Mega Adventure - BOBMC Rider Mania @ Udaipur Hosted by IBR

Welcome to my blog on the mega adventure ride I did recently to Udaipur and Back along with India Bull Riders - my Motorcycle club buddies.

CHAPTER 1: BOBMC Rider Mania & IBR

BOBMC Rider Mania is an annual event hosted by well known Royal Enfield Clubs across India and Nepal. BOBMC stands for Brotherhood of Bulleteers Motorcycle Consortium wherein more than 200 clubs are registered and active. There is one common element that brings all these clubs together. The Royal Enfield Motorbike or "BULLET" as we call it. Once you ride a Royal Enfield and experience the brotherhood at RM, you are done for your life. You will keep going back again no matter where it is, just to experience the madness, the party & the brotherhood again.

BOBMC RM keeps rotating from one club to another. Last year, it was hosted by Inddie Thumpers called the MAHA RM. At the end of the event, there is a moderator meet, where the moderators of all the clubs decide the next host. In Jan 2018, at Maha RM, it was decided that my club, India Bull Riders will host the next edition of BOBMC RM. When the baton was passed on to our chief Sajeesh,we all were excited, but nervous as well. Hosting an event at the scale that it is with 2000 riders is not a small ask.

India Bull Riders Motorcycle Club or IBRMC/ IBR is a club started in 2007 in Delhi as Delhi Bull riders. But as the riders started spreading across the country, DBR was rechristened as IBR and chapters started across various cities. Today we have chapters at Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Chennai, Kolkota, Jaipur, Udaipur, Guwahati, Pune, Dehradun and Jamshedpur.

With the senior members of each chapter, planning for RM started and it was decided that we will host the event at Udaipur from Feb 1-4. We named the event AANDO..which means LET IT COME

Many of us who couldnt participate in the planning, decided we will Ride all the way to Udaipur from Bangalore and try to arrive early. This is our event and we have to give the best to riders who come in.

Batches started forming based on available leave and Ride plan. First batch left on 19th Jan with 3 riders, 2nd on 22 Jan with 5 and we the third batch on 26th Jan with 4 riders.Initially I planned for a 3 week vacation and was supposed to be with Batch 2, but then had to shorten it to two weeks due to office commitments and joined Batch 3.

We decided that we will start on 26th Jan, cover Rann of Kutch - the great White Desert and then reach Udaipur on 30th Jan. We had to cover 2400+Km in 5 days, with 1 day rest and sight seeing at Rann of Kutch.
For the return our plan was to start on 5th, reach Gwalior, meet a friend and ride back to Bangalore by 9th.

CHAPTER 2: Ride to RM

With the plan finalized, I had to get my bike ready. Got it serviced, did a test ride of 200Km a week before, to check for any niggles and rectify them and was all set to go. Before any ride, i hardly get sleep and so was the case with this ride. Being a Mega Adventure, was all excited and packed more than what was required ☺. Saddled up, put on my gear and by 230am and was on my way to starting point.

My bike is the one in middle. Check out Alexis, Renny's modified red ride. She's an eye turner

Day 1: 26th Jan, Bangalore to Pune, 900+km

We were to start at 3am from KR Puram. Met Sudhir, Renny, Saurabh who were the other riders. We also had Mahesh Kemkar joining us on his Safari along with Imran and Aarif who were expert mechanics as well as Bike Customization and Exhaust design experts. Mahesh & Imran are partners at One Stop Bullet Point workshop. They had customized Renny's bike and she was a rockstar. To our surprise Mohan, Ayanna and Roopesh joined us at the starting point to send us off. Was a lovely feeling to have fellow riders and friends coming early morning to bid you a safe ride.

All right....time to roll. We set off at 330am. It was extremely cold. Luckily I had our thermals on. After about 30Km, we stopped and realized Sudhir did not put on his thermals whereas everyone else had it on. Had a good laugh and continued our ride. We did a good long stretch of 150Km, and I started feeling hungry. Badly needed a break but we kept pushing ourselves as we had to cover a lot of distance. We were nearing 200km and there were many dhabas and eatery joints that went past. I was wondering why arent we stopping. Sudhir was the lead and suddenly he slowed down and was about to stop, but then continued on. I was like, whats happening...later understood he and Saurabh were looking for a good hotel....on the highway you never know if you will get a good enough hotel. If you want to stop, stop at the one you find first...thats our mantra. That's exactly what Sudhir did. Enough is enough, he took a left at the next eatery and stopped. We were like...thank you bhai....cant control anymore...you know what I mean 😉. Had a good breakfast, took sufficient time for the bikes to cool down and us as well. And restarted the ride. We were doing good speeds of 85-95Km/hr and continued our journey till Kolhapur with sufficient breaks on the way. We were warned by earlier batch riders that the Kolhapur Satara stretch is deadly and lot of local people riding on wrong side, crossing the road, sugar cane tractors and need to be extra careful. We reached Kolhapur by 4pm which is around 600km from starting point. To our surprise, the stretch from Kolhapur to Satara wasnt bad, and not much traffic. We reached Satara by around 7 and still had to do about 150Km to our hotel in Pune. Continued our journey and as we were nearing Pune, needed a break & we stopped to have the famous Misal pav, filled our stomach and started the final stretch to our hotel. Reached our hotel at around 1030pm. Unsaddled, put down our luggage and me and Sudhir fell dead asleep within a few mins. After some time Renny woke us up as our Club's Pune Chapter friends had come to meet us. We all gathered in a room, had a few drinks, lot of Bakar and food. Aabhas from Pune chapter was to join us the next day morning on our ride. With Day 1 done, we hit the bed as the next day we had to cover 650Km to reach Ahmedabad.

Day 2: 27th Jan Pune to Ahmedabad 650Km.

