[sgchaudhuri]

The bracket is welded to the chassis on both sides of the radiator. See below..


The final product (missing a paint job and 2 more fog lights)

[sgchaudhuri]

The Strut/Sway Bars have been custom made for both the front and rear.

FRONT


REAR


ENGINE CUT-OFF SWITCH (STATUTORY)

[sgchaudhuri]

(Sometime in June 2011}
Well, as the car was being rally-prepped at Joydev Da's, I had nothing to do except to bite my nails and come up with a name for my WB02U6726! I tried drawing inspiration from the music I listen to, my favourite things, car related stuff and I even ended up google-ing! But I none of them felt right!

To tell you the truth I still haven't come up with one! BHP-ians some HELP!!

[sgchaudhuri]

A used Vintage Momo Steering (Gift from a friend)


My New HUB (which wasn't easy to come by, but I got hold of it, thanks to some help of BHP-ian Ace_6120)


The New Horn Button (MOMO)

[sgchaudhuri]

The Last-minute Blues!
Like all things in Kolkata, the build was without exception SLOW!
With Rally season, fast approaching, I started to wonder whether I would actually be able to participate in the Kaviguru Rally 2011 (The first of the 3 rallies to that was to take place back-to-back every weekend)

Nevertheless, with Joydev Da's assurance I gave in my entry (knowing fully well how much work had actually be done rather how much work was yet to be done on my car!)

Pending work

1) Sump & Petrol Tank Guard
2) Lower Arm Stiffening
3) Gear Box Pin welding
4) Free Flow Exhaust System
5) Stage II Clutch
6) Navigation Board
7) Front Light Bracket

All this work and only 10 days to D-day!

Meanwhile the Statutory Regulations (SR) of the 12th Kaviguru Rally was made available on the (Bengal Motor Sports Club) Website.
SRFor12thKaviguruRally-BMSC.pdf

************************************

The Night Before the Rally
I have a talent for "getting things done in the last moment", but this talent of mine faced serious competition from the mechanics at Joydev Da's!

The night before the Rally there was absolute chaos in the garage. Of the 11 cars that were being tuned at the garage for the Kaviguru Rally, only 2 had been completed! Mine wasn't one of those 2!

Though the mechanical's had been sorted, they had never been tested !!!

1) I had a brand new Stage II Clutch installed, but it the car hadn't driven 1km! I would need to drive about 50kms prior to the Rally (according to Seniors in the Garage, just to get the clutch set!)
2) We needed to fix and calibrate both The Terra Trip as well as the Backup Halda meter!
3) Water-proof the distributor.
4) Get the Tyre pressure checked & Fuel.
5) Get rear seats removed.
6) Stickering.
7) Recheck and arrange Documents for Scrutiny.
8) Sleep.

And did I mention we had only 8hrs?!!!!

***********************

DISASTER STRIKES
"It was 2am and with only 6hrs to my wake-up time when Murphy intervened!"
Having completed tasks 1 to 7 and dropping my Navigator back home, I was driving back home to catch some much needed sleep! I had been raining all week and water had stagnated up to the waist in most low-lying areas of town. As you might have already guessed by now, while trying to negotiate one of those water-logged streets an inconsiderate truck-driver came darting from the opposite direction while splashing water on everything around it (probably trying to evade cops)! This resulted in a tsunami! Despite my best effort and employing every technique that I learnt, it all ended in disaster! The engine sucked in water! I tried to restart it a couple of times, but then I decided not to push the limits! Then I had to push the car through the dirty water on to the pavement, while I waited the mechs to come to my rescue! At one point I gave up hope for the rally! But a long wait the mechs from the garage arrived at around 3am! It took another 20mins-25mins to clean/dry out the distributor and then I could go home and rest for 3hrs before the Rally!

With Murphy out of the way, nothing could stop me from Rallying!

[kaustubh_vaze]

@Souvik,
Great stuff to read. I know your's is a "crawl" into the motorsports arena, but how do you raise the money for this kinda stuff dude? Also, does every rally offer a fat reward for the podium finishers atleast?

Waiting for the next post with the actual experience.

Regards,
Kaustubh

[nitrous]

Congratulations on the car.
I'd like to add that what you've described in the pictures as 'Sway Bars' are actually strut braces.

