Delhi-Jaipur-Delhi Woman's Rally: The Drive!

There was something about this rally that got my nerves from the time I heard about it. The end destination, Jaipur was a place I have been many a times. I knew, almost everything that the city has to offer! So what new will this rally add to the 250 kilometres long stretch? Will it be any different, apart from the fact that there were rules and regulations that were a must to be followed, to be a winner in the fourth season of the Woman's Car Rally 2011.

With all these questions in mind, it was finally time to get out and move away from all the hustle-bustle of the city and experience some thrill down the remotest of locations. A nice breeze at six o'clock on a Saturday morning was a sight rarely witnessed.

Losing track of the time, I realised I am running late and had to make in time for participants would not be allowed later than six. Managing to be just in the nick of time at DLF Place Saket, Delhi, the assembly point. And as the clock struck 6:30, we were all set to take up the challenge and experience a whole new world.

One after the other, the cars got flagged off from the start line after the marshal's wrote the first time out on our time cards. Butterflies' flying in my stomach was not because I had to drive so much, but the anxiety was of not missing any marshal's on the route and to reach them with the proper TSD calculations and to be as accurate as possible. As a first timer, my mission was to go for the trophy , however, sadly we did not. But, nevertheless, with extreme patience and trust on the navigator who was completely an unknown person to me, it meant more than merely surviving the rally. Perfect co-ordination, timing and trust on the navigator were the key roles as a driver I had to be in.

Putting all the anxieties aside, rules remembered thoroughly and the road-book a.k.a the bible intact, it was time to hit the road.

Leg 1A: The route for leg one passed through Suraj Kund, Sohna, Firozpur Jhirka, Tijara and all the way to Alwar, close to about 195 kilometers on the odometer. Brushing way through the busy streets of Delhi, it was time to go hand-in-hand with the calculations. Rajesh (the navigator) was busy doing calculations when we came across our first hurdle of losing the way. Thankfully, policemen and localites pointed in the right direction in their own language which at first, was a little hard to understand. Aptly, put by the organisers that the team needs to ask their way in case they find it difficult to understand the road book, with the last resort of calling them up.

The route from Saket to the Karni Singh shooting range and ahead till Police post Sohna was quite a smooth ride. However, that was just a start and broken roads welcomed us once we got off the smooth stretch. The entire stretch from Pipaka village, Sohna to Taoru village (towards Rewari) was broken and crowded too. It was difficult to maintain the time-speed calculations, making us nervous as we had to catch up to the stipulated time. The only thing that needed at that point was a route where the time-loss could be covered.

WOMEN CAR RALLY: LEG 1

Thankfully, the route after Khushkhera and village Sonkh which was then joining to Alwar highway till Firozpur Jhirka was the much-needed route to cover-up the time lost. The stretch from Tijara to Central Point Mall, where lunch was served was another decent stretch to drive minus a few pot holes, crowded suburb patches and huge speed-breakers.

Leg 1B: A great meal and few minutes of relaxation is what was needed to begin part 2 of the rally. There was no flag-off and each team had to leave 45 minutes from their time-in.

One o'clock in the afternoon and we were back in action. With a new speed-distance sheet and some new calculations, the route now a 155 odd kilometre stretch from Alwar to Madho Garh, Talvraksha, Pratap Garh, Ramgarh and finally Jaipur.

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Before the flag-off in Delhi, we were told about a 50 kilometre dirt track, which was not in leg1A. With fingers crossed and all hopes, I was excited to witness one. Crossing the narrow streets of Alwar city, it was time to head on Tiger Rescue Sariska. Despite the scorching afternoon, the entire stretch of Sariska was really beautiful, though the roads again were not that great and were a sign of heavy rains.

Next after the Samodh village came the most-desired route. Amidst no-where the organisers could find the best ever route to make us ladies experience the bit of off-roading. And yes, it was hell of fun! Conquering this long dirt track, I had a posisitve vibe grew inside of me for the Swift.  A go anywhere and still be grounded vehicle. With the thrill intact in my blood, we moved on passing by the picturesque Rajasthan had to offer and reached our destination - Hotel Clarks, Amer, Jaipur.

Leg 2: It was 6:30 in the morning and the sun was already shining bright on our heads, telling us what lied ahead. After looking over the results so far, we were all geared with our new and calculations in place. The only thing that I had in mind was to cover up the penalty time and be right there. But the scene was different on my navigator's side. With the Sunday mood set in, it took quite some effort to get him all geared up again.

7:30 am and we flagged off and headed towards the walled-city of Jaipur and reached our next halt in Nahargarh Biological Park. Another exciting bit of the trip, the park had some 40 odd tigers and as said, with our eyes expecting to witness a few. With no roads, rocky sides and up hill, the Nahagarh Fort park is located on the edge of the Aravalli Hills, overlooking the pink city of Jaipur.

Following each other, a Toyota Corolla got stuck in a deep slush and took some time to figure 'out' a way. Finally with our saviour being the Innova, we were reassured all the more about the MPV that it was also an extremely well performing vehicle.

Back to the start of the park and headed to the off-roading tracks; some deep inside villages and exciting jungles. After joining the highway and passing Shahpur, the rally out of the blues ended at Viratnagar and we headed back to the National Highway reaching Delhi in just an hour and a half.

   

650 kilometres, 20 hours of drive spread between two days coupled with remote and rough areas, a bit of off-roading; loads of fun, thrill and adventure, made the trip.