I was thinking of starting this story in the classic (cliché) way.

Helmet? Check. Protective gear? Check – that sorta’ thing. But that’s boring, and what we did to create this piece was anything but. So, to hell with clichés!

It’s safe to say that corporate life has ruined us all – at heart we’re dirty, unruly guys and girls. No, not the way you’re thinking. I mean literally. We’re not ashamed of our unkempt appearance – look at Dhruv’s beard, my hairdo, or better still, just get a glimpse of Jared from any angle, and you’ll get what I’m talking about. And we’re like that, despite living in the midst of this corporate madness – just so that we can keep our fetish for dirty, outdoorsy fantasies secretly alive. Our mothers and wives shout, curse, and cry, just so that we give our favourite pair of denims for a wash. They call our jeans dirty – we say they’re time-tested, and experienced.

So, it was no surprise that the old pair of denims came out again.

It was Dhruv, Kapil and I – and we wasted no time as soon as we reached the venue for the Polaris test. I was urging the guys who were helping to put on the safety gear to work faster, and I was just nodding at the guy giving me the safety ‘lecture.’ Yeah, yeah, old man – be gentle, off the throttle when coming around a bend – I get it. Now let me go!




I rushed to the track as fast as I could, and before I could manage ‘hallelujah,’ Dhruv was already teasing me with crazy powerslides in the Ranger RZR and giving ample sideways action for the crowds on hand to gape in amazement. Revenge time! I frowned, garbled as many curses as I knew, and looked around frantically. I picked up the next best thing – the most powerful ATV that was there – and went in hot pursuit. ATVs are extremely tricky things mind you. The only experience I’ve had with one is when I rode an ATV a couple of years ago and almost crapped myself. That wasn’t a Polaris though, so with these guys who do the best off-roading specialist machines in the world, I was confident of it being easy. It wasn’t – but not so much because of the machine itself – rather it was my fitness levels, or lack thereof. It was going well, but 20 minutes into it my arms felt like they’d been given a shot of anaesthesia.

And then came the shout from Kapil, “Oye, what the #*%$ are you doing? Give me some action man, I want action. Slide some more, would you.” Trust me, I’ve never felt so much hatred as I did at that moment. But, I’m a proper Alpha male – full to the brim with ego issues. So I went again, determined. I gave it more than 100% and, in hindsight, more than I could digest. The slide was captured alright, but then the Sportsman went on two wheels, and, momentarily, on one. That’s when I thought – if I won’t jump, I’ll have a bundle of metal and fibreglass on top of me. So, I jumped, rolled – full filmy style – and when I came to a stop, I ran back to get on the ATV. But I was bettered by Dhruv. He was, as ever, happily going sideways in the RZR – but, a small ridge caused an epic flip. I was busy gathering myself from the fall, so I couldn’t witness the flip, but Dhruv lived to tell the tale, and managed to allow Kapil to get his breath back too – Dhruv had gone over just inches away from him. So, the RZR apparently flipped, rolled on its side, and then came back on four wheels as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened. The Ranger wasn’t one bit bothered, and just a little bit of effort re-inflate the tire was enough to get the RZR standing – angry and ready to go again.

We took to the other, more challenging, course that had been set up by Polaris, which had obstacles of all sorts – water, sharp curves on really loose earth, logs, and an undulating surface made of sandbags. Just to put it as plainly as possible – the Polaris vehicles were unfazed by whatever came their way. Let’s just say that the ATVs – quite literally – are born to do one thing, and that’s take you where your Land Cruiser can’t. It also must be said that this was definitely the best launch event by a manufacturer that we’d experienced. Dhruv, Kapil and I all emote that feeling.

We had a brilliant time throwing the ATVs and Rangers around. For that brief moment, we experienced our true selves. We live in a modern world, with a rushed city life, but it’s also mechanical and mundane. We want to live the mad life. Polaris affords you that mad life. ‘Nuff said!