Bassan wins monsoon
scooter rally

Mumbai's Manjit Singh Bassan, riding an LML Vespa, outclassed a strong field to emerge triumphant in the Gulf Monsoon Scooter Rally, organised by Sportscraft, on Sunday.

"It was a tough ride; really bumpy.. the curves were difficult, but I kept cool and managed to win," said the 30-year-old rider after the race.

In a field of 19 starters, the lanky Sardar rode with gay abandon over the dirt tracts of Lonavala to win the gruelling 50 km race with one hour, 15.04 seconds in penalties.

Nilesh Thakare, astride a Kinetic Honda, was second in 1:15.56 seconds, while the fancied Ilyas Bham had to settle for third position in 1:16.07 seconds.

How good Bassan was can be made out from the 52 seconds that separated him and Thakre.

Former national motorcycle rally champion and a five-time winner of this race Zubin Patel flagged of the rally, which was run over transport and competitive sectors.

The rain stayed away but it only made driving on the gravel-laden, winding course overlooking the scenic Paunha Dam more dicey. The riders had to exercise extreme control while negotiating the steep inclines and hairpin bends. Practically all of them took a tumble or two and some even damaged their scooters. Why, there was Rupesh More, a first timer, who skid over the loose earth while negotiating a sharp bend and went off the cliff with his Bajaj Chetak. Fortunately, he emerged unscathed from the mishap, but till late evening his vehicle could not be retrieved from the vegetation in the hills below.

Bassan, who went on a reconnaissance drive over the course a few days prior to the event, felt the challenge would have been even tougher had it rained.

"I did the route twice in pouring rain and the bike was just skidding around the bends. Good it did not rain during the race. I too lost control where that guy {More] fell, but recovered well.

"I must say it was course was fantastic," said Bassan.

While all the participants performed admirably, with only 16 of the 19 starters completing the event, special mention must be made about 60-year-old Kersi Patel, father of Zubin, who went through the motions with equal élan as the others, many of whom were less than half his age.

Subodh Sripad Kalan was adjudged the best first timer and awarded the late Firdosh Vajifdar trophy for his spirited riding.

While Bassan won the overall title and topped in the 110 to 160 cc class, Nilesh Thakare bagged the honours in the 80cc to 110cc class. Dinesh Adsare and Jay Dubash were second and third respectively in the class.

In the 110 to 160 cc class, Ilyas Bham was second to Bassan while Freddy Elavia was third.

Speaking after the event, which was revived by Gulf Oil Corporation Limited after a three-years break, most of the riders wondered how the organisers were able to plot such a challenging course, which even utility vehicles would have found difficult to negotiate. One of them was candid enough to ask Shrikant Karani, the bossman of Sportscraft who chalked out the route, whether he used a helicopter for his reconnaissance. Whatever he used, there can be no gainsaying that it certainly was he perfect one for rallying!

The prizes were given away by Dr. Madhav Sanap, Superintendent of Police, Pune Rural along with T.V. Joseph, head of marketing, Gulf Oil Corp.Ltd.

Photograph: JEWELLA MIRANDA