Dirty Dancing: Mahindra Off-Roading Trophy 2017-18

Scheduled to happen in January, the finale of the 2017-18 Mahindra Off Roading Trophy was pushed to August so it coincides with the rains. Why? Because the participants wanted a bigger challenge. And they’re not your average “I own an SUV so i off-road” participants, but winners of the Mahindra Great Escapes which happened last year in the country. So, Mahindra prepared their Off-Road Training Academy in a way which would be challenging for these professionals, and we would be driving on the same courses to experience some true-blue off-roading. Yes, us noobs, on professional courses.

The night before, all the 47 participants were briefed with the rules. There were six off-road courses in total, with everyone attempting three on day 1, and the remaining three on day 2. The lot was divided into two groups: drivers and spotters. Each driver was then paired up with a spotter with a draw of lots. The drivers would attempt the three courses in the morning section, and then would beacon spotters for their teammates when they attempt the same course in the evening. And to make things more challenging, each obstacle course has a maximum time limit ranging from 4 minutes to 8 minutes.

Each course had 5 flags placed strategically to make it difficult for the drivers to reach. One out the five would be a ‘Super Flag’ worth 20 points, and was placed at an even harder to reach location. The other four each carried 10 points. On the course, there were some cones placed which were to be avoided by the drivers, and carried a penalty of 10 points each. The judges had another 10 points in their hands which they could award to the driver for safe operation of the vehicle. Each course was marked with red tape, breaking which resulted in a DNF. The spotters too were marked out of 30 points by the judges on their performance, and the final score of the individual will be the cumulative score of the two tasks.

Day 1

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As expected, it was raining in Igatpuri. And to add to the drama, there was a dense fog which reduced the visibility quite a bit. The group was then divided into three, each taking on a course with all the three running simultaneously. We approached the obstacles called River Fording, which looked like a shallow flowing river. And to our surprise, the boundary tapes were placed alongside the river, which meant the participants were to drive in it and pick up flags on the way.

The super flag was kept at a steep incline out of the river, so the drivers would have to figure out a way to get the required grip while exiting the water.

The second obstacle called Railway Crossing involved driving downhill and then uphill through a tight course covered in slush. And to get to the super flag, contestants would had to get two wheels on a steep step, which in a couple of cases led to toppling the Thar.

The third obstacle of the day was B.I.M, a thick slush-covered incline which posed a mighty challenge for the participants. And to make them earn the 20 points, the super flag was placed at an even steeper incline. And though the drivers struggled, it made for a very interesting spectacle.

Day 2

After day 1’s impressive show, more of the rain gods gathered to witness day 2. Umbrellas were out, tea was in high consumption and the obstacle course looked menacing. The course titled Rescue Mission involved getting stuck in slush, and then being rescued by a winch by the spotter. But because of the heavy rains, the cars were getting so deeply stuck that the course was deemed undrivable, and hence closed.

The second course was the Switchback Hill where the drivers has to exit a pond, climb uphill, and and make challenging sharp turns to avoid penalties. Also, there was a trick to the course which none of the participants could figure out.

On the straight at the top of the course, the drivers needed to drive in reverse to easily maneuver the last u-turn. But, instead, almost all drivers took out the cone with a 10 point penalty. Also, because drivers took on the straight with more speed than it was designed for, 2 of the participants ended up toppling their cars!

The last course was Multi Layer, which demanded sharp navigation skills and a good coordination between the driver and the spotter to manoeuvre. The slush-covered course had 90 degree turns with downward steps, where even a single mistake would result in a DNF.

After the five obstacles and two days of intense off-roading, Dhanraj Reddy from Hyderabad claimed the top spot and drove away in a brand new Mahindra Thar CRDe 4x4. Bijender Singh from the national capital was second and apart from the trophy, got an entry for two in a Mahindra Adventure International expedition. Finishing third was Kapil Bhobe from Goa, who also earned himself an entry for two in a Mahindra Adventure Domestic expedition.

The competition had three women participants, out of which Sapna Gurukar from Sakleshpur emerged as the winner and received a set of five off-road MT tyres. In the Media category, we finished second with a shining trophy, with CarWale finishing first. Next year, Mahindra aims to double the number of final participants and further increase the difficulty level, and we can't wait to dance in the dirt again.