Circa 2023. I had newly joined Autocar India as a novice rider with zero track-riding experience. Mere months into my tenure, I was given the opportunity to attend the seventh edition of TVS’ Young Media Racer Programme (YMRP). Needless to say, my lack of riding skill and fitness both worked hand in glove to ensure that I did not set a fast enough time to qualify for the media championship. I returned, crestfallen, but this kindled a fire in me to return someday and actually qualify.
Fast forward to just a few days before the event took place, and this time around, I was feeling confident. I was lucky enough to be able to attend the world-famous California Superbike School (CSS). I was in much better shape and now ready to mount a renewed charge on qualifying for YMRP, which celebrates its tenth birthday this year.
But there’s a saying, “man plans and God laughs.” Five days before I was supposed to fly to Chennai – one of the hottest/most humid places in India – I came down with a severe heatstroke. Partly to blame was my long shooting and testing schedule in the days prior, yet I couldn’t help but wonder about the catastrophic timing.
After chugging gallons of ORS, taking enough medicinal drugs to fill up a dinner plate and saying a fervent prayer to the powers that be, I stepped onto the Madras International Circuit. Thankfully, something clicked into place and, while I was still not back to full strength, I was feeling much better on the day of the qualifier round – perhaps it was just the elation of being on track with a fun bike!
The bike in question was a lightly modified, track-prepped Apache RTR 310. It will be our steed for the entire championship, replacing the old guard that has been around for nearly a decade – the venerable RTR 200 4V. Another welcome change – and one that deserves serious applause – was that TVS provided us with fresh Alpinestars gear and a track-ready KYT helmet, protecting us from top to bottom. This also included a Tech Air 5 airbag vest for every single participant. No other manufacturer in India puts this much emphasis and goes to these lengths for rider safety – kudos, TVS! While I was initially skeptical about wearing so many heavy and restrictive layers in 35-degree afternoon heat, on the move, there was – thankfully – plenty of airflow.
Our day started off with briefings given by veteran track riders like Harry Sylvester and H K Pradeep on track etiquette, followed by multiple classroom sessions and corresponding drills to establish a basic track-riding framework for first-time attendees. These included areas such as throttle control, on-track vision, braking, practicing race starts and basic body positioning. Each of the two batches got a total of five 10-15 minute sessions on track, including 3 drills led by actual INMRC racers, as well as timed practice and qualifying sessions. Speaking of racers, we had access to multiple-time national champions like Jagan Kumar and K Y Ahmed on hand to impart their pearls of wisdom.
Considering that I was familiar with the basics of track riding and taking into account the unforgiving weather, I elected to only do the timed practice and qualifying sessions in a bid to extract the most from my weak body. One factor going in my favour was that I had attended CSS at the same track recently, which meant I was innately familiar with the layout.
Ultimately, I managed to set a 2:27.959 lap time which was 12 seconds slower than the fastest rider. However, it was good enough to earn me a top 10 spot, meaning my second time around, I finally qualified! That dejected feeling haunting me for the past three years, I can finally bid it adieu, and my focus now is squarely on improving my lap time – I’m aiming to slash it by at least 5 seconds to begin with. These next few months are going to be very exciting indeed!
Vishal Venugopal
Ved Janve
