United Kingdom
Explore some of the UK's most beautiful countryside from the comfort of..... A TUK-TUK.
Welcome to the UK Tuk-Tuk Challenge! It’s finally happening folks. The finest vehicle known to man has crossed the Himalayas, traversed central and Asia, navigated Europe, swam across the channel and is now here in the United Kingdom. That’s right, there are now tuk-tuk’s living and breathing right here in the UK. Our next job is to stick a bunch of them together and drive them across some of the most beautiful scenery England and Wales has to offer, drink the finest ales in the land all in the company of the most elite drivers this country has ever produced. Obviously the ale drinking and tuk-tuk driving wont be done simultaneously (did we need to mention that??). See, we love rickshaws and we love adventures. So we thought we’d take our extremely successful rickshaw rally format – in which, you drive around a country as part of a team and complete challenges to accrue points – and apply it right here in the UK. It’ll kick-off from somewhere central, then wind up, down, under and around this incredible little island, before eventually arriving back somewhere else central, like a big, fat, self-drive boomerang. And there it is. The UK Tuk-Tuk Challenge is born. Are we good or what?
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Daily route briefings and road map.
Accommodation for 2 people (4 nights) in double or twin rooms. 1 room per team.
Welcome feast & 4 delicious locally-made breakfasts.
UK Tuk-Tuk Challenge logistics & legal stuff (mechanics, support team, local permissions, fun challenges & prizes).
Welcome pack (t-shirt, event bag).
10 % contribution to the Rosie May Foundation.
Awards ceremony & farewell gathering.
Rickshaw spare parts and repairs or recovery.
Fuel.
Lunches and extras.
Dinners on all days except first and last night.
Tuk-Tuk start or finish delivery.
UK Adventure
Our UK Tuk-Tuk Challenge does exactly what it says on the tin. It’s in the UK. It’s challenging (somewhat). And you drive rickshaws. A great big UK adventure is pretty much guaranteed. But really, there’s so much more in the tin than that: there’s castles, cattle grids and sheep, plenty of sheep. If that sounds like your particular cup of tea, read on.
Ah, the humble Indian rickshaw, or “Auto” as they’re sometimes known as, is the original tin can on wheels. These are standard issue, Indian-made, british modified (off course we’ve gone and added seatbelts) rickshaws. And they’re freak’n awesome!
They’ve got three wheels (don’t ask us why), an open frame, a canvas roof with drop down sides, a cabin for the driver and two seats in the back. Oh, and an engine: a 4-stroke beast that is probably slightly more powerful than a horse.
Rickshaws have a few advantages: they’re durable, easy to use and very forgiving. They’ll happily handle almost any surface, climate or level of abuse. Their cruising speed is a tasty 35kph (22mph). Their cruising altitude is about one foot.
Warning: Rickshaws can easily roll and flip if not handled correctly. We take safety really seriously on these challenges, and you should know there are inherent risks involved, including potentially life-threatening situations.
Specifications*
*ALL TUK-TUK’s WELCOME: While this is written with a focus on the classic Bajaj, ALL tuk-tuk’s are off course welcome. So if you have a classic Piaggio Ape or even the zippy Thai tuk-tuk’s the more the merrier!
How does it work?
For a comprehensive answer, go and Google ‘internal combustion engine’. But here are the side notes.
It’s worth remembering that the UK Tuk-Tuk Challenge is just that – a challenge. This not a race. Also, it’s not like Cake’s seminal 90s hit The Distance. Speed should not be your priority. If anything should be, it’s probably fun.
A team is made up of either 1, 2 or 3 people. One Rickshaw per team. One room per team if you’re paying for accommodation.
Yes you can. Reach out to us on info@largeminority.com to discuss your options. If you choose not to book accommodation the entry fee will be £200. This will cover a donation to our partner charity and only costs to run the event.
Yes, the entry fee for a solo team in 2020 will be £450.
We are very aware that we are living in unprecedented times right now. Dare we say, a whole new world. We will of course be taking all the necessary precautions in regards to social distancing and a full risk assessment will be completed inline with up to date and current COVID-19 guidelines from England and Wales before the start of the challenge. For up to date information please visit the government website.
Yes, our friends over at Tuk-Tuk UK can arrange this for you. Just let us know and we will provide you with a quote.
Yes, we have arranged this service with a lovely man called Steve to do this for you in the week prior and week after the event for a very reasonable fee. Reach out to us on info@largeminority.com for details and a quote. Guideline prices for 2020 below:
Yes.
Yes, we just ask that if you do you make a small contribution of £50 per day to cover the mechanical support. Anything left over we will donate to the partner charity.
Don’t worry, you don’t have to strap suitcases to the roof of your tuk-tuk. We’ve got a luggage truck that will follow us around. Each morning you’ll load it up with your heavy bags, and each night we’ll hand it back at our hotel. Job done. Simples.
We will have a team of mechanics following (in the loosest possible definition) our route. We encourage you to fix your own breakdowns but we will only be a phone call away should you need our help.
Spares need to be paid for by you.
In true Large Minority fashion we will be adding in a few ‘challenges’ along the way. These are all optional and no teams are obliged to participate in them. There will be daily prizes (maybe a free beer). Challenges are usually a combination of photographic, video, physical (not very), cultural, social and language based themes. Think Race Across the World meets Amazing Race and then take out all the annoying video cameras and scripts. There you have it, all in the name of good old fashioned fun.
Definitely! We love to see teams going the extra mile to raise money for charity. If you need more info on this, just let us know.
Easy peasy. Here’s how:
Once you’ve done all that successfully, we’ll send you an email with lots of exclamation marks confirming your team’s availability.
14 days before the Challenge.
That´s up to you. There will be no fixed route but only a suggested one, you’re as free as our macaw.
A fine local pub will be suggested by us each day but stopping and lunching will be completely optional.
We try to stick to the original route and accommodation as much as possible, but they can be subject to change from time to time, especially with the current uncertainty surrounding COVID-19.
For more information please refer to our Booking Terms & Conditions.