KUCHLAK, Pakistan: Sidewalk skiing is a perilous driving maneuver that involves balancing a vehicle on two wheels. It is performed on cars and jeeps around the world but in the southwestern Pakistani city of Kuchlak, one man has brought new meaning to the term “off-roading” by performing the stunts on his three-wheel rickshaw.
Meet rickshaw driver Shamsullah Kakar, 35, who says he was inspired by world-famous Saudi adventurists to start performing the stunts over five years ago.
The Internet is full of viral videos of daredevil Saudi drivers performing jaw-dropping stunts on deserted highways, the passengers clinging on for dear life on the outside of the vehicle as it tears along on two wheels at breakneck speeds.
Kakar’s first sidewalk skiing video, in which he is seen balancing his rickshaw on two wheels while a partner removes and then refits the third wheel, went viral in 2017 and the driver has never looked back.
“I thought about lifting some years ago, then I made a lot of effort, came up with a technique,” Kakar told Arab News, who performs the stunts with his apprentice Samiullah Barrech.
“Then in 2017, we performed this stunt. An apprentice [Barrech] of mine opened the wheel from behind, and I lifted the wheel. Then this video went viral … The entire world liked it, including people in the Arab world, the Arab people, and India.”
Sami Ullah Barrech (left) changes the tire as Shamsullah Kakar demonstrates a sidewalk skiing stunt in Kuchlak, Pakistan, on October 13, 2023. (AN Photo)
Kakar has been passionate about driving and performing stunts on three wheelers since he started working as a mechanic’s apprentice at the age of 10. With years of practice and understanding of rickshaws, he is now able to ride a tilted auto-rickshaw for as far as 10 kilometers.
But he warned novices against trying the stunts, which are illegal in many countries.
“The work of wheeling is very dangerous,” Kakar said. “If someone doesn’t know how to do it, it can be very dangerous, the rickshaw can overturn, the driver can get injured, or they could hit someone else. So, it’s a dangerous activity.”
Shamsullah Kakar (first right) poses for a picture along with other rickshaw drivers in Kuchlak, Pakistan, on October 13, 2023. (AN photo)
Despite the dangers, the informal sport has become hugely popular in Balochistan’s capital of Quetta, where auto-rickshaw enthusiasts plan long rides and drivers perform various stunts every Friday. Scores of people rally to areas near Quetta, including Dasht, Kuchlak, Bolan and Kolpur, to watch the stuntmen at play.
“They bring their well-decorated and fitted rickshaws, worth up to Rs1.5 million ($5,404) and perform [two-]wheeling and other stunts on them,” Najeebullah Kakar, 30, who often accompanies rickshaw drivers performing stunts, told Arab News. Najeebullah has no relation to Kakar.
“We enjoy their stunts because riding a rickshaw on two tires is not an easy skill for every driver to perform.”
Shamsullah Kakar drives his rickshaw in Kuchlak, Pakistan, on October 11, 2023. (AN photo)
And performing the stunts on rickshaws has become something special in Quetta, Barrech said, and across Balochistan, where there is plenty of open road and desert to pursue the testosterone-fueled pastime.
“This isn’t practiced anywhere in Pakistan. It’s exclusive to Quetta, so this is also a matter of pride,” he said.
“It only takes about two minutes to perform this stunt. You have seen in the video how quickly we can remove and reattach the tire and continue driving the rickshaw on the road.”
