Rally
The Creative Questionnaire with CS Santosh, India’s fastest two-wheel racer
Journalist Amit Gurbaxani speaks with India’s most accomplished competitor at the Dakar Rally about how he prepares mentally to take on the world’s most gruelling off-road races.
12 min
The Mind Behind with CS Santosh
Going from his home in India to Paraguay, CS Santosh made the journey to compete in Dakar.
In this series of Q&As with a wide range of interesting people – including actors, artists, athletes, chefs, comedians, dancers, designers, filmmakers, musicians and writers – we gain insight into the practices and processes and obsessions and inspirations that shape their work and life.
We begin with the three subjects of Red Bull Media House’s cross-discipline video series called The Mind Behind. This interview focuses on CS Santosh, the Bengaluru-residing sportsman who is widely regarded as India’s most successful cross-country motorcycle racer. (other interviews in this series are with Chef Thomas Zacharias and Emiway Bantai)
Among the many accomplishments of Santosh’s 15-year career are winning the Desert Storm for three consecutive years from 2014 through 2016 and becoming the first Indian to complete the 9,000-km Dakar Rally, considered the world’s toughest off-road motorsport event; he has completed it three times so far.
Edited excerpts.
At what time of the day do you feel the most inspired?
Once the day is done. At night we start preparing for the next day. The night is when I have a lot of peace and visualise the day ahead. Usually, our days begin really early. We’re up at about 4.30am. When the sun comes up is when we start to race. Since the whole day is [full of] activities, in terms of where I need to go, how I need to perform, preparing strategies for the day and for one-two weeks of racing, I do most of my thinking at night.
It’s the only time you can actually sit to reflect, put yourself in a good headspace, and imagine the best situations for yourself. Most of the time we don’t know what we’re getting ourselves into when we are riding. We kind of adapt, and it happens on the go. But we set ourselves into the right mindset for that the previous night.
How do you get in the zone?
Getting in the zone doesn’t just happen at the race. It happens well before. Typically for the Dakar, we train the whole year. At least a month-and-a-half or two months before is when you set your mind to that day when it starts. Every day is a process where you do all the work that you need to do. It happens over a course of time. I don’t just show up and say, “Okay, I need to go racing,” because it’s quite a demanding sport. It’s an endurance sport. You need to put a lot on the table. You never know the outcome. It’s not just about winning or losing but there are other aspects also. You prepare for all scenarios, all eventualities.
Whose brain would you love to pick?
Abhinav Bindra. I read his book a few years ago and found it fascinating. I like the way he processes information. The most fascinating thing about him is the way his mind works.
Name a place that always inspires you and why.
The Himalayas. It’s one of those iconic places that still stand out in my memory. The Raid de Himalaya makes you feel alive. It all started for me with that race. Symbolically also it shows you how fragile we are. At that point of time, when I won that race it propelled me skywards.
What’s always in your backpack?
In my backpack, I definitely carry my sunglasses. That’s always there. I need them everywhere I go. I’ve been wearing the same pair for I don’t know how many years now. They’re Ray-Ban Wayfarers.
A pair of sunglasses is CS Santosh's backpack mainstay
© Ishaan Bhataiya
Who’s your sounding board?
My coach (Nimrod) Mon (Brokman), who I’ve been working with for the last three years. He helps me with the mental aspects. When I have doubts and questions about performance, I usually talk to him. Apart from him, there’s my friend and business partner, Uday. I talk to him a fair bit. He mentors me a lot.
When and how did you know you wanted to do this?
I decided I wanted to do this by accident. I didn’t really plan on it. I did the Raid de Himalaya in 2012. That was the last race that I was going to compete in India [after which] I was going to hang up my boots and go work with my father doing a job I hated. I’d worked with him for a year before that and I didn’t like it one bit. I somehow got myself to do this race as a privateer and I decided that after this year I’ll say goodbye. But then one thing led to another, I saw an opportunity and I took it.
The thing is I have this mindset that I always keep my ears and eyes open. My heart really craves adventure. It wants to have stimulation. I knew that with this, I’d be able to see the world. I’d be able to go out and satisfy the hunger that I have to do something, and be something in my life. This is the vehicle or platform that I’m using to propel myself and achieve those goals I’ve always had since I was a kid, to amount to something. It’s as basic as that.
What’s your pre-race routine?
I was given a rudraksh by a friend three years ago. I take that with me everywhere I go. If I can’t wear it, I put it in my jacket. I take my mother’s Timex watch with me. I put that on my motorcycle or on me or inside my jacket. I take these two things with me. I feel comfortable with the fact that I have them.
How do you measure success?
I don’t think success can be measured by the trophies that you win or the money that you make or the position that you enjoy in society because of your talent. At that end of the day, you need to do something that’s valuable not just for yourself but also in a way that contributes to society. If I’m able to lead a life that I’m proud of, then I would think I’m successful. My career helped me believe in my own dreams so it’s a message that goes out to everyone who aspires to do something like me. What I did with motorsports, nobody else had done it before me.
What’s your current obsession?
It’s a song. ‘Superposition’ by Young The Giant. I just came across it and I love it. I like the lyrical wordplay.
What do you do when you’re feeling overwhelmed?
I go back to the basics and just remember why I’m doing this in the first place. Most of the time, you get overwhelmed when you think of a result that you want to achieve that might not be in your hands. Whenever I get overwhelmed with the fact that I have so many things to do, I just take one step at a time and try to do it to the best of my ability. Usually in sport, you can’t make giant leaps. It’s one small step after another. Of course it’s difficult. At the end of the day it’s about perception. If you’re aware of that and you’re mindful of what you put in your head, you can help yourself a lot.
What makes you want to get out of bed in the morning?
The biggest motivating factor for me is I’m on the clock. I’ve got too many things to do. I’m pretty much like a tourist. You know how when you go to a new place and you have so many things you want to do and you know your time there is limited? It’s like that for me every day.
CS Santosh works with a trusted team and confides in them regularly
© Mohit Damani
Which memento from your career will you never discard?
The first Dakar medal that I got. Usually I never hold on to anything. I don’t have trophies at home that I like to keep. But I’ll hold on to that one. If I hadn’t finished it, I would have been forgotten. I did it as a privateer so it was a personal effort and I didn’t really think anybody followed me. The reaction I got was something I didn’t expect. All this wouldn’t have been possible if I hadn’t made that first one count.
What’s the best advice you’ve received?
I honestly can’t think [of any such advice]. Usually every year I have a phrase or a quote that I hold on to. The motto this year is: The cave that you fear to enter holds the treasures you seek. I don’t remember where I picked it up from. It’s really stuck with me because I feel like I have a lot of things to work on. In the past, I’ve always played to my strengths and avoided doing certain things. But at the end of the day, life is always going to bring back all the things you avoid in some way, shape or form. I’m in that process this year to do all the things I’m afraid of.
Click here to read the interview with Thomas Zacharias, the Chef of the Year from Conde Nast Traveller India magazine’s Top Restaurant Awards 2018.
Click here to read the interview with Emiway Bantai, the underground rapper from Mumbai with the fastest-growing fan base.