It was a pleasure speaking with Nick after his return from the Raid de Himalaya 2009. Nick did pretty good despite his life threatening accident as well as 2 days of riding without brakes. His overall ranking was 2nd overall (Motor Cycles). A podium finish in an event like the Raid de Himalaya is an achievement like none other. It takes a “LOT” to perform that well.Thankfully Nick has given us almost 25 minutes of his time discussing about the raid, his experience and some tips and suggestions that could help you plan better for the raid, or any motor sport event of that nature. Download the interview below to see what Nick has to share.Download interview with Nick Sarao (Podcast # 3)

Video of Raakesh Blokhra (Co Founder, KTMRallying.com) introducing our team and sharing thoughts on motor sports, raid-de-himalaya, and also some ideas for Sponsors.

Do comment and let us know if you have any questions, comments or suggestions for us.

I have no idea where Motor Sports would have been if there weren’t any sponsors. With the Raid de Himalaya, being 11 months away, getting a jump start is a big motivation. A lot goes into participating in an event like that, that too when you are 13000 KMs away. The transportation of the motorcycles, spares, mechanics, riders along is a 5 figure ticket, and then there is the cost of the motorcycles, spares, service crew, service vehicles, gas, boarding, lodging, entry fee, etc just turns things upside down. Therefore we are on the lookout of some sponsors who can help take care of these big bills, and in return get all the coverage and recognition that we could possibly offer.

If you follow motor sports, you will see how there is so much real estate that could be used for advertising our sponsors, shirts and caps you wear when riding and during interviews gets your advertisers noticed, service vehicles, service crew, (entire service areas), racing vehicles, support group, fan pages like Our Fan Page, Blogs, Twitter Feeds, and other stationary that you use besides all images, videos, podcasts and interviews that you share with your fans, and the world just makes it totally worth while, specially when done right.

So we want to thank Internet Ethics Council, for taking the first step in helping us take care of some big bills. By sponsoring our team, they have shown great support for motor sports, and sportsmanship in general.

We encourage more companies to give us the honor of having you on our list of Sponsors.

A big thanks once again.

P.S. Internet Ethics Council is now available for the general public, so make sure you visit and bookmark their web site: www.internetethicscouncil.com.

Physical and Mental Training

Raakesh just planned out his workouts, and you can get to hear what it is by downloading his new podcast.

Raakesh talks about Physical fitness on how it is NOT important to have heavy and big muscles, as they tend to tire you down. He discusses how our legs play an important role in providing cushion to our body, and what all needs to be done to get good legs. And also a little about back, shoulders and forearms.

Raakesh also discloses that he will start meditating to make his mind stronger, and calmer during this race. So overall, this is just the start, and he will plan out his workout so that he can do some serious endurance and stamina building before he feels the need to get a motorcycle for racing.

Download Raakesh’s Podcast # 2

Motor Sports is not a casual sport.

It is a pure test of Man & Machine. The very minimum that you need are:
- Skills
- Physical Fitness (endurance & strength)
- The right attitude
- Passion
- The perfect Plan

There is a lot of planning involved, getting the right people (who are dependable, and responsible), experienced staff, fast movers, action takers and more. You need people in your service backup who could, during the race, forget that they have their own life. They, when they commit themselves, are in the race for you, and only for you. The last thing you want to see is that your team isn’t there when needed.

You need to be physically fit. I know I have said this a few times, but it is true. You need to be fit and by fitness I don’t mean you need big muscles, a big chest and 6 pack abs, but enough strength so you don’t get tired soon, so that you don’t exert yourself to a point that your body just can’t take it anymore. Your reflexes are of key importance during motor sports. If your body gets tired, your mind gets tired also and that would affect your reflexes and ability to ride under control, forcing you to start taking avoidable risks.

So when we prepare for motor sport events, the 1st focus goes to our physical health. You don’t want to be over weight, neither under weight, just right. Strong enough so you don’t get fatigued and not so muscular that your muscles start wearing you down. This is why you won’t see big strong body builders in this sport. Everyone is lean, and just strong enough to take themselves through the race without breaking their bodies. So the physical training involves lot of stamina building, by running, and some weight training for the parts that require strength primarily your forearms, shoulders, back and thighs. Your legs work as shock absorbers on rough terrains, so squats are a good exercise to build the legs up.

