Bangalore couple Satish Gopalkrishnan and Savera D’Souza have redefined ‘teamwork’ in motorsport by being the only couple to consistently win rallies across the country.
The duo topped Rally Ndure (TSD category) at the prestigious 12th Maruti Suzuki Desert Storm, which concluded on Saturday.
While the champion TSD rallyists of the country did not find a strong footing at the Desert Storm, Satish and Savera raced on a sure pitch from day one.
From the first stage of the six-day motorsport marathon, they worked on a strong lead and consistently left competition far behind till the last stage of the rally.
For Satish and Savera, 2013 was a year of second ranks (TSD category) at all major motorsport events of the country — the Maruti Suzuki Desert Storm, the Mughal Rally, and the Maruti Suzuki Dakshin Dare.
So what contributed to their win this year? “The X factor,” said Satish. “Sometimes it makes you win. Sometimes nothing seems right,” he added.
Speaking about The 12th Maruti Suzuki Desert Storm, Savera said that during the tough dune stretches, their effort was to make it successfully to the end of the stage.
Satish agreed that in a demanding rally like the Desert Storm, driving and navigation were equally important.
“A bad driver will get stuck on the dunes or the challenging terrain. A bad navigator will make you lose way.
Everything had to come together to keep us going,” he said.
Satish is the software guru who developed the TSD meter, which changed the way TSD rallying is done in the country. He developed it to make navigation calculations simple for his wife, and minimize the room for error.
Savera, now considered among the best navigators in the country, said they have put in a lot of effort into rallying, and had great fun too.
“In our busiest year, we did 22 rallies in a year.
Rallying can take a lot of mind space and energy. The fact that we are able to make it happen together is highly fortunate for us,” she said.
Next on the couple’s calendar this year is The Mughal Rally in Kashmir, The Maruti Suzuki Dakshin Dare, and then The Maruti Suzuki Raid De Himalaya.
The Maruti Suzuki Desert Strom was flagged off from New Delhi on February 24. It traversed 2,200 kilometers over the wild desert outback of Sardarshahar, Bikaner and Jaisalmer.
Satish and Savera drove a Grand Vitara for Team Maruti Suzuki at the rally.