We had to start early, but we were tired and couldnt get up as planned. Finally Renny woke us up and we got ready to start by 730am. Aabhas joined us and as he was familiar with the route to Mumbai, he took lead on the highway. The Pune Mumbai stretch is 150Km, but is confusing and there are separate routes for 4 wheelers and two wheelers. Mahesh bhai took the expressway as he had to visit his relative and we 5 riders took the normal route. The route crosses mountain ghats and then touches the outskirts of Mumbai. Our target was to reach Hotel Fountain for breakfast. As we were nearing Mumbai, Saurabh had some issue on his bike and decided to go to the service centre to check. Me Sudhir, Renny and Aabhas continued towards Hotel Fountain. Along the way, there was a loss of network, google maps had some issue and we took a wrong left and lost our way. We ended up entering Mumbai city which wasnt part of our plan. Went all the way to Bandra Kurla Complex and realized we are still 30km from our designated stop and another 1.5 hours to reach. This was at 1130am. We hadnt had breakfast and were doing the stretch from morning with just tea. We were all frustrated as Mumbai city welcomed us with loads of traffic. The previous night, me Sudhir and Renny paired our Intercom and thus were able to talk to each other throughout the ride. With hunger and loss of time, our frustration started coming out on intercom. Somehow managed to reach Hotel Fountain by 1pm. Within sometime, Mahesh bhai joined us and later Saurabh who had taken a detour to check his bike. By the time we completed lunch and were ready to start, it was 3pm and still we had to do 500km. Had a short meeting, and changed our plan. It was not possible to reach Ahmedabad by night, and hence we decided to halt at Daman (Mahesh bhai's idea..Union territory...cheap alcohol...get the picture) Daman was about 180Km away. We were a bit relaxed as we did not have much distance to cover and started at 330pm. As we exited Mumbai and touched the highway, Saurabh's bike started losing pickup and eventually turned off. Mahesh bhai had already crossed us, so Renny, Sudhir, Aabhas and me started to check the issue. Sudhir took out the toolbox, and Renny based on his earlier experience decided to unmount the tank and clean the pump. Me and Aabhas were watching the experts at work and helping as and when we could. Renny had a similar issue few months back and it was due to the adulterated petrol. We thought it would be the same. We had already informed Mahesh and he turned back and reached us in 10mins. Imran bhai, the expert mechanic had a look and within a minute, informed that the fuel pump motor has failed and needs replacement. For now the only option was to hit the base of the tank with a hammer few times, to make the pump work temporarily, - our own jugaad 😊 and started the bike. We called it the Thor Hammer...Everytime, the bike switched off, he would take out the Thor Hammer and hit the base of the tank a few times to make it work. Continuing this we reached Daman at around 8pm. Found a hotel to stay, checked in and assembled in Mahesh bhai's room for our drinks, dinner and chatting session. Next day we were to reach Bhuj which is 700Km, and also had to get Saurabh's bike fixed at the Service centre.

Against the plan of 650Km, we did 300Km on Day 2.

Day 3: 28th Jan Daman to Bhuj, 700Km

The nearest Service centre was at Vapi which is around 15km away and it opens at 930am. We reached the Service station and dropped Saurabh's bike to get it fixed. As Imran confirmed, the fuel pump motor had failed and needed replacement. Luckily they had the spare part and got it replaced. I replaced my headlight as it was very weak and I had great difficulty the previous night. All done by 1130am and we geared up and started. Distance to cover 680Km. We had skipped breakfast and . within a few km, we found a nice Gujarati restaurant, stopped for lunch. had a hearty meal with phulkas and theplas. Time 1pm, distance to cover 670km. Now we started ripping as we had lot of distance to cover. Crossed Ahmedabad by 8pm and continued further. It started getting extremely cold and our speeds reduced. We did about 130Km and stopped for a break after Viramgam. It was already 10pm and we had still had 280km to reach Bhuj, Had we continued, we would have reached at 5am the next morning. It did not make sense and we decided to find a hotel to stopover for the night. We checked a few hotels, but none were good, finally booked through Oyo online and about 10km away checked into a very nice comfortable hotel. It was surprising to find such a hotel in a remote location. We sat for dinner by around 12. The next day was my birthday, I hadn't informed anyone, but my wife messaged Renny about it. All wished me with a cheers on Lassi...no alcohol as we were in Gujarat and its a dry state...you see. & thankfully no birthday bumps. To think of it, birthday bumps would not have been bad. Already the ass was sore and numb. Atleast would have got extra blood flow. Na Na....not worth the risk. 

Day 3 target: 700km, covered 420Km.

Day 4: 29th Jan, 280Km to Bhuj
Our initial plan was to spend Day 4 sight seeing in Bhuj. Due to the breakdown, we missed our plan and would be reaching Bhuj only on Day 4 with half day for sight seeing. So we started the day by 730ish targeting to reach Bhuj by noon. On the way we were welcomed by Vast Salt farms and either side of the highway. After covering about 150Km we stopped for breakfast by a road side Dhaba. It was extremely windy and chilly. Had hot hot Bajar roti . We reached Bhuj at around 1.

Our place of stay was called Rudra hills, it was a small hill top accommodation on the way to Dhordo. Accommodation courtesy Renny.  As we entered the place, it was like a palace. Beautiful setup with 360degree view of the highway, mountains nearby and the lake (which had dried up unfortunately).

IBRMC Squad at Rudra Hill top

Me, Sudhir and Aabhas

View from our hill top accommodation

We took rest for some time and headed to the Great White Rann to look at the Salt desert. It was 80km away from our place of stay and we reached the place by around 5pm. It was a beautiful sight. It has white salt desert stretched for kms till the horizon. The sunset at this place was a sight to see. We met few riders from Hyderabad and 99 cannons at Rann, wished them a safe and headed back to Rudra hills. Came back, cooked our dinner..bajar roti and dal for the vegetarians..tats just me, chicken and mutton for the rest. Had a long evening with drinks (Drinks in Gujarat....sssshhh...dont ask how) and food and hit the bed. Next day Udaipur.

