The sixth edition of the JK Tyre Rally of Himalayas saw Rajiv Yadav and Dhritimaan Singh take the top honours in the Extreme and Moto categories, respectively, while Soham Hazra finished on top in the TSD (Time, Speed and Distance) category. The cross-country rally raid, organised by Himalayan Xtreme Motorsports and Adventure X Fusion Tribe, saw nearly 130 participants across Moto, Extreme and TSD categories competing for four days through the unforgiving Himalayas.
- The sixth edition saw nearly 130 participants across categories
- The route traversed Manali, Lahaul-Spiti and Zanskar
2026 Rally of Himalayas: Participants and route
The two-wheeler Moto category featured 80 riders while the four-wheeler Extreme category had 29 competitors and the TSD category had 20 competitors. Notably, there were women participants in all three categories, including one female rider in the Moto class, two female drivers in the Extreme class and four in the TSD class. Participants were also of varying ages, ranging from rookies to veterans and also included private teams and even Army teams.
A notable highlight of this year’s rally was that it took participants to the Zanskar region for the first time. Flagging off from Manali, the route took competitors through Kaza, Jispa, and Kunzum La, before culminating in Padum, Zanskar, on September 30.
Not surprisingly, rally-prepped Maruti Gypsys were the mainstays in the four-wheeler Extreme category, while a couple of Hiluxes, first-gen Suzuki Grand Vitaras and even a first-gen Duster were in attendance. Despite the challenging terrain of the Himalayas, there were participants even competing in a Volkswagen Polo and a Honda Brio. Meanwhile, the two-wheeler Moto category saw participants bring along Kawasaki KLXs, Royal Enfield Himalayans, KTM 390 Enduros and of course, plenty of Hero Xpulses.
2026 Rally of Himalayas as it unfolded
On Day 1, Rajiv Yadav, competing in the Extreme category, took the lead in the early stages, although local competitor Aaryak Rana remained closed behind during the initial phase. Day 1 featured a 72-km gravel stage that was subsequently run in the reverse direction on Day 2. The format required the driver and riders to adapt braking points, turn-in timing and pacing strategies to a familiar route approached from a different direction.
By the end of Day 2, over a dozen competitors in the Extreme category were already out due to mechanical failures, including Lakhpa Tsering, the 2015 Raid de Himalaya winner. That’s testimonial of how much the rider and drivers were tested of their skill, stamina and split-second decision making at every stage of the rally.
Following the reverse stage, the rally's momentum shifted towards Daksh Gill, who delivered strong performances over the next two stages, beginning with the reverse Losar to Gramphu stage. From there, the competition advanced towards Shinku La, with the route climbing to elevations of more than 16,500 feet.
The rally then moved into the Zanskar Valley, where the desert-like landscape led to what was arguably the most exhilarating phase of the rally. Daksh Gill reached speeds of up to 200kph across the region’s vast and high-altitude terrain. The rally concluded in Padum, marking the culmination of more than four days of demanding competition across some of the most challenging terrain in the Himalayas.
Category Winners and Podium Highlights:
Xtreme (Four-wheel)
- Winner: Rajiv Yadav / Rohit Gowda
- Runner-up: Aaryak Rana / Aditya Sharma
- Second Runner-up: Daksh Gill / Virender Kashyap
Moto (2-Wheel)
- Winner: Dhritimaan Singh
- Runner-up: Happy Verma
- Second Runner-up: Nitish Bharadwaj
TSD (2-Wheel)
- Winner: Soham Hazra / Nirav Mehta
- Runner-up: Santosh HM / Prakash Muthusamy
- Second Runner-up: Chandra Mouli / Sri Sakthi Kumar N
- Third place: Sachin Mandhwani / Adhitya Anthony