Keep Off the Road

Started six months back by Billy,the 4×4 Offroaders Club has already had four rough runs. “Mahindra has been organising the Great Escape for offroaders,and I’ve been a part of it,but it’s reserved only for Mahindra vehicle owners. It was then that I thought why not involve all 4×4 vehicles/SUVs,from Ford Endeavours,Gypsys to Land Cruisers and Pajeros and make it a more live fare,” and so started the club which has a dedicated membership including families and women. About the concept,Billy explains how a 4×4 vehicle,unlike other vehicles,is driven by engine power and engages all the four gears which further provide more power and traction to the wheels. “Thereby making it easier to tackle terrain marked with snow,heavy rain,slippery and rough roads,” adds Gill. “It’s a very demanding extreme sport,and if I’m correct,is more than 60 years old,” Kishie rewinds to the ‘genesis’,tracing the use back to the World War jeep which was designed to go anywhere and take the load of the soldiers,the injured and the weapons. “The four wheel vehicles are designed to drive in kachcha,” Kishie refers to offroad patches like Ghaggar river bed,Sarsa river,the terrain beyond PGI.

An offroader is a car fanatic for whom the best road isn’t straight or tarmaced. Far from the city’s ribbon routes,his fun lies in driving in the wild. Rallyist Sunny Sidhu,who orgainses four wheel drives for Mahindra’s Great Escape says over the years,the participation has increased. “This years,we had 80 entries. We first mark the route and head out in a convoy with families in tow,” Sidhu makes sure all safety norms are adhered to. “Which includes electronic winches,complete car kits,ropes et al to pull out those in distress,” for Sidhu,the best offroad route is tackling the dunes in Rajasthan. “Figuring the way up is a challenge,” he then moves to other famous routes – Coorg,Siliguri and Munnar. “Professional offroaders spend up to lakhs on their vehicles,but amateurs just need to have good tyres and know their and the car’s limits,” he advises.

Not very far,the NCR boasts almost 100 offroaders,who are part of the Gurgaon-based Northern India Offroaders Club. “Driving a vehicle offroad is not the same as driving on the road. It isn’t about speed,it’s about skill,” says Rabindra Singh,a 52-year-old with Unilever,who founded the club two years ago with businessmen Laxman Vishwanath,55,and Sarvinder Singh,44. With more than half their lives spent offroading,the trio instinctively know the speed and gear with which a certain vehicle should approach an incline,how hard to push the accelerator while fording a stream and,most importantly,when to hit the brakes. And even then,there are “incidents”. Like the time,Vishwanath tried to leap over a yawning pit and had to give up mid-air or when another member tried to scale the top of a hill and found his front tyres had lost contact with the ground,leaving him stranded on a sharp incline with the bonnet in the air! For them,the best tracks are vicious thorn forest of Behrampore,especially after rains with gushing streams and elephant grass looms overhead. Then there’s Hisar,with its acres of broken ground and sudden depressions in the land. Manesar and Sakatpur also score high with them. With 25 permanent women members,spouses,friends,children and newcomers,the club follows a strict code of conduct,makes sure newcomers are helped,no one litters or disturbs the wildlife.

When it comes to surviving the wild,no leaves a disabled vehicle,whether it’s stuck in knee-deep or whether the steering’s come off in the middle of the night. And yes,an offroader always travels with emergency kits and carries out a recce before offroading begins for nature always throws up surprises and tests ingenuity. Are you ready to be a true off-roadie?

(For more you can contact Laxman Vishwanath at 09810305998 and Billy Gill 09888062948)(With inputs from Dipanita Nath)

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