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Super Moderator
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: New Delhi
Posts: 4,677
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TOURING ON SUPERBIKES: Part IV: Delhi-Bikaner-Udaipur.
You have a Superbike. You have the itch… the itch to move, to move fast, long, hard, and far off… what do you do, you just wait for the right moment to arrive. Else you find your moment to do it. First the summer and then the monsoon were spoiling a lot of riding fun. Thankfully I had a few decent rides in Europe. End September, with the rains fading, or so I thought, I was raring to go.
I will dispense with the pleasantries. I love every ride that I do. And every ride is special and enriching even if you go to the market to fetch meat and vegetables for the house. This ride was special too. This was my second long-ish ride to Rajasthan in less than a month.
I had the usual check list that all old-timers are used to now… that Vivek had prepared for me 2 years ago… air pressure, oil level, sunscreen, moisturizer, eye lotion, etc… you know the drill.
Day1: Delhi-Bikaner.
27th September, early morning, 0530hours, I moved out of New Delhi, went to the Delhi-Gurgaon X-pressway and started my usual fun on the roads and I looked at the dark clouds looming ahead and I knew sooner or later I would receive a splashing from up above. Near Kotputli I was showered. The weather had the last laugh! I waited a short while for the rain to subside to a drizzle. Then I moved again… slippery tyres on a wet tarmac notwithstanding.
Singing in the rain!
I continued on the NH8 till the exit for Samode some 10kms down after Chandwaji. I was running out of gas. There were new swank HP gas stations that were waiting inauguration. I asked for directions to the nearest gas station without having to go to Jaipur. The attendant at the HP station directed me to a station thus, “Sir, go out of the gate, there is a pucca metalled road and then a kilometer down the road to the left there is a gas station.”
As I got out of the gate, the pucca road was non-existent. It was only sand and dust. No trace of tarmac whatsoever. These are the kind of metalled roads that people in the villages in far flung places are used to. Superbikes are not meant for here. But I rode on nonetheless, half riding, half paddling, half pushing with my legs. Several Passion Splendours overtook me with gay abandon. The riders looked curiously and wondered at the contraption that I was riding. And the one kilometer turned out to be four.
And when I did manage to reach the gas station doing offroading with my 1000CC race replica from Japan, there was gas alright, but no power to pump it into my lovely machine. There were people waiting for ages it seemed. I like such places where time seems to stand still for people. This was not the case with me. I had a reservation at Bikaner and I had to reach there. The gas station guys told me that someone had gone to look for a generator and it would not take long before I could find gas. I asked how long. He answered, “Certainly before the day was out!” I about turned and rode back to NH8 towards Delhi looking for a gas station on the way back. I lost about an hour in the process and a detour of 25 odd kms.
Continuing back to Bikaner, I found NH11, Jaipur-Sikar-Bikaner road, wonderful piece of tarmac. Once I had crossed Sikar, the traffic dwindled and I had a blast. Stopped once for gas and once to take some pictures, kept riding hard and strong till my destination. I reached Bikaner a little after noon. 560 odd kms. Lunch. Beer. And then sight seeing of the Fort.
Evening, rest, sleep, recuperate for the long ride the next day…
A Short video of the kinds of roads that you have the speeds that can be easily achieved.
Bikaner Junagarh Fort
Entrance to Junagarh Fort
DAY2: Bikaner-Rohet-Udaipur.
I knew I had 266 kms ahead of me from Bikaner to Jodhpur via Deshnoke and Nagaur. I had no intention of stopping at Jodhpur. After a quick hearty breakfast, I left at 0730 hours. Saddlebags in place I started riding. When I came to the highway, cannot recall the number, I hit good tarmac again and started moving fast again.
In no time I reached Deshnoke of Karni Mata temple fame, the temple of rats. I hate rats. I go there only with clients. It’s a temple infested with rats that are worshipped by people. I worship very little, least of all rats. Hence I continued. This road has less of straights. But there are dunes at times on either side of the road here as well. After about another hour I also crossed Nagaur. This place is known for its cattle fair which is undoubtedly the biggest cattle fair in Rajasthan in the month of February.
Another short video at a level crossing before Nagaur!
