AATISH MISHRA
Aatish shares his experience from the XUV700 24h Endurance Challenge
SLEEP? WHAT’S THAT? It was 2:30am when I got into the car. Just half an hour earlier, I was slumped over in the couch trying to sleep. I’d put my cap over my eyes to block the bright lights of the driver’s tent but I just couldn’t get myself to actually fall asleep. Every couple of seconds, I was subjected to a loud whoosh of one of the XUV700s passing by at 180kmph. There was some distant chatter over the radio in the pits. Somebody was shuffling about in the next tent. But honestly, none of that kept me awake as much as the voice inside my head did. 30 minutes to go, I was telling myself. 30 minutes until I was handed the wheel of the #2 XUV700 for my first stint on the 24h Endurance Challenge. This was it. No pressure.
I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t drowsy when I was, helmet on and everything, waiting for my car to pull into the pits. We’d been at the track since dawn. Setting things up, making sure the cars were stickered, making sure the guest drivers attended the mandatory driver’s briefing, creating photo and video content on the side. It had been a full blown work day and it hadn’t let up for a moment. We flagged off in the afternoon and after that I was helping out in the pits — staying in contact with the drivers over the radio, keeping the pit crew informed of stops and lining up drivers before their next stint. Night fell and nothing changed. You’ve got to sneak in sleep whenever you can and I thought doing so right before I went out on track would be ideal. How wrong I was. The nerves got to me.
I was shaken out of it as soon as my car pulled into the pits. The energy of the pit crew was electric. As soon as the car rolled to a halt, they got to work inspecting the tyres, cleaning the windscreen and refuelling the car. Shouting, jostling, screaming — everyone had a task that they had to get done within the two minutes it took to fill the tank up. Any delay would cost us precious kilometres. Aravind K P got out of the driver’s seat and hollered something at me. I couldn’t hear him in the chaos. I got into the car and strapped in. Somebody thumped on the boot of the XUV — the signal that they were done refuelling. It was go time. Tyres squeal as I accelerate out of the pits. Check my mirrors — dark. Right? Okay. Left? What in the world? Shutterbug Abhishek Benny had plonked himself in the passenger’s seat next to me! He must have seen my incredulous face so he gestured at his camera. He wanted some pictures in the dark. Well, he was in for a rollercoaster ride.
It takes about five minutes to get into the flow of things. The bankings were lit up but the straights weren’t. Your eyes take a moment to adjust. As do your inputs. We were practicing here the previous day but you do take a couple of laps every time you get into the car to pick out your markers, remember your lines and get to it. And after that? Serenity. There’s absolutely nothing to focus on except what the car is doing, and what you’re doing. No phone calls can disturb you here. No social media to distract you. No WhatsApp pinging away. It was just me, the car, the road, and the faint sound of a camera shutter snapping away. It’s the closest I’ve gotten to meditation since the yoga classes I used to go to in fifth grade — the mind so singularly focussed on one thing. Driving.
My stint lasted about an hour and a half. The petrol cars had shorter stints than the diesels as they ran through their tanks of fuel faster. I glanced to the left as we pulled into the pits — Benny was wide-eyed in the seat next to me. I was just as wide-eyed in the driver’s seat. What a rush! You’d think driving in circles at 180kmph would be monotonous but it is far from it. At those speeds, the adrenaline kicks in and you are pumped!
I thought I’d grab some sleep after my stint. No chance in hell. The adrenaline didn’t wear off until 7am and when it did, there was plenty more work to do. Including another stint! ⌧
It’s the closest I’ve gotten to meditation since the yoga classes I used to go to in
fifth grade