Smoke me a kipper, I'll be back for breakfast

With Tom still off gallivanting around Asia I guess it's left to me to fill you in on our last days in India.

When we left you last we were enjoying a well earned cold beverage with a few of the other teams who had rolled into Pondicherry that day. Not wanting to give up the rickshaw just yet we had decided to hang on to it for one last day. This almost proved to be a costly mistake.

Buoyed by a sense of achievement and fuelled by a not insubstantial quantity of cocktails it was decided that what was really needed to mark the end of our epic journey was a sort of victory lap along the seafront promenade. It would be one last chance to see the rickshaws, individually fantastic looking but as a group a real spectacle.

Well that was the plan but as usual things have a way of changing without anyone really noticing or realising why (ok so it was probably the drink in this case). The next thing we knew was that the parade had morphed into a drag race to decide the greatest rickshaw driver. In a rare moment of restrained adventurers spirit and sobriety a number of teams dropped out, us included, figuring it was a far better plan to watch from the hotel balcony where we could continue our merrymaking.


So five rickshaws roared off into the night and a minute or two later, following a close battle between two clear leaders, the winner was crowned (though they almost blew it rounding the final corner on two wheels and looking for all the world like they would plough into a group of parked motorcycles). We waited for the remaining teams to return, and waited.

Now drag racing rickshaws down a road which is a popular evening hang out for locals is not a bright idea in itself, however when your intended route (a there and back course) twice passes by the local law enforcement headquarters you know you really have made an error of judgement. One of the remaining teams, having seen the police station on the way out, decided discretion was the better part of valour and continued on into the city not to return that evening. The remaining two, caught up in the race, turned their chariots for the return leg. They might have made it too if the third place rickshaw had not run out of petrol, slap bang outside the police station.

Almost instantly a large crowd gathered and following brief questioning the guilty parties were escorted away, and their rickshaws impounded. The news that emerged the following morning was that they would have to attend a court hearing and in all likelihood pay a 500 rupee fine (about £6).

The big event on Sunday was the Rickshaw Run finish party held at an Eco Resort on the edge of town. We were welcomed with flower garlands and tikka'ed (marked on the forehead between your eyes) which is believed to bring good luck. Following a fantastic 12 course meal we were treated to some traditional Indian music and dancers. The beer flowed freely and we all had an amazing evening which was topped off by us winning an award, one of only four handed out. The award was for best team name and technically we were chosen as second best but since 'Pirates of the Currybean' didn't make the finish party we got their prize, hard luck lads! Still the history books will forever show 'Raiders of the Last Chapati' and we each were given a ceremonial khukuri (the daggers carried by Gurkha regiments). It was an incredible end to an incredible two weeks.


Over the next couple of weeks we'll be posting all the photos and video footage we took and generally doing all the things we hoped we'd be able to do on the road but were thwarted from doing by dodgy internet connections. So, we may have returned unscathed from the Summer 2008 Rickshaw Run but you'll still want to check the blog every now and then.

Thanks for all your support and good luck messages.

Mark and Tom

Race For The Finish

Another leisurely breakfast and with only 100km to go we cruised down the coastal road admiring the sun, sea and sand.

To spice up the last couple of kilometers Paint It Black lead us into the back streets of Pondicherry, Amelia taking Joe's instruction of take the next left a little too literaly. It turned into a cracking back street rally, benny hill style with dead ends and driving through a wedding party relaxing in chairs outside a cafe to get back onto the main road.

We pulled up outside the Promenade hotel, the finishing post and that was that. We'd made it and have since become known as "the team that only had a single puncture". It appears others have had a much more difficult time with their steeds. Four teams have abandoned their Rickshaws in various places around India, two teams have merged into one after writing off one Rickshaw. At least three other teams have managed to roll their Rickshaws and virtually every other team has had a succession of seized pistons, dodgy spark plugs, exhausts that fall off, blocked fuel lines and constant overheating engines.

We had a few drinks to celebrate and now are free men until tomorrows finishing party at the Dune Eco Resort on the coast out of town....Indian dancing, internationally trained chef and a private beach...it's going to be hell! :)

Current location: The Promenade, Pondicherry....forgot the piece of paper with the coordinates on so we'll do it tomorrow.

Rocks And Crocs

AAAahhhh a lie in and no driving. It's long over due and we almost didn't know what to do with ourselves. Need to drive tuk tuk...can't stop driving......

After a very leisurely 1.5hr breakfast we wandered into the town park area where there a hundreds of boulders strewn around a small hill. A lot of these have been carved into all manner of animals, temples and other hindu mythelogical scenes. The largest being the size a small house and very impressive.

We couldn't resist the draw of the tuk tuk any longer so we made the short drive out of town 10km to a crocodile bank. The exchange rate was 25 rupees for as many crocodilians as you cared to watch. For a little extra you could even chuck dead animals at them. Until you did this most of them were doing very good impressions of the stone carvins we'd seen earlier in the morning....grey stone covered in bird poo.

