2016 Force Gurkha Rainforest Challenge India

Having lived in metropolitan cities all my life, for me the term ‘off-roading’ signified treading over whatever was left of city roads that had been battered by a good monsoon. So, when Bert told me to cover the most extreme off-roading competition in India, I wasn’t quite sure of what to expect. At that point, the only bit which got me excited was that the event was being held in Goa.

A week later, I was at the Rajiv Gandhi IT Habitat in Dona Paula, trying to find traction in ankle-deep slush. A few metres ahead of me, a heavily...