15th Maruti Suzuki Desert Storm Rally

You couldn’t have missed the big fleet of Maruti SUVs lined up if you happened to be in TGIP this Sunday (January 29). These vehicles were flagged off from Noida for 15th Maruti Suzuki Desert Storm Rally.

We were out on our usual weekend trip to the mall for movies and munchies. The movie ‘Raees’ was good. I would probably rate it as 3 or 3-and-a-half star worthy. SRK seems to be experimenting with different kind of cinema these days. Nawazuddin Siddiqui was a delight to watch with his effortless acting and crisp dialogue delivery. “Writing mein dena” line had the crowd cheering. But the most tiresome part was seemingly endless barrage of advertisement during the interval. For the first time we had seen so many commercials that kind of broke the continuity of the movie. We wondered whether this was due to change in management and hence change in their screening practice too. You all might be knowing Big TGIP Cinemas has been taken over by Carnival Cinema group. I simply hope they shorten the commercial break soon enough.

Well, enough of the rant! Let’s come back to those cool SUVs near McD – Kidzania area ready to be flagged off for a six days rally in Thar Desert of Rajasthan.

Maruti Suzuki Desert Storm Rally is equated as the Indian version of Dakar Rally. It will cover a 2000 kms over a span of 6 days. The competition which was flagged off from Noida will head for Hanumangarh in Rajasthan for stage 1. Next, the rally will navigate the desert terrain of Bikaner and Jaisalmer. Jaisalmer will also have a night leg of 150kms. This year will feature a 207km long Special Stage, billed as the longest stage in Indian Motorsport history. Finally, the competition will conclude at Jodhpur on February 4 culminating prize distribution to the winners.

The Background

Maruti Suzuki started Desert Storm Rally in 2003. This is one of the toughest and most popular rallies in the country. The rallyists traverse the treacherous Thar desert between sand traps, vast salt flats, dirt tracks and glorious landmarks. Given the extreme conditions, Maruti Suzuki Desert Storm rally is an ultimate endurance test for the man and the machine.

Safety

Prior to the flag-off ceremony, participants are provided clearance for their vehicles after a strict one day scrutiny check, documentation and stickering. All the participants are provided with on-ground safety measures at regular intervals during the course of the rally.

Participants

CS Santosh, Suresh Rana return this year to defend their titles at 15th Maruti Suzuki Desert Storm Rally. CS Santosh in Moto category will compete against 40 riders to defend his title. Veterans Sandeep Sharma and Aabhishek Mishra too would be the part of this rally. This year rally includes 13 women participants, including three all-women teams, in both the two and four wheeled categories. The list includes Bani Yadav and Sarah Kashyap, podium finishers of previous editions of Maruti Suzuki Desert Storm, Dakshin Dare and Raid de Himalaya.

We wish the best of luck to all these speed junkies!

To know more about such and other events in Noida check Noida Diary’s Events Calendar.