[gsferrari]

Originally Posted by pdev29

@Guru - I really wanted to see your Geoff in action :(

Originally Posted by speedy

+1. so looking forward to seeing Geoff taking the climbs with ease..:(

And you can. I have uploaded this video of Geoff crawling with almost jeep like ability over one of the climbs which normally would require run-up, wheel-spin and a bit of drama.

Geoff did it with no drama thanks to the Diff-Locks, MT tires and increased GC over stock. I didn't even have to use the skid-plates this time.

YouTube - Geoff_Being_Awesome

[4x4 cruiser]

Was desperately waiting for this OTR. Had a awesome day and a altogether different way of celebrating the Republic day. Totally agree with the members on the points of convoy breaking and most importantly on spotting.

I remember Gogi bhai comming to me and telling me to listen only to Allan, which was the best part because it is very difficult to do an tough obstacle with people shouting at you "GO left", "Go Right". Secondly their are some guys who regularly break the convoy, whcih defeats the entire purpose of convoy itself.

For convoy, i suggest that we give the numbers to the cars as and when they reach the meeting point, the numbers can be given based on the time of arrival, and it should always be lead by the most experience member of the the team and the last vehicle should also be by the experienced guy of the team.

Secondly, while doing short Declines & Inclines i have always noted that we tend to stick to the car ahead of us to maintain the lead, this can always lead to accidents, so in briefing lets include the point to keep safe distance from the Car thats doing any obstacle and let them finish it before we line up.

Tejas, please dont give up spotting, their are many few faces you can trust on when it comes to spotting and if they are not available while doing a obstacle it can be a blunder.

Speedy and fortuner are deadly combination.

It was an amazing day well spent, hope we get to enjoy many more days like this.

Looking forward to next OTR.

[Cloud_Chaser]

Thanks to Allan, Tejas, Devang, Manan, Somya and others for a wonderful OTR.

@ Tejas: I am sure someone has a photographic evidence of you getting your shoes dirty in the slush. On a serious note, my respect for you as person has gone even higher cause who would want to get himself dirty to check the route so that others can enjoy.

The route was excellent with small obstacles with medium difficulty level. The trail was very well planned.

I also face some confusing moments with multiple people spotting but I always looked for Allan, Tejas or Somya and followed their directions.

A very special thanks to Imran for the Chicken Puffs they were awesome

Originally Posted by xtreme power

the short wheel base pajero living up to its pedigree this time, both car and driver have evolved

Thanks for the compliment Extreem Offroaders have a major role in that. I will call you tomorrow, need to discuss about some tinkering and painting work.

Originally Posted by pdev29

@Prashant - good to see you in action again. Please get your Pajero word done asap.

Yeh even i am worried about the rust.

Originally Posted by pdev29

It was good to see Gautam,Ravi,Prashant and couple of others who came for OTR after a long break. sorry guys for limited interaction

So where do we go next weeked?? I suggest overnight trip to a new place.

Next time lets plan a overnight trip as you suggested so that we can get time to sit and talk.

[BolBolero]

Originally Posted by pdev29

To All,

we have observerd this spotting issue long back but we never wanted to hurt someones ego by telling them to Stop but at Mahpe i took my first step towards it. (Allan you know who) even i told Gogi to forget everyone and just look at Allan for spotting.
My two bits: It doesn't matter if someone's ego gets hurt, rules are rules and they need to be followed. It's better to have a bruised ego, rather than a bruised body and vehicle!

SPOTTERS
I have already discussed this Tejas and Allan. We will have a breifing before we start are next OTR and inform everyone who will be the spotter. Everyone can get down of the vehicle and and watch but with their MOUTH SHUT.
Convoy
If any car is noticed breaking the lineup will be last car for rest of the day.
Great Idea, should be enforced!

I would like to thank soumya for spotting and helping all the vehicles at couple of obstacles. I hope you have the pic of Tejas getting stuck in gutter
@ AbhiShake aka Speedy
everytime you surprise us with your fortuner. Good show.
Same goes for Ibu in his Safari.
+1

It was good to see Gautam,Ravi,Prashant and couple of others who came for OTR after a long break. sorry guys for limited interaction.
Cheers
Devang

It was great meeting you guys too after a long time! Just let me know one day in advance and I will surely try to make it for the next OTR!

Originally Posted by speedy

Thanks bro, I like changing peoples perspective of the Fortuner and it being a so called sissy car and not an Offroader. Happy she atleast would be taken seriously at an OTR.
The OTRs hence forth would have a new player..The Thar..

Hey Speedy, thanks for taking me on as a passenger. Man, no way the Fortuner can be called a sissy car! It was one of the most capable vehicles at this OTR. The LWB was a bit of the bother, but not a problem in your hands I guess! You have changed my perspective of the Fortuner!
Waiting for you to get the THAR to the next OTR! All the best with that!