Mental Health
Very important part of motor sports is to keep your cool, stay calm and relaxed and be able to keep your focus on your strategy. This can only be attained by a strong mind and this is when Meditation comes in. Meditation helps you make your mind strong, and be relaxed. This also allows your brain to stay calm, which would help you keep a low pulse rate during the race, which in return slows down the process of fatigue and tiredness. Also since Motor Sports include some risk of injury and death, it is important to not be impulsive and take risks. A good mental health allows you to think well and also have more oxygen in your brain which helps you keep calm.

The Attitude
Understanding the sport will help you understand your risks involved and knowing how to draw a safety line around yourself. You can never win if you get hurt, break your vehicle or get killed, and it is definitely not worth it (BELIEVE ME). You can only win if you can finish the event. You need to reach the finish line, so you, at all times, must remember that you NEED to have a will to survive rather than gambling your life during the race. Even if you are 99% lucky, there is that 1% there that can take you away from your family. I have seen this happen, very closely, hence my suggestion is to get your attitude right. Finishing the race is important. So plan accordingly, go as fast as you could control and let that be your guide. If you ever feel you are at a speed when your vehicle can not be maneuvered as per your will, you just took a chance with your life. Don’t get there again.

Our Plan
Well, as I said before, our attitude, our goal and wish is to come back to our family happy, and in once piece. So we are starting off with our physical training for stamina and endurance, as well as meditation for the mind. The actual practice on my motor-cycle will happen at a later stage and is not as important as this is. I honestly have a better chance of completing the race if I am both physically and mentally fit. So during our training we will share our videos, pictures, podcasts and a lot of posts like this one.

And we have a lot of gifts in mind for all of you who are supporting us today. So if you are not yet a Fan of KTM Rallying on Facebook, please visit www.Facebook.com/KTMRallying.

So long …

Hello All,

Welcome to this first Podcast. Currently as you could see, I am getting my feet wet, building our brand and doing a LOT of paperwork. So before you start following up on our updates, I think it is my responsibility to make sure you understand where we are coming from.

This podcast tells you about how did I end up in motor sports, what have I been doing since the past few years and why didn’t I race. It also gives you a basic idea of what we are offering to our sponsors.

Download Podcast (MP3 format) here

Isn’t it strange that we spend thousands of dollar, days, weeks, months even years preparing for an event to fight for just a few seconds?

Well, that is motor sports. Where every second actually counts. However for many this event is more of a necessity than a hobby. And yes, there is a scientific explanation for this. What happens is that our body, when excited releases certain hormones that make us feel good. These are called Adrenaline.

Adrenaline is a hormone produced by the adrenal gland in our body. When it is produced in the body it stimulates the heart-rate, dilates blood vessels and air passages, and has a number of more minor effects. Adrenaline is naturally produced in high-stress or physically exhilarating situations.

Some people get a high with an Adrenaline rush, while some others (with low Adrenaline levels) feel more like normal. I personally think I feel more normal when I engage in activities like racing. But in the end, this fight for just a few seconds is all that it is, and I can’t think of anything else in this world that I would chase with such passion and dedication.

Visit us on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/KTMRALLYING/189798139281 (become a fan)

Twitter: http://twitter.com/ktmrallying (Follow our updates)

Soon you will get to see a lot of us … pictures, videos, podcasts, training videos and much more. So bookmark KTMRallying.com and keep coming back for our updates.

I am back and this time with vengeance…… I have waited though the long winter to ride yet again. I was out there riding this Wednesday and OH BOY! it was the best workout as usual. For those who have not ridden in the McLean Creek area before - it is by far the toughest terrain in the world, at least what I have ridden on. In the coming weeks I am going to upload video files for everyone. Last year, I was not riding even half as good as this year. Last year I thought I was going to die but this year it seems like I was just a fool thinking that the easiest of the riding sections were a nightmare. Guess what? I did the toughest sections in a flash and with great ease. the logs which I thought was craziness is just a very good workout with a little of technique. I am yet to improve a lot and the good part is that I am learning at the speed of light. I try to live my fears and learn from my short comings. I am glad that I have gotten the opportunity to be the sportsman riding group to ride and learn more from the fine group of people I ride with. We are off to Waipurous area on Sunday and I am so looking forward to it. 

It was a very cool ride on Friday, I felt very comfortable riding again and wasnt so sore afterwords. I guess I have to also learn some more uphill climb techniques. Maybe riding while leaning on the handlebar would work better for me. I try to work it this way and it seems to work better and better each time since the first time Brad told me to use this technique. It has been raining today and I guess Wednesday’s ride would be a slushy one. My bike would be behaving differently this time(I hope) since I have gotten it detuned for emissions and other stuff. I am eager to ride my bike again.