Also saw soom snakes being milked for the venom, Cobras, Kraits and Vipers. Unusually these are captured in the wild, only milked a couple of times and then released back to the wild. A lot of other places milk the snake until it dies.

Lots of other teams were in the area so had fun moving Rickshaws around the village while others weren't looking. Ate a lot of really good fish, and tried to drink a relaxing glass of beer. That was until the cry of Police went out and the waiter came running to grab the beer back, and Joe tried to hide a bottle under the table but broke it in the process. It's apparently illegal to sell alcohol in restaurants in Tamil Nadu.

Current location: Still at Greenwood Beach Resort, Mamallapuram 12N 37'09.7" 80E 11'49.8" 32m

Not Far To Go Now

Excaping the hordes of pilgrims we headed south over the Eastern Ghats. After yesterdays driving this was particularly pleasing. With only 200km to do we also took it easy and enjoyed the views of small hills covered with odd rock formations.

We've decided to take a rest day before our final dash to the finishline in Pondicherry on Saturday so headed to the coastal town of Mamallapuram. This time it doesn't smell of fish and so far seems rather relaxed. There are also a lot of other teams in town, most it seems having had a much harder time of it than us.

The town is known for it's stone carvings, including huge boulders and man made caves that have been sculpted into various forms mainly to celebrate the skills of the locals who have been doing it for hundreds of years.

Looking forward to the beach tomorrow.

Current location: Greenwood Beach Resort, Mamallapuram 12N 37'09.7" 80E 11'49.8" 32m

Pilgrims Path

With a long way to travel we ventured out onto India's equivalent of the M1.

Things you see on an Indian national highway:

1) Tractors towing huge trailers of hay coming the wrong way up the fast lane.
2) Lorries doing 3 point turns on the highway.
3) People stopping in the fast lane to have a chat with someone else on the other carriageway.
4) Not working out you are on a contra-flow until you are faced with a police car hurtling towards you.
5) Mind numbingly boring driving....pretty much like UK motorways then, but still only at 50kph!

Our destination was Tirupati, which according to our guidebook is the most visited holy site in the world, attracting more visitors than Mecca or Rome. It was busy, and also the first place that we've been to that has a thriving tat market. Psychedelic tat at that.

Current location: Hotel Grand, Tirupati 13N 37'34.1" 79E 26'00.0" 137m

To The Coast

Leaving Paint It Black behind yet again for more repairs, we were heading for the coastal highway and Ongole. Friendly locals couldn't understand why, and via PIB suggested we actually head further north to Chirala which supposedly had a nice beach resort.

It turns out not quite like that, more stinking of fish. Abondoning the sea we went inland to the main town to find accommodation. We didn't get far before we realised we had a problem steering. Turning the handlebars wasn't having much of an effect. On closer inspection we found a flat front tyre. We were immediately swamped by 8 year old kids speaking amazing English but oblivious to our plight. They were more interested in talking about cricket. While we were still stood discussing how best to jack the front of the rickshaw up (without a jack) a bloke apeared wrench in hand and started unbolting the front wheel. He then promptly lifted the Rickshaw up and jesticulated for us to swap the wheel, which we hurridly did.

And that was that...our first mechanical, and although I'm sure we could have fixed it ourselves we weren't allow to so I guess as far as the sweepstake goes it counts. So Lisa Bolton congratulations you guessed correctly. Email us at chapatiraiders@googlemail.com with your request for duty free otherwise we shall pick something at random.

That evening on searching for food we were ushered up to a "roof top garden restaurant". I don't know whether there is such thing as trade descriptions act in India but they definitely fell foul of the English version. We would actually decribe it more along these lines "NCP roof top Restaurant....with cricket, but only serving biryani". Still had our first beer in India.

Current location: Sai Krishna Residency, Chirala 15N 49'49.5" 80E 21'18.3" -20m???? GPS on the blink????

And Relax....

With Paint It Black supposedly fixed and trying to catch up we treated ourselves to a 45 minute lie in...waaaahoooo

At breakfast Mark found toast, butter and jam. He thought he'd died and gone to heaven! Ok, Tom also had toast, butter and jam and wasn't complaining too loudly, in actual fact it was rather nice.

Having failed to meet up with Paint It Black we were now behind them (you can't rush toast and jam) and again in the chase. We took a short cut which actually worked out, and we think we overtook them at some point because when stopping to refuel we think we caught a glance of them hurtling past as only a Tuk Tuk can.

In the end the race was won by the Raiders of the Last Chapati, who made it to Nagarjuno Sagar first, courtesy of yet another failed gearbox and clutch for Paint It Black. Nagarjuno Sagar is a huge lake and dam that sits on the site of a large archaeological site with remains from the stone age. The lake now covers most of it but some still remain above water.