Day 5: 30th Jan, Bhuj to Udaipur 550Km

Woke up early saddled up and started our ride to Udaipur. Skipped breakfast and decided to cover atleast 200Km before stopping for Brunch.During the ride, suddenly there was a thud sound from my bike. I stopped to check, and there was smoke coming out from the chain sprocket at the engine side. Looked closer and found the cleaning cloth that i had kept got somehow pulled into the sprocket and got jammed. Quickly poured water and Imran bhai as usual was the first to jump and help out. He helped clean up the sprocket. Also filled up engine oil, checked all was ok and was ready to start. As soon as 200km was done, we stopped at the next hotel for lunch. It was empty. But food was available. We ordered and to our surprise, it was the best food we had the entire ride. It was unlimited Thali and they just kept refilling our plates. The service staff were extremely polite. Took good rest and continued our journey. We kept doing good speeds and crossed Abu road by sunset. After this was the Pindwara ghats. Was earlier known for robbery and dacoity. Heard that robbers would throw rocks from the mountains on to the roads, stop the vehicles and rob them. With little excitement and nervousness we continued the ride through these ghats. We did not want to stop much in this area and proceeded to our destination. It was getting colder and we were like 30km...29km...28km...counting shuru to our destination. Finally by 830pm we reached our RM event location in the outskirts of Udaipur. There were already close to 30 IBR members from various chapters at the location and there was an evening standup meeting going on when we arrived. We got down, and after the welcome from our fellow brothers, got the bikes to our Dorm, made our bed setup, unloaded the luggage and finally lied down for some rest. Ass was sore and numb with the long ride through the day and we were happy to have reached our destination safe. We knew that the next four days was going to be hectic and there was lot of work to be done.

Daily sync up meeting at the fireplace when we arrived. Pic credit: Chiraag bhai

As we were about to hit the bed, members who were assigned the task of packing the goodie bags were looking for volunteers and we jumped in. We had 1600 goodie bags, that had to be first unpacked, unzipped and put in goodies (number plates), stickers, and then zip it up. Sounds easy, isnt it....well it wasnt. We setup two lines...like a manufacturing line, with each person doing one task. As we started the activity, we realized we need more people. Woke up all the people who had already hit the bed and started the task. This was at around 11pm. 2 people would unpack the goodie bad, unzip and pass it on, the next person would put in front number plate, next one rear plate, next one stickers and finally QC check to confirm each bag had all the items and lastly one guy to do the count of the bags. Phew....it took us close to 3 hours to complete this task. No one was complaining...not even one person said they are tired. It was one family having fun in doing what we were doing. Final count 1644 goodie bags packed. All right...hit the bed and go to sleep. It was around 4 degrees...we were freezing...got sufficient blankets and dozed off. We were instructed to be ready for a meeting next day at 8am. As more people had come in, the teams had to be split up.

CHAPTER 3: BOBMC Rider Mania

Day 6: 31st Jan, RM preparations

Meeting was to be at 8am, but no one woke up due to the late night work that we were doing. Finally we had the meeting at 9am and all of us in our batch got assigned to the Registration team headed by Mangi bhai. Chief Sajeesh announced during the meet that IBR folks will not have alcohol till the event gets over. Some of the toilets were getting setup, and all of us did the testing of the toilets (karna padta hai...for our fellow riders) in the morning to check of leakages, water flow etc.

Print on Toilet doors. Pic credit: Sanjay Babel

Once this was done, had our breakfast and started getting organized. We defined how the registration sequence would be, who takes care of laptop, ID proof, goodie bags, hand tags, how many counters, entry points, how to manage swaps/walk in etc We setup entry queue for the different counters. We had to manage two registration counters, one for Dorm/swiss tests and another for Bring your own tents (BYOT). Morning session went in setting up Dorm counter. Afternoon we setup the BYOT counter. In the evening, we had to sort the Tshirts as per the sizes as they had just arrived. Also additional goodie items had arrived and needed to be packed. More IBR members flew in and by evening we were close to 100+ volunteers. I assisted for the Tshirt sorting, while others took care of the goodie bag packing similar to what we did previous night. Throughout the day, we weren't free for 1 minute. If our task was done, we would go and help other sections. Late evening, there was electrical work happening in the BYOT toilet and bath area and I had to help the electricians in setting up lights in each toilet. Also the registration counter needed power outlets and we worked with the electrician to get that done. Finally at the end of the day, we regrouped with our teams as final preparations for the event next day. There were some members who did not sleep the whole night as they were making the sanitation arrangements ready for all the Dorms & BYOT areas. 

Day7: 1st Feb, RM day 1

We all got ready & started organizing the registration counters. My responsibility at the counter was to put on wrist tags on every rider registering at our counter. Final preparations were done and we did a dry run by registering IBR members. We understood the process and minor adjustments were done. We opened the gates at 11am. We had multiple volunteers stationed at various locations. There were two holding areas about 2km before the entry, wherein clubs with large no of riders would be asked to wait. When the clubs enter RM, they have to announce that they have arrived through a Grand entry. Club entry is very special and there are riders who do wheel spin, drifting....and this is what everyone wants to see. We had made arrangements for the clubs to do their entry near the Main stage.

A view of the swiss tent accommodation

Each team had 2 or 3 walkie's to assist with the flow. Holding area team would announce club name and no of riders coming in. Main gate would then get ready to welcome the riders and Stage and registration counters would confirm to allow the riders in, do their entry and come over to the registration counters where they register, collect their goodie bags and head on to their accommodation. This was the process. Slowly we started getting riders and clubs. At one point, there were many volunteers at the registration counter, so I moved out of the counter and joined Phani bhai to guide the riders, ask if they are registered for BYOT or Dorm/swiss tent and guide them to BYOT registration counter which is located further away. From the registration counter we would then guide the participant to Accommodation team headed by Abid bhai. He and his team would direct the rider to their accommodation.

