It had been a crazy event but the Mumbai Xpress Rickshaw Challenge 2018 eventually had to draw to a close. All teams had impressed by surviving despite the floods, the road closures, and the hangovers! Here is Princely’s review of the final two days:

Day 13

The destination on Day 16, Vellore, was only a cruise on highway away. The six lane highway provided a relaxing day in contrast to the drama that had come before! Drive-in Mc Donalds, Ambur Briyani was all they could taste in that day. The day was bright with the sun back to its usual cruelty. Vellore fort and bar in the base hotel were the rest of the scene in Vellore. The local wedding season gave the participates lot of stories and the innumerable selfie experience will not be able to narrate to all.

Day 14

The final day went by in a blink of an eye. The final destination was Chennai, and we started early from Vellore, first visiting a project of Round table. Everything went well. We had the flag-down ceremony at the school project at 3.30 pm in a suburb of Chennai. Team 14 was awarded championship for their tremendous job they did coordinating the teams to pull out of the Western Ghats and eventually reach the destination. The Crazy team was Team 6 for the innumerable times they broke down. The Charity award went to Team 3 Yorkshire for their great contribution towards the organizers of expensive brandy and vodka!

That is all the fun time we had from Mumbai Xpress. Hope you all to join us in the upcoming events of Rickshaw and Ambassador Cars. Until then, it’s a big bye from me Princely and my entire team.

Day 11

On Tuesday morning teams were in high spirits, excited about the destination Mysore. However, the rain showed no mercy on Day 12. Little did I realize that it was going to be another roller coaster ride. All started well and teams were doing fantastic. Just before 35 km to Madikeri an in-between spot, there was a road block and the police informed me that the roads were washed away by rain. It all started at that point: it was around 12pm and Mysore was around 85 km. I turned the vehicle and stopped the rickshaws who were all proceeding that way. To my surprise all the teams gathered at a point. Then we had a discussion on which route to take and it was decided by a google recommendation. Subramanya is the name of the place and through that we could get back to Madekeri and continue to Mysore. It was around 30 km from the gathering point.

Team 14 Siam Kangaroo had already reached a point where they couldn’t proceed as the water was flowing above a bridge. At that time I decided we should go through Hassan. It meant another drive back of 60 km. Then after getting the highway to Hassan, I saw how the rivers were swelling and the spectacle was being watched by a huge gathering in the villages and towns. By 4 pm, the base team had booked the hotel in Hassan. Within an hour I reached another stumbling block: this time a landslide. As the emergency highway clearance troop was in action the road block was cleared in no time and the vehicles started moving. Then, I lost phone signal, the last thing expected to happen. After facing couple of landslides and heavy traffic I got to Hassan by 9 pm. Luckily the luggage team had taken another route and mysteriously reached hotel before 6 pm. Then it was time for solitaire (not the game), trying to reach the mechanics and seeing the same messages again and again. At around 2 am I got message from Brad Ford of Team 14 that all the teams had crossed the mountains and were staying together. All the teams except 3 teams struck together, worked as team and the person who managed it was Brad. It was 4 am when the teams finally made it to the hotel and rest. Unusually, it was a sober night. The other teams Team 1 , Team 2 and Team 3 stayed in a spot before 9 pm.
 

Day 12

 

 
I must mention that the Round Table had organized a big day as the 15th morning happen to be the Independence Day of India. Unfortunately that event got cancelled and a day of publicity turned out to be a never published experience which would nevertheless stay in my memory for a long time. On Day 13 teams were expected to drive from Hassan to Banglore. It’s pretty straight forward highway. From the early hours, I started getting messages from the three Danish teams, the ‘Little Big Rikshaw Challenge 1,2& 3. Sille Andersen of Team 2 was the one who was communicating with me. Some suggested routes were closed but they found an interesting route from locals to get out of the Western Ghats. When they fianlly reached destination Banglore it was midnight. The smart guys in fact used trucks to load the rickshaw and drive it to the destination. For the rest of the teams it was a cake walk except the last 40 km in Banglore city. ‘Shat in pants’ was the expression few teams shared about the traffic in Banglore. A nice terrace drink spot served as a tranquilizer shot for the rest of the teams. Some of the teams had friends in Banglore and it was another big night. A team member of Team 7 ‘the Meat Mimosas’, Niall Causer, was bound to leave the next day early morning at 4 am. And teams had a reason to celebrate. Blame it on Niall Causer.
 

