47th Mahindra Great Escape concludes successfully
Jaipur Saturday November 15, 2008 (DriveInside.com)
The 47th Mahindra Great Escape successfully took place today in the fort town of Mandawa, located in Shekhawati district near Jaipur. This fun-filled, adventurous extravaganza saw UV enthusiasts take on the Great Thar Desert in 40 vehicles which included the Scorpio, Getaway and Bolero, in addition to icons like the Legend, the Major and the Classic. The exotic caravan of Mahindra vehicles see-sawing over the beautiful sand dunes was not unfamiliar to the inhabitants of this regal habitat, The Mahindra Great Escape has always been a crowd puller!
The Jaipur Great Escape was flagged off at 10 am by Mr. Sanjeev Saxena, Senior General Manager, Mahindra & Mahindra and Mr. Jagdeep Singh Ghelot, a Mahindra dealer from Sikar. Mahindra vehicle owners who participated in this Great Escape joined in from Jodhpur, Jaipur and around Jhunjhunu District to enjoy driving through the 30 km of undulating desert terrain.
“With its spectacular desert landscape and undulating sand dunes, Rajasthan forms the perfect backdrop for the Mahindra Great Escape. The challenging route gave participants an idea of what Mahindra vehicles are capable of when put to the test. Our vehicles proved themselves admirably in the harshest of conditions and the experience of driving them through the desert was simply thrilling,” said Mr. Vivek Nayer, Senior Vice President, Marketing, Automotive Sector, Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd.
First initiated in 1996, the Mahindra Great Escape is a non-competitive, off-road rally which is meant to encourage Mahindra customers to test the strength of their vehicles on terrain other than tarmac. Mahindra vehicles are known for their rugged and reliable nature, and can typically be driven over the roughest of surfaces. The Great Escape serves as a platform to highlight this incredible ability. This Jaipur Great Escape witnessed participation from 150 people who bravely took on the extreme terrain and climate in their Mahindra vehicles.
Well known Rally champion, Hari Singh was responsible for laying out an exciting offroad track for the event and Mahindra's ‘With U Hamesha' Service Support team were present with their rescue vehicles at all difficult spots to winch out vehicles if they got into a terrain-related jam.
Mahindra conducts a series of regional Great Escapes in various parts of the country. In 2008, Great Escapes were held in Shahpur, Goa, Coorg and Chandigarh. Over the years, the Great Escape has been held in diverse locations. In Rajasthan itself, the event has been held in locations near Jodhpur, Jaisalmer, Bikaner, Osian, Manwar and Jaipur.
Mandawa, the location of this year’s Great Escape, is situated near the administrative district of Jhunjunu in the Shekhawati district of Rajasthan and is noted for its majestic medieval fort. This district is known for its brave Rajputs and their heroism which makes it an apt setting for a test of endurance and skill like the Great Escape.