Swiss tent accommodation

BYOT Accommodation

As the day progressed more riders and clubs started coming in and we had continuous work. We were there at the registration counter from 11am till 1am the next day, with only bio breaks and breaks for lunch/dinner. At the end of the day, took a count of the registration and we had crossed 1400. Post 7 pm,  we started the events with Tug of war as the first event. Bar was open and DJ started music late in the evening. Finally after 1am we headed back to the DORM and in no time fell asleep. Next day we had to start again as registration counters would now become Helpdesk and Lost & Found desk.

Drone view of the setup. You can see the swiss tents on the left, Spiral Dirt track in the centre,  stage area bottom right, Dorms to the top

Another view

Stage area

Rajeev Bhai & Kamal @ the entry gate

One of the best entries by The Wanderers. Picture credit to JP

Here's a link to the entry of the Wanderers. Credit to Sanjay Babel bhai.

https://www.facebook.com/sanjay.babel.31/videos/2272156799540643/?t=45

Another entry pic. Pic credit: Sanjay Babel

Day 8: 2nd Feb, RM Day 2

7am, DJ starts music :). That's how we roll. The party never stops. We all got ready and assembled at the registration counter to continue our task. Many registrations, walk in's, queries..and the help desk continued through the day. There was the hill climb event during the day. We weren't aware whats going on at the other parts of the campus. Too busy you see :) 

Hill Climb event

We closed the helpdesk and the registration counters by 7pm and headed to the stage area. Rajeev bhai, our security in charge was having a meeting with his team and was looking for volunteers. They saw me and asked me to join their team. I joined without realizing what the work is going to be. I was assigned to be the Stage area bouncer :). We had rock band concerts lined up for the event, and as everyone was getting drunk, we had to ensure the bands were secured. It was freezing cold and we were standing at the stage area making sure no untoward incident took place. Plus enjoying the music from the stage area. 

Serious Security @ Stage area :)

Custom Bike Show. Renny's bike on the right corner. Pic Credit: Sanjay Babel

Had super fun. I was all serious and totally got into the role of a bouncer :). Guys at the front were head banging, and we were ensuring the stage barricade does not break. The 2 bands were super awesome. One from Assam and another called The Upper Basement. Played a mix of covers and originals. Lovely time. I got a lot of complements for my beard. Credit to my stylist...my wife. After the bands, there was the afterparty DJ that went on till 1am. Super tired..headed back to my dorm and dozed off in no time.

Rock concert. Pic Credit: Sanjay Babel

View of the crowd from the stage

Day 9: 3rd Feb, RM Day 3

The day being the last day, I woke up late as we did not have much work at the help desk. There were already people at the counter and I joined them after lunch. Managed the counter along with Manish,  Renny & Abhijit bhai. Day 3 also had the dirt track race event. A very popular event among the participants. Many people register just to participate in this event. 

On Day 1, we had 2 guys frequently coming to Registration desk asking for details on event registration and timings. We were wondering why they keep coming again and again. Later realized, these 2 came with 3 bikes & won almost every event, every category. Kudos to Hemant More and Vinit Sharma.

On the last day of the event, there is the moderators meet, where mods from every participating club have a get together and discuss the event and decide on the next host. We came to know that IBR had got a standing ovation at the mod meet. For the first time in the history of RM, such a thing had happened. All those efforts that everyone put in made the event a grand success. Every Chapter head, volunteer, senior members of the club all had the biggest smiles throughout the day.

End of Day 3, i was asked again to join the security team at the stage area and I gladly did. David Angu and the Band were playing, and they rocked the night. Security team was having their own fun at the stage area. Finally after the band had finished, it was time for the presentation. 

Hand made custom awards were presented to the winners, and the winners also won tyre's and apparel from our sponsors, Michelin and Motocult.

Hand made awards designed by our very own Machan bhai. Pic Credit: Sanjay Babel

It was now time to announce where RM 2020 will be hosted. Sajeesh and former BOBMC members were on the stage and they invited all the IBR volunteers up. We all joined them and together announced the next host to be F O R E NEPAL. It was time for us to celebrate and say Bye to RM and pass on the baton to the next host. Chief Sajeesh must have felt a sigh of relief passing it on to F O R E. We celebrated on the stage with our club anthem "Zinda hoo yaar Kaafi hai" from Lootera. All of us hugged each other and congratulated each other saying "WE DID IT". We did it IBR. We did it. We gave our fellow riders one of the best RM experience. It was due to the stupendous efforts of our senior members who spent months planning for the event. Few guys spent more than a month on the event site coordinating with vendors, with other chapters, surviving only on Maggi or Cup noodles and battling the cold weather. Salute to these members 

IBR on the stage celebrating (or rather being celebrated)

What next? Its time to f***ing party. And what a party it was. IBR Style....Went on till 4 am. Had a super duper time with fellow brothers and sisters from the different chapters of IBR.
Link to the party video: Credit to Sanjay Babel bhai
https://www.facebook.com/sanjay.babel.31/videos/pcb.2272157319540591/2272155682874088/?type=3&theater

Day 10: 4th Feb, RM Day 4

Day 4 morning, all the riders check out from the event after breakfast. We did assemble at the registration counters, as few clubs wanted to collect the goodies of their mates who couldnt join the event. By 11ish all the riders had left the event. We were left with few IBR folks. We all chilled during the day, relaxing after a stressful few days. Later in the evening, around 30 of us assembled together to have our IBR after party. Booze was on the house and went on non stop. Food was arranged and we were reliving the past 3 days chatting about what we did, the hits and misses of the event...lovely time. Udaipur chapter members arranged special sweets for us to take back home. With a promise to meet soon for our own RM type event called the IBR Bulletiapa in October, we bid each other bye and went to sleep. Next day me Sudhir and Renny had to start our return ride with the first stop at Gwalior. Packing done, Bike cleaned up. Time to sleep. 

CHAPTER 4: Return Ride, Udaipur to Bangalore 5th Feb to 9th Feb

Day 11: 5th Feb, Udaipur to Gwalior, 620Km

Our purpose to visit Gwalior was to meet our friend Abhishek who had recently got married. Abhi bhai is a doctor and a fellow rider. He along with his friends Shobhit, Prem & Aditya had met Renny, Sudhir, Ayanna and Mahesh during their Spiti ride last June. Met by chance one day, and they became really good friends. That's how we ride. We meet like minded people on the road, become good friends, and go to any extent for that friendship and brotherhood. 

