Yamaha Rhino, a heavily modified Funco Kawasaki Teryx and several RZR and RZR S models.
The ride from Liwa to Moreeb Dune was approximately 10 miles. Smooth, rolling dunes stretched as far as we could see. The sand remained largely untouched until we approached Moreeb Hill, where tracks covered the surrounding terrain.
Moreeb Dune was a busy gathering place. UTVs crossed the valley floor and explored the nearby dunes throughout the event. These were not simply stock vehicles. Many had long-travel suspension, custom roll cages, aftermarket wheels and tires, audio systems and custom paint.
The scene felt remarkably familiar. Looking across the valley, I could almost imagine that I was back at Oldsmobile Hill in Glamis.
The customized Yamaha Rhino, RZR and Teryx models demonstrated how quickly the American UTV aftermarket had spread internationally. For more background on these early machines, see our history of the Yamaha Rhino, history of the Polaris RZR and history of the Kawasaki Teryx.
A Familiar Face on the Other Side of the World
At one point, two nicely modified Kawasaki Teryx models approached and stopped near us. I heard a familiar voice and looked up to see Todd Romano from DragonFire Racing walking toward me.
Sometimes the UTV world feels very small—even on the other side of the planet.
The Polaris RZR S Was Already a Hit
Shortly before seeing Todd, I looked across two groups parked on a hill opposite Moreeb Dune. Within approximately 100 feet of where I was standing, I counted 14 Polaris RZRs.
The following morning, one of the local riders was reading an Arabic-language Abu Dhabi newspaper. On the front of the sports section was an advertisement for the RZR S.
From what I saw during the trip, the Polaris RZR—and especially the wider RZR S—had quickly become one of the most popular UTVs in the region.
The original 50-inch RZR had only been introduced for the 2008 model year. The 2009 RZR S widened the vehicle to approximately 60 inches and added longer-travel suspension, creating a factory version of the wider sport UTVs enthusiasts were already building for dunes and open terrain.
Seeing the RZR S embraced so quickly in Abu Dhabi was an early indication that the sport UTV market would not remain centered exclusively in North America.
Liwa Festival 2009
The 2009 Liwa Festival was held near Moreeb Hill under the patronage of Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan. Its events included camel racing, horse racing, falconry and motorsports competition for cars and motorcycles.
Moreeb Hill is also known as Tal Moreeb, a name commonly translated as “terrifying” or “scary mountain.” Rising more than 300 meters from the surrounding desert with an incline commonly reported at approximately 50 degrees, it is an imposing natural hill-climb venue.
A paved desert road approximately 25 kilometers long connects the Moreeb Dune event area with Liwa Oasis.
Beyond the UTVs
The trip offered much more than dune riding. We watched falcon training, experienced local food and traditions, and met off-road enthusiasts from both the UAE and the United States.
I also had an opportunity to ride a brand-new 2009 Yamaha YFZ450R for several days. It was difficult to imagine a better place to experience it.
The Dunes of the Empty Quarter
Liwa Oasis sits southwest of Abu Dhabi near the northern edge of the Rub’ al Khali, commonly called the Empty Quarter. The enormous sand desert extends across much of the southern Arabian Peninsula, including portions of Saudi Arabia, Oman, the United Arab Emirates and Yemen.
Liwa serves as one of the gateways to its deep sand and has long been a destination for camping, dune driving and other forms of desert recreation.
The dunes surrounding Liwa were rippled, smooth and seemingly endless. Once we rode away from the activity around Moreeb Hill, we encountered mile after mile of sand with virtually no tracks.
From a Desert Motorsport Gathering to an International Festival
The Liwa Festival continued expanding after our 2009 visit. The modern Liwa International Festival is held across several weeks during Abu Dhabi’s winter season and attracts visitors from across the region.
Motorsports remain central to the event. Today’s program can include the Moreeb Hill Climb, drag racing, drifting, dune driving, vehicle exhibitions and other demonstrations. Liwa Village adds concerts, food, crafts, family activities and exhibits celebrating Emirati culture.
Despite that expansion, Moreeb Hill remains the festival’s defining landmark. Competitors still confront its steep face, while thousands of spectators gather below the dune to watch the racing and experience the surrounding desert.
Our 2009 trip captured the festival before much of that growth. The camps, racing, falconry, fireworks and off-road community were already present, but the event had not yet become the polished, multiweek tourism destination promoted today.
A UTV Market With Enormous Potential
The dunes of the UAE were unlike anything I had experienced. Local enthusiasts had already discovered how much fun UTVs could be in the sand, and many were modifying their vehicles with the same types of suspension, cages, wheels, tires and accessories found in established American dune destinations.
At the time, it was clear that the UAE offered substantial potential for UTV manufacturers capable of supplying the region. It also represented an opportunity for aftermarket companies willing to learn the market and support its riders.
Looking back, the concentration of modified RZRs, Rhinos and Teryx models at Liwa was an early example of the sport UTV becoming a global phenomenon. Modern high-performance side-by-sides now seem like natural machines for the enormous dunes surrounding Moreeb Hill, but in 2009 the category was still in its infancy.
My trip to the other side of the world was truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience, and I am thrilled that I didn’t miss it.
I want to thank Grant for inviting me, Khaled for the wonderful hospitality, food and place to stay, and my family for telling me that I had to go.
Historical Sources
- Liwa International Festival history and overview — Experience Abu Dhabi
- About Moreeb Dune — Liwa Sports Club
- Contemporary report from the opening of the 2009 Liwa Festival — Khaleej Times
Explore more firsthand off-road adventures in our UTV Trip Reports.
