Over 300 Offroaders from all over the country will be seen in action at the Annual Offroad Carnival to be organized by the city based Pune Pathfinders on September 12 and 13.
Speaking to reporters Sandeep Anand and Gagan Sethi of Pune Path Finders said that the event which is being held in the city for the first time will see participants from, Aurangabad, Chennai, Mumbai, Nashik, Satara, Kolhapur, Akluj, Hyderabad, Ahmadabad, Bangalore, Gokak, Goa, Belgaum, Gulbarga, Nagpur, Bhopal, Indore, Kolkata and Pune vie for prizes in Petrol Category, Diesel Category and special category for Winching
We have planned to host the event at Ganga retreat club road, Wagholi Pune, a special track would be carved out in a natural breath taking landscape, designed by veterans of this field . The event is open to all road registered 4 wheel drives, provided the vehicle currently or previously sold to general public. No commercial/agricultural vehicles are allowed in the event
This two day event will have 12 special stages (SS) spread across 200 acres of natural terrain and carefully designed to test caliber of competitors. A perfect combination of driver, navigator and vehicle is essential for podium finish. Entire event will be marshalled by experienced people who have marshaled one of the best offroad events in India and offer transparent process for participants.
They added, ” Offroading is the activity of driving or riding a vehicle on unsurfaced roads or tracks, made of materials such as sand, gravel, riverbeds, mud, snow, rocks, and other natural terrain , Offroading showcases action, drama, camaraderie and heroism”. It takes competitors through mud, drenching rain, steep slippery slopes, deep ruts, gullies, flooded rivers, and landslides
Mr. Anand added that Offroading is a nascent sport in India and is progressing multifold year on year; the Annual Offroad Carnival will provide a platform to learn and share nuances of Offroading, camaraderie along with an opportunity to watch seasoned participants show their skills in this new vertical of Motor sports.
They added that Pune Pathfinders a non- profitable group was formed in 2012 by experienced Offroaders from different walks of life, group and today has over 500 members from all over Maharashtra with 450 plus vehicles (Mahindra, Maruti, Toyota, Tata, Land Rover, Force Motors, Mercedes, BMW and Nissan).
Mr. Anand added that members of the group have taken pride in podium finishes of majority of the events attended. Our members participated in different events pan India (Maharashtra, Goa, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh. Uttar Pradesh etc) and part of closely knitted community, have close ties with almost all major Offroading groups in India. As culmination of our aspiration, we are organizing an event, ‘Annual Offroad Carnival’. The event will also add a new chapter to Pune’s motorsport history.
We have also very strict environment norms in Offroading and have an environment charter that all organizers, competitors and officials are required to sign thereby committing to respect its term.
Apart from carefully planning the route to avoid any environmentally sensitive regions, No standing trees or plants will be cut or damaged , Participants drive to campsites in an organized convoy, within speed limits and only on marked tracks , Participants are required to remove any fallen trees blocking the track and not drive around them and also ensure that they do not endanger the lives of any birds and animals also any vehicle with excessive emissions are disqualified from participation.