Current location: Nagarjuno Resort, Nagarjuno Sagar, 16N 33'40.5" 79E 18'25.4" 188m

Bandit Country!

The day started a cracker...we went the wrong way! Mark is claiming that it was the fault of the road that went from nice smooth tarmac to mud track in 30m, me well I'm just undecided on the cause.

The end result was more Colin McRae style rally off road action. Picture this.... 100m wide river... no bridge.... just a 3m wide raised mud ridge winding it's way across... a few Indians working on something, but suddenly distracted and then watching with faces of shear incredulity... and then a 45degree mud slope to negotiate.

What was our decision? Mark looked over his shoulder at Tom in the back seat, who just nodded. Mark gunned it and we were off! At this point it would be good to say we got stuck, but no the mighty off road Tuk Tuk took it all in its stride and roared up the bank and on to the next special stage!

A top the bank we were met with a field and no road...so we continued mud splashing as we went. At the first hamlet we reached a friendly local flagged us down and kindly told us where we ought to be going and drew us a map. He also invited us in to his house for a cup of Chai and a chat, and pretty much the whole village showed up. Good Chai.

Up to this point we had been travelling still with Paint It Black and once back on the open road they took it upon themselves to make life more interesting and breakdown in the middle of nowhere. The problem no gears. After staring under the proverbial bonnet pretending we knew what we were looking at we gave it up and gave the Tuk Tuk a shove. Miraculously Joe found 3rd and he shot off down the road. We picked up the bemused Amelia and took chase. All was going fine until a bus blocked the path in a village and we had to stop. At this point nothing worked but Joe and Amelia did find a mechanic who started to dismantle their gearbox.

2 hours later and with Tom almost having lost all his worldly possessions to a rather insistent chap we left Paint It Black to their fate. Not very chivalrous but this is the Rickshaw Run and we had a destination to get to.

Due to the delay we revised our overnight stop to Karim Nager, but found only flea pits or places that refused to show Mark the room before he would book in. At 5:30 with Warangal 60km away we made a dash for it. Cue another race against the sun.

And another loss, this time with the added fun of rain....great! However to up our nerves just little further along the road as the sun was setting we were overtaken by a jeep full of men with guns...big f'off guns! As if in the movies 2km down the road they had stopped and flagged us down..errrr cue squeeky bum moment! We were duly surrounded by men with no uniforms, old large guns (probably AK47s as that is what all militia seem to use in the movies) and a leader with a rather large pistol asks to see our documents. As Tom rummages around in the rucksack trying not to show we have cameras etc, Mark jumps out and using his best International sign language and a healthy dose of optimism tries to get them interested in the map on the front of the Rickshaw that shows the route we are trying to take. Repeated use of the word "charity" and Tom flashing some paper and they seem pacified. A swift round of handshakes and we were free to continue. This time as they re-passed us we waved, smile and tried desperately to look confident!

The hotel we found served tomato soup. Mark was ecstatic.

Current location: Hotel Ashoka (it was actually quite nice), Warangal, 18N 00'29.5" 79E 34'02.0" 268m

Curry, Curry, Curry

So as today was relatively uneventful, just good roads a brief rainshower....we got to try out our windscreen wiper (singular and found it virtually useless) we thought we'd describe the food....

A typical breakfast consists of a Samosa, or an Onion Bhajee but these are more uncommon, and a cup of Chai which is basically a shot of very sweet spiced milky tea.
Lunch is then two Samosa, or a couple of Onion Bhajees, with more Chai and maybe a mango.
Since the vomit episode, Mark is sticking to Mango or.....sweet f a.

Dinner is where it gets exciting! We've had curry, and more curry followed by sweet curry for desert. In reality we have mainly been ordering Thali, which is very similar to the old school dinner trays with lots of compartments. Each filled with a different curry, rice in the middle and chapatis on tap until you are stuffed. All very tasty and quite varied as we have traveled down the country.

Current location: Hotel Girnar, Jail Rd (gulp), Chandrapur 19N 56'47.2" 79E 17'54.2" 200m

In Search Of Tigers

With Mark feeling a little better we decided on a short day so that we could get in a safari and hopefully see some large cats.

The location was Pench National Park, and unfortunately they wouldn't let us do it in our Tuk Tuk :( As it turned out that was probably quite a good thing. We arrived in plenty of time, checked into the hotel and arranged the safari for 3pm. At 2pm the rain struck, but being true Brits, we opted to go anyway. Tom with his trusty hat as the only rain protection, and the belief that "it was passing" and would be over soon.

