[motocamp]

Originally Posted by satan

Wow what an event!!! Thank you Kunal, Huda, Akshi and your families for making this event happen. I think you've outdone yourself with this time's trail which was a great mix of muddy inclines, slippery decents, deep ruts and rock crawling.

I also think you've set a very high benchmark in organizing the entire event right from the selection of the obstacles to the assistance at each point. Restricting the number of vehicles on the trail also allowed every one to not only focus on clearing their own obstacles but also enabled learnings from other participants and their machines.

Made a lot of new friends, caught up with offroading buddies and exchanged a lot of ideas and yarn

As someone mentioned this has to be a 2 day event in 2012. Way to go !!!

Thanks Satan

I believe this is the way forward so a 2 day event it is for 2012

[Samurai]

The shots of the trail and general surroundings are simply stunning. The obstacles look very challenging, and we all know what green grass can do to traction. Too bad I had to miss this one. Please continue with more pictures.

Kunal and team, looks like you have outdone yourselves this time.

[mohan]

If there was something like "The Man Of the Match", I would definitely recommend Soumya; for his untiring omnipresence his disarming demeanor and sense of wit..

[vinod_nookala]

Hey kunal,
Congrats for pulling the event so well for the second time! It has always been our pleasure to provide recovery support to AKC and we will continue to do so provided conditions permit.

Though only a small part of the trail was repetition, it was overall a tough trail and needed lot of spotting and guidance. Arrangements overll were a notch above last year!

congrats once again and cheers to all the participants who were there with thier well prepared vehicles!!

[Ravveendrra]

We reached home this afternoon so the pics are not yet ready. This post has been long overdue so I will go ahead and post and post some pics later.

We heard good things about AKC from people who attended last year so we decided to attend this year and we are mighty glad we did. AKC and the organisers conquered our hearts, minds and souls.

The area in which the event was conducted was absolutely gorgeous and we feasted our eyes on the lush greenery, gently rolling hills and water.

Once we got off the highway we drove along lovely long winding roads to get to the venue. The venue was clean and comfortable. The 'watering hole' where food was served and all the action took place in the mornings and evenings was open, spacious, comfortable and had numerous power outlets for charging phones, cameras and laptops.

The food was awesome. Served piping hot and tasty. Great wholesome food 3 times a day - what else can one ask for!

The organisers were absolutely fabulous and things proceeded like clockwork. They made sure everyone was comfortable and happy. Their hospitality was so good that it was a bit like visiting family or old friends. They got the paper work out of the way in a jiffy and generally made everyone feel at home. The marshalls and spotters did a great job on the trail and made sure that things did not get too sticky for the vehicles or participants. Decisions were taken quickly and implemented promptly all of which meant the trail was completed safely. Now, I have little experience of off-roading yet I found the 'spotting' to be superlative. Each designated spotter knew the obstacles intimately and unerringly guided the drivers through. Kunal's "no-nonsense" style, James's precision and Imran's great instructions laced with lots of humour stood out. Take a bow guys!

The trail was beautiful and safe. If one got tired of looking at wonderful machines trying to do the impossible and succeeding, one could always admire the landscape. The obstacles were outstanding choices. They tested the capacity of the machines and skill of the drivers to the maximum and goaded them to push further and expand their limits. Very thoughtful were the 'chicken routes' mapped out in advance for every obstacle, this meant that no vehicle was stuck. A rescue plan for every bit of the route was planned in advance and the rescue vehicles were stationed at strategic places in advance ensuring that no time was lost in recovery and the convoy moved along smoothly.

All in all just two words, actually just one - AWESOME. AKC has to be the premier off-roading event in India. Insha Allah - I will be there next year.

I see this event going from strength to strength in the years to come and wish Kunal, Huda and the rest of the organisers all the best.

[Sutripta]

^^^
Ravveendrra, as in the person who did the North East in a Skoda? Didn't know you were into OTRs. You would have seen more in a 4X4!

BTW, enjoyed your birthday?

Regards
Sutripta

[Ravveendrra]

Originally Posted by Sutripta

^^^
Ravveendrra, as in the person who did the North East in a Skoda? Didn't know you were into OTRs. You would have seen more in a 4X4!

BTW, enjoyed your birthday?

Regards
Sutripta

Bang on Sir, that's me. How are you?

Just getting to enjoy the OTRs in a communal jeep. The Himalayas are too far from Hyderabad for me to drive a Jeep all the way there :-(.

Between midnight and b'fast we saw 3 states so I guess it was a great b'day!!

[Ravveendrra]

Okay here are a few pictures that I managed to click at the AKC. Not too many and not even of all the obstacles or vehicles.


