Even as the bigger boys were revving up their bikes, Sarah Kashyap of Chandigarh was quietly watching them from behind. She was probably trying hard to read their minds so that she could do one better than them in the Maruti Suzuki Desert Storm here.
After two days of a hard-fought battle in the Thar Desert, the 32-year-old managed to stay on course and is now the only woman competitor left in the foreign bike class.
For Sarah, it is her third time in the Desert Storm: “I failed in my first attempt in 2016,” she said.
But she came back strongly to finish the event the very next year. “I was the first woman to do that and I am here to repeat the feat,” she added.
Not an easy task though, for a young woman like her. “Yes, it’s very difficult. Riding on the sand is a different ball game than on the road.
“The moment you slow down you tend to stop. So one has to keep the momentum going,” said Sarah, who is on an imported KTM EXE 250 bike.
“It feels absolutely great to fight with the boys because it teaches you so much. However, at times it can be tough as well because you are all on your own in the desert. If something goes wrong there is no one to come to your immediate rescue,” she added.
But Sarah is happy venturing into this rally that even men sometimes dare to enter. “I love pushing to the limits. I don’t believe in staying in a cosy corner of the room, cuddled up in bed and watching TV shows.
“I love to drive that extra mile and understand how strong-headed I am and how much I can take,” said Sarah, a former Judo national star.
She is keen to to test her skills more. “When a small-made person like me is riding a bike that is of the same height it may look funny, but then I think it’s all in the mind.
“This sport is the next big thing. For me, it’s like joining the Army. It grooms you and makes you to be wiser and stronger,” she added.
A Sales and Marketing Manager in Polaris India, Sarah’s ultimate aim is to do the Dakar Rally. “That's my dream too,” she said, and quickly points to the sticker on her bike which read “Dakar One Day”.