In actual fact it wasn't just passing and Tom was completely soaked for the entire trip. We didn't see any cats but we did see.... Samba Deer, Spotted Deer, Monkeys, Elephants, a Scorpion, a few Jackals, Peacocks and lots of other unknown but brightly coloured birds. Despite being in a 4x4 several of the tracks seemed impassible justifying their decision to refuse us entry via our own transport.

Current Location: Heaven's Garden Resort, Pench Tiger Reserve. 21N 43'26.5" 79E 22'27.3" 432m

The Dreaded Delhi Belly Strikes!

Ricky Martin did warn us not to eat in the "restaurant" we picked in Khajuraho, but his suggestion of Italian food didn't seem quite right either.

So Mark took one for the team and spent the entire night keeping Tom awake!!!! GGRRRRrrr.....yes that is a distinct lack of sympathy....I need my sleep!

Luckily we only had 329km to do that day, in surely the hottest day, with Mark utterly dehydrated and worse than useless in the back of the Tuk Tuk! On the plus side the roads were cracking, minor on the map but good tarmac for a change and great views alond the way. With an offer of some black bananas we made friends with some local monkeys....needless to say they didn't share them.

Spent the night at Bheraghat, Marble Rocks just west of Jabalpur. After abandoning Mark to the hotel room, Tom went off with another team "Paint It Black" to get a boat ride up the river to some waterfalls through a marble canyon. Rather picturesque, and using rather a lot of imagination could just about make out all the animals and faces in the rocks pointed out by the guide. Nodding and feigning comprehension covered the rest. Saw a real water snake.

Current location: River View Hotel, Bheraghat. 23N 07'52.6" 79E 48'01.1 274m

We've Met Ricky Martin

Ok so it wasn't the actual crooner himself, but this guy did sing and dance....sort of. He was also rather hard to shake off and sat and watched us eat dinner....errrrr.

So anyway we did indeed decide to change our route and avoid both going north....kind of the wrong direction, and big cities....they take forever to cross despite being great fun to drive through.

Instead we headed south to the Erotic Hindu temples at Khajuraho, where we met the afore mentioned latin pop sensation. The place is a World Heritage site, and the whole town lives for tourists.....we were it. So we felt duty bound to do our bit and went for a swim in one of the 5 star hotels which we had to ourselves!

Current location: Hotel Gaudana, Khajuraho, 24N 51'00.9" 79E 55'27.1" 207m

Keep On Trucking

So day three has been completed and after yesterdays antics we've taken it a little more easily, to steady our nerves.

Unfortunately we've not made it to Agra as planned, but have found a great hotel in an old colonial House in a relatively quiet area of Kanpur. The city is famous for numerous uprisings and a massacre of the British Army after agreeing a cease fire. Good job we're not driving a Rickshaw with a big Union Jack painted on the back....whoops!

May need to re-consider our route but that job is for this evening.

Current location: The Attic Hotel, Kanpur, India, 26N 28'40.8" 80E 21'02.0" 124m

We Need A Valium :-S

Day 2: Narayanghat to Ayodhya

Now we really know what we have taken on.

We covered 344km today which sounds quite good doesn't it?....But in 15 hours?.....Maybe NOT!

To entertain ourselves during today's mammoth drive, and because we like to pass on a little information for you folks back home, we came up with a witty infomercial entitled:

"8 Ways to know that you've driven a Rickshaw in Nepal and India"

1) Have you been forced off the road by oncoming lorries in your lane? (Yes, too many times to count.)
2) Have you gone through any official checkpoints and been asked to pay a "fine"? (No, they just wanted to chat.)
3) Have you gone through any "official" checkpoints and been asked to pay a "fine"? (Yes, but we did a runner and left them in our dust ha ha haaaa.)
4) Have you eaten unidentified fried food from the street stalls by the side of the side of the road? (Yes, and it was delicious.)
5) Have you got lost and had to rely on local directions? (Yes, it got even worse! On the upside we found out that a Rickshaw DOES make the perfect off road vehicle. Four wheel drive and suspension are mere luxuries.)
6) Have you got lost and persuaded a local to show you the way? (Yes, twice. Some people have gone out of their way to be helpful.)
7) Has your Rickshaw broken down in the middle of 8 lanes of downtown city traffic during rush hour? (This is just a guess as drivers here haven't really grasped the concept of lanes - imagine the worst congestion and multiply that by 10 to get somewhere near what it was like.) (Yes, but after Fred Flintstoning it to the side of the carriageway, we found out we'd actually just run out of petrol!!!!)
8) Have you raced the sun to your next destination because you really don't want to be driving on these roads in the dark? (Yes, and we lost big time.)

The day started well, albeit a lot earlier than I ever imagined it would, at 5am. A quick check of our fuel situation revealed a stark truth - either we manage to purchase some more or we would have to leave Nepal by the nearest border crossing and a lot earlier than planned.

