Setting off on April the 2nd, Chris, and close friends Matt and (another) Chris from Nz, joined up with seventy four more dilapidated rickshaws at the Kochi, Kerala, starting line in SW India, before setting off for an eventful fortnight long race to the finish in Shillong, Merghalaya, North East India. Without any fixed course and no back-up, the wholly not fit 7hp three-wheeler (top speed 55kph - down hill) was likely to get lost and break-down, but Chris and co couldn’t pass up the opportunity to see the true India and raise cash for Winston’s Wish and rainforest charity Cool Earth on the way.
Twenty seven years old Chris comments, “I desired to experience India, in a place I have not been, though not in the normal way a tourist might. I did not desire using trains, aeroplanes as well as a Lonely Planet handbook, checking out the same places westerners always explore, but instead go to small-scale villages that’d maybe never even seen a westerner in decades. The chance to drive quite possibly the most unsuitable automobile all over what are frequently thought to be the world’s most dangerous roads was also hugely appealing. The whole adventure was terrifyingly remarkable and absolutely tiring. India is a definitely wonderful country that you just cannot compare with any place else, I'd repeat the process in a heartbeat.”
The threesome’s efforts earned them a ‘Best Tale on the Road’ Accolade from the organisers at the end. Halfway through India, they were able to reach, unaware and unseen at first, the frontline of an army against bandits standoff. 76 individuals were murdered in the previous fortnight and the British buddies were in the midst of gun- and grenade-wielding military whilst taking a rest room stop in some bushes.
“We were marched back to the rickshaw, arms behind our heads,” says Chris, “and made to embark on a 200 kilometers detour. This detour took us to a fairly industrial town on the east coast, but we managed to stumble across a cheap-as-chips elegant vacation resort equipped with an infinity pool and free of charge bubbly. We filled our boots. What a change a day makes...”
This was not their only run in with authority. They were stopped for many reasons, had their backpacks searched on suspicion of money laundering, and a number of officers commanded payment for several misdemeanours. One of them insisted that charity do-gooders were required to wear a charity outfit (?!) for legal reasons, but agreed on 2 hundred rupees (£2) to drop any fines. In the meantime, the rickshaw’s stability was extremely ‘un-’.
Chris finishes, “We suffered from roughly Something like 20 malfunctions, from the engine snapping clean off its position to cables heating in the high heat - it frequently hit about 47ºC. The time the engine support snapped, a local repaired it with a bit of rubbish he found by the side of the route to last us till the following day. The Indians are very innovative and always prepared to support, even when none of us spoke each other’s language. The most frustrating breakdown happened after we pushed the rickshaw up 20km of difficult hillside rds to stunning Darjeeling, only for the braking system to totally fold on your way down. However , we were continually cared for like royalty, mobbed just like Justin Bieber must be anytime we stopped for fluids or gas, I've never waved this much in my life.”
Chris, Chris and Matt’s efforts reared a tremendous £1,208.04 for charity at last count, divided £611.61 for Winston’s Wish and £596.43 for Cool Earth. Anglo Pacific staff donated amply to the two causes and the Company directors were in particular forgiving in letting Chris have the time off.