Welcome back to our sneak-peak of the Malabar Rampage 2022. If you still need to catch up on the first few days of the event, you can do that here. But don’t worry, it’s not mandatory reading!
This is officially the third day of the event, but the first day on the road. After practice, this is the first day the teams are going to drive around 190 km. . Team The Banditos’ and Team ‘Wacky Racers’ were more than excited for their drive and the surprises they’d encounter on the road.
Getting Ready for the Flag-Off
In the morning the teams handed over their luggage to us to be transported to the next hotel, only keeping what they’d need for the day. This way our teams can fully enjoy their adventure during the day without having to worry about their belongings. After breakfast and a short briefing, the Rickshaw Challenge Malabar Rampage finally hit the road.
Fully equipped with their day sheets, which contain the daily challenges, the recommended route, the information about the base hotel and some tips for lunch on the road and the best bars in the day’s destination town, our teams were more than ready for the flag off.
It is a long-standing tradition for our teams to start the Rickshaw Challenge in fancy dress, so The Banditos donned a Mexican outfit, even including fake moustaches. The Wacky Racers had a comic-based fighter jet outfit. Many a photo to be shared with the friends and haters was taken.
The teams were flagged off by us and they hit the road by 9.am. Once the teams were let loose on the road the Travel Scientists team and Rickshaw Challenge support team will always be ready and available to receive calls from our teams and to help in difficult situations, but no news is always the best news – meaning that our teams are simply enjoying themselves.
A Scenic Detour
As per the challenges, the teams visited the Anjengo Fort, and met the support crew at Varkala Beach. There the teams felt like continuing to drive a road close to the beach for 40 km, which was not part of the official route. As the event is not a henpecked guided tour where you must do what you are told to do (well, at least not all the time!) we didn’t dampen their adventurous spirits. But since it would be harder for our crew to reach them in time in case of emergency or breakdown, we mutually agreed on their route. But the day was super smooth for both teams and there were no issues at all.
After reaching the base hotel in Alleppey the teams set their adventurous spirits on finding a place that would serve them some well-earned cold beer. Alleppey, the’ Venice of East’ as it is called, has its own uniqueness of house boats and channels, reminiscent of Venice.
There has never been any a dull moment during the Rickshaw Challenge. After every corner a surprise is waiting. The Indian road and driving culture can shock you and at same time mystify you as to how it is working in a certain order, despite seeming totally chaotic. If you would like to experience this mystery yourself, then kindly click on to the registration button and join us for the next trip!
Read more about the Rickshaw Challenge here or visit our dedicated Rickshaw Challenge website.
See you for another day. Until then bye.