Women take to motorsport, drive into the sunset

Women take to motorsport, drive into the sunset

MUNISH DHIMAN  5th Jan 2013

Participants from the car rally Photo: Vinay Kumar or septuagenarian Promila Kumar, driving with her daughter-in-law is nothing new, but this time the ride was way more exciting as she participated as a navigator in the JK Tyre Rally at Chandigarh. She says, "This is my maiden rally and the drive has been superb in its own right. I hold out that women must come forward and take part in such exciting sport activities, given the fact that it holds a huge potential for them. I can say for sure they can give a run to their male contenders and hold the fort in the motorsport arena too." The rally was a centre of attraction for amateurs and professional drivers, as a sizable number of participants enrolled themselves for the local round only. The fifth round of the rally was part of the JK Tyre-FMSCI Indian National TSD Rally Championship 2012, the only national TSD rally. Notably, the craze among women in motorsport is gradually increasing by the day. It is evident from the fact that more than 9 teams had women participants who took part in the rally across Chandigarh, Panchkula, and Mohali.  There were several others who were unable to make it to the rally, including a all-women team and a couple team. Ritu Kumar, Promila's daughter-in-law and a boutique owner, is also among the first timers in the rally. She says, "Driving in a rally is entirely a different sport, which is full of enthusiasm and thrill. The spirits are always upbeat at this kind of a platform. I can say with certain amount of faith that one can become a sensible driver only after participating in rallies, for the simple reason that rules of driving are stricter where you can be penalised for even a slightest technical slip." Divya Aditya Adya, a lecturer and navigator of the winning team, says, "I believe that women are storming male-dominated areas and comfortably capturing the centre stage. They are emerging as the beckoning force in all spheres of life, ranging from bureaucracy, education, polity and, to cap it all, sports, and especially motorsport." Her driver, Navneet Bajaj, a dentist by profession, forayed into the rally for the first time. Her husband is an active rallyist and has been a part of SAJOBA rallies and, her mentor. She says, "I have always been enthusiastic about such rallies but for experience, driving in a rally is all together different from just witnessing the show from rooftops. We have equal rights in all sports activity, and we must make the best of such opportunities." The sport is thrilling and invigorating, which, besides offering a breather from the monotony of routine driving, enthrals you on the tracks to hit the Bull's eye in terms of scripting a success story. Devina Singh, who participated in the rally for the first time, had been an active participant in the off-road event 'Heart in Mouth (HIM)', organized by Mitsubishi. She expresses, "HIM is an adventurous and adrenaline-charged SUV event, where off-road abilities on the toughest terrains are tested. But, the TSD based rally was an innovative and fulfilling experience for me." Devika Gupta, a marketing professional, is also among the first timers in the rally. Adept at calculations, she accompanied Devina – "I have always been a geddi fan and I am known for my passion for driving. But, this has indeed been a mind-blowing experience for me, for I had never accompanied anyone, navigating while calculating their time and speed. It was absolutely a different driving experience." The participants who cleared the round 5 at the national level will be competing against each other in the 6th and final round of the event which is scheduled to be held in Mysore. http://www.sunday-guardian.com/young-restless/women-take-to-motorsport-drive-into-the-sunset