2016 Maruti Suzuki Desert Storm rally comes to a triumphant close in Jodhpur

After an adrenalin-fueled race through the lunar-like terrain of Rajasthan, the 14^th edition of the Maruti Suzuki Desert Storm rally culminated in the Blue City of Jodhpur with Team Maruti’s Suresh Rana and his navigator Ashwin Naik clinching the first position in the Xtreme (Cars) category. Amanpreet Ahluwalia and his navigator Virendra Kashyap came in second, while Niju Padia and Nirav Mehta rounded off the podium.

Starting off with a grand flag-off from Noida, the 2016 Desert Storm saw record participation with more than a hundred teams duking it out over 2100 kilometres of inhospitable desert terrain in various categories for seven days. Leg 5, the last leg of the rally, brought the race to a close in the city with blue rooftops, Jodhpur, after having criss-crossed Hanumanpur, Bikaner, and Jaisalmer in Rajasthan.

The last leg and day of the 2016 Desert Storm was particularly notable for its grim mix of soft sand dunes, craggy rock hills and bone-dry swathes of arid desert that tested the limits of endurance of both man and machine. Numerous cars failed to complete the route, their engines giving up life thanks to the combination of hot climate and the constant strain being put on them by the rigors of driving through the recalcitrant sand. While some had to be towed out by the support staff – each vehicle incurring a penalty every time they asked the officials for help – some persevered and make it through with sheer effort and grunt.

In the Xtreme (bikes) category, India’s ace rallyist and only Dakar participant so far, CS Santosh, bagged the crown, followed by Aravind KP in second place, while the third position went to R Nataraj. Riding the same Suzuki RMX450Z Rally that he used for his Dakar pursuits, CS Santosh was in a league of his own throughout the race, and comfortably won his category, despite being fined a penalty of 60 minutes on the 10^th stage for failing to spot the passage control.

In the NDure category, rallyist SK Ajgar Ali and MK Mohammed Musthfa bagged the top slot, followed by Vishnu Singh and Adhithya Anthony, with Jagmeet Gill and Chandan Sen rounding off the podium. In the Xplore category, Pratap & his navigator T Nagarajan won the first prize, followed by Rajesh Chalana and Arindam Ghosh, while the rear of the podium was brought up by Karthick Maruthi and S.Sankar Anand.

All the prize-winners and participants were felicitated by a grand concluding ceremony held at the Welcome ITC Hotel in Jodhpur, Rajasthan, on 10^th April.

FINAL RESULTS

XTreme Cars –

1.       Suresh Rana &AshwinNaik- 12:52:03 Hrs

2.       Amanpreet Ahluwalia &VirenderKashyap-  14:02:11 Hrs

3.       Niju Padia & Nirav Mehta – 14:05:41

NDure Cars

1.       SK Ajgar Ali &MK Mohammed Musthafa - 00:23:12 Hrs

2.       Vishnu Singh &Adithya Anthony - 00:42:13 Hrs

3.       Jagmeet Gill and Chandan Sen- 00:58:06 Hrs.

Xplore Cars

1.       Pratap & T Nagarajan - 00:02:01 Hrs

2.       Rajesh Chalana & Arindam Ghosh - 00:03:20 Hrs

3.       Karthick Maruthi & S.Sankar Anand - 00:03:39 Hrs.

Moto Quad

1.       C.S Santosh - 11:19:28 Hrs

2.       Aravind KP - 11:28:06 Hrs

3.       R Nataraj - 12:35:30 Hrs.