We reached Chittorgarh by 10am and headed to the Royal Enfield service centre to get our bikes checked. Had to get our chain tightened, and other minor checks to be done. It took us about 2 hours to get all done and continue on our journey. We reached Kota by 4ish and stopped by a dhaba for lunch. Rested for a while and pushed forward towards shivpuri. The next 120 km were pathetic. Pot holes all along, and we were lucky there wasnt much traffic, and we could try and avoid as many as possible. We were praying that by nightfall, the roads should get better, else we would get slowed down drastically. Thankfully just after our tea break, the roads got better all the way till Gwalior. We had put on the maps, and Sudhir was the lead. At about 60Km from Shivpuri, Google map asked us to take a left. It did not look like a highway and the roads were just about 20feet wide. Fully dark all around and no vehicles in front or back. We trusted google and continued on this stretch. As we were on intercom, we were constantly talking to each other. Google told us to take a right after 8km. Those 8km were extremely scary, and we were praying not to have a breakdown in this stretch. The particular stretch was named as Shivpuri Barren road, rightly so. Took a break after this barren scary stretch, once we entered civilization. Last leg 120km, we covered this in 2 hours and by around 11 we entered Gwalior. Abhi bhai had already booked hotel for us. He received us that night, made all the necessary arrangements for food and daru. We settled down and started our session. The next day was a rest day for us, and plan was to lunch at Abhi bhai's place and go around Gwalior and have a small get together in the evening. We had time, and chilled out talking all night, and finally slept at 5am. This night belonged to Sudhir bhai and there were some amazing discussions we had through the night. 

Day 12: 6th Feb, Gwalior

We woke up at 11, got ready and Abhi bhai picked us up. Headed to his house, had a sumptuous lunch. We had to get some welding work done on Sudhir's bike. Got that done, while i got my bike washed. Finally we headed to Gwalior fort. 

We got back to our room and had a good long session with Abhi bhai, talking about their Spiti ride, how they met...etc. Slept by 11, as next day we had to reach Nagpur, 700Km away. 

Day 13: 7th Feb, Gwalior to Nagpur: 704Km

We started our ride by 6am. It had rained the previous night and we were a bit careful as there was a lot road construction happening after Gwalior. After about 60Km, there was a Y junction and google asked us to go take the left. After about 2km, there was no road visible. A flyover was getting constructed and on either side there was slush. We thought we could get through, but nope. Almost got stuck in the slush. Took a U, headed back to take the right in the Y junction. This stretch was worse too. Full slush. We were wondering how the hell we get past this stretch. After about a km, met a cop and asked for help. He guided us and asked us to take a detour. He said, 'Aagey jaoge to phas jaoge, gaadi bahar nahi niklega"...meaning if you go straight, your bikes will get stuck in the slush and you wont be able to pull it out. We were like, thank you cop, you saved us. We took the detour to Indergarh which is about 40km from the highway. Beautiful roads, greenery all around, it was worth it. Crossed Indergarh, and reached Datia to stop for breakfast. What a beginning to the day. In 3 hours we did 100km but were still 620km from our destination. I was wondering, why did i wash my bike the previous evening. Entire bike is covered in slush. And us as well.

After the slushy morning ride

Journey continued through Lalitpur, Sagar and towards Narsingpur. I mentioned earlier about Abhishek, Shobhit, Prem and Aditya. Shobith, Prem and Aditya were located in Jabalpur, and when they got to know that we are riding through Narsingpur, they decided to drive 100km just to meet us. We had already coordinated the meeting point and were riding from Sagar. About 50km before Narsingpur, Renny complained about weird noise coming from his bike. We could hear it on the intercom as well. Thought is the tappet, but found that its coming from the bend pipe. His bend pipe had split near the exhaust. Wtf. How the hell can a bend pipe break like this. Well, nothing can be done. We rode slowly the last few kms to Narsingpur. Had asked our friends to check for a Bend pipe in any showroom or mechanic. They checked, and couldnt find any. No option, we tried all the ways possible and finally decided to get the bend pipe arc welded. Lost significant time trying to fix the issue. It was getting late, and we still had to cover 250km to Nagpur. Finally we said, its not important to reach Nagpur. Our friends have to come to meet us. Lets spend some time with them and we will catch up on the lost distance tomorrow. So it was decided, we have dinner with our friends and cover 120Km and stop at Seoni. 

with Shobith, Prem & Aditya

We bid bye to our friends and thanked them for coming all the way to meet us. With hugs & wishes for a safe ride and promises to meet on a ride soon we continued to Seoni at 930pm. It was late and we were tired and sleepy. We were riding slow and were counting kms to our destination. Finally at 1130 we spotted a Motel outside Seoni and checked in. Dozed off in no time.

Day 14: 8th Feb, Seoni to Hyderabad, 630Km

We started at around 8am and crossed Nagpur to stop for Breakfast. Dhaba guy wasted our time saying he is preparing breakfast but after 20mins came back saying only lunch available that too at 10am. Frustrated, we just had tea and biscuits and continued to ride deciding to stop for brunch. Stopped for lunch by 2, had a good meal and continued to ride. We now decided we have to start ripping if we want to reach early. In about 75 mins, we covered 110km. Took a break and continued to rip. After another 110km, as we were supposed to take a break just before nightfall, my bike turned off while riding. No lights, or indicators, nothing working. Checked the battery, fuse, headlight....all ok. We were losing light, and decided to check the wires under the seat. Few localites helped us with powerful torch as we un saddled, opened the seats. It turned out to be a loose connection on the main connector, under the seat. Got that fixed and continued. Still about 200km to go. Kept on riding and finally reached Hyderabad at Renny's house by 11pm. The welding withstood 600+km without issue. But we didnt want to risk the next day ride, and got a bend pipe arranged by Renny's cousin Allen. He had also arranged food and drinks for the night. The next day was my wife's birthday. Wished her at 12am and we had our food and slept. Next day our plan was to reach home by atleast 4pm, so that i can be there to celebrate my wife's birthday. It was a tough year for her, with a major valve replacement surgery and health issues throughout. Inspite of all that, she has been super supportive of my ride and was always wishing me a safe ride, checking up on me all the time. I hoped to reach Bangalore ASAP....

