[DogNDamsel12]

Well! In daylight, this would be just another 'regular' OTR that some of us - BHPians - would have joined Kolkata Offroaders on.

Only if I could say it with pictures alone -









This was by design not meant to be a day offroad, rather one that was supposed to be happening after sunset, which was interesting from the word go!

Having driven on the Boinchi terrain a few times over the last year, I have seen that each time and each season that we went back, the terrain changed in colour, texture, and the position of the undulations. So, from the very moment, the OTR was announced, I had a queasy feeling considering that after sundown, there would be no lights barring the headlights of the vehicles, and no other sensation barring the wheels modulating on the completely uneven topography.

The plan was put together in a short span of time by Uday Bhan Singh Sir's group and with a limited number of people who have some prior offroading experience with Kolkata Offroaders (KO).



We met at the Boinchi grounds at 4 PM. There was a lineup, with the marshals leading the way for a recce which was of utmost importance for a feat like this one.

THE RECCE

With a balmy February weekend having received light rainfalls, the sandy Boinchi grounds were damp, with the traction altering between hard ground and brittle sand formations that easily caved in under the tyres. The shifty sands made the obstacles tricky and required a little more from the driver in terms of understanding acceleration and traction.

Also, those familiar with the ground conditions would know that the flora is ridden with stubborn, thorny shrubs that can really feel on the undercarriage, though would not really harm it much beyond a few lacerations.

THE SAFETY GEARS

A night OTR means more safety gears, headlamps, D-shackles, tow chains, and hooks. It also means checking and knowing the position of the winches on each vehicle, powerful led torches for spotting, adequate ground recce, and marshal jackets.




THE SAFETY BRIEFING

1. The jeeps were to lead the way, followed by the Fortuner, which was trailed by the Dusters, and the Endeavour brought up the rear.
2. Each car was to watch out for the trailing vehicle through the rearview mirrors, and if the rear vehicle happened to trail behind, she was supposed to signal the car in front by flashing the dippers.
3. The marshals/spotters (senior members of the team) were meant to wear a reflector jacket at all times.
4. The vehicles were to be driven really slowly to avoid stomping on any unsuspecting animal (primarily reptiles).
5. Talking of reptiles, people were asked to get out of the car only when signaled for safety. The cars were to rev the engines, so that the vibrations from the machine may drive away anything before one could hop out for spotting etc.
6. We had already been pre-instructed to wear something covering the legs, so as to keep mosquitoes and reptiles at bay.

[DogNDamsel12]

Before Sunset - The Ground Recce - 4 PM-4:45 PM IST

As mentioned in my previous post, the ground recce part was of utmost importance. The first vehicle huddle was at about 4 PM at the golden hour. The Boinchi area, from what I have heard from the locals, was transformed into a sand quarry several years back when there was a requirement for a large project, and as fate would have it - has been discarded since and lies almost barren, used from time to time for local entertainment.



Since we were all familiar with the ground, we embarked on a circuit recce to feel what lay beneath the wheels at this time of the year.

The marshal cars were - a Jeep driven by Adhiraaj Singh (Ade), BHPian 1100D and his Toyota Fortuner, and BHPIan Samba in his Duster AWD.















Thars ambling through the terrain








The effortless Fortuner
This was a vertical climb. What helped the car stay grounded on such a steep incline without losing traction, were the manual differential locks provided in the new Fortuner.

And, the colours of the sunset served me well to amplify the photo - what do you think!









Dusters see, Dusters do!

The Dusters are always a thrill to watch as they rock some of the inclines without a glitch too!











The Regrouping at Sunset

At sundown, all the cars collected on-ground, like a flight of birds would in the sky for the finale!

[DogNDamsel12]

After the Sunset - the exciting 2 hours: 6PM-8PM

All the cars gathered back on the level ground next to the football field. Final checks were done on the vehicles.

Interestingly, the lead vehicle had an LED bar to show the way for the trail.

There were 14 cars, in all.





I was with BHPian Samba in his Duster AWD. Since Samba was carrying his Canon 6D with the 24-105L lens, he and I took turns to use the same for taking the photographs off his camera. Night motion photography is something new for me as well - so the action captured was not as many as I would have liked. Plus, hopping off the car was not possible unless signaled.
But the camera proved to be a hero even at 10000 ISO which I could not have remotely imagined with my crop sensor 60D.









Tackling the inclines

This part was treacherous - as there was no path and mostly people followed the vehicle ahead, paused for it to take the hurdle and then follow suit.

And, even then it was tricky as the mechanics of each car and what they can and cannot do are different, the handling style of each driver is different and distinct from one another. Spotters did a phenomenal job as well with high-powered LED torches and hand signals.













Duster gets caught in the sand

Offroading is incomplete without one or two "catches" in the ground
I was hoping that we will get to see some towing action.

However, BHPian 1100D guided the car out of the situation, using the Brake Traction Control (BTC) of the car. I heard him yell "hold it down for 6 seconds and accelerate."

Before long the Duster rolled back out on the track!



So, here's the remainder of the photos for you to have a look and enjoy!

Thanks to some really fastidious drivers and spotters, and awesome cars, we were able to have a really nice evening exploring a terrain that offers a multitude of ground portions - from loose sand, to thorny shrubbery, to a bit of slush, and generous loads of undulation for an event as this.



