[sgchaudhuri]

Originally Posted by kaustubh_vaze

@Souvik,
Great stuff to read. I know your's is a "crawl" into the motorsports arena, but how do you raise the money for this kinda stuff dude? Also, does every rally offer a fat reward for the podium finishers atleast?
Waiting for the next post with the actual experience.
Regards,
Kaustubh

Hi! Thanks! I hope to maintain the quality of this thread. Your inputs are of lot of help!
1) The primary reason why I named my thread "My "CRAWL" into Indian Motor-Sports!" is because "CRAWLING" is a technique we use in TSD Rallying!
2) The prize money in Rallies here (Kolkata) ranges from an average lower limit of Rs.5000 to about Rs.25000, some rallies can be a bit more, but not more than a lac! Usually we Rally for the love of it! truth is NO one can make a career out of it just be doing rallies in and around Calcutta!
3) Rally Experiences are coming up! Watch out!

Originally Posted by nitrous

Congratulations on the car.
I'd like to add that what you've described in the pictures as 'Sway Bars' are actually strut braces.

Nitrous, Thank you for your appreciation and for correcting me! Your inputs are of great help!

Cheers guys!

[sgchaudhuri]

Kaviguru Rally (Overview)
The Kaviguru Rally is an annual TSD Rally conducted by Bengal Motorsports Club (BMSC). It is a one day evet that is run betwen Kolkata and Shantiniketan, both place associated with "Kaviguru Rabindranath Tagore". This year, it took place on 18th June with the prize distribution on the 19th in Shantiniketan. The event was FMSCI approved for both 4w &2w vehicles.

Early morning Blues!
The perpetually set alarm that fails to wake me up on workdays, didn't come to aid as I was wide awake well before the scheduled time!

It had rained all night and the meteorological department for once, swore that the waterworks would get more elaborate! This meant that we would have to be prepared to face slush, continuous rainfall! That in Rally terms wold roughly translate to:
1) Reduced traction (with stock tires)
2) Slower actual running time (Fall in Top speed)
3) Possible water logging
4) Increased possibility of engine faliure (Water entering through exhaust)
5) Front screen Fogging-up (due to lack of A/c)
6)

I was scheduled to leave my house at 6:30am and I was to pick up my navigator Sudip (with whom I had won the previous rally) at 6:45am and fill fuel enroute to the srutiny and ceremonial starting point ('Jorashako', The home of Kaviguru Rabindranath Tagore).

Engine Trouble
I kept the car idling for 15mins as I anticipated some water to still remain the distributor (after the previous nights incident Ref: Post #35). This if not taken care of would create problems during the rally!

The only way I could reduce the effects of this at that point, was to keep the engine running and hope the water evaporates due to the heat generated by the engine! Unfortunately that didn't work 100% the engine was being moody and acting up every now and then.. It was misfiring and the RPM was dropping periodically. I would have to compete in the Rally in this condition or dropout. I wasn't going to drop-out!

The Scrutiny & Ceremonial Start
The final scrutiny was completed without any glitches followed by the ceremonial start. We were then given a free run to the official starting point outside the city limits!

My competition number was 24

The Ceremonial Start (Outside the gates of Jorashakho with my dad)



Ready.Steady.Show(off)

[scuderiamania]

Originally Posted by sgchaudhuri

Kaviguru Rally (Overview)
The Kaviguru Rally is an annual TSD Rally conducted by Bengal Motorsports Club (BMSC). It is a one day evet that is run betwen Kolkata and Shantiniketan, both place associated with "Kaviguru Rabindranath Tagore". This year, it took place on 18th June with the prize distribution on the 19th in Shantiniketan. The event was FMSCI approved for both 4w &2w vehicles.

Early morning Blues!
The perpetually set alarm that fails to wake me up on workdays, didn't come to aid as I was wide awake well before the scheduled time!

It had rained all night and the meteorological department for once, swore that the waterworks would get more elaborate! This meant that we would have to be prepared to face slush, continuous rainfall! That in Rally terms wold roughly translate to:
1) Reduced traction (with stock tires)
2) Slower actual running time (Fall in Top speed)
3) Possible water logging
4) Increased possibility of engine faliure (Water entering through exhaust)
5) Front screen Fogging-up (due to lack of A/c)
6)

I was scheduled to leave my house at 6:30am and I was to pick up my navigator Sudip (with whom I had won the previous rally) at 6:45am and fill fuel enroute to the srutiny and ceremonial starting point ('Jorashako', The home of Kaviguru Rabindranath Tagore).

Engine Trouble
I kept the car idling for 15mins as I anticipated some water to still remain the distributor (after the previous nights incident Ref: Post #35). This if not taken care of would create problems during the rally!

The only way I could reduce the effects of this at that point, was to keep the engine running and hope the water evaporates due to the heat generated by the engine! Unfortunately that didn't work 100% the engine was being moody and acting up every now and then.. It was misfiring and the RPM was dropping periodically. I would have to compete in the Rally in this condition or dropout. I wasn't going to drop-out!

