Scooter Mania
Syed Asif Ali slips and slides to victory in the Gulf Monsoon Scooter Rally
RACING AUTOMATIC SCOOTERS THROUGH
terrain better-suited to utility vehicles sounds a bit dangerous, but that didn’t stop these guys from going out and having a blast at the 27th Gulf Monsoon Scooter Rally on 10 July, through the backwoods of Navi Mumbai. The rally was flagged off from K-Star in Navi Mumbai by R J Siddhu at 9.00 am, in the presence of several former scooter rally champions. Although it didn’t rain during the rally, the course was slippery and water-logged in some places due to the heavy rain in the preceding days.
Fifty-three riders and their machines took on the challenging course, with Bengaluru’s Syed Asif Ali taking top honours astride a TVS Wego, with 32.43 seconds worth of penalties. Shamim Khan of Nashik, four-time winner of this event, rode his Mahindra Gusto hard through the slush, but had to settle for second place this time with 33.36 seconds in penalties. Navi Mumbai local Erimal Shekharan secured the last spot on the podium with 34.18 seconds in penalties, riding a Yamaha Alpha.
In a repetition of last year, it was Nidhi Shukla of Team Ceat, astride a Honda Activa, who was adjudged the best lady rider, with 45.20 seconds in penalties. First-timer Mohsin Mehboob Faki, riding a Yamaha Alpha, led the newcomers and finished the rally with 37.18 seconds in penalties. He was awarded the Firdosh Vajifdar Trophy for his effort.
The sponsors, Gulf Lubricants, and the event organisers, Sportscraft, did a fine job pulling off this event, and we hope to see many more such rallies in the years to come.