 
 

Train Tickets

The first challenge of the day was to visit the nearby train station, and buy a ticket, any ticket. It might sound simple (and well, it was, since everyone managed it) but the event was not without drama. Team 8 “Namaste 6” ended up bumping into the back of a stranger’s car. Our first crash of trip — but everyone came off unscathed, so we can count it as a success. And, somehow, the car ended up in worse shape than the rickshaw. The driver was a little upset, and called his sister to negotiate. She drove a hard bargain (or Namaste 6 are just too nice) and a generous compensation was agreed. So, everyone ended up smiling. Not for the first time we learned that on Travel Scientists events, the only people happier than the participants… are the lucky strangers they crash into.
 

Temple Time

The day’s second challenge was a little trickier. Teams were instructed to capture a photo of themselves, their rickshaw, and the Padmanabhaswamy Temple. Simple enough you might think: the temple is very grand, very gold, and very big. However, two problems awaited the teams: firstly, guards do not allow photography near the temple; secondly, there are seemingly endless lanes nearby, with only very few allowing access. Many teams drove into narrow alleys, having to reverse, only to have their way blocked by… other Malabar Rampage teams, also lost! Above, the Namaste teams pose in front of the back entrance.
 

Meeting the Locals

Many teams did make it to the main entrance, though, or at least close to it. And bringing brightly coloured rickshaws to popular places means one thing… requests for selfies. Team 2 didn’t help themselves: they had made their vehicle even more interesting with the addition of a Tyrannosaurus Rex on top. They were approached by a local who wanted to join their photo, and (for some reason) to touch the blow-up dinosaur. Afterwards, he wasn’t keen to let it go, and kept holding on. Eventually he relented, but to be fair to the man, he did truly appreciate the moment: he gave the team 10 rupees, and refused to take no for an answer. Team 1 had another classic lost-in-translation conversation earlier in the day. Upon noticing their out-of-state license plates, a local repeated “TN, TN, TN”, with no explanation, much to their confusion. Eventually, she where they were from, which led to the the immortal question “You’re from America and you don’t speak English?”
 

Kovalam and Beyond

For Teams 7 and 18, the challenges weren’t nearly enough. They decided to go on an adventure to Kovalom beach (a lovely spot)… and beyond. They drove for the whole day, exploring churches of various colours, beaches and bays, and picturesque fishing villages. However, later in the afternoon team 7 bit off a little more than they could chew ascending one hill, and spluttered to a stop, out of fuel. Luckily, Team 18 came to the rescue — great teamwork. It seems like teams are ready for the real adventure: day 3, bright and early, we set off for Alleppey.
 
 

 
 

The Malabar Rampage 2018

Forty-seven participants, from all across the world. Eighteen teams, of all ages. Driving rickshaws all the way from Trivandrum, near India’s Southern tip, to Goa, over a thousand kilometers further North. And nobody has driven a rickshaw before. It sounds crazy, and it is. But that’s what we’re going to do, and from all the signs so far… it’s going to be a great trip.
 

Princely’s Words of Wisdom

The trip is led by Princely, a veteran of these events, and the teams’ first job was to listen carefully as he explained everything participants need to know about driving in India, from the state of the roads (“We don’t drive on the left, we drive on what’s left“) to what to do when Google Maps fails (“In rural areas the people are the map”). He also introduced the Chennai Garage guys, who’ll be travelling with the rally and sorting any vehicle issues along the way.
 

