Mahindra Thar fest and Adventure Club Challenge 2019 concludes in Kochi

Kochi, Kerala's busy cosmopolitan city, is known for its ports and harbours. To add to the hustle and bustle of this beautiful urban jungle, Mahindra organised a Thar Fest for those off-road junkies who love to get their hands, and cars dirty. This fest witnessed hundreds of distinctively modified Mahindra Thars rallying across the city while the local crowd cheered and whistled to glory.

In its third edition this year, the Thar Fest aims at celebrating the camaraderie between the off-roading community and 4x4 enthusiasts. A wide range of off-roading activities and contests kept the participants captivated throughout this day-long festival which was held on 10 March 2019. Meanwhile, the spectators could indulge in activities like the Thar Parade, 4x4 Experience Zone, Heritage Mahindra Display, Customized Vehicle Display and a Live Music performance. 

Alongside the Thar Fest, Mahindra also conducted the fourth edition of the Adventure ‘Club Challenge’. It witnessed the top 11 off-roading clubs from across the country, competing against each other for the coveted title of the ‘Best Off-Roading Club’ in India. The obstacles focused more on teamwork than on individual performances. The ‘Club Challenge’ was kicked off at 6,30 pm on 9 March 2019 with exciting night stages that went on till midnight. The next day, on 10 March 2019, the participants competed for the day stages, braving the scorching heat and humid weather between 10am to 6:00pm. 

It was followed by the famous ‘Demolition Derby’ obstacle which required the off-road vehicles to negotiate a path over a pile of junk vehicles. Another long-standing obstacle was ‘Pass the Baton’ where all classes of vehicles had to follow a relay and pass the baton from one vehicle to another and cross the finish line. The overall winner of these eight obstacles, spanning over two days, was the Kannur Riders and Off-Roaders Club (KROC).  The first runner up title, on the other hand, was won by Bangalore Off-Road Driver’s Association (BODA), while Northern India Off-Road Club (NIOC) bagged the second runner up title. 

Apart from the winning teams, the other participating clubs this year included Team Ejamsa, Extreme Riders Motorsports Club of Meghalaya, Kerala Adventure Sports Club, R&T Autocatalyst, KTM Jeepers, Kannur Jeepers and Team Flywheel.

Speaking on the occasion, Veejay Nakra, Chief of Sales & Marketing, Auto Division, Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd., said, “The Mahindra Thar is an iconic brand, and holds a very special place in the hearts of auto enthusiasts and the off-roading community. It is an extension of the Mahindra legacy, and reflects the company’s tough and rugged, go-anywhere capabilities. With ‘Club Challenge and Thar Fest’, we are delighted to see the passion of off-roading enthusiasts. Like in previous years, this year too, the ‘Thar Fest’ saw scores of 4x4 enthusiasts come together to celebrate the tough and rugged DNA of Mahindra vehicles. Furthermore, in ‘Club Challenge’, diverse off-roading clubs fought for the title of ‘Best Off-Roading Club’, facing some of the toughest obstacles through challenging terrain.”

This year, Mahindra Adventure also gave an opportunity to the media fraternity to compete against each other over a specially designed off-road course. I, along with my partner (decided on the basis of chits) from a Pune based media house managed to win this Media Class category 2019.