The Scrutiny & Ceremonial Start
The final scrutiny was completed without any glitches followed by the ceremonial start. We were then given a free run to the official starting point outside the city limits!

My competition number was 24

The Ceremonial Start (Outside the gates of Jorashakho with my dad)



Ready.Steady.Show(off)

I am keen to know how you performed in the rally.Please put up an update.

[Motormania]

BUMP!!!!

Hey Souvik, loved reading your thread. Looking forward for the rest of your experience. I too participated in this rally. We were competitor #28.

[sgchaudhuri]

Note: Sincere apologies for the long interval (Rally season's back and so is my thread!)

The Kaviguru Rally- Flagoff
The flollowing day the rally kicked off from Rabindrabharati Universtiy (outter fringes of Kolkata) and our Official Start time was 9:42am.

The route
Leg 1
Rabindra Bharati University-Dunlop Bridge-Bally Bridge-Howrah-Belur-GT Road
The first stage of the route was through Kolkata's suburban traffic, we had to keep an advance of about 2 minutes just so that we don't run late while waiting at traffic signals. The blaring FFE attracted a lot of attention and partly did the work normally performed by the horn! Once we crossed bally bridge (after 2 Time Controls) we were able to gain sufficient time and were comfortably in-advance. The GT road notorious for trucks was surprisingly empty and we maintained good time till Durgapur Expressway.

Free Run
Durgapur Expressway till Burdwan (A construction Site outside Burdwan)
The average speed in this section was 55kmph and according to the Statutory Regulations (SR) No time control could be give in a zone where the average speed was over 45.5kmph. Therefore, we did what you'd expect Rally Drivers (with Rally cars on an empty 4-Lane highway with no speed limits and 80kms for free run) to do:
1)We RACED!
2)Pushed our cars to the limits till most of the Sponsorship stickers flew off (I personally touched 170kmph)
3) Basically we behaved like little boys going crazy with their toys while the parents were out to dinner!

The leg ended a little outside Burdwan in a huge property that was being developed by the a well-know builder.
We were given fresh start times here.

Leg 2
Budbud-Bhalki(Dirt section)-Ghuskara-Bolpur
So far we had been maintaining good time, the car was pushing on but the rpm was erratic a bold sign that there was still water left in the engine! (refer to last post Disaster Strikes)

Disaster Strikes AGAIN!!!
The route led us off NH-2 and onto a single mettle road into Budbud. We were running on time. After a brief 7 or 8 kms down the road, we reached a level crossing. There are was populated and there was a lot of traffic on either side of the track. We had to stop till the train had past us. There were a about 5 rally cars who were also stranded in front of us. The time delay due to the level crossing got us about 2mins late. (Rough Calculation: if we were 2 minutes late then the 1st of the 5 cars was running 12 minutes late!!) So as soon as the level crossing re opened, the drivers in front sped, the wrecked havoc in the small village, nearly brushing past school children, stray dogs etc!! The villagers got furious came up on the and blocked my path and all hell broke loose! Out came the lathis, sticks, helmets, and they began their rampage on my car and the rest behind me! Since my car was the first in line, we faced the the mob head on! They almost broke my windshield! The biker behind me suffered many injuries as the mod had direct access to him, his headlight/RVM etc. was broken and his hands and and back was severely bruised. The raging mob cooled after 20 minutes and some political/police intervention! We were then given an escort and led out of town! The dents on my car remain as testament to that day.

Back to the Rally: Knowing fully well that this delay had cost us our rally, we didn't care to stop. The route led us to thick forests with dirt roads meandering through it! It had been raining so the entire stretch was slushy! I tell you, it was a pleasure to drive! The greenery, the slushy moram road, the exhaust note, the drizzle made me forget the incident that took place earlier!
After 40kms of dirt and slush, the route led us back onto the highway and that was a straight drive to the finishing control at Marks and Meadows Resort!

The Results:
To be honest it was my first Long distance rally, and I didn't expect to do wonders, especially after the game-changing experience! So we ened up with 678 penalty points with 520+ penalties from the TC right after the level crossing. Overall I had a great time and I'm sure I'll improve on my game!

[sgchaudhuri]

Waiting for a restart

SLUSH!

[iceman7]

Souvik - Awesome thread. Really motivating and inspirational. Love your attitude to race despite all odds you faced.

On a separate note - We have an Esteem which is just rotting away. Maybe it's time to resurrect it.

[sgchaudhuri]

Originally Posted by iceman7

Souvik - Awesome thread. Really motivating and inspirational. Love your attitude to race despite all odds you faced.

On a separate note - We have an Esteem which is just rotting away. Maybe it's time to resurrect it.

Thank you for your kind words, iceman7! I am grateful for the support I receive from T-BHP-ians, keeps me going.