There was a minor traffic jam in front of The Hindu office in Somajiguda as passing bikers and car owners inadvertently slowed down to catch a glimpse of the beauty in cream — a Mahindra 550 army auctioned vehicle that has been customised with technical features. Its owner Kranti Vengala and fellow drivers Abhinav Reddy, Dhanraj Reddy and Dr. Chaitanya Challa are the envy of passersby as they pose for photographs. Besides off road enthusiast Rajsekhara Prabhu, the foursome are part of the participating teams from Hyderabad for the Force Gurkha Rainforest Challenge (RFC) India 2015 set to take place in Goa from July 24-31. Considering that this is India’s only international motorsport event, the stakes are high for the participants.
Not for the weak-heartedThe members readily agree that the challenge is not for the weak-hearted. “This competition tests the driver under extreme conditions,” observes Abhinav, who has a passion for off-road. Rajsekhara Prabhu, who runs a state-of-art-garage and makes custom-based vehicles, says that it is a test where luck has no role to play. “It is the working together of man and machine. When one faces an obstacle, one gets scared and the first thought which comes to mind is: ‘It is not possible,” he smiles.
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From rocky stretches, mud tracks, climbing up a terrain to being in water… the obstacles test the participants’ fighting spirit and endurance levels for eight days.
“It is not a competition about speed. For example one has to cover one kilometre in one hour but the drivers have to get past the obstacles and reach the finish line,” says Abhinav, who took part in the Challenge last year. Unlike last year, when Rajsekhera could not participate in the competition due to some vehicle issues, this year he is ready with his custom-made Jonga which runs on a generator engine!
“We like to get dirty,” laughs Dr. Chaitanya, who is an MD in internal medicine. When he isn’t handling critical patients, you will see him driving away at friendly competitions on tracks at Toopran and Gachibowli.
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The group says their fascination for off-road has helped them to traverse in the rough. Kranti believes the navigator (co-driver) plays a significant role during the competition. “They support each other and their co-ordination will help them survive,” states Kranti. Dhanraj says safety is the first concern of off-roaders. “When people hear of motorsport competition, they think speed, daredevil racing, injury and accident. Off-road is not dragon racing but tests our physical, mental and surviving skills,” says Abhinav.
He insists that awareness on off-road motorsports has to increase. “If people see travellers in jeeps going towards Vikarabad forest areas, they immediately mistake them to be hunters,” he points out highlighting the challenges of a drive in the jungle and hopes they will get support from the Government. “It is counted as one of the top 10 toughest rallies and is not a fun event. Only the tough survive,” says Rajsekshara as a parting shot.