The final lineup

One last ensemble at the end of two hours, and I believe no one got back home unhappy!

[DogNDamsel12]

Conclusion would have been incomplete without the Biryani

So, we finished up in (Kolkata) style with the quintessential Biryani and chicken chaap, a bit of "adda", thanksgiving, and a promise to meet up and do this soon.









BHPian AJ-got-BHP with the Endeavour, and his family:


BHPian Uprasenjit flew down from the UK to participate in the OTR! No, that's a bit too much. He got here the same evening, and he came to meet the group anyway.



A few lines on the social consciousness of the group -

1. The vehicles were asked to ply slow so that no animals, reptiles, slitherines are harmed during the session.
2. Safety was given prime importance at all times, including providing jackets to the marshals.
3. Food wastage and littering of any form is not allowed and we pick up everything in our tracks before leaving, with zero plastic footprints!

Overall, an awesome experience before we called it a night!

[BlackPearl]

Thread moved out from the Assembly Line. Thanks for sharing!

Originally Posted by DogNDamsel12

What helped the car stay grounded on such a steep incline without losing traction, were the manual differential locks provided in the new Fortuner.

The Fortuner has front and rear manual diff locks from the factory or is this a special vehicle?

[Samba]

Excellent report and pics. Rated 5*

You have covered the details extensively, the photographs came out much better than what I have expected to come in that pitch darkness.

From a drivers POV, I would like to share few points-

Even a know terrain feels eerie and unknown in pith darkness.

With stock headlights, visibility is a challenge. Specially while taking turns, if their is a ditch or any boulder or so. Side mounted lights, overhead led bars, or at-least cornering lamps will make things a bit easier.

I used the fog lamps more than the head lights. The wider spread of the fog lamps helped me to spot the sides better. Plus on any incline the headlights were straight away pointing to the sky.

Experienced spotters are a must.

When in doubt, I got down from my car, checked the terrain and then took my car over it.

Sharing a small video compilation from my Dashcam, am sure this will give a fair idea of how the drive was!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OqVo5DyZKQw

[AJ-got-BHP]

Oh what a pleasure it was to be a part of this Evening OTR, the first of it's kind for me and I guess many. Although I could not join for the day session due to some work commitments, I am happy that I just made it in time for the evening session with my family. This was special for me in many ways !!

Sharing some snaps that I could manage through my lens during the OTR (in no particular order) :





















Some pictures of Bagheera my Ford Endeavour 4x4 :













Looking forward to many such newer experiences in the times to come. Kudos to the core organizers

[SkyWraith]

The pictures look really good. Having attended a couple of OTRs in daylight, a night OTR seems quite scary considering the sandy inclines at certain places.

But it still looks quite exciting and would love to attend one in the future.

[DogNDamsel12]

Originally Posted by BlackPearl

The Fortuner has front and rear manual diff locks from the factory or is this a special vehicle?

I am not the best at answering that. But here is what I found -

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KhIz6MhsE38

Originally Posted by Samba

Excellent report and pics. Rated 5*

Sharing a small video compilation from my Dashcam, am sure this will give a fair idea of how the drive was!

https://www.Youtube.com/watch?v=OqVo5DyZKQw

Thanks Samba. The camera outdid my expectations, but then I am a drop senior user, so what do I know!

Originally Posted by SkyWraith

The pictures look really good. Having attended a couple of OTRs in daylight, a night OTR seems quite scary considering the sandy inclines at certain places.

But it still looks quite exciting and would love to attend one in the future.

Thanks SkyWraith. Yes the thought of it was scary. But in the end it was fun.

Originally Posted by AJ-got-BHP

Looking forward to many such newer experiences in the times to come. Kudos to the core organizers

Cool photos, AJ. Indeed had an awesome evening.

[padmrajravi]

Originally Posted by BlackPearl

The Fortuner has front and rear manual diff locks from the factory or is this a special vehicle?

In stock form, Fortuner only has a rear differential lock that can be controlled via switch. I think it is a stock vehicle. It should be possible to do that hill with just rear diff locks.

[Tejas@perioimpl]

Originally Posted by BlackPearl

The Fortuner has front and rear manual diff locks from the factory or is this a special vehicle?

Rear difflock

All around brake traction control. AKA ATRAC (Active Traction Control)

[justwheels]

A night Offroad event and that too with Uday Bhan sir is an opportunity to behold.

Looking at the pics, I am sure you guys had a lot of fun. I see most cars only had stock headlights, no auxilliary lights or overlanding lights. Must have been tricky to navigate the terrain. Hats off to the spotters, as gauging the depth and inclines in night with lights is very difficult.

Thanks for sharing.

[vox_alienus]

Fabulous! How can I join you with my Thar, which is getting bored out of its mind??

[arpanjha]

Originally Posted by vox_alienus

Fabulous! How can I join you with my Thar, which is getting bored out of its mind??

I think Samba can put you in touch with KO members and admin Adhiraaj & Uday uncle, although I havent met them since a long time, still I remain a KO member (although Dormant) at heart.

[ABHI_1512]

Awesome description of an event which I must say looks great in pictures, I am sure being present during the whole exercise must have been an experience in itself. The presence of some legendary figures and BHPian’s was the icing on the cake. I am sure Samba enjoyed the most amongst all, his enthusiasm is infectious and as I can see, has clearly rubbed the right way