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Distinguished - BHPian ![]() ![]() | ![]() It was 3 rd August and on the same day Kolkata's biggest Team Bhp meet was scheduled in the early morning at Rajarhat. A couple of days prior to the the meet 1100D told an OTR from Kolkata Offroader's was scheduled to happen on the same date. I have never been to any OTR's before, so i was excited about this OTR. Few of us made a plan to go for the OTR after the Team Bhp meet. So on 3rd August we were on time for the Team Bhp meet and after the meet me, 1100D and Mr.Sinha proceeded for the OTR event. Both of them owns a Scorpio 4x4 and i was the odd one out among them by not having any jeep/suv. So i parked my car at Azadhind dhaba on Nh2 & i tagged along with them. The place for the OTR was selected as Harinkhola. From Dankuni side its 16kms prior to Arambagh on TN Mukherjee road. The spot selected was the river bed of Damodar. It was monsoon so the place was full of slush , undulation's, sand and water. A perfect recipe to cook a perfect OTR! First time i had the chance to meet the legendary UBS sir. What ever i tell about him will be less! He is an absolute gem! The other experts like Adhiraj (Ade), Vivek Arora (Vicky), Pony (Ubs sir's junior son), Hero Sen, Anirban Ghosh were also present. Am sorry as i miss out the names of others over here. As it's my first time i couldn't remember every one's name. This was my first time and i was offered to drive a jeep and engage 4L on a steep incline on the slush followed by a climb up. I drove the jeep according to the instruction given to me by the experts and was happy not to stuck it anywhere. ![]() As its my first time and am a novice on the technicalities of a 4x4, so let me not bore every one with my writing and share the pics of the event. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Bhpian Mr.Sinha having some fun with his Scorpio. ![]() Here comes Marengo. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() That's me trying my hand on the MM540 DP climbing down the slope in 1st gear 4L with the foots off from all the pedals. (Pic taken by Mr.Sinha) ![]() Me climbing up the slushy slope in 4L second gear. (Pic taken by Mr.Sinha) ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Last edited by Samba : 6th August 2014 at 12:29. |
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Distinguished - BHPian ![]() ![]() | ![]() From left that's 1100D (Anirban Ghosh), UBS sir and me. ![]() From left 1100D (Anirban Ghosh), UBS sir and Mr.Sinha. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Marengo posing proudly towards the end of the OTR. ![]() ![]() Other jeeps posing proudly too after the OTR. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() But at the final exit Marengo and this jeep were royally stuck! It was already 6-15pm. By the time these two were recovered it was already 8pm. The jeep required 1.30 hrs for recovery and we thought Marengo will require more time but surprisingly Marengo was recovered within 5 minutes! ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() This gypsy was posing like a king when Marengo and the other jeep were been rescued. ![]() ![]() The rescue operation going on. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() At the end both were recovered while it was raining. All's well that ends well! ![]() ![]() By 8-30pm we started from the OTR spot. Anirban da dropped me to Azadhind Dhaba, as my car was parked over there. He drove about 100kms extra just for me, so i can pick my car. A big thanks to him. Finally we reached back home around 12am. What a day it was. Got up in the morning at 4-30am to attain the Team Bhp meet by 6am. Attended the Team Bhp meet followed by the OTR and reached back home at 12am. 18 hours of sheer pleasure among cars & jeeps! What more can i ask for!!! Last but not the least the Kolkata offroader's group is just fantastic. The brotherhood they share among each other is beyond thinking in today's world. Hats off to this group. ![]() And lastly i got addicted to OTR's and jeeps from my very first visit! So eagerly waiting for more to come...!!! Last edited by Samba : 6th August 2014 at 12:25. |
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Team-BHP Support ![]() ![]() | ![]() Thread moved from the Assembly Line to the 4x4 Section. Thanks for sharing! |
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BHPian ![]() | ![]() Great shots Samba! The event would have been incomplete without a photographer and enthusiast like you. |
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BHPian ![]() | ![]() Great one Samba! Sheer pleasure to see the pics. Was it a cross-state meet? I can see vehicles with registration numbers from other states as well. Anirban da - A quick question here. In your opinion, what you think about the Scorpio Vs Thar, in terms of offroad capability. Is the Ground Clearance an issue here? There is no doubt over Scorpio's capability (Marengo proved it many times before this). But when Marengo got stuck in the slush, did anytime a thought like "A Thar could have done it" came to your mind? |
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BHPian ![]() | ![]() Quote:
In the stock form, it's definitely the Scorpio which rules over Thar because of the more advanced transfer case. So, on slippery grounds Scorpio scores over Thar. When it comes to climbing sandy slopes, Thar has an 850 kg weight advantage (lighter) over Scorpio. The bottom line is there is no absolute winner. But, if driven carefully, Scorpio can do more because of its more sophisticated and comparatively easier to use equipments. | |
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BHPian ![]() Join Date: Sep 2013 Location: Kolkata
Posts: 123
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| ![]() nice pics as always samba! one thing that I do not get is how Marengo was rescued? Was it towed out, or was it something else (like planks under wheels or something)... Please excuse the n00bness of the query.. ![]() |
