Anand in Namibia on day two of the International GS Trophy 2024 | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
For Anand, it all began in August 2016 when Adventure Souls, a WhatsApp group of eight Bengaluru-based techies decided to go on a trip from Kanyakumari to Leh and back, on three bikes and a car. A trip that was supposed to last for around 20 days left an impact lasting a lifetime as Anand’s employer rejected his leave request despite having enough in his account. In spite of having worked at this firm for two and a half years, Anand decided to call it quits.
Anand Dharesan, 33, is now an entrepreneur, but more importantly one of the three riders who were part of Team India at the International GS Trophy 2024, an international biennial adventure motorcycling event, organized by BMW Motorrad for the owners of GS motorcycles. Anand is perhaps the first person from Kerala to participate in the tournament.
The tournament, which began in 2008 in Tunisia, had its 2024 edition in Namibia. The GS Trophy lasts for a week as teams compete in offroad riding and non-riding related challenges and are awarded points based on different parameters depending on the tasks called special stages. The six-day journey spanned over 1,350 kilometers and included challenges such as hoisting motorcycles from one ledge to another using a rope, a treasure hunt with a tire repair task, and even a slow trial, where the riders were expected to finish last, among others. The other members of the Indian squad which finished 10th in the tournament which ended in September were Devaraj Venkatesh (31) and Shahan Khan (21). This Indian team was also the first one to finish in the top 10 ever.
(From left) Anand, Devaraj and Shahan during the International GS Trophy 2024 in Namibia | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
“When the previous edition of the GS Trophy happened in 2022, I wasn’t very confident to try because I had just bought my BMW GS bike,” says Anand. In preparation for the tournament this year, Anand decided to partner up with Devaraj who also owns a motor riding training facility, which became the trio’s practice ground before the regional qualifiers in 2023, as Shahan also practiced in the same facility.
Out of 150 people who qualified from the four regional qualifiers, 20 people progressed to the next round of competitions held in Delhi. In the two-day national qualifiers, which took place in December 2023, Anand qualified first, followed by Devaraj and Shahan.
After the team qualified, BMW sent them to Jaisalmer in Rajasthan to be acclimated to the dunes of the Namibian terrain. Then the team trained in Kabini, Karnataka, where the terrain was rocky. For the last leg of training, the squad went to Spiti Valley in Himachal Pradesh one month before the competition. All these training programs lasted a week to resemble the tournament’s itinerary.
Team India at International GS Trophy 2024 during a photo challenge special stage | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
The Indian team left for Namibia on September 13 for the event two days later. “For six days, it is pure torture… it is continuous riding,” Anand says.
“By the end, we were like we had to somehow survive these six days. People quit sometimes. One of the riders had a collarbone fracture, someone from the female team had an ACL tear, and one of the media people had a fracture,” he adds.
Anand considers meeting Mike Booth, a superbike racer from the UK who lost his right leg in 2022, to be one of the highlights of his tournament. “When we see people like him, whatever issues we face, it is nothing,” he says.
Following his participation at the 2024 GS Trophy, his parents’ attitude towards him riding the bike has changed, Anand says. “Earlier, they would want to know why I could not stay at home with my wife, Janaki, and our children, instead of going on these rides. But now I am seeing my dad send my GS trophy videos into WhatsApp groups, saying ‘This is my son’.”
“Before leaving for Namibia last month, I received a letter from my elder daughter one, which read ‘Dad, make us proud. Bring the trophy. Love you, Vedha’,”Anand remembers.
Published – October 03, 2024 03:19 pm IST