Red Bull Soap Box Race First Time In India

It was a whacky day in Mumbai when some very interesting (soap box) cars competed in a very unique race – the most unique race the country has probably ever seen in fact. It was a beautiful Sunday afternoon, and more than 10,000 people showed up to watch the Red Bull Soap Box Race. The race, which actually takes place in 77 cities across 40 different countries, made its debut on Mount Mary Road in Mumbai.

Simply put, the Red Bull Soap Box Race is a unique non-motorized racing event, which challenges both experienced racers and amateurs alike. Various competing teams design and build their own imaginative, human-powered soapbox machines, and compete against the clock in a downhill race course featuring jumps, bumps and curves.

The teams were very imaginative, and the crowd got to see pizza slices, pirate ships, snails, and other whacky designed soapbox cars race down the road. It might be just for fun, but the competitors were dead serious all the same, because the winners will be taken on a special tour to the Red Bull Headquarters in Salzburg, Austria. The first runners up were also promised a fully paid experience to Sunburn Goa 2012, while the second runners up were invited to a New Year’s party.

The glam factor was notched up too as Bollywood actor Imran Khan and director Vishal Bhardwaj flagged off the race, riding a ‘Gulabo’ soapbox as homage to their upcoming film, Matru Ki Bijli Ka Mandola. Even the judges were prominent stars, and included Lisa Hayden, Rannvijay Singh, theater and TV personality Kunal Vijaykar, Indian rugby spearhead Nasser Hussain, and the 1983 Cricket World Cup winner Balwinder Singh Sandhu.

Dabbawallas, Team Tritech and Feni Talks were the winning teams. Dabbawallas, from Mumbai, came in first and blew away the judges with their colourful soapbox ferrying the quintessential food dabbas. Coming in second was Team Tritech in their radio controlled car-inspired soapbox, and the final prize went to FeniTalks, who were seen smiling down the road in a car that resembled a feni bottle.