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BHPian ![]() Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Kolkata
Posts: 108
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| ![]() Great photographs Samba. How's the experience of your first OTR!!! It was a great experience to meet U B Singh sir. Recently he got a Lifetime Achievement award from RFC India. ![]() |
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Newbie Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: Kolkata
Posts: 15
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| ![]() Excellent pics Samba, as usual. The OTRs really need some good photographers to bring to the fore what all feats the able 4x4s are capable of. It was really bad luck for the 5 of us Sumitro, Joydeep, Deborshi, Saurav and me as we got caught in a very bad traffic snarl on the way. One thing new this OTR saw was Marengo getting stuck. From my memory, I cannot recollect any such incident. I think Anirban will be the best person to analyse the reasons. But I think, in this particular spot, the Thar would have had the same fate. We can well see there is also a MM 550 right beside Marengo which was also stuck. This was one of those spots which any offroader will always want to avoid. Once again, thanks for the OTR pics. I lived this particular OTR through them. |
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Team-BHP Support ![]() ![]() | ![]() Great report Samba and awesome set of pics, absolutely pro stuff. Too bad we could not reach the place, missed a good event :-( Anyways it was good meeting you at the tbhp meet. Sent from my iPhone using Team-BHP |
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BHPian ![]() Join Date: May 2014 Location: Asansol
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| ![]() Great shots Samba. Guys please let me know in advance if any such event takes place in near future. Will bring in my MM 550 XD 4x4 Sent from my iPhone using Team-BHP |
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BHPian ![]() Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: Kolkata
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Senior - BHPian ![]() | ![]() An awesome reporting and a fabulous depiction of events, people who know, will appreciate how difficult it is to convey the challenges of an offroad event through photographs, but you seem to have done that straight out, naturally. What's interesting is that, I cannot guarantee you that it will get better!! Because with time, you'll want to spend more time behind the wheel and watching the terrain! Anyways, one thing that I was wanting to point out, since I had the privilege of seeing the pics straight from your camera, they looked fabulous as well as natural and I cannot really say why, the pictures somehow are not striking the same punch to me now. Anyway voted "Snickers" to the thread, as I prefer that over "5 star" Quote:
However, Marengo's MLD helps, provided the driver is reminded of its presence and he revs the slipping wheel to activate it! Regarding getting stuck, its not such a big deal on the OTR's. The point where Marengo got stuck, a 550 was stuck before, right beside it, on the logically more easier path. However, for Marengo, I was sure it would get stuck. There were many odds against it, will come to that later. But yes, The rest of the vehicles, circumvented the water through a dry but slippery path. Quote:
Offroad Thar is better. But the Scorpio is a better all-rounder, given that it can do many other tasks with elan. Quote:
Thankfully, as Samba mentioned, it took a surprisingly less time, 5 minutes to come out, given the huge time the 550, beside it, took. But I guess, it was a pact made by Marengo and the 550 to spend time together, as they held each others hands while coming back from the OTR spot to the main road! Quote:
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And another situation, on this OTR itself, without me realising that I had the handbrake on. But having said that, this OTR was also the one where Marengo was most likely to get stuck. There were various reasons. 1> Marengo was fully loaded with 5 passengers. As it was raining and the rest of the vehicles being open, Marengo was a shelter. 2> Low approach speed :- there were passengers, the approach speed wasn't as much as I would have preferred 3> The tyres :- The rear tyres are almost at 45k and have lost tread, of the front tyres, one tyre is a H/T tyre. Marengo has never fought for grip as much as it did throughout this OTR, even on the dry sections. 4> Very bad spotting. It was raining heavily, and from the approach, there was a small hump rendering the waterless part of the track somewhat invisible from the drivers seat. The guy wearing white shirt and a turban, guided us into the water, while to him, the better track could be visible. 5> The driver wasn't too concerned about getting stuck at this point! But now I know that the rear carpet is spoilt with soil. But frankly, I was always curious about the extractability of the 2.5 ton wagon, so it was good to have the experience. However, would not have preferred the incident to occur at the fag end of the day with receding daylight and frequent showers, rendering the terrain slippery to even walk on. Quote:
But yes, if I took the pain to stop, look around in the rain and take the better path, I would have deprived myself of the experience! Will be great if you join us next time. One will be held soon enough. Last edited by 1100D : 6th August 2014 at 21:06. | ||||||
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BHPian ![]() Join Date: Jul 2012 Location: WB | CCU
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| ![]() Superb shots Samba. As I mentioned on your FB as well, the action shots with the front wheels in the air are just awesome. You got me hooked to 4x4s again. Quote:
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