Buying petrol isn't the sort of thing you usually worry about no matter where in the world you are it being about as ubiquitous as Coca-cola and Starbucks. However Nepal is in the middle of a severe fuel crisis and the Army had to be drafted in just to ensure we all started with a full tank. The petrol stations we passed resembled Wembley Stadium on match day and despite the best attempts of one team we were travelling with we were unable to get black market supplies from an eight year old girl so we headed for the border at Sunauli.



Once across the border things took a turn for the worse. In an attempt to save ourselves a few km we set off on a road that wasn't marked on our map. The locals assured us it was the way to Faizabad, our planned overnight stop.

The reason for the road's absence from our map soon became clear as within a few miles it disintegrated into little more than a dust track with the occasional large rock to liven it up a bit. It was so rural the only locals we came across were washing their water buffalo in a lake. Rather than the usual chimes of "hello" they just froze solid when they saw us, their mouths wide open.

Eventually we came upon a settlement that was marked on our map and we estimated we were only 50km from the National Highway and Faizabad was only another 80km from there. Still a good two and a half hours driving but it was still the middle of the day and so our confidence improved.

India, as always, had other ideas however. The road began to infuriatingly alternate between dirt track and a covering of rubble akin to large, rough cobbles. Neither of which allowed us to make good progress so it took three hours and a guided detour around a town called Basti to get us on to the National Highway.

It was getting late with only a couple of hours daylight left but surely now, on a dual carriageway, we would find out what the Rickshaw was really capable of. Again the roads let us down.

Although marked as a dual carriageway on our map the road appeared to be still under construction with only two lanes available most of the time. Bizarrely the two lanes that were complete alternated every 500m or so which meant frequently having to slow down to cross a narrow section of the central reservation. With no obvious priorities competition for the right of way was particularly cutthroat and on a number of occasions we were faced with the unappealing choice of ditching the Rickshaw off the side of the road or being sideswiped by a bus.

Deciding that we'd had enough for one day we stopped at the first town and asked around for the nearest lodgings. We were pointed to Ayodhya, only 10km short of Faizabad!

As dusk settled we fired up the headlights and gunned the engine as much as we dared. Driving after dark was truly terrifying. Many Indians do not use their lights and ours were only powerful enough to see a few feet in front of us. Those that do use their lights have them on full beam permanently. Either way it was like driving blind in a vehicle which was definitely at the bottom of the pecking order.

After a few bowel loosening encounters we came up with a last gasp plan. We found the biggest, meanest looking truck we could that was managing a reasonable speed and tailgated it all the way to Ayodhya.

Still alive, just!

Current location: Ayodhya, India, 26N 47'22.7" 82E 12'07.8" 76m

We're Off :-)

Day 1: Kathmandu to Narayangadh


With the start point decided as Durbar Square, the spiritual heart of the city and the place where until recently all the Nepalese Kings were crowned (Nepal became a Republic two days before we arrived), we were primed and ready....or so we thought.


After a brief ceremony with a few local dignitaries and the cutting of the start line ribbon we raced off into the confusing maze of streets that is Kathmandu...and promptly got lost. What should have been a procession behind a police escort turned into a chaotic "every Rickshaw for themselves" fight for survival.

We ended up stuck in a one-way system which felt more like being in a river with all the other traffic flowing past on both sides. Eventually we were spat out next to a small group of other 'Runners stopped by the side of the road. Fortunately one team had the foresight to bring a map of Kathmandu with them and so we managed to work out which direction we needed to be heading in.

Showing his usual gusto Tom leap to the front of the pack and taking the lead from the locals began to assert himself on the other road users. This worked a treat and soon we were on the ring road heading out of Kathmandu.

Once we escaped the city we were treated to glorious mountain scenery intermingled with roadside carnage courtesy of a few less fortunate lorry drivers proving that overloaded vehicles and sharp bends do not mix.


(Thanks to team Paint It Black for this photo)

As has since become the norm we missed the turning for our intended route so began making up it up as we went along. We finally stopped for the evening in a small town called Narayangadh having covered 165km.

Current location: Royal Hotel, Nepal, 27N 41'47.2" 84E 25'14.9" 167m

Welcome to Kathmandu

We've made it to Kathmandu unscathed, but appropriately knackered. The landing at the airport was really something else as the airplane had to drop pretty quickly once it was over the surrounding mountains. (Or maybe our pilot just wasn't paying attention!)

Our time so far has been spent hunting down illusive Jerry cans to store the even more unavailble fuel. In between we've met our beast of burden that is the mighty Rickshaw. As we hoped it has been suitably pimped, courtesy of the local Nepalese mechanics.


We had Saturday morning to do some last minute fine-tuning which the other teams seemed to be taking full advantage of. Now that's just not cricket!

Tom and I on the other hand gave ours a cursory glance.

"Good job on the paint work."
"Yup."

