JOSH5898

LOG : 3


Early morning ‘s chilling breeze had us all shivering and everyone wanted to reach the destination, so we again split but this time every rider was on his own.. so the ripping starts and subbu goes way ahead.. followed by me and then followed by others. i and subbu reach a bigger fuel station 32 kms before belgaum and notice the time.. we were 45 mins beyond our schedule but our odo reading showed 832 kms already. we were in a dilemma about our turn around point cos time was running out and still the remaining 3 riders were nowhere to be seen.
After waiting for 30 plus mins we still didn’t see any other bike and got tensed as to what might have happened. 100’s of weird thoughts started crossing our minds and finally it was decided that subbu will wait for them and i will ride back and look for others. i started my ride back looking for the lost 3 riders and found them after riding 12 kms back just to know that two of the bikes were dry without fuel and waiting for help.. the hp pump where we filled had cheated us with the quantity of fuel while we were working on our timecharts BLOODY MORONS..... With two bikes to tow.. i and ram got to work towing mahesh and sakthi’s bikes to the place subbu was waiting.. another agonising and painful 12 kms. alas we all met up as a group once again. total time delay behind schedule was 75 MINS.
after a lot of discussions and arguments we decided to make this point as our turn around point as the tripmeters on all our bikes were 830+ kms. THE PLACE WAS CALLED HIRE BAGEWADI and was some 21 KMS before BELGAUM, our supposed TURN AROUND POINT.
The hp petrol pump @ HIRE BAGEWADI (OUR NEW TURNAROUND POINT NOW) was a bigger one but still we did not want to risk our return journey and so we first checked the quality and quantity of fuel and tanked up all the bikes and got receipts as proof for our turn around, but the operator made a mistake in putting the bike numbers in the bill so as an additional proof got manual bills also from him and got witness forms also signed along with his contact info.


Nearby was a restaurant and the owner was a well literate guy so we had our breakfast there and explained about the iba rules etc to him thoroughly after which he agreed to sign the witness forms. and assured us that if there is any call or mail from the iba then he will vouch for us. he even gathered a few people and started telling them about our ride and we had a crowd gathered to cheer us and wishing us luck and success.
Fully satisfied with the heavy breakfast, witness forms, fuel tanked up and a good 30 mins break…we decided to ride again. But…we are humans at the end of the day…our legs gave away and none of us could even take a step further, forget riding back 800kms.....so greed for a break took over and another 15 mins rest was unavoidable...not wasting any sec of this precious break, a re-work of our return break points was done. Total delay in schedule till now was 2:00 hrs which was almost impossible to catch upon but with determined minds and renewed energy we started our bikes just to notice the crowd circling us and cheering us again with a big round of applause. We sure were feeling like Super Stars...not Rajnikant though and we started our ride back home.

Splitting into two groups again (its said the more the merrier...but it was surely not easier) and deciding not to stop anywhere before 300 kms we started ripping our bikes to the maximum...and let me tell you guys that THE R15 MANAGED TO KEEP UP WITH OUR RIPPING NON STOP FOR 300+ KMS without a single complaint. Now that’s what we call a real superhero....it’s performance and handling cannot be put into words...I seriously doubt that any other Indian bike could have taken the assault...or maybe the R15 just got inspired by our spirits
Subbu & I were riding at 130+ speed and covering up the lost time only to find the remaining three riders...not lost...but right behind us... WOW WHAT A SCENE IT WOULD HAVE BEEN FOR PEOPLE ON THE ROAD..!!!! 5 R15s ripping at 130+ speeds chasing each other TO WIN THE RACE AGAINST TIME. Does this sound like Dhoom by any chance??!!!!



Finally after riding for 3 hours non-stop, our Rides needed FUEL....fuel to bikes and our bodies...chill dude, we are not setting ourselves on fire, a small rest is all that I mean out here...we managed to find a Reliance Petrol Pump & luckily they accepted Cards (now stop thinking whose cards we were swiping every time...lol), so after tanking up and getting our receipts and witness forms..which were as imp as the ride itself, we re-worked on the time chart, break points and decided to skip the next break as we were already late by 2 hrs and had managed to cover only 40 mins by riding non-stop for 300 kms...phew...surely time has a good speed..but we were out to beat it!!!

@ Reliance Petrol Station

Again we started riding, this time Ram leading Mahesh & Sakthi, while Subbu and I take up the role of Sweep. The Engines started roaring again and was like MUSIC to our ears...now whether it was jazz or rock, is to be skipped ...after riding as sweep at constant speed of 100 kmph and feeling bored and sleepy...subbu signalled me to switch roles again and with a big grin on our faces we shifted gears and burnt the roads, followed by the three musketeers...after all, the ones who lead are just not born to follow. Time was running out and we still had a lot of distance to cover so skipping our break point in Hubli, we headed towards ChitraDurga...hurrraaaayyyyyy

DELAY IN SCHEDULE TILL NOW : 2 HRS
LOST TIME MADE UP BY AVOIDING BREAKS AND RIDING FULL SPEED : 1HR 15 MINS
TOTAL DELAY IN SCHEDULE: 45 MINS.


INCIDENT 7:
Crossing Chitra Durga and riding towards Tumkur, maintaining the same spirit and speed, we were confident that we had caught up on our time delay and were riding a bit relaxed, or you can say we were just cruising on the highway, but actually, our neck and shoulders were killing us due to riding in a crouched position for almost 500+kms non-stop, and couldn’t carry on even for a single KM...but accepting defeat and losing this lifetime opportunity, that too at this point, sounded impossible...so we decided to take a SMALL break...total time delay till this break point was only 20 mins, which we could afford, and so pulled over on an empty stretch of road, parked our rides and the very next second everyone was lying on the road screaming with pain and agony but at the same time there was a satisfied grin on everyone’s face with the thought of having covered 1:40 hrs of lost time...after all its just not as easy as it sounds!!!
10 mins later, our very own BODYSODA (sakthi) started insisting and helping everyone on their feet geared us up for the remaining part of the ride...if not for him am sure we would have been snoring our way to glory and have lost this achievement. Thanks SAKTHI...you are surely our saviour!!!

to kill sleep



Free tip again – never call the sleeping sin on such rides...or simply be accompanied by someone to save you...
Geared up again and promising everyone about a TEA break in Tumkur, Subbu started leading – Ram, Mahesh, Sakthi & Me following...the Ride started again in full speed and this time the idea to cover lost time was to split into two groups again, racing against one another to reach Tumkur for our TEA break...now the race was just not against time, but with each other too...just motivation you see...not to be taken seriously!!!!

Reached Tumkur, and on checking our time chart we found that we had covered the major part of the distance and were back on our time schedule. This made everyone forget the Break and the ripping continued till we noticed our fuel gauge showing zero...over excitement had to be paid for!!! We managed to reach the IO petrol pump on Kanakpura road – near NICE road....without paying any price for the inattentiveness, it was the same place we had filled up the previous night. The attendants at the petrol pump were surprised to see us all back in one piece...not that they expected us in bits and pieces...but the factor was the time...served us all hot and delicious coffee as compliments (thank you guys...we surely owe you this). With our ride back on time and the picture looking clearer, we risked taking a small time out of the chart for some rest and were silently cherishing the feeling of having completed the ride so far....no hooligan activities, we are responsible citizens of the country!!!

on the return leg @ kanakapura indian oil petrol bunk


Well, so far so good...all good things come to an end and so did this small break...time goes on so do we have to, and this time Ram & Mahesh were the culprits (actually the trustworthy ones, remember my earlier tip)...they forced us, or you can say, literally dragged us to our bikes and helped us to carry on with the remaining part of the journey....now you would have understood the intensity of my free tip!!!
Ride through Nice Road was superb and we did not realise how soon we touched the Hosur Road junction...it was time for some serious riding after all the rest we took. Traffic conditions at this time of the day is the worst, but being on Two wheels helped a lot...we took the service road for some distance to avoid the main road traffic and split into two groups again, having finalised krishnagiri as our next meeting point.....

Subbu and I, as usual in a group, started riding with our hearts full of hope and expectations...but... expectations again....verrrryyyy dangerous!!!!!!!!!
Ram taking up the lead role this time lead us towards the Hosur road, which connects thru the Nice Road in Bangalore...the roads were fantastic and the traffic was very minimum, so again with heavy hearts we started speeding up and headed towards Hosur.

Time Delay as per schedule till now : 14 mins.

Ram leading on NICE road


INCIDENT 8


Subbu leading & me following, close by at 120+speed, crossing Hosur, is where disaster strikes again....banggggg
A cyclist riding on the left corner of the road suddenly changed his mind, and out of nowhere, took a turn and started heading towards the extreme right of the road!!!! Expecting his senses were all working...we started honking and gave headlight passes too, but nothing got his attention, guess he was to meet his wife after ages...bloody fool!!! To avoid him, Subbu had to steer to the right and he hit a BIGGG pot hole bang in the middle (imagine doing that at the speed we were in), my heart was almost out of my mouth...he somehow managed to save the cyclist but his bike started wobbling and lost its tail... steering and controlling the bike, he somehow managed to get it to a halt (super bikers never fall) only to find his rear wheel alloy was bent and the air was totally out.. DAMNNNNNNNNNNNNN
Free tip no.3 – no use cursing others for such events...only wastes your time and energy!!!
With the other three riders out of sight and no hopes of riding any further with the bent alloy, we were getting desperate and depressed with every passing second...just these 2 adjectives cant really describe our situation though. Finally after a few mins, Ram, Mahesh & Sakthi arrived and were not only shocked to see the bent wheel, but they almost fainted. We tried to search for a tyre shop or a mechanic, but there was none to the rescue....tyre shops remember- the most imp part of our journey in the 1st half...just strikes back again!!!!
Just when we were losing hope...God (who, for a change was on our side) sent us a messenger. A guy (who was a mechanic himself - this we came to know only later, but my mighty readers are to be informed 1st) saw us working on the wheel and offered help. He got to work immediately with whatever tools we had, and helped us to fit a spare tube (which we had bought in Salem the previous night) to the wheel, and advised to ride at normal speed or the bent alloy could tear up the tube leading to disaster....what better could we have EXPECTED!!!!
With no hope left to cover the remaining distance, subbu suggested that we four carry on and complete the SS1000...sacrifice n all...after all our journey was almost like a bollywood movie story, incomplete without such emotions, lolzz...but, Friends are for forever, lets make this movie as spicy as possible....and so it was decided that we shall give it our best shot and try to finish it and even if we didn’t, then atleast the satisfaction of attempting the SS1000 could be shared equally, and so the ride began again....

With subbu’s bike not being able to catch up on the speed with others, due to his bent rear wheel, it was decided that RAM,MAHESH,SAKTHI would ride ahead and wait for us at Salem, while subbu and I would ride at normal speed and meet them up....the bent alloy atlast did get the born leaders to slow down...but not for long. After riding for a few kms, and facing no trouble from the bent alloy, we slowly started to increase our speed....but SUBBU being the SUPER SUBBU, made up his mind to complete the SS and not let us down...what great spirit bro...risking his life with the bent wheel, he started zooming on full speed, and I followed watching out for any wrong signals from his rear wheel, but thanks to MR. GOD, nothing of that sort came across and we soon saw happy and smiling faces of our other 3 riders. God also helps only those who help themselves....self service u see!!!!
Time delay again due to bent rear wheel : 35 mins
THE FINAL PART COMING SOOONNNNNNNNNNNNNN

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Cheers

JOSH