In a global first, two amputees are going to compete on motor-bikes in the world’s highest cross-country rally raid, the Raid de Himalaya.
Setting this global record are Vinod Rawat of Mumbai and Ashok Munne of Nagpur. What makes these amputees take on a rally that is the litmus test for motor-sport adventure seekers in the country? The four words that people have thrown at them over the years. ‘You can’t do it’.
Vinod Rawat
The Raid is considered among the top ten toughest rallies of the world. It will take off from Leh on October 8 this year, and finish on October 14. Over 200 competitors participating in Raid de Himalaya 2018 will race over some of the most challenging roads in the Kargil, Zanskar and Ladakh sectors, speeding over rocks, gravel and dust.
The amputees, Vinod Rawat and Ashok Munne are competing in the toughest category at the Raid – Xtreme Moto. Racing motorcycles at high-altitude roads and mountain passes is a task few can accomplish.
Ashok Munne
Munne is a Nagpur man, and nobody who knows him is surprised that he is going to compete at the Raid de Himalaya. Munne is a para-athlete whose achievements can dazzle any able-bodied individual. The 34-year-old is a mountaineer, an expert para glider, a scuba diver, a marathon runner, a black belt in martial arts, a skilled gymnast and kayaker, yoga expert and ace swimmer.
Ashok Munne climbed the Everest in 2016, and is planning to repeat the feat in 2019. He lost his leg in a train accident in 2008 but didn’t let the handicap limit his life. His current passion is finishing the Raid de Himalaya. “I was 24 when I lost my leg in a train mishap. People said my life was over. I proved to people that I can and will do everything in life. There is no physical limitation. I will live my life the way I want to.”
Munne, who uses a blade leg, is the brand ambassador for two multi-national artificial limbs companies. He climbed the Mera Peak in Nepal, at a height of 6476 meters, without oxygen. In 2013, he drove 3,000 kilometers through Ladakh on his motorcycle. He is ecstatic, he says, to be fulfilling his dream of participating in the Raid de Himalaya.
“Now everything is a surprise in life. Everything is a new joy. It feels so wonderful that I am competing in the Raid this year. I had never thought I would live such an exciting life,” said Munne.
Rawat, who lives in Mumbai, has lived the Raid dream in his head for nine years. His leg was amputated when he was child. He got his driving license in the year 2000, and has been an avid motor-cyclist since. “I came to know about the Raid in 2010. Since then, it has been my most cherished dream to compete at the Raid and finish it,” he said.
Rawat was not the one to take his Raid dream lightly. He has been going to Leh since 2011 at least once a year, practicing motorcycling there so that his body got used to the demands of high-altitude terrain.
In 2017, as part of his Raid preparation, Rawat went to Leh on a cycle all the way from Manali via Khardung La. Rawat says he undertook the rally to check his stability and stamina. “Like we test the power of the bike, I wanted to test myself. Machine doesn’t take the man. The man takes the machine,” said Rawat.
Rawat is driving a 150-four stroke Indian bike at the Raid. Experienced motor-sport champions know that finishing the Raid successfully is a challenge. Rawat is confident that he will be a Raid finisher. “You may call it over-confidence, but I believe in it 100 per cent. For 18 years, ever since I became a motor-cyclist, people scared me because I am an amputee. I have always stood my ground. I will prove them wrong this time too,” said the determined 43-year-old.
Rawat’s Raid dream is being sponsored by Jaipur Foot, the artificial-limb providing company that gave him the rubber-based prosthetic leg to enable normal movement. “We want to reach the disabled and fill them with hope,” said Rawat. “When I compete at the Raid, people with disabilities will know that they don’t have to live restricted, fearful lives,” said Rawat.
The Mumbai man admits that he could have chosen to be the first amputee globally to participate on a motorcycle in a rally as formidable as the Raid de Himalaya. “But I thought I should take another amputee along who is a high-achiever. This would be such amazing inspiration for the disabled,” he said.
Raid de Himalaya is the flagship event of the country’s premier motorsport club, Shimla-based Himalayan Motorsport. President Himalayan Motorsport Vijay Parmar said that their club has always promoted the spirit of excellence in life, of achieving against all odds, by supporting para-athletes like Deepa Malik, Arun Bareja and now Ashok Munne and Vinod Rawat. “At the end of the day, without the possibility of an impossible challenge the human being is nothing at all! We are amazed by their determination, and what they have achieved,” said Parmar.