What is a Rickshaw
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An Indian auto rickshaw puts you right at the bottom of the Indian road hierarchy, thus giving you the perfect opportunity to see India from the gutter, according to the Adventurists who run the Rickshaw Run. They go on to state that a rickshaw is barely fit for the purpose of a brief journey across town. It’s only when you hit the open road or, indeed, off-road that the beauty of these vehicles becomes apparent. Nothing in the design of these noisy tripods has comfort, safety, or reliability in mind.
It is probably the least suitable vehicle on the planet for covering the entire subcontinent in two weeks. It would probably be easier on a cow. I thought I would acquaint you with our lovely Rickshaw, who will become our best friend and biggest nightmare over the next two weeks.
Name: Joey – but she’s a girl named Joey…one badass 3-wheeled punk girl.
Team Song: Hey Ho, Let’s Go by the Ramones
This article is part of the Rickshaw Run series
Driving a rickshaw from Cochin (southern India) to Shillong (northern India) – a distance of approximately 2,000 miles depending on what route we decide on. I’m not in this alone. Team Drive, Sleep, Rupeet is made up of two adventurous women. My teammate Charlie Grosso is one bad-ass chick and an incredible friend.
We are primarily doing this to raise money for charity: water, a non-profit organization that brings clean, safe drinking water to people in developing countries.
Table of Contents
How she works
Let’s begin with starting her…which we haven’t quite mastered yet. There’s a lever on the left-hand side of the front seat that you have to yank with all of the power you have to start the thing while in neutral (that is, if you can find neutral). I call this lever the blister maker… and it’s basically like a pull-start cord to a lawn mower – you have to put your back into it…while you are sitting in a very uncomfortable seat.
Gears
The gears and clutch are on the left-hand side. To change gears, you pull in the clutch lever and rotate the handlebars forward or backward. Finding the gears can be an art form.
Brakes
The only brake is the one on the right-hand side of the floor, and it’s done with your foot. Simple to use, but not at all comfortable!
Steering
Wiggle the handlebars, and you change direction. However, since it only has three wheels, auto rickshaws have a balance problem if you turn too sharply…one that will leave it on its side.
Reverse
There is a reversing gear (lever on the right-hand side of the seat) that we can never seem to get to work. If all else fails, we put it in neutral and push, hopefully not in the middle of a busy traffic circle.
Electronics
It runs on a 12-volt system. Various lights offer you a candle’s worth of illumination. Most vitally, there is the horn, controlled by a button on the handlebars. Use it OFTEN for everything – turning right, turning left, overtaking, saying Namaste – horn is the language of traffic in India.
Engine
The mighty 7-horsepower, 2-stroke engine, single-cylinder, force-air, cooled engine lives in the back of the shaw. One sparkplug, with four forward gears (if you can find them) and one reverse.
Fuel
We have to mix our fuel and oil in a precise ratio and then ensure it gets mixed up – then we can put fuel in the tank. There is no gas gauge, and we were told that the way we know that we are out of fuel is that the shaw stops. Hence, we bought a jerry can.
Seating
Uncomfortable. I think that sums it up.
Learn more about the Rickshaw Run
Our beautiful beast
There she is – our beautiful little beast, Joey. They say we will shed tears when we have to part with her at the end. That’s hard to imagine now, but I’d like to believe that it’s true.
Read More About The Rickshaw Run
Get Ready for the Rickshaw Run
This article may contain affiliate links where I make a small commission for purchases you make from links that you click from this article. By…Water World
This article may contain affiliate links where I make a small commission for purchases you make from links that you click from this article. By…Sleepless in India – It’s Real Now
This article may contain affiliate links where I make a small commission for purchases you make from links that you click from this article. By…
This is awesome – the Rickshaw Run has been on my bucket list for a while now, it seems like such an exciting thing to do! Though this definitely makes me a bit more nervous about doing it…it certainly doesn’t look easy/comfortable – but I guess thats all part of the challenge, right?! Good luck with the rest of your adventure!
well… it looks like you have your work cut out for you on your race. Wish you the best and hopefully very little issues!
Now, this is an adventure. Love your daily posts. Hope you two are having a ball!!! Stay safe.
This is super cool! I’ve only really read about people taking rickshaw taxis, not driving them. Brave of you, love it!
Rickshaw is certainly a lifeline on Indian Road in cities and the elsewhere. The ride is pocket friendly and they are easily available.
This looks amazing, I’ve booked to go on the January Run with a friend but im really worried about the driving license situation! I’ve got a drivers licence and driving IDP but no motorcycle endorsement! Can you shed any light on whether i’ll be turned away when i arrive because of this?!
Thanks
All I can tell you is that no one asked anything about a license when they handed over the keys to our rickshaw. When we did it the Adventurists didn’t care at all, and the only risk was if you happened to get pulled over by a cop and by some crazy oddity he asked for your motorcycle license – but that never ever happened to us. So – I honestly wouldn’t worry about it. It never came up for us – or any other team that I knew during our rickshaw run. Good luck!
Great! Thanks for sharing with us!!!