Day 15: 9th Feb, Hyderabad to Bangalore 550Km 

Final leg of the Mega ride begins. We were extremely tired, but still managed to start by 730am. We had to ride through the city to reach the highway. By mistake we took the ring road, which is not allowed for two wheelers. Thanks again to Google maps. Got caught by cops, paid fine, lost time.... . Hyderabad Bangalore highway is extremely boring with straight roads, and one tends to feel sleepy easily. We did as well. During one of our stops, my bike again indicated a wiring issue, which got ok after a shake of the handlebar. Still some loose connection, but no time to get it fixed. Moved on and thought will check in Kurnool. Stopped at the RE Service centre to get Renny's bend pipe fixed and my wiring issue checked. It was their lunch time and no one was available. We lost 2.5 hours at Kurnool and I was like, cmon guys, make it fast..i need to reach home. My chain sprocket had also started losing its teeth..but I did not want to waste time and pushed on hoping, sprocket wont give up for the next 350km. By 7pm we reached Anantpur, still 200km to go. Wifey was super pissed, but still talking. We continued to rip and reached Outskirts of Bangalore by 1045pm. Another 40km to go reach home. Wife silent...no response. We reached our dispersal point by 1115 pm. I bid bye to Renny and Sudhir quickly and pushed on hoping to reach home atleast before 12. Finally managed to enter my house at 1145pm, wishing my ever supportive wife a happy birthday. Ofcourse she was angry, but then she got ok within some time and was listening to my ride stories. With a promise to make up for missing her bday, I finally un saddled and got out of my riding gear. 

That completes the Mega Adventure ride, the first one for me. What a fortnight it has been. Some of the best memories to be cherished for a lifetime. Final odometer reading for the trip : 5350Km. The longest I have done in one trip, one of the best rides ever. The entire journey, the onward ride, the days we spent at Udaipur in the chilling weather, and the return ride has been exhilarating. Made great friends and I hope to continue to ride more frequently with my brothers. Would like to thank Renny, Sudhir, Mahesh bhai, Imran, Aarif, Aabhas for being super supportive & great company during the ride. All of this would not have happened without the support of my wife Sudha. Thank you very much Sudha. Next year Nepal....Signing off for now. Cheers. 

Note: Most of the pics are not taken by me and pulled up from friends timeline. If you want the pic credit to be highlighted, please mail me @ sridhar.pradeep@gmail.com, and I will happily do so. Also, if you are not happy that the pic is put up in the blog, i will take it down. 

East Coast West Coast Mega Solo Ride

I have been riding my Royal Enfield TBTS since 2011. Covered over 45K Km riding with friends, clubs, solo and enjoying thoroughly. The longest I had done so far was to Goa for the first India Bike Week in 2013 and then to Courtallam with a few friends in 2014. For every biker, the Mecca is Leh Ladakh, no doubts. I have been wanting to do that since 2012 but had to postpone every year due to various reasons. The next ride that has always been on my mind was the Coastal ride covering the coasts of Tamilnadu & Kerala upto Mangalore in Karnataka. I did open up about this ride to a few friends but due to personal reasons, but couldn't get the time to do it together. 

In 2015 May, I met with a major accident on the first day of a Southern Survival ride with a plan to cover almost 1500km in 3 days. My left humerus (bicep) bone broke into two and I had to undergo a surgery leading to a metal plate fixed to my bone. It took me 5 months to start riding again. There was a lot of pressure from family to quit riding, but once the riding bug bites you, it never leaves. The first ride i did was with my Riding club IBRMC for a short day ride. Later I did solo to Chennai in December along with my wife. Since then, I couldnt go for any ride. Finally in July I took the chance to go for the anniversary ride with IBRMC to Kolli hills. Post the anniversary ride, I wanted to do a much longer ride. I checked with my Wife and she was very supportive to do the coastal route. She not only motivated me, but helped me in every step...in planning, deciding the halt points, hotels etc. 

I decided that the Independence day weekend would be the ideal time to ride. I anyway had to visit Chennai to meet my cousin. Why not ride further down from Chennai and cover the coast of TN till Kanyakumari. Then I thought why stop there, lets get into Kerala and complete the coastal ride that was always on my mind. This being a vacation month for our counterparts in France, the work pressure was manageable and I got the approval to take a week off. Thanks to my boss :). So it was final, I decided to take the bike to Chennai on 13 Aug (sat), spend a day with family, meet up with my cousin and begin the mega ride from Chennai on 15Aug, Independence day. 

Ok, now to decide the route map and the places to stop. I wanted to visit Dhanushkodi, so Rameshwaram was the first pitstop from Chennai. Ofcourse need to visit the southern most tip of India, so Kanyakumari was next. I was confused whether to stop at Alleppey or go further to Guruvayur. I decided lets decide Guruvayur for now and see how it goes. Mangalore was the final stop before Bangalore to complete the 2300Km Ride. 

I got my bike checked, got the tool box from Renny bhai and the spares ready and was all set. 

Finally the day arrived, 13Aug. I was packed and ready to ride to Chennai. 

Day1 - 13 Aug, Bangalore - Chennai, 350Km: 

Started at 6am. The ride was chilled out. Being a long weekend there were a lot of vehicles on the road, a lot of bikers and at the Attibelle Toll, there was a long queue that extended to the flyover. Thought of having breakfast at A2B, but as I entered there was no place to park. Somehow parked and entered the restaurant to see a huge line almost till the entrance to order food. I thought if i wait, it will be a waste of time, so i continued my ride. After Krishnagiri the traffic reduced and i stopped over at a road side hotel for breakfast. Had yumm pongal Vada, and continued further. I entered Chennai by 12 with ample breaks. But to reach my home, it took more than an hour. Lot of traffic. Finally reached home by 130pm. Mom was surprised to see me on bike as she expected I would be coming by train. 

