CS Santosh: It's tough for me to do normal things when I'm not racing

CS Santosh spends 351 days a year preparing for a 14-day expedition. Back from his fourth Dakar Rally this year, the only thing a rider undertaking this ultimate test of man and machine can be certain of, he says, is the excruciating torture in store. Actually, there's no way on earth you can prepare for it.

This time the Hero MotoSports rider returned with more than just horror stories of riding through dunes, river bed crossings and salt flats. A 34th place overall finish, his best-ever so far, and becoming the first Indian to finish the race three times, has made this Santosh's best outing in South America. For those wondering why finishing the race really counts, this year of the 139…