Training Day

And suddenly, it was time to drive. Some took to it like ducks to water, and others took a little while to get used to the controls. There were many false starts and puzzled stares, but soon enough teams were racing around the practice ground and dizzying speed.
 

Training Day

Before teams were allowed to drive on their own, there was an important test to complete. Participants have to be able to get the rickshaw going from a standing start, within ten seconds — already a long time to wait in Indian traffic. So, teams were instructed to drive a few metres, stop their vehicle, and then switch drivers, before starting again. It took a few repeat attempts — but before long, everybody passed! Princely, in private, noted that this group seemed unusually competent, to the extent that they might get cocky… but the mayhem of Indian roads will quickly see to that.
 

They Grow Up So Fast!

It was then revealed that we’d be meeting back at the hotel, but teams had to drive there first, also stopping for petrol on the way. Some teams managed this with relative ease, while others had a touch of vehicle trouble. Unlucky Team 6 “The Cupid Stunts”, who had only landed an hour before we met up in the morning, broke down three times, and needed some assistance. However, everyone made it back to the hotel eventually, well in time for welcome drinks.
 

A Double Birthday… Sort Of

It turned out that there was more to celebrate than the start of our adventure: it was also the birthday of Ian, in Team 3 “Kraken”. And so, as you’d expect, we all sang happy birthday and he gave a little speech. But then, half an hour later, a cake was delivered to his table, and so we all sang again, and Ian was polite enough to say another few words. In a weird side-note, the hotel had earlier that day delivered to his room a different cake, reading “sorry”, but he had no idea what they were apologising for; he forgave them anyway. All in all it was a great day, and the welcome party provided the perfect opportunity to relax with a few beers, as Day 2 had no activities scheduled until a positively luxurious 11:30am!
 

 
 

Changed: Kochi!

 
The biggest change to the Malabar Rampage since last year is that we will visit an extra city: Kochi (also known as Cochin). We always used to recommend taking a brief stop in this city, in between the stops of Alappuzha and  Kozhikode, but now participants will have a lot more time to explore. Kochi has been an important trading center for centuries and as such is uniquely multicultural, with several important landmarks to show for it. Most famous are the Chinese fishing nets, pictured above, but equally interesting is Fort Kochin, home to India’s most ancient community of Jews.
 

The Same: The Other Locations!

 
If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it: that’s what we think about all the other stops on the Malabar Rampage. We’ll still start in Trivandrum, and of course our next stop has to be Allapuzha, or should we say the “Venice of the East“. Just like last year, we’ll stop in Kozhikode, Mangalore, and Murudeshwara. And, naturally, we still finish off in Panaji, the capital of glorious Goa!
 

Changed: Wifi!

 
Another exciting change to the Malabar Rampage is that, this year all rickshaws will have built-in wifi. The engines may still be basic (and temperamental!) but we reckon this technological addition will make for an even better adventure. Now it’ll be even easier to keep your social media profiles updated (we know you all love Instagram…) , to make plans with other teams, and to avoid getting lost. Just remember to keep your eyes on the road!
 
 

The Same: Everything Else!

 

Pretty much everything else on the Malabar Rampage will be the same! There’ll be different teams, new costumes, and fresh adventures to be had. However, we’re expecting the same madness, hilarity, and life-changing memories as ever. We can’t wait — see you in Chennai!
 

 
 

Let’s Start at the Beginning…

 

 
Some teams were making friends even before the event!
 
 

 
But it was soon time for Training Day.
 

 
Where teams had to quickly learn how to drive a rickshaw…
 

 
Before being let loose on the road!
 

 
Everyone was excited for an important Rickshaw Challenge tradition: flag-off.
 

Crazy Costumes

 

 
Now we have to celebrate some of the fantastic costumes our Classic Run participants wore.
 

Sometimes with incredible matching rickshaws!

 
And props…
 

Some costumes were so good strangers couldn’t resist taking a sly selfie.
 

