Sohail Khan says missed 15 year's of life by not coming to Raid de Himalaya

Bollywood actor-director and producer Sohail Khan on Sunday said that he wasted 15 years not competing at the Raid De Himalaya. Sohail said that even though he incurred penalties which pushed him to the bottom of the ladder, he found the Raid to be an experience “where you learn at every turn.”
The 16th edition of Raid De Himalaya officially drew to a close at Manali on October 11.Only about 30 per cent competitors managed to successfully finish the Raid, considered one of the top ten toughest rallies globally. Sohail Khan and his navigator Rahul Sancheti of Pune were among the competitors who made it to the finish line of the Raid at Manali. The rest of the teams dropped out due to technical failures in their vehicles, or other setbacks.
"The Raid has been a life changer for me, and I wasted all the years it was organized by not coming for it," said Sohail , who competed in the Adventure category of the rally this year. He said that during the first couple of days at the Raid, he drove only in the competitive zones, and let his navigator drive in the free zones towards the end of the day.
“By the third day, I found that I wanted to do the entire driving myself. I am looking forward to competing in the Xtreme category at the Desert Storm early next year,” he said. At the Raid, Sohail competed in Raid Adventure, which follows the Time-Speed-Distance format. First-timers at the Raid are not allowed to compete in the high-risk, high-speed Xtreme category.
The six day marathon motorsport event started from Shimla, and crossed some of the highest motorable passes including Baralacha La and Shingo La.
Sohail said he especially liked the experience of staying in Tabo near Kaza, in the vicinity of a 1,000-year-old monastery. “If it had not been for the Raid De Himalaya, I would never have come to these beautiful remote areas and crossed these high mountain passes,” he said.
The 16th Raid De Himalaya started with 41 teams in Raid Xtreme (4X4), of which only 19 teams managed to successfully finish the rally. In Raid Xtreme (Motorcycles), 27 competitors took the start, and dropped to 15 at the end of the rally. In Raid Adventure, 50 teams took the start on Day One, of which only 39 teams managed to make it to the finish line in Manali.
READ: Sohail Khan to participate in Raid de Himalaya
The Raid De Himalaya is organized by Himalayan Motorsport, the leading motorsport club of the country. President of Himalayan Motorsport Vijay Parmar said that the number of drop-outs would have been higher if heavy snowfall at Kunzum La had not stalled Day Four of the Raid.
“The competitive leg from Losar to Gramfu on the fourth day was among the toughest legs of the rally. If this leg had been held successfully, there would have been several drop-outs on this day,” he said.
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