Gumball India drive is not just about driving but combining the skills of driving non-stop and navigating to finish while trying to do in the shortest distance and also passing through all checkpoints allocated. Yes, the distances could be upwards of 3,000 kilometres in a single stretch. Wondering how two road expedition organisers, now also known as KARM, went on to win the longest endurance drive, spanning the entire width of the country? Read on.

The runner-up  team from 2020 did everything right to bring home the  2021 Gumball India winners trophy.

Team member Kushagrr posts his views….

It all started in December 2020 – yes in 2020 – when I, Kushagrr with my mate Rajatesh, decided partake in a long road trip as part of the maiden Gumball India endurance drive from Kanyakumari to Agra. We set out with no preparation but just sheer will to finish the task-at-hand.

First we drove down from Delhi to Kanyakumari in less than three days (almost non-stop) only to restart the journey back towards Agra to be completed over a scheduled sixty hours. The first time experience at Gumball India left us so fascinated with the possibilities future years would hold.

Having finished as second runners-up in the debut outing we decided to take on the challenge in 2021 too. This time we spent time understanding
navigation & GPS devices, diverse maps and putting other technology resources together.

23 Dec 2021: A sunset I will always remember for the rest of my life. It was now almost time for the Flag Off for Gumball INDIA 2021 drive and we were positioned at Western India’s Coastal edge in the town of Koteshwar, Gujarat. With the blessings of Lord Mahadev, team KARM 2.0 boldly geared up for the challenge.

28 Dec 2021: Last year we made it to the podium as 2nd runners up…..this year we came out winners. It needed strong grit, tactical strategy, explicit endurance, a fantastic support system and a Ford Endeavour. Me and my partner Rajatesh Maji were able to defeat the odds on the roads against the other 16 teams.

While we enjoyed watching sunrise at both start and finish – and also in between – we were excited but focussed on navigation and driving below the speed of 50km/h at all times.

We made major breakthroughs while taking shortcuts throughout the 4000 kms journey and ensuring the car doesn’t stop at all to avoid penalty except the mandatory fuel breaks. Without pooping for 4 days and having peed through the moving car & literally not eating anything but a couple of protein bars, dry fruits and lots of water.

The last leg while approaching the serene mountains of Arunachal, after Namsai, we had maintained capable speed and distance ratio. However with about 120 Kilometres to go for finish our GPS malfunctioned. We realised our ETA had increased and we would miss the cut-off deadline of 8 am by at least 70 minutes!!!

We decided to speed up in extremely narrow mountain roads. We successfully made the finish with nerve breaking, hallucinated driving of almost 90 kms. Entering the finishing line just in time was a moment of a lifetime.

Collectively the team KARM 2.0 came back with a strong grit, smarter driving attributes, tactical navigation, a sound team strategy and tons of redbull.

Overall Winners of Gumball India 2021 we, Team KARM 2.0, would like to congratulate and thank the team at InCarNation Sports, all the marshalls who kept us motivated throughout the journey, Mr. Abbas Takseen for a wonderful back up support and especially the leader of this gig Mr. Sudev Brar for putting up a phenomenal event of such magnitude and hosting all of us with so much hope and inspiration.

“United we stand as One Nation, One People”

KARM the motor-heads have a motto of driving to farther destinations making journeys memorable, make friends, meet them again on the road, win hearts and REPEAT!