"Got three wheels?"
"Yup."

One by one the Rickshaw's engines were fired up and pronounced fit to go, until they got to ours...


Three hours and five mechanics later we think it got the seal of approval.......or was that just resignation? I guess we'll find out tomorrow.


For those who are interested you can cut and paste the co-ordinates below into Google Earth and see where we currently are.

Current location: Hotel Garuda, Kathmandu, 27N 42'67.5" 85E 18'36.9"

Bye-bye Blighty

What a week it's been but finally it's here, the Rickshaw Run 2008 starts on Sunday. Mind you for a while it looked like it might be over before it began, fuel shortages & bombs in Kathmandu seem to be the norm these days!

More to follow when Tom finds a computer and Mark reclaims this infernal mobile device!

Current location: O'Neils, Heathrow

Tell the fat lady to start warming up!

'cause we're heading off to India in just over a week! Aaaargh!

Get e-mail updates

I've added new feature for those of you with busy lives. You can now subscribe to our blog. All you need to do is follow this link and input your e-mail address. Then by the wizardry of the internet, you'll be sent our increasingly surreal mutterings as we try to describe just exactly what it is like to take on the Indian drivers on their home turf.

We've doubled our target to £2,000

Some of you may have noticed that our website now has over £1,000 on it. Surely with less that two weeks to go the obvious choice would be to congratulate ourselves with a jar or two and a hearty slap on the back. Especially as there's still the pressing matter of working out where we're going to sleep each night.

But no, when I ask you, have you ever known us to do the sensible thing? Exactly, so we've decided to work out all the boring bits on the plane ride over freeing up extra time to squeeze you guys for a few more readies.

Thanks to all of you who have kindly supported us so far, your generosity really will make a difference where it is most needed. To those of you who have not yet dipped your hands it is not too late to redeem yourselves.

The Calamity sweepstakes is still open for you to profit from out misfortune. Alternatively why not come up with a challenge for us? We're fairly adventurous guys and will give most things a go for a suitable donation. Want to see us eat a stupidly hot curry? How about I ride to work in the chicken costume one day? Over to you...

Think you can predict our fate?

As we make our merry way from Kathmandu to Pondicherry there are a number of obstacles to navigate along the way. We've already mentioned the man-sized potholes, wild animals, suicidal pedestrians and entirely unpredictable local drivers.

If you put these together with a sense of direction that rivals a lemming and a vehicle that is less well put together than your average Ikea wardrobe it's a pretty safe bet that we'll come a cropper at some point.

So I thought what better way is there to entertain you and have a laugh at our misfortune than a Calamity Sweepstakes.

All you have to do is decide where the fickle hand of fate will catch up with us and give us a good smack.


Of course if you guess correctly not only will you be able to say "I told you so" for the rest of our lives, we'll also bring you something nice back from India.

Update:

For those of you with poor memories you can check which square(s) you have picked here.

Pimp my rickshaw

Regular readers of our blog will already be aware of the, ahem, limitations of an auto rickshaw when it comes to racing across an entire country or two.

To give us a sporting chance we have one opportunity before the race begins to 'pimp' our machines into something resembling a long distance grand tourer which will carry us without incident to Pondicherry where we will arrive with much pomp & ceremony for a nice cuppa and slice of cake.

At the risk of worrying you that we might be taking this all too seriously, after much deliberation our 'pimping' consists of the addition of a secondhand tape player, an air horn and a shiny new paint job:


Note our not so secret weapon - Indian go faster stripes.

As you read this our design is winging it's way to Kathmandu where a Nepalese mechanic is waiting to turn our vision into something guaranteed to look in some way vaguely not too dissimilar.

We have THE answer!

It's definitive. And here is the proof. I hope you enjoy this, we certainly enjoyed making it!



We would also like to thank the organisers of the Southern XC Racers series, in particular the commentator for constant words of encouragement. Also everyone who attended the event and donated money helping to raise a total of £64.40 for our charities.

How many guys does it take to make a flat-pack picnic bench?

Apologies to those who were expecting a witty answer but sadly empirical evidence points to a rather bland solution of five. It may however amuse you to know that it also took said five adults four hours.


If you're wondering what this has to do with driving a tuk-tuk across India it doesn't other than to highlight our mechanical ineptitude.

When the dust finally settled, after having tried every possible combination of crosspiece-A, support-B, nut-C and bolt-D, we had worked up a mighty appetite and so with the last rays of the Sun we did what any self respecting group of English gentlemen would - we put on our shorts and had a barbecue.

It was possibly not the best preparation the night before my first bike race however I've heard plenty of athletes banging on about the benefits of carbo-loading so I'm sure there must be someone out there who can come up with some scientific evidence to support protein-loading. On the plus side I drank alot so I must have been well hydrated the following morning despite the headache suggesting otherwise.