 
While this team helpfully used their lightsaber to point the way to the Health Spa!
 

Making Friends

 

 
A big part of any Rickshaw Challenge event is making friends with locals you meet along the way.
 

 
Some teams distribute toys.
 

 
While others see how many kids can fit it one rickshaw. [Answer: a lot!]
 

 
Teams always get a lot of requests for selfies.
 

 
Finally, Team ‘Vibe Spice’ managed to complete the ultimate Rickshaw Challenge tradition: a selfie with policemen!
Okay, it turns out we had so much fun we’ll need a Part 2 for the rest of our favourite highlights…

 
 

Day 7: Pongal Challenge

 
Day 7’s activity was kept as a surprise for the participants and only during the daily briefing were things revealed to them. We had planned a Pongal festival in Bremajothi farm at Sayarpuram and for the earlier part of the day we gave a small tour of close-by Tiruchandur and Manapad. As it had been a long day before, all the teams had a chance to relax. Some teams skipped Manapad tour and drove straight to farm, reaching there before 2 pm, about half an hour before the schedule.

 
All the teams assembled at 2.30 pm at the farm and found the arrangements ready for them. The quiet and natural set-up of the farm did not fail to impress all the teams. Aravind and his wife Gayathri came down at 2:30 pm and by 3 pm all the teams were briefed about the activity. Aravind and Gayathri handed over the dhothi and sarees for the teams, while locals were on-hand to help everyone wear them properly! After they got ready we had a photo session and after that it was time for the competition.
 

 
The Pongal event has always been a grand event and it attracts lot of media attention. Finally, after an hour and half the teams lined up for the Pongal competition results. The judging team (pictured above, in tense discussions) had to arrive after that and it took about 6.30 pm to have the results. Team 1, The Tuktators, won the competition for the taste, consistency and presentation.

 
After that the teams had their dinner given by Aravind and being dark we decided to drive them in convey to the hotel. It all ended up superbly and without a hitch we reached the hotel and the teams made it to the pub to finish their day. Knowing that the next day’s drive was pretty easy all the teams were in super relaxed mood that night. Those who burned the oil late into the night were Team 2 ‘the Hasselhoffs’, Team 4 ‘The Death-Shaw’, Team 6 ‘The Valkyrie of Valhalla’, Team 7 ‘Vibes Spice’ and Team 8 ‘Curry me to the Alter’ are the fantastic bunch. Known for their long night drink parties. they continued the habit in Thoothukudi as well.
 
 

 
 

Day 5: Rest day at Madurai

 
The beautiful temple city town of Madruai was the place where the teams had their deserved rest after the long night parties. Even though the teams got up late no one missed the chance to visit the Meeneakshi amman temple there.
 

Day 6: Madurai to Thoothukudi

 

The short day is piece of cake for all the 15 teams. In fact some of the teams had their best moments in Thoothukudi (also known as Tuticorin), driving around the small town having a lot of fun with the locals. So far the Classic Run is going well and let us has the glimpse of the finish in the next report. Until then you can follow our page for more updates, until then bye from me.
 
 

 
 

Day 2: Chennai to Puducherry

 

The costumes of the participants made the first day extraordinarily colorful and gave a happy mood for the first day on road. Again the briefing was done by Aravind and teams left the base hotel within half an hour after we finished the briefing. There we go, Classic Run 2018 was officially flagged off and we were off on road. All went fine for the first day and I saw a couple of teams in Mahabalipuram, mentioned in day sheet. Alambari fort was closed as there were some issues with the locals.
 

Team 15 (Temoji), had no clue how they had to navigate in spite of briefing and they came as the last team and it was 7.30 pm when we finished the day in Puducherry. The other teams strolled to the beach to enjoy the end of the day. Over beers some stories of running out of fuel and minor break downs were discussed. The mechanics attended the overnight complaints and preparation for the next day went smoothly.
 