[nilanjanray]

Originally Posted by speedy

Thanks bro, I like changing peoples perspective of the Fortuner and it being a so called sissy car and not an Offroader. Happy she atleast would be taken seriously at an OTR.

Speedy,

Did the Fortuner get stick while climbing that hump?

How have you found the Fortuner in these offroading situations?

I have done 6K km with my Fortuner (a black one, like your's), but haven't done any hardcore offroading yet, apart from bad jungle/hill trails for wildlife viewing and photography. Curious to know how the Fortuner deals with these offroad trails.

[speedy]

Originally Posted by 4x4 cruiser

Speedy and fortuner are deadly combination.

Thanks bro, just trying my best at doing something i love.

Originally Posted by BolBolero

Hey Speedy, thanks for taking me on as a passenger. Man, no way the Fortuner can be called a sissy car! It was one of the most capable vehicles at this OTR. The LWB was a bit of the bother, but not a problem in your hands I guess! You have changed my perspective of the Fortuner!
Waiting for you to get the THAR to the next OTR! All the best with that!

Your most welcome anytime sir. No sir the LWB is not a bother if you have a lift kit on the car. My car runs factory spec and on this trail we only took one alternative straight climb instead of the tight s bend as the car would not have been able to turn there.

Waiting too for the Thar, as i would be able to push her everywhere.

Originally Posted by nilanjanray

Speedy,

Did the Fortuner get stick while climbing that hump?

How have you found the Fortuner in these offroading situations?

I have done 6K km with my Fortuner (a black one, like your's), but haven't done any hardcore offroading yet, apart from bad jungle/hill trails for wildlife viewing and photography. Curious to know how the Fortuner deals with these offroad trails.

There were two simultanous climbs and after taking the first climb, i did not give her enough juice to take her through the second. My fault completly. We did get stuck for a bit till we squirmed out of it ourselves with Allan and Dan just pushing the front end to the ground. We then backed down and in the second attempt went through with no issues.

The Fortuner is a very capable machine and can handle all the situations thrown at it. The car does not know how to quit, its the man behind the wheel that says enough. The car has the right amount of power and torque to do climbs with ease. The Lwb does slow you down in some obstacles and you have to find alternate routes due to this. The solution to this is a lift kit. I am on stock setup and yet the car does things, so imagine with a lift kit and MT tyres what she would do.

My car has done 16k or 18k kms and no issues. She has had her fair share ok sratches, bent floor boards and crack on the front bumper but nothing broken as yet. Since you take her for garden walks you must have seen the ease that she takes you through the bad jungle and hill trails. The same way she shall take you through offroading trails. Please do be prepared to have the floor board bent and sratches while doing so, if you plan to do the things i do with the car.

[gsferrari]

Thoroughly impressed with the Fortuner. Ideal situation would be:

1. Buy a secondhand Fortuner for cheap
2. Strip it down
3. Lighten it by doing away with the non-essentials
4. Lift kit
5. Mud Terrain tires (go BIG)
6. Massive Winch up front and rear
7. OBA
8. Extended range fuel tank
9. Basic spares/fluids stocked up
10. cooler/food storage
11. Lightforce lighting for near and far field
12. Toughened driveshafts, axles, springs, differentials
13. Underbody sliders and armor

And then go conquer the world. I don't think there is anything that can stop a bespoke fortuner.

The way the India's economy, weather and regionalism are building up steam - You NEED all the above

[V-16]

Originally Posted by motocamp

I agree with you Gogi.

......... i had no spotter :( most of the time and had to keep jumping off the jeep to check where i was relative to the terrain,a real pain in the ***.

Kunal, for experienced guys like you, you may not need a spotter to get you through a situation, as you said maybe to stop the pain of getting in and out of the jeep to spot

For a newbie (most of whom are straight out of a drag meet) its most important and also to have a competent spotter is as important. I think till a mishap occurs, every new guy wanting to spot thinks its cheesecake to spot for another. They dont realise that a slight slip from them might lead to a potentially bad slide, tumble or mishap.

Originally Posted by Tejas@perioimpl

Why do you think i stopped spotting gogs? Only when you called i used to come and spot. Every thread, every fb event page i've said only one person spots (and then labelled as "BOSSY") but then herd mentality takes over and mayhem happens. Therefore, i keep quiet.

Chief,if the experienced stop means all the newbies have a field day. If we have organized an event, we must be responsible for that. If it makes others feel bad....tough!!

Originally Posted by genesis

Gogi: I doubt that the 'people' that you are referring to read the 4x4 threads.
So it is for upto all of us to take responsiblity for the people we 'invite'. Like you did for Bharat!