As I write this Tom is putting the finishing touches to a video of the bike race. From what I've been told it's not to be missed so if you've never seen two grown men careering through the woods while dressed as a chicken and an egg check back soon!

- Mark

Let the humiliation begin

So the egg has been polished, and the chicken preened. Everything is in place to solve the world's oldest dilemma. What other incentive could there be to come and watch us make fools of ourselves?
Ok so this photo may help? Intrigued then read this.

Strewth it's going to be a long way

So having seen the evidence is anyone else tempted by 4500km in one of these beasts?

View a selection of photos from the test drive by clicking here or follow the link in the sidebar ->

Things we learnt from the test drive:

1. We can drive around a flat, grassy field in a tuk-tuk - just traffic, potholes & evading pedestrians to master then!

2. Never, under any circumstances, does the driver get to eat curry for lunch.

3. Tuk-tuk manufacturers don't apparently see then need for a fuel guage in their machines.

4. They existence of suspension also seems to have evaded them.

5. Exiting from a moving tuk-tuk requires grace and agility, which fortunately I have in spades...

It’s 2000 and what now?

If you are one of those people who finds it hard to remember what day of the week it is then count your lucky stars you don't live in Nepal where you might find yourself in the wrong century!

Yesterday was New Year's Day 2065 under the 'official' Bikram Sambat calendar. However Nepal will also be celebrating New Year's Day 1128 on the 28th October (Nepal Sambat calendar) and has already welcomed in 2135 on the 8th February (Lhosar/Tibetan calendar).

All of this means that it is simultaneously the 12th, 21st and 22nd century in Nepal!

In other news we were down in Southampton this weekend test driving tuk-tuks (photos to follow soon). 4500km seems a lot further today than it did last week.

Happy New Year.

- Mark & Tom

Streetshirts

It's shaping up to be a busy week here at Raiders HQ but the most exciting news so far has to be the announcement of our first sponsor.

If you've poked around our blog you can't help but have noticed the cool team t-shirts we've had made up. So I'm really pleased to reveal that the guys (& gals) at Streetshirts who are responsible for turning my hamfisted sketches into works of art have agreed to come on board.

Lets be honest it'd be great publicity for them if we end up needing to be rescued from some catastrophe 999 style while wearing their t-shirts. I can almost hear Michael Burke's voiceover now...

Streetshirts have just set up a brand new version of their custom t-shirt designer tool on their website giving you access to hundreds of designs and styles with complete freedom to easily create a t-shirt your way. If even this sounds like too much work then they also have a great selection of their own designs to choose from.

Click here and get your creative juices flowing.

- Mark

Rickshaw Run games

Just a quick note to point out, if you've not already found them, that we've added some Rickshaw Run inspired games to our sidebar.

Try your hand at driving the infamous tuk-tuk round the streets of Bombay by clicking on the links below.

- Mark

Have you ever wondered.....

......what came first, the Chicken or the Egg but failed to find conclusive proof? Has there always been that small nagging doubt in the back of your mind that there remained a few loose strings that needed resolving?

Well you're in luck! Our next fund raising event plans to solve the mystery once and for all, as well as provide ample entertainment for the visitors to Deers Leap Country Park. On Sunday 27th April, Mark and I will be entering the 2nd round of the Southern XC mountain biking racing series.
One of us will be dressed as a Chicken the other as an Egg. We will then attempt to complete two laps of the race to see which did in fact come first, while desperately trying to avoid the cooking pot and frying pan in the mess tent!

So if you fancy witnessing this world changing experiment in person, come on down to East Grinstead in a few weeks time, maybe even join in? Failing that check back soon to find the answer, and remember you heard it here first!

Four wheels good, three wheels...

...inescapably awful if past Rickshaw Runners are to be believed.

Still we've had an email inviting us to our first encounter with a tuk-tuk! I say first but actually I have ridden in one before in Bangkok, so it's first time in the driving seat. Thinking about it we were involved in a (minor) collision on that occasion so based on experience so far we'll be lucky to get out of Kathmandu!

The test drive is happening on Saturday 12th April in Mayflower Park, Southamption. We'll hopefully have some footage of the event to post but in the meantime here's a clip which neatly illustrates why we might need some practice.



- Mark

Team T-shirts

We might not know where we're going, we might not know where we'll sleep and we've never even driven a tuk-tuk before but we've got team t-shirts so that's alright then!

You can also see the designs "in the flesh" so to speak, by taking a look at our car wash photos in the sidebar on the right-hand side of your screen. ->

Interested in owning your own Raiders of the Last Chapati t-shirt?