Ride through Thar
Parked amidst dunes
Ride in the desert
Just before getting into Jodhpur, I stopped to refill.
As I approached Jodhpur, I had a tough time going around the city, finding my winding way around the Blue city, avoiding the congestion and finding myself on the highway to Ahmedabad. Since I did not want to stop at Jodhpur, I thought I would give myself a short respite at Rohet Garh, 50 odd kilometers from Jodhpur. The prince/heir apparent of Rohet is a friend of mine. I wanted to stop and greet him. And I wanted to regroup.
At Rohet Garh Entrance.
Nearly an hour later I was off again. I had already done 320 and I still had another 250 odd kms still to go. Gas and I was off again. Less than a month ago, I was with Vivek here screaming down the roads at insane speeds. There is this wonderful by-pass at Pali. With not much traffic. With a little bit of luck and no wind resistance, one can hit 250+ speeds on this bypass on several counts. I did not want to test my luck. I enjoyed the ride.
The Pali-Ahmedabad road has a lot of port-headed traffic with undulating tarmac which can be uncomfortable on a hard-sprung Sbk. My back was beginning to go weak, my fingers had gone numb and I was beginning to feel tired. I continued cruising at 100-110 and as you all know, I had enough punch left in my bike for overtaking manoeuvers.
At Sanderao, I left the National Highway and took left on the State Highway to Udaipur via Ranakpur. This road has little traffic, narrow but not bad, and runs through idyllic villages like Falna, Sadri… I stopped at Maharani Bagh Ranakpur. Thanks to my profession I know these people here. Had lunch. Ranakpur has a group of beautiful Jaïn temples constructed in white marble, 7 centuries old, wonderfully maintained and worth a visit. I did not stop to visit. I have seen them over a hundred times. I continued on the ghats of the Aravalis. Now you have fun on the tight narrow corners, climbing all the way to 900 metres, and you keep riding on these roads for 45 odd kms when you hit NH76.
Over the years I have seen the work that they have done on this NH. It is a monumental task that they are achieving, blowing through the Aravalis, cutting through the mountains, to lay a 4-lane highway with magnificent curves where you can take corners at 150+ speeds on sticky tarmac. If I am not mistaken, it is a 800km long road under construction joining Pindwara to Khajuraho! It will be fun when finished.
Reached Udaipur after 4 in the afternoon. I checked in at hotel Hilltop. There is a wonderful view of the Fateh Sagar lake from the balcony. I went down to the poolside, ordered a beer, relaxed for a while and wondered at the ride. The two extreme fingers on either hands had total loss of sensation, the back felt as strong as toothpaste and I had close to 700 kms ahead of me the next day still. I swum for a while to recoup and decided to go for a ride!
The ride on the boulevard of the Fateh Sagar lake is pleasant. I met the owner of the first R15 there. Came back to the hotel, had a sumptuous dinner and hit the sack.
Meeting with the first R15 of Udaipur
Day3: Back to Delhi!
Nothing much to say here. There are two routes as most of you know. You want long fast straights, take NH76 and have a blast. You want to take the curvaceous route caressing the Aravallis, take NH8 and have a blast there too. I took the latter. It may cost me over an hour longer on the way back. But it is fun.
I was home by 5 in the evening. I was dead beat. And I was wondering if I had had a faired Fazer or a Vstrom, would I have been as fatigued. Some points to ponder certainly after close to 1800 kms in three days.
This was a whirlwind hurricane tour that I did with hardly any real visiting or interacting with people. That is a different kind of touring that one does. And I like that as well. And I may have one such tour in the not so distant future. I have started talking to certain members for such a tour. It will be longer, less whirlwind-ish, more relaxed. A part of the reconnaissance has been done.
A rough map of the tour.
IMP Note: In the last few tours that I have done with the R1, I have taken care to test out ALL kinds of fuel available in all corners that I have been to without the use of Octane Boosters. And I faced no problems whatsoever of pinging. Though low grade petrol lying in the tank for a few days without getting used does cause pinging.
Special Thanks to Messrs Rajinder Singh for taking care of my reservations in Bikaner and the Management at Hilltop Hotel for taking care in Udaipur.
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