A stamp was put on my hand upon arrival. Little did I realise then that I was branded for life!



Lush green along the road outside Dada's Grill which was home for 2 days.



A view from the windshield of our 4X4. That was the last time I saw it clean and shiny in the next three days :-)



Great views in every direction was the hallmark of the AKC at Karjat




Raju & Pulsar56 (on right) hitch a ride at the back hoping to get some great pics.



The three vehicles who drove together as 'Team Mars' the works vehicle in front (only the roof in foreground), Fazal Ali Adil's "Lynx" and Chetan Pereira's Thar.



These two gypsies from Bombay somehow added to the beauty of that location.






Above & below - Shugun enjoying the scenery from above the Thar's roof.





Ritesh in his MM540



Man & machine both excelled.

















Fazal saab and Abbas saab pose with the Lynx during lunch.

[shams]

Originally Posted by motocamp

Hyderabad Gang:
What a turnout! Thank you all.

Shams and Afsar, I thank you for your offer of your recovery vehicle to be made available to us throughout the event. I regret that we were not able to take advantage of your graciousness. We especially were awed by the colours of your team and the absolute preparedness

Thanks for being a great host and a brilliant organiser, we had a fantastic time and look forward to being at AKC next year

Shams Ahmed
Hyderabad

[Ravveendrra]

Here are a few more photographs I managed to click before rain made my tuck my camera away. This is the next lot of 30.

[Ravveendrra]

This is the last lot of pics from my side.

[DKG]

Congrats Kunal and team for yet another fun AKC. The weather seems to have made the terrain just perfect for offroading. Is Dada's Grill a new facility or your farm?

[R32_GTR]

The event was executed exceptionally well and in a timely manner - I guess limiting the number of entries was key.

Everyone completed every obstacle (well almost everyone until the front runners made the last few obstacles undo-able ).

“Chicken routes” everywhere was a boon but surprisingly, not many took them unless absolutely necessary.

My personal rating for the event :-

• Hospitality 10/10
• Trail: 10/10
• Obstacles: 10/10
• Time management: 10/10
• Lodging: 8/10
• Food & Beverages 9/10
• Overall: 10/10

The Organizers – Mr & Mrs Singh, Kunal, Huda and the Bhaskaran family, Akshi Singh, The Chabbaria’s; You guys pulled off one hell of an event and simply outdid yourselves. Please take a bow!!

The Marshals – couldn’t have been better!! Mohan, Soumya, Imran, Faisal, James, Immy, Sajid – you guys are legends and its always a pleasure to meet you’ll and know that you’ll are around when we are Off The Road!!

The Trail… simply spectacular!! Enough said.

The Obstacles – Having done parts of the AKC only a week ago during one of the recces with Kunal, this wasn't a surprise.. Just like the host promised, definitely not for a beginners / novice. Skill levels had to be way above intermediate. The obstacles this time around were far more challenging than last year. Enough to push and test every man (and one awesome Woman – Malati) and his/her machine limits and capabilities.

The Participants – It was an absolute pleasure to meet everyone of you’ll. Thank you for making this event a success.


On a personal note, the simplicity of the event and the humility of the organizers itself is what has made AKC 2011 a grand success. I guess this is how Alfa Kilo would have liked it to be..


I had offroaded with the Jonga only a week before the event, so the Jonga and I suffered from performance anxiety. Well, I guess it was more me than the Jonga.. I still needed to get a better understanding and connection with the beast.. but the brute looked after me during the death decent incident that ended with a massive puncture but could have been worse . It was great while it lasted and I am now a strong believer of Karma!!



Cheers to all..

Prasad Iyer

[motocamp]

Hey Prasad i guess its time to change to tubeless tires now

I always carry a tubeless puncture repair kit!

just sort out a few niggling issues and the jonga is read to tame any terrain!

[fazalaliadil]

Dear,

Organizers, Marshalls, Spotters, participants and fellow Team BHP'ians.

I couldn't have put it better than Prasad in the preceding post about the personal attention, organizational skills, warmth and so much much more that we enjoyed here.

The event day was an extremely fun filled one that went by without a single hiccup, great camaraderie, awesome location, challenging trial and the spirit of helping out each other was evident all through.

Kunal and Huda, thanks, you two can pull off anything together with your core team who were immensely popular with the participants.

I personally rate this event as one of the best.
In terms of success, I would rate it as a perfect 10.

Thank you, as we from TEAM MARS enjoyed ourselves and continue to talk about it.

The time of awakening was when Mrs. and Mr. Singh presented me the certificate and the memento, I will always remember that moment for long.

Thanks and Regards,