E-mail us at: ChapatiRaiders@Googlemail.com

Tuk-tuk facts

1. Tuk-tuks are widely used as personal transport and as taxis in southeast Asia, particularly in India and Thailand.
2. In India they are called auto-rickshaws, and they are also popular in Guatemala and Peru.
3. They are built around a three-wheeled scooter, and have a two-stroke, water cooled engine.
4. The driver sits up front in the centre and steers using handlebars while passengers sit at the back under a canopy or metal shell, often open to the sides and front.
5. Many tuk-tuks are highly decorated, either painted or with hammered metal good luck charms.
6. The noise of the engine while idling gives the vehicle its name.

Our story so far...

You might have noticed that I didn't start this blog until March, which means that at this time our Rickshaw Run experience is already 3 months old! Here's a catch-up of what we've been doing so far:

In the beginning

The adventure began, as they often do, by chance. Whilst browsing the internet last autumn I came across the adventurists website and something struck a cord. In fact it was uncannily similar to a conversation I once had at university. The gist of which was...

Joe: "Do you ever think you we're born in the wrong time?"
Me: "Come again?"
Joe: "You know, like you might've been an explorer but these days all the exciting stuff has already been discovered."
Me: "Yeah, cheeky buggers. Where have all the maps with those blank areas marked 'Here be Dragons' gone?"
Joe: "Dunno."

No doubt the conversation meandered on for a good while after this, lubricated by an alcoholic beverage or two. The point being that I instantly knew this was something I had to be involved in.

A good cause

Whilst the challenge of successfully piloting a tuk-tuk 2,000 miles across India is reason enough to be enthusiastic, it is doubly the case when we can raise stacks of cash for a very worthy cause or two. Our Rickshaw Run effort will be supporting two charities;

• Mercy Corps India, and


• Frank Water Projects

Both of whom work tirelessly for poor and disadvantaged communities in India.

We have committed to raising a minimum of £1,000 to help these causes so if our madcap antics amuse you in any way please head over to our fundraising webpage and give generously.

Because the website uses Paypal to take donations (you don't need an account with Paypal) it's totally safe and you can use either a credit or debit card. It will even accept foreign currencies so you can donate in Swedish Krona if you want to!

The donations start rolling in

The first donations came when I had the idea to auction off my fantasy football squad at work. I've never been much good at these and some of the other guys seemed very keen on a player or two of mine. Putting two & two together I spotted a way to get some quick cash. So cheers to all in the Norwich Union Marketing Investments Fantasy Football league.

I must also doff the proverbial to the guvnors (Mick, Rob & JCO) re: the organisation and even the collection the cash for me (if it had been work related I would have nominated you for a VIP award, I guess you'll have to settle for a pint), fundraising has never been so easy.

What's next?

Plans are currently being formed for future activities but I'm not going to divulge any details just yet, we do want you to keep coming back after all!

- Mark

The Rickshaw Run

I could simply say that the Rickshaw Run is an adventure challenge for charity but that would not do justice to the scale of lunacy involved in driving a tuk-tuk the length of India.

I’ll start by stating the blindingly obvious; it’s a heck of a long way. Over 1800km as the crow flies in fact! But how many Himalayan mountain passes do you think conform to the Roman school of building in straight lines? I’ve not been to Nepal before but I’d be pretty confident in guessing the answer would be none.

Next, let’s consider the roads, if you can call them that. With potholes the size of small children, animals roaming wild (even in the towns and cities), and a right-of-way system based on whoever has the biggest vehicle interspersed with whoever chickens out first life on the road will certainly never be dull.

To top it all off June is monsoon season in India when flash flooding can transform roads into raging rivers and rural areas become cut-off until the waters subside.

Our trusty steed for this trip will be a humble auto rickshaw, also known as a tuk-tuk. Its 145cc engine outputs half a horse power and allegedly has a top speed of a G-force inducing 35mph. Being open-sided it won’t offer much protection from the rain (nor anything else for that matter since it's sturdiness is on a par with that of a coke can) and it doesn’t even have enough wheels to be four wheel drive!

I don’t want to come across too critical of our tuk-tuk, to be fair it was never designed with anything like the Rickshaw Run in mind. I just want to impress upon you that this is going to be no picnic in the park. If anything goes wrong we’ll be on our own. There is no support crew to help us out.

- Mark

Welcome

Welcome to the Raiders of the Last Chapati blog.

Tom and I have set this up so our friends, family and supporters can follow our exploits as we attempt to drive a tuk-tuk 4500km from Kathmandu (Nepal) to Pondicherry (India) in only two weeks. That’s not to say that if you’ve stumbled upon this page knowing nothing about our little trip that you won’t find something of interest here. Take the time to look around and find out more.

This is the place to find out all about our fundraising events, our plans for making it to Pondicherry in one piece and for on-the-road updates direct from India.

There will also be links to the charities’ websites so that you can find out more about the great work they’re doing to improve the lives of so many people in India.

Keep checking back to see what’s new!

In the meantime, keep on tukking!

- Mark & Tom