Avinash Noronha, aka The Monk’s journey from Delhi to Umiam Lake and beyond clocking over 3400km on his TVS Apache RTR 200 4V:
On the 16th of April 2016, I was handed over the keys to a gorgeous new Apache 200 at Sabharwal TVS, Delhi. It is always exciting to get keys to a new bike, even if it isn’t your own! I got the black, though I had hoped to get the cooler shades which we had seen at Hosur. I would have picked the yellow or red any day over the black. But beggars can’t be choosers and so black it would be.
Running-in a bike is never fun, having to do that with a 200cc bike on an already boring piece of tarmac like the Yamuna Expressway was the worst torture imaginable! Holding the throttle steady at a sedate speed, I watched guys on their Splendors overtake me with a smile plastered across their collective faces! Their day was made, having overtaken an Apache with their humble commuters, they would probably repeat those tales to their grandchildren! Finally, after a patience testing 500 km I reached Kanpur where I got the oil and filter changed. Fortunately the filter is the same as used on the Apache 180, so spares will be easily available and cheaper I assume. During the run-in the bike returned around 40 kmpl, not bad.
The next morning saw an early start from Kanpur, which was followed up with a pit stop soon after at Lucknow, where I was to meet bikers of the city, Rishab, Asad and Prakhar. What was to be a 5 minute meet over a cup of tea, turned into a 2 hour long bakar session! Exiting Lucknow at 9AM rush hour traffic would have been no joy, but I was ably directed by the Lucknow trio! The crowded Kanpur-Lucknow highway allowed me to exploit the strengths of the Apache 200, even though I was still quite gentle with