Had a good time at home meeting up with cousins, nephews and my bro. Told my family about my ride plan and as usual they were apprehensive. Convinced them all would be ok, packed my bags and began the ride on 15th morning at 6am heading towards Rameshwaram.

Day 3- 15 Aug. Chennai -Rameshwaram, 570Km:

I took the East Coast Road, the road which in our terms is "Makkhan" means as smooth as butter. Here is the first look at the coast at Muttukadu.

I reached Pondy in quick time and proceed further to Cuddalore. Entered the city to have a look at the Silver beach. Not sure why it is named as such, however the views were pretty. 

After a short break, headed towards Velankanni covering Chidambaram, Karaikal & Nagapattinam. I wanted to cover 300km by lunch. 

Taking a break at Karaikal

I reached velankanni, the scheduled stop for lunch by 2pm. Took a long break as it was extremely hot. I still had to cover another 250km to reach Rameshwaram. 

Resting at the lunch break point

Started from Velankanni at 315pm, expecting to reach Rameshwaram by 7. The roads were empty and I was doing 80-90kmph. As I reached Kottaipattinam, there was a stretch where the roads were hardly 50m from the shore. It was a beautiful sight. 

I continued further towards Rameshwaram. As i was nearing the city, there was one stretch of 15km near Ramanathapuram, wherein it was pitch dark. No vehicles in front or back. I was wondering what is this place. Then all of a sudden i see a man walking. I was wondering how is this guy walking without any lights. Anyways, managed to cross the stretch and reached Rameshwaram by 8pm. Checked into Hotel Harish that i had booked prior. Took a stroll around the city & temple and was off to bed early. 

Next day morning woke up early to see the sunrise. Went to Agni Theertham, but was surprised to see the crowd. I decided to proceed to Dhanushkodi without waiting for sunrise. 

The ride to Dhanushkodi was around 20km and beautiful. Got a first glimpse of the shore and the sunrise

As you all know, Dhanushkodi is called the ghost town. This town was washed away by a Tsunami in 1960. A lot of people died. All that we can see now are remains of the old buildings. As I reached Dhanushkodi, there were a few vans ready to take us to the tip. The ride to the tip is through the beach, you have to literally ride on wet sand. The tip of Dhanushkodi is the closest point to Srilanka. It is said, one can see the lights in Srilanka from this point in the evening. I parked my bike at the checkpost and was ready to board the van, when one of the drivers told me "Why dont you take your bike, you will have a good time". I was apprehensive as I was alone, and if I got stuck in the sand there would be no one to help. The driver Suresh gave me confidence and i decided to take the plunge. :). I am glad that I took the bike as the ride through the sand was the best riding experience so far. I had to follow the Tyre marks created by the vans, at times my crashguards would hit the sand on either side of the tyre mark making me lose balance. I somehow managed to continue and reached the tip of Dhanushkodi. Once I reached there, you should have seen the smile on my face. I had the most beautiful time riding on the sand. It was just Bliss, Heavenly....dont have words to express how happy I felt. 

Took some time to look at the building remains at Dhanushkodi, the railway station, the church, lighthouse.... 

The roads are being laid till the tip of Dhanushkodi and are likely to open in 2 months. Took some snaps and decided to take the road back to the checkpost. 

On the way back from Dhanushkodi there is a deviation towards Kothanda Ramar Temple. 

People coming back from a dip in the sea

Finally left for Rameshwaram with beautiful memories. Headed straight to a mechanic for a waterwash. 

Got ready and headed towards Kanyakumari. On the way stopped on the Pamban bridge for pics. 

Day 4: 16Aug, Rameshwaram to Kanyakumari 330Km

I started from Rameshwaram at 1030am. It was extremely hot. The east coast road was fabulous and i was cruising towards Thoothukody at 80kmph. Stopped for lunch by around just before Thoothukudy. Had a heavy meal and rested for some time. There were two routes to Kanyakumari, one through Tirunelveli which was a National Highway. The other one through the coast through Tiruchendur, Kudankulum. I took the second route, after all this is a coastal ride, isnt it. Few kms towards Tiruchendur I was cursing myself on why did i choose this route. There were no roads. I mean literally no roads. Just gravel and mud. I asked few people if this is how the roads will be, I was told just for a few km, after that the roads will be great. My bad. after a few kms, the roads got worse. All in all, the entire stretch of 90km from Tiruchendur to Kanyakumari had about 10km of roads, rest was pure offroading. Below some pics from that 10km stretch of roads. One could find peacocks flying across the road. It was beautiful.

As i got closer to Kudankulum, entered into a huge Wind farm. This one stretched for about 40km till I reached Kanyakumari. 1000's of wind mills. Was a sight to see. 

Finally I reached Kanyakumari by 730pm. Checked into Hotel Temple Citi, right next to the shore. Went to the beach, spent some time and hit the bed inorder to get up early for the sunrise. Kanyakumari is famous for Sunrise/Sunset, Vivekananda Rock and the merger of the Arabian Sea, Bay of Bengal and the Indian ocean. I got ready by 545 and was reached the shore. There was already a big crowd waiting for the sunrise. I tried to find a good spot to sit. 

There was stretch which extended into the sea as in the above pic. This was the best place to see the sunrise. I decided to go there. When i reached the tip of this stretch I was welcomed by a familiar face. One of my friends from my Apartment was also In kanyakumari. Nice to meet him and his family.

We were waiting for Sunrise. Unfortunately it got cloudy and the sunrise wasnt as expected. 

I waited for some time, said bye to my friend and got back to hotel to start the journey to Kerala. 

