Sunday was extra special for the off-roading enthusiasts from Kolkata. More than 40 cars reached Shyam Business Park at Singur, some 30 km from Netaji Subhash International Airport, for one of its kind motorsports event named the Mahindra Great Escape. Organised jointly by the Indian Motorsports Club (IMSC) and Mahindra, a special track was made for the purpose. With mostly SUVs and jeeps, this event included both two-wheel drive and four-wheel drive cars
All pictures by IMSC
According to Saurav Chatterjee, an organiser from IMSC, “For the last 15 years, Mahindra has been organising the Great Escape in different parts of the country. For the first time, it was held in this part of the country,” he added. While it was not a competition, a special certificate was provided to the participants
A total of 42 cars with 110 participants attended the event. With eight two-wheel drive and 34 four-wheel drive cars, it was all about technique and power. The cars were to complete a few laps of the tracks to complete the task. Many of them got their first-time experience with a monsoon trail drive and proper off-roading
Even though Shyam Business Park is a popular destination for motorsports enthusiasts in Kolkata, a special track was made for the event. According to Chatterjee, it was a combination of natural and artificial obstacles and took about three days to prepare. “Due to the monsoon, several parts of the track were waterlogged. Those were natural obstacles, while some parts were so deep that cars couldn’t come up. So, we had to reduce the depth,” said Chatterjee
Since most cars were built for off-roading, it was a test of technique and power. Mechanics, recovery and a backup team were present. “Two instructors were present to assist those who didn’t have the requisite experience or the technical expertise,” Chatterjee added. About 10 cars were stuck on the tracks
Sohom Saha, businessman from Burra Bazar, drove Jit Mitra’s black Scorpio car. “I travel regularly to different parts of the country with my car at least thrice a year. This event was special because it gave us a taste of adventure, very near Kolkata. Overall, I had a great experience,” Saha added
