The wild exploits of a team of Manx adventurers as they attempt to cross India in a vehicle, affectionately compared to a glorified lawnmower, is to be shown in a full-length film later this month.
’Team Mad Manx and the Rickshaw Run’ will be premiered at the Peel Centenary Centre.
The film features the attempt made by a group of friends, going by the name ’Team Mad Manx’, to take part in the Rickshaw Run, a charity adventure which sees teams of people trying to cover 3,500 miles across India, from Kochi, in Kerala to Jaisalmer, in Rajasthan.
According to the organisers, the challenge puts you in a ’tuk tuk’, a three-wheeled rickshaw, described either as a ’glorified lawnmower’ or a ’One-donkey, power rolling cake tin’, with the guise advising that ’there’s no set route, no back-up and no way of knowing if you’re going to make it. The only certainty is that you will get lost, you will get stuck and you will break down’.
Among the group of intrepid Manxies who took on the challenge in 2015 were Adam and Fern Callister, along with Fern’s brother, filmmaker Sam Waters.
’We were given a rickshaw and a small bit of training and then we had to get to Jaisalmer in any way you can,’ said Fern.
’Its not a race, as such, and there is no set route. You just have to find you own way there and hopefully you make it in one piece.
’We had seven people between three tuk tuks. One of the rickshaws we were given was an absolute wreck. It kept on breaking down and we were forced to try and fix the thing all the time.’
The end result is a film which charts all the team’s experiences, from the mad and hilarious to the frightening and occasionally life-threatening. We had crashes and a lot of near misses and scrapes, most of which you can see in the film.
’It was very tough going. The journey, which should have taken us around 14 days, ended up taking almost three weeks.
’We ended up having to have one of the rickshaws stuck on the back of a truck and driven to the finish line. I think by the end of it there were flames leaping out of the back of it.’
The team captured their event-filled trek on GoPro and iPhone cameras, which Sam has produced into a two-hour epic which follows them through the busy and dangerous streets and through the many towns and villages along the way.
’We never set out to make a film. It was more of a case of taking bits of film to keep as memories,’ said Fern.
’ Sam has done an amazing job. He pieced all the bits together and has created a wonderful film which does tell all the story of our adventure.
’It’s a film anyone can watch, although there are some bits of fruity language in there.
’He’s done a great job and we are blown away by it.’
During the trip Fern, Sam , Adam and the rest of the Team Mad Manx raised £3,500, which was split between the Cool Earth charity and Hospice Isle of Man.
’We did have it rough,’ said Fern
’ But we wouldn’t have had such an amazing adventure and it wouldn’t have been as memorable an experience if we didn’t.’
’Team Mad Manx and the Rickshaw Run’ premiers at the Peel Centenary Centre on Saturday, February 13, from 7.45, with doors open at 7pm.
Tickets are £5, and are available online from etickets.im/FIP, as well as from Shakti Mann in Ramsey, Celtic Gold in Peel and on the door on the night. All proceeds will go to Hospice Isle of Man.
Should the lockdown period be extended and the film postponed, another date will be organised.
See below for the trailer to 'Team Mad Manx and the Rickshaw Run'
by Mike Wade
Twitter:@iomnewspapers