budapest – Rickshaw Challenge

Me Alone in Budapest

admin — Wed, 24 Apr 2013 14:55:33 +0000

Here’s a tribute to the dedicated boys and girls from our Budapest office, who usually are neglected:( – as the rickshaw races are in India, but we got some amazing adventures starting from this great city.
→ Caucasian Challenge: The Last Great Adventure Race. Budapest to Yerevan
→ Central Asia Rally: Race into History. Budapest to Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan
‘Me alone in Budapest’ from Sara Pretelli

The Ultimate Rush

admin — Mon, 18 May 2009 13:05:22 +0000

Cool piece in businessworld.in on the Rickshaw Challenge:
They warn you well in advance: this is an amazing race for the clinically insane. This coming August, 40 teams won’t mind being called that, as they compete in the Mumbai Xpress, an autorickshaw rally from Chennai to Mumbai. For the past three years, The Autorickshaw Challenge has drawn loyal fans to its annual rickshaw rallies, which includes the Tech Raid (Chennai-Hyderabad-Bangalore-Chennai) and the Malabar Rampage (to Kerala and back). Software techie Aravind Bremanandam has even set up an event management firm to handle the show. The victorious world champions get, apart from ‘major bragging rights’ and ‘an outrageous trophy’, free entry into the Caucasian Challenge, a drive-anything motor rally that kicks off from Budapest every year. Says Bremanandam: “Our mission is to provide an unparalleled experience to the rallyists by combining adventure, sight seeing, fun and charity. And what better way to do it than in our own homegrown autorickshaw?” Racers who fall in love with their zany, multi-coloured rickshaws have the option of buying it. For a fee of e900 (Rs 60,000), an autorickshaw, paper maps, traffic reports, road conditions, GPS co-ordinates and even internet access at pit stops, are provided. Enroute, teams adopt-a-village and provide it with school supplies, medicines and the like. Participants are urged to think of the rickshaw as “a covered bicycle with a fuel-efficient lawn mower engine”.

Aravind + Innovation = Rickshaw Challenge

admin — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 11:46:28 +0000

With the Indian Autorickshaw Challenge, Aravind Bremanandam has built a brand around the humble tuk tuk.

Pitted roads. Desert sands. Hilly terrain. Hairpin bends. The Budapest to Bamako rally (also called ‘The Great African Run’) tests driving skills. For most participants, this annual trans-Saharan rally is an addiction. But no amount of e xperience seems to equip them for the chaotic traffic encountered in and around Morocco. Most of the drivers don’t leave this leg of the rally without their cars getting scratched or dented.

In the 2006 edition, an Indian stood out for the ease with which he handled the traffic. Humungous vehicles had packed the road and the rally cars could move only by the inch. Unfazed, Aravind Bremanandam (in a 1974 Soviet Lada) wove through the traffic, taking advantage of every small opening.

In the evening, Aravind was the subject of great curiosity. Into a software business that required him to alternate between Budapest and Chennai, Aravind sang the praises of our autorickshaw drivers. “This traffic is nothing compared to what you find in Chennai,” he boasted to the group that hung on to his words.
He promised to give them a feel of driving autorickshaws through the Indian countryside. He kept his word. Later in the year, the “Indian Autorickshaw Challenge”, a Chennai to Kanyakumari rally, was organised.
With painted designs and accessories, the autorickshaws were given a dash of flamboyance (Now, the teams can smarten up their autos by shopping at www.pimpmyshaw.com). The participants themselves went through makeovers. Dressed like dukes, princesses, wizards and what not, they played many roles. The rally lived up to its tagline — “An amazing race for the clinically insane.”
Full article here

Caucasian Challenge 2009 – New Route

admin — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 16:17:42 +0000

New route for the Caucasian Challenge 2009; an extraordinary adventure from Budapest, Hungary to Yerevan through the Balkans, all over Turkey deep into the Caucasus.
Check out some of the changes:
More stages on remote areas far from civilization
More Albania (the favourite country of 2008), we double the experience of the Albanian Alps. Furthermore we spend a night in Albania.
More Georgia, more time in the Caucasus. We re-structured the daily stages a bit to see more of this lovely country.
Click here for more (Scroll down for english)

Our Easter Challenge – White Russian Challenge ( WRR )

admin — Fri, 07 Nov 2008 16:34:58 +0000

White Russian Run

The White Russian Run is a crazy motor rally across the hidden and forgotten regions of Eastern Europe. This Challenge is a race for the enthusiasts and a perfect mental recreation for those who are interested in the region and dare enough to sign up.