Day 3: Puducherry to Thanjavur

 

Being the longest day of the entire rally, teams were warned enough and the highlight of the day was again Team Temoji. At around 4.30 PM, I received a call from them and they had completely lost their way and detoured more than 40km. But everything fell into place as they were guided by some locals and the Chennai Garage team lead them after the town of Kumbakonam. Yet another day finished in the base hotel which had an extraordinary swimming pool. Beers by the pool, that’s sounds luxurious, doesn’t it?
 

Day 4 Thanjavur to Madurai

 

The big temple in Thanjavur was the first challenge for the participants. On my drive I met few teams at Tirumayam fort and the pictures taken at there were awesome. Special mention to Teams 11 (the B – Team) and 14 (Ripped and wrecked). Another no problem day ended up at Madurai and teams had their new year’s party… it was a long night for most of the teams! Let the fun begin. I would like to wish all the readers and regular followers of Rickshaw Challenge a Happy New Year!!!
 

 

Day 3

 
On the morning of the 17th when I reached hotel around 7 am, Team 8, 9 and 10 were already waiting at the hotel lobby. As usual the luggage tags were distributed and they tagged their bags and went for breakfast. All the teams had arrived by 7.30 am. The roundtable members joined us at 7.45 am to do the flag off. The briefing was given at 8 am and all the teams were briefed about the road condition, day’s activity and about the base hotel. Then the Roundtablers introduced themselves and spoke about their projects. Finally the teams were flagged off at 8.30 am. Whaav! Most of the teams had nice costumes and some of the teams had done nice makeovers for the vehicle. A special mention to Team 4 (Neruppu Da) for their makeover in honour of recent hit Tamil movie Kabali. The Luggage truck left immediately and the support waited for an hour before they left. I managed to start around the same time when the support team started. When I closed in for the first activity challenge at Sadras Dutch fort I could see 4 to 5 teams either leaving plus some on their way to the fort.
 

 
When I was closing in for the second activity challenge, I received a call from Team 5 who had run out of petrol.  I helped them organize and they got back on road.  The rest of the day went by without any calls and all the teams arrived in the hotel well on time. Team 8 came and told us about the their experience of flat tires and how locals had helped them. Most of the teams planned their own evenings and I met few of them in the beach walking. The day was almost full moon and the moon was rising on the horizon at around 7.30 pm: it was a beautiful sight for an enjoyable walk in the beach side.
 

 

Day 4

 
The early birds of team 10 – the Contemporary nomads – were there before I came to lobby at 7 am. Well within half an hour all the teams dropped their bags and went for breakfast. Being a long day with narrow roads, I had warned the teams to keep up their time on an activity packed day. The first call came from Team 10 at around 12.30 am and they were closing in on the Vaitheeswaran Koil activity. The service team took no time as they were close and the problem was sorted out. At Vaitheeswaran Koil I met Team 7 and Team 5. The rest of the day went without any problem. All teams came to Tanjavur right on time and most of them jumped in to the pool of the base hotel Parisutham. Team 6 Rayan went on a drinking spree and had to sleep out of their room as it got locked. This he told me when I met him the next morning…
 

 

Day 5

 
Driving to a small hill station, Yercaud, was the agenda for the day. The teams were tasked with a photo challenge. Team 4 and Team 10 left early to avoid excess heat and traffic. But things did not go according to the plan. Team 4 had a break down just before Tiruchi. They lost lot of time but got back on road before the service team could reach them. Rest was all smooth until I got the call from the luggage truck. We realised we had given a wrong address for the hotel. They we took some correction measure through message and facebook.  Team 2 had some break down before a place called Musuri and it was set right by our service team.  The first team to arrive in the base hotel was Team 4 and one by one all of them came with the last team arriving at 6.30 pm.  Few of them claimed the different road (Google mistake). Team 11 missed the hotel and went to the wrong address, but came back to the right address eventually. This meant everyone was accounted for and ready to continue the Tamilnadu Run the next morning!