Part 1

“Not all who wander are lost”, were the words I stole from a great man to keep the spirits up while my navigator and I were driving through pitch black darkness along a narrow mud trail on a desolate farmland in Nasik. It was not as if we weren’t warned. The hoarding at the flag off of the drive said it in bold white letters; ‘Get Ready to Get Lost’.

The Mahindra Quanto Weekend Escape which I was a part of, was an initiative by the company encouraging their customers to use the Quanto for what it is meant to be; an urban tourer.

The two-day affair held over the last weekend was organised by Mahindra for its Quanto owners which included a fun-filled driving experience from Mumbai through Jawhar that culminated at the Sula Vineyard in Nasik, and of course, a gloomy drive back. Preceding the flag off from the Mahindra Kandivali plant, the organising committee ensured that we were well versed with the rules and regulations of the event and equipped us with the most essential electronic wizardry; a handheld transceiver, aka the walkie-talkie and a first aid kit.

The two main highlights of the event were a TSD Rally on Day 1 and a Gymkhana event on the next day. Embarrassingly, until the night before the event, I was unaware of the existence of a TSD Rally (Time Speed Distance for us laymen). In my defence, rally racing has never been my cup of tea, and so an experienced partner in crime came in extremely useful.

Part 2

The rolling convoy reached Manor from Kandivali, which marked the start point for the TSD Rally. The coffee break before the start gave everyone the opportunity to measure their opponents, at least for the more competitive participants. The radio christened us with chest numbers and addressed each participant as a Weekender, apt considering that we were all on a roll to end the week with a bang.

The TSD rally through the twisty hill terrain of Jawhar tested one’s riding, analytical and even math skills! The tulip described the route in great detail as well as the speed and time constraints that had to be followed through each of the sectors. There were 12 predefined checkpoints with stewards waiting to pounce on the any opportunity to penalise the participants. Precision driving, as the experts call it, is the skill to any TSD rally. Arriving late or early was penalised with the early penalty carrying a ten time weightage to coming late. Which means, if you can’t get to the place on time, get there late, a policy we Indians are pretty acclimatised to.

The first sector was a 54km stretch to be covered at an average completion speed of 24kmph with four checkpoints en route. The terrain for this sector was rather forgiving, quietly taking us further away from civilised land. The walkie talkie helped break the ice between participants and also give vital heads up when necessary. The two hour sector completed at Shanti Sarovar Resort, Jawar which was also our halt to replenish lost calories.

The next sector, the longest of the three, stretched from Vadholi through Harsul and ended at Girnare. The six checkpoints, 117km route was one of the most scenic drives that was on offer with lush green hills wound by muddy brown tracks. The track previously used for an INRC (Indian National Rally Championship) event pushed our driving abilities further and the Kasara Ghats and dams in the backdrop only added to the beauty.

The end of sector two is where things got interesting. The peak, packed with dense fog reduced visibility considerably and one wrong turn took us to no man’s land. A four km long slush filled tractor track stood between us and the finish. We knew there was warm food, some exquisite wine and a comforting bed waiting for us at the other end. The setting sun was not helping us in any way and as darkness loomed upon us, we crawled through the track, being amazed by what the Quanto can take, considering that it is only a rear wheel drive sub-four. This section, though not planned was the best part of the entire journey; getting lost! The sense of self-reliance which we often forget took over and propelled us towards the finish line.

Part 3

Day two featured the Gymkhana session with multiple events challenging the agility of the car and the driver. The ’Pole Dance’ tested the drivers judgment skills to measure the gap our cars could squeeze through, while the ‘Reverse Forward’ clocked the time taken by the car to complete a manoeuvre in forward and reverse mode. The final challenge, named the ‘No Brakes’, mandated the driver to complete an obstacle course without the use of brakes.

The Sula vineyard tour and the pool side lunch at the Beyond Resort created a perfect setting to close a fun filled adventure weekend which most definitely met the expectations of every participant. A convincing victory at the TSD Rally made the celebration even sweeter. The drive back was more sedate, with hoardings constantly flashing the one most important rule of driving; Do not drink and drive.

We stopped for a coffee on our way back, an unconscious effort to prolong the end of an eventful weekend. Like aging men with mid-life crisis, we spend the coffee break reminiscing in the past. One thought lead to another I was at my ninth grade classroom, kneeling down in the corner, my teacher reminding me, “Instructions are given for a reason, if you don’t abide by them, you will always regret your decision”. If only I could go back in time and tell her she was wrong, at least this one time.