Recently we enjoyed a driving holiday along the west coast under the auspices of Tata Motors’ ‘Full Throttle’
As I entered the banquet hall on the 17th floor of the Taj Palace hotel, for a moment it seemed as if I had gatecrashed a private party.
As it turned out, I hadn’t. The introductory briefing was almost over and so were the ice-breaker conversations. It now appeared to be a big group of friends and there was excitement in the air. I was handed the keys of a Tata Aria, which would be my companion for the next five days. I also received a starter kit, which contained a sticker set and a road book. The stickers had the number eight, which was to be the position of my Aria in the convoy, and the road book explained the day-wise plan in detail.
Tata Motors launched their adventure activity, ‘Full Throttle’, earlier this year and I had the honour of being a part of that first-ever event in Chandigarh. It was a one-day ‘Trails’ event wherein the participants experienced the thrill of off-roading on a variety of terrain. ‘Full Throttle’ has been to a few more cities since then and Tata Motors have expanded their range of activities to multiple day driving expeditions as well. Last month, they conducted their second expedition, called the Konkan Experience, and I had the privilege of driving with them as one of the participants.
The participants were all Tata SUV owners, which is mandatory, and the registration for all ‘Full Throttle’ events is done through their special website, www.tatamotorsfullthrottle.com. The participation fee for the Konkan Experience was Rs 25,000, which included the organisation fee, food and accommodation. There was an ambulance in the convoy and we were also accompanied by a doctor should any medical aid be required. The service car had a stock of the commonly needed spare parts along with a couple of qualified mechanics, who were also part of the convoy.
The convoy had a lead car, whose job it was to navigate and, of course, lead the convoy. The service and ambulance cars were behind the participants, followed by the sweep car, which travelled at the very rear of the pack to ensure that none of the cars was left behind.
The expedition was flagged off from Panvel, where we joined the Mumbai-Pune expressway. We continued further south from Pune and drove into Karnataka by afternoon after a couple of scheduled breaks for breakfast and lunch. The open wide highway served as a warm-up session for me as I got used to driving the Aria. In spite of its size, the Aria is not difficult to manoeuvre. The only problem for me was loneliness, because I was alone in that roomy car. Thankfully, I could enjoy my favourite music by connecting my iPod to the car’s music system. We left the highway after taking a right after Nipani and reached Goa by nightfall via the Amboli Ghat. Being a Tata Motors event, the accommodation for the night had been arranged at a Taj hotel in Panaji.
The expedition had a one-day break in Goa for the participants to experience the many attractions of that tourist hot spot. The next day, the convoy was on the move again. We drove along the west coast (or Konkan, as it is known in the region) and reached Mangalore by nightfall. We crossed quite a few rivers that day and were also treated to a magnificent view of the Arabian Sea, since the road went right along the beach in a few sections.
On the fourth day, the road became rough as we drove towards the mainland. However, nothing seemed to challenge the Aria as it coasted through the potholes. We entered the scenic Kodagu (formerly Coorg) district of Karnataka and drove down for almost 30 km through Tata’s endless coffee plantations to reach our destination for the day, the beautiful colonial resort, ‘Plantation Trails’, owned by the Tatas, of course. The Tatas have 33,000 acres of land under plantation at Polibetta, which is the largest supplier of coffee in the country. In the morning we went for a walk through the plantations and were treated to freshly ground local coffee at breakfast.
We struggled for speed again on the final day of the journey as the roads were even rougher and there was slush in a few sections. It was not until evening that we found smooth asphalt. It turned out to be the longest day of the drive as we reached our destination late at night. Our accommodation was at a home-stay, just a few kilometres short of the culmination of this expedition: the magnificent Jog Falls in Shimoga district of Karnataka. In the morning we drove the final distance to the waterfall. The observation area facing the falls provides a splendid view of this natural wonder, which is the highest free falling waterfall in India. The waterfall comprises four streams of water from the River Sharavati, which flow from a 253-metre-high cliff into a gorge.
The Konkan Experience officially culminated at the Jog Falls, five days after being flagged off in Mumbai. Driving holidays are growing in popularity among enthusiasts of all ages and Tata Motors have created an organised package, which gives the enthusiasts an opportunity to try something new and enjoy their vehicles while avoiding all logistics hassles. Indeed, it is all about the experience.
Tata Motors have created an organised package, which gives the enthusiasts an opportunity to try something new and enjoy their vehicles while avoiding all logistics hassles
Story: Piyush Sonsale
Photography: Piyush Sonsale, Tata Motors