My friend whom i had bought along, was thrilled at the idea of offroading. Till he went over the first few obstacles, he thought he was going to jump in the drivers seat soon and also do some "off roading". Only when he was exposed to the inclined seating and some frantic, trying-to-find-a-hand-strap while i was negotiating a steep obstacle did he realize this was not his cup of tea...well at least not yet.

I remember Jiggy during the Examm, he was all set to go through some obstacles, until he came to them. Its only later during the day he even tried his hand at driving the CJ through one or two but clearly refused to even sit in the CJ during a few inclines and declines. It does take a while to handle the feeling of loss of equilibrium. The mantra is practice and more practice.

Originally Posted by motocamp

The simpler ones can be used to root out the not so serious guys.

I think we should concentrate on quality instead of quantity.

Bang on buddy!!

=xtreme power;2224135]thanks guys, glad you'll enjoyed the trail
but frankly i was very disappointed with the lack of attention shown towards safety.
at every obstacle we tejas, devang and me were literally yelling to the others to stop spotting and let one person do it.

At one time i also thought of suggesting doing the car breaking inclines somewhere in between so that it separates the men from the boys!! Thats what they used to do at the Himalayan rally. All the speed monsters were taken through a stage where if they weren't experienced, would result in a break down, maybe a clutch burn, maybe a suspension or a gearbox damage. This was done to keep them from going to the next stage, where, if not careful and disciplined, the result could be fatal. I remember telling Ravi to listen only to Allan as he was spotting at a crucial decline

Originally Posted by fazalaliadil

That was a nice OTR and good number of 4X4's.
Nice seeing Gogi's 3B ripping its way through and Allan spotting.

Thanks Fazal, i have also come a long way from my first OTR and an still discovering the brilliant CJ. Stock to the bone ans so, so capable.

I had relied on Allan, Tejas, Devang, Soumya and a very select others to spot for me. If i found i wanted a spotter, i called for anyone of these who were in sight and that kept the others away. In one place, where the incline was great and it warranted going over broken rubble and tiles, even the path was up and down, very easy for the CJ with its wafer thin NDMS to turn turtle. Bharat (my friend) jumped out (though i think it was due to butterflies in his stomach from seeing the sheer incline of the obstacle and loss of any visible track) and said, C'mon Ill spot for you. I saw Allan and hollered for him and till he didnt come i got out and inspected the track myself (which i recommend everyone to follow, always) Bharat didn't realize till he saw me finish the obstacle that he was not someone who could have spotted. After that he never offered to spot, realizing his earlier folly.

One can see Allan Tejas, Devang at work whenever i called out to them.









The above inclines were particularly tricky because they were not straight, either at the entry point or during the path down and any wayward driving would have surely resulted in a tumble. I had to be more careful as my Cj was shod with 'biscuit' NDMS, the same as Soumya's. Thankfully we wee absolutely clear re our spotters our spotters

We need to educate the newbies about the danger of spotting or rather Mis-spotting as i would like to call it. Im sure they would adhere to our norms. Of course there will be a few rebels who should then be treated as such.

If there are a lot of newbies then a small laying down the law/briefing session may make sense in the beginning and all the regulars should also listen and not be bored.
i yelled at more then 3 white gypsy owners to get back in line or go back home.

Oh yeah those guys got an earful from me too. g.

Few highlights for me:
gogi's cj doing every obstacle with ease, my favorite car of the day,

Thanks mate! with every otr i feel im evolving into a better off roader and the CJ is teaching me new tricks

manan's jeep completing an entire trail without any setbacks

the fortuner and speedy, they together will suprise you
the short wheel base pajero living up to its pedigree this time, both car and driver have evolved.
a 1 litre gypsy doing obstacles that a 1.3 could not do

Evolution Series

Speedy has evolved from his first otr with the Fortuner, where he was only too eager to let me or Tejas behind the wheel to someone who has to be told not to tackle an obstacle for fear of wrecking his Fortuner. Im sure he sees his evolution with every otr. Way to go Abhi, you and the Fortuner, a great team!!

Prashant's Pajero is a wonderful and capable machine much like its driver. Get the niggles fixed Prashant and see what she can do!!

Ill reserve my comments about the 1.0 v/s the 1.3 in this case. Have to mention Paras and his much talked about Gypsy. Hes become really good and a fearless one too. I see him getting better and better and he and his modest 1.0 litre can do so many things one doesnt expect from an engine of that size. I guess its all about being one with the machine.

Originally Posted by genesis

I dont see too many pictures of the "Rastafarian Sardars". Khanda in the front and dreadlocks in the back!
That gypsy was a riot. Even when they were almost toppling on the final obstacle!

Also come to think of it, our previous 'rowdies' have sobered down a lot. Guess it comes with time. Some even limiting the number of attempts at an obstacle. Though I did see Ibrahim manage to sneak in a donut right at the start

LOL!! I though of the same thing. Curious and enthu lot. Only hope they adhered to the rules and didt throw caution to the winds, especially when negotiating steep inclines with the whole lot sitting in the rear benches being thrown about. Hes gotta be careful. Nothin macho about endangering friends or anyone or that matter.!! IS it something with the white Gypsies? Paras seems to have sobered down and Devang has got himself one...lets see fi the White Gypsy bring out some other facet in him.

All in all Great one guys!!

[garrett_t16]

here are some pics of my jeep.
all in all a good otr,would love to explore the hills in Mahape, Allan are you listening ??, will join you for the next reccee there

[speedy]

Originally Posted by gsferrari

Thoroughly impressed with the Fortuner. Ideal situation would be:

1. Buy a secondhand Fortuner for cheap
2. Strip it down
3. Lighten it by doing away with the non-essentials
4. Lift kit
5. Mud Terrain tires (go BIG)
6. Massive Winch up front and rear
7. OBA
8. Extended range fuel tank
9. Basic spares/fluids stocked up
10. cooler/food storage
11. Lightforce lighting for near and far field
12. Toughened driveshafts, axles, springs, differentials
13. Underbody sliders and armor

And then go conquer the world. I don't think there is anything that can stop a bespoke fortuner.

The way the India's economy, weather and regionalism are building up steam - You NEED all the above

The things you mention is good for extreme offroading with the Fortuner. To be competent for an Otr, i would only suggest front bumpers, stone sliders, 2" suspension lift , snorkal if you do river crossings and MT tyres. Ironman in Bangalore has stuff for the Fortuner. I had finalised things with them but had to pull out as i am getting the Thar and its only for offroading.

Originally Posted by V-16

Speedy has evolved from his first otr with the Fortuner, where he was only too eager to let me or Tejas behind the wheel to someone who has to be told not to tackle an obstacle for fear of wrecking his Fortuner. Im sure he sees his evolution with every otr. Way to go Abhi, you and the Fortuner, a great team!!

Thank you Bhai. The first Otr was where i was learning and not that i have stopped learning as the Fortuner shows you new tricks it can do each time.
I was eager to let you and Tejas drive the car so as to observe how things are done (I did not know the Fortuner could crawl or what crawl was) and secondly to take pictures as no one would bother to take pictures of the Fortuner as it was considered a sissy spoilt car and only the Gypsy's and Jeeps were on the Map. Like the saying respect is not given it is earned and i think the Fortuner has earned a little of it.
I do notice the more daring nature if i may say so coming out at Otr's. This is due to the confidence that has built up doing some Otrs and also knowing the Fortuner limitations and capabilities. Yes sometimes i forget its not a jeep or a gypsy and line up for obstacles that can wreck the car, but then i have you, Allan, Devang and Tejas who keep me in check .

[SPIKE ARRESTOR]

@GS I loved that video of your gypsy approaching the obstacle (Geoff being awesome), no fuss whatsoever! Hope the EXO gang had a gala time out there.

Spike

PS- Your Gypsy has almost evolved into a Jeep, congrats!

[gsferrari]

Originally Posted by SPIKE ARRESTOR

@GS I loved that video of your gypsy approaching the obstacle (Geoff being awesome), no fuss whatsoever! Hope the EXO gang had a gala time out there.

Spike

PS- Your Gypsy has almost evolved into a Jeep, congrats!

I knew that last line was coming

It does drive more "Jeep-Like" now. Were you at Avalaconda? Said hello to Arka?

[SPIKE ARRESTOR]

Yes, we were in Avalakonda, had a blast there. Met everyone there including Arka and had a great time. Kudos to the Organizing team for this!

Spike

PS- We will continue to fight on the forum as long as the discussion is healthy, no second thoughts on that. Finally at the end of the day what matters is, if we are a good human being or not, which I think I am

[scphanse]

This is a query to all experienced offroaders read: Tejas, Devang, Sowmya, Allan, Gogi, Speedy ( Please forgive if I have missed out any names):
Are inexperienced individuals allowed to come as mute observers/ passengers with experienced members on the OTR's
-salil

[Tejas@perioimpl]

Originally Posted by scphanse

This is a query to all experienced offroaders read: Tejas, Devang, Sowmya, Allan, Gogi, Speedy ( Please forgive if I have missed out any names):
Are inexperienced individuals allowed to come as mute observers/ passengers with experienced members on the OTR's
-salil

Yes salil. Everyone's welcome. Do read the OTR threads to know what happens during OTRs and what is the code of conduct so that you can come well prepared.

Having said that, once you come, you'll get hooked and will die to buy a 4x4!

Keep looking at the bombay OTR thread or our extremeoffroaders FB page for updates and future events.