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Journalism of Courage
Following the truncated run of the Raid-de-Himalaya car rally, there were some apprehensions about the cyclists who were also venturing into pretty tough hill terrain. But the third Hercules MTB-Trans Himalayan Challenge race was completed in fine nick, with Ramesh Chandra Joshi emerging the winner.
According to information reaching here, Joshi had clocked 16:04:54 penalty points when the race ended in Manali. Joseph Cruz, with 16:40:26 points, came in second followed by Diben Meetei with 16:48:35.
As a local rider, it was creditable for Joshi, because he also won the best uphill rider award with 02:02:19 points. The best downhill rider award was shared between Naresh Burman (00:16:38) and Dilip Kumar Singh (00:16:38).
This year the race had witnessed several international entries, a big rise from last year. And in the international category, Joseph Cruz won in the solo with 16:40:26 points. In the master category, John Nobile, with 17:03:05, was the best.
Joshi was again adjudged best in the national category solo with 16:04:54 points. That category winner in the masters group was Saminder Singh Saluja (27:43:40).
Forty-three cyclists were flagged off for the race from Shimla on October 5. The cyclists covered 650 km through tough Himalayan terrain before finishing in Manali last evening.
There were 26 international bikers taking part in this year’s Challenge, coming from ten countries. There were also 12 Indian Army participants.
The rally is getting tougher each year. This year higher terrain was in vogue, testing the cyclists’ endurance and handling skills and tests were severe in the uphill as well as downhill sections with gradients being steep.
Simple footpaths were interspersed with, mule trails and dirt tracks to fast-paced gravel roads. They encountered winding steep down-hills and gruelling up-hills.
The endurance tests came to a head when the participants gained the highest point at the Jalori pass at 3223 m. On an average, the cyclists covered 80 km per day.