Day 5, 17 Aug: Kanyakumari to Alleppey, 250km

I started at 10am from Kanyakumari to Kerala. The previous day I checked the route map to find the best place to stop in Kerala. Guruvayur was 400km away and would have taken me 12-14 hours to reach. I decided Alleppey would be the better choice and thought of reaching by 4pm. So I started my journey to Alleppey through Nagercoil, Trivandrum & Kollam. As I entered Kerala, i got the shock of my life. The road was single lane and there was so much traffic that i couldnt imagine. I had heard about how crazy people drive in Kerala. I got the taste of it when I saw vehicles overtaking one another at high speeds leaving me the left most corner of the road to ride. One thing I observed in Kerala was there is no road rage. People dont get angry or shout at the other guys on road. Even though everyone drives crazy, not once did I see people pissed off at the other driver or abusing. Things would have been different had this been Bangalore :). At times when you look in the rear view mirror, you would see two cars behind you, behind them would be another car trying to overtake, behind the third car would be the local transport bus zooming past all the cars in front...phew i would just slow down and let all of them pass.....Moving on...Due to the traffic i could only manage an avg speed of 30kmph. It was taking me longer than expected to reach Alleppey. I got really stressed out as my back and knee started hurting. The knee guard was putting a lot of pressure on my knee and the pain started shooting up. At times i wanted to give up and just stop. Somehow pushed myself and kept going further. When I was 50km away from Alleppey, it started raining. I thanked god for the respite stopped my bike, put on my rain gear and was about to start when the rains stopped. I was like WTF. I thought it may rain again so lets continue with the rain gear. Sadly it didnt rain till i reached Alleppey. I managed to reach Alleppey by 830pm. I had booked Achayan's homestay in Mararikulam. The owners were friendly, offered me dinner and were surprised to know my ride plan. Had good conversations with them before hitting the bed. I wanted to leave early to reach Calicut by early evening. 

Day 6, 18 Aug, Alleppey to Calicut, 220Km

I woke up early morning, had breakfast, said my prayers, bid bye to owners and headed towards Calicut. First stop was Mararikulam beach. The sea is always beautiful, calm and serene. You just feel like getting lost, away from the daily chores, away from the traffic, away from the pollution. You feel at peace. 

I started from Alleppey by 830am and wanted to reach Calicut by 4pm. I decided not to take the main highway due to the traffic. Alternate route was the beach road to Fort Kochi. This stretch was 44km. As I started riding, I could see a lot of kids heading to school. All of them waving at me as I passed through. This stretch was parallel to the beach and one could see the sea frequently. I reached Fort Kochi and decided to take a ferry ride. This trip was all about getting new experiences. The Jangar ride was a new experience for sure. I am thankful to Devidas Menon for suggesting this. 

Waiting to get on to the ferry

My baby on the ferry

Me on the ferry

The ferry ride was for about 10mins. Enjoyed thoroughly. Got down at Vypin and continued my journey. On the way stopped at Cherai beach. The beach was all rocky. Throughout this route, there were a lot of backwaters and bridges that had the sea on one side and the backwater on the other. 

After Cherai beach, the roads had little traffic. I stopped at Ponnani for lunch at 2pm. Had Kerala meals, rested for a while and continued to Calicut. Reached my destination by 630pm. Checked into Hotel Park Residency. The hotel was ok, not too great. Had Kerala Parotta for dinner and slept early. Next destination was Mangalore. 

Day 7, 19Aug: Calicut to Mangalore - 250Km

Started by 7am as I wanted to get out of the city before traffic snarls.At around 11am I stopped for Breakfast. Had some nice Puri Bhaji.Throughout my ride in Kerala I crossed many backwaters and bridges. The color of the water started changing as I moved North. Closer to Alleppey and Kochi it was all beautiful blue.  As I crossed Calicut and reached Thalassery, it got murkier and brownish. There was a small view point in Thalassery. Nice coast. 

After Thalassery I stopped at Muzhapillangad beach. This is one of the famous drive in beaches in Kerala. You can take your bike/ car onto the shore into the water. Although I did not :(. Hopefully next time....

I continued towards Mangalore, did not stop anywhere for lunch. Wanted to reach Mangalore by 4. Crossed Kanhalangod and Kasargod quickly and reached Mangalore by 330pm. I was tired and had no energy to visit any place in the city. Checked into the hotel closer to Bangalore exit, went out for lunch and got back in time for the Olympic Badminton Finals to watch Sindhu get Silver medal. Later visited one of the popular restaurants for dinner. Got back and was eager to sleep as the next day was the final leg of my trip back home. 

Day 8, 20 Aug: Mangalore to Bangalore 360Km. 

I got up early and started my journey to Bangalore by 630am. There was no traffic and the scenery was beautiful. Ghat roads, curvy stretches with greenery on both sides it was pure bliss. This continued for about 130km. In between I stopped for breakfast at road side Malnad cuisine restaurant and had awesome Neer dosa. 

Reached Sakleshpur quickly, and continued towards the Hassan Bangalore highway. By around 1230pm I reached this highway and still had about 160km to reach Bangalore. This was a 4lane highway, so managed good speeds and covered the remaining distance in 2 hrs. By about 245pm I reached my Wife's place in Jalahalli in time for Lunch. 

It was a emotional moment for me, as for the first time I had done such a long ride on my own especially the biggest ride since my injury. The trip meter read 2497Km. A sense of accomplishment engulfed me. There were zero breakdowns and my baby, my ride "The Nomad" did not flinch and went on and on. She was by my side throughout the journey. There were a lot of learnings, a lot of beautiful experiences, met some wonderful people and I will cherish every moment. 

Before I sign off, I would like to say, I couldnt have done this without my wife's support. Every day, at every break point she was there checking on me, motivating me and always asking me to enjoy the ride and not worry about the time. Thank you Sudha. If not for you, this ride wouldnt have been possible. 

Thats it for now folks. Hope you enjoyed reading. Do share your feedback. Signing off.

Pradeep