Auto adventures

admin — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 11:03:09 +0000

Nice piece from The Hindu on the Classic Run 2012 titled ‘Auto adventures’
‘There are a lot of ways to ‘discover’ India. As Dave Alefail, Tim Douros, Toni Csermelyi, and 30 other foreigners – including 11 women – from nine different countries found out, one of the best ways to get up close and personal with India, its people, and its culture, is to go the distance in an autorickshaw! These 33 ‘auto adventurers,’ as they called themselves, tooted into the city last Saturday, after completing the sixth annual ‘classic run’ of the ‘Rickshaw Challenge’ that saw them driving 15 decked up autos, all the way from Chennai to Poovar.
It was a fantastic experience, a great way to see the countryside and experience a different side of India,” says Tim, from Boston, Massachusetts, who is on his maiden trip to India. He, along with friends David Mantus and Tim Keutzer, also from Boston, travelled in a custom-made auto they named ‘Big Gulab Jamun’ (a tribute to David’s favourite dessert). “Tim Kuetzer and I have been to India before and have travelled in autos as passengers. But never had we even thought about driving one until we came upon the Rickshaw Challenge. Before we started out, all 33 of us had a three-hour intensive crash course on how to drive an auto, and practised driving one through the chaotic traffic of Chennai,” says David.’
Check full article below

It's a Rickshaw Challenge Adventure

admin — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 07:53:30 +0000

The 2012 Classic Run is on the way and the press is all over it. Below is a piece from the Deccan Chronicle, titled ‘Get in an auto, give to society‘
‘The thought of taking the auto to work today may faze you, but you won’t be thinking twice before jumping behind the wheel of one at the Auto Rickshaw challenge. With the promise of fun, adventure and a culinary tour like none other, the Rickshaw Challenge comes to Chennai for the sixth year — minus the quintessential auto anna!
Started to cater to adventure, the Rickshaw Challenge has put Chennai on the world map of adventure tourism.
Says Aravind Bremanandam, the brain behind the enterprise, “This year we have 33 participants from nearly nine countries. The participants are a cross-section of society — from students, businessmen and nurses, we have a diverse lot participating. In the past few years the event has come to be a cultural gala that is about adventure, discovery, vacation and social giving.”
The Rickshaw Challenge has so far raised 80,000 US dollars and has been giving back to the Round Table of India for the last six years.
This year, participants of the Rickshaw Challenge will race their autos across a distance of 950 km, between Chennai to Poovar in Kerala. In the course of their journey, the participants will get to sample the gamut of cultures and cuisines that comprise south India.
“The challenge is quite like any other,” says Aravind. “Points are given for being crazy and unconventional,” he adds.’
Via: Deccan Chronicle

Poovar – Rickshaw Challenge

Auto adventures

It's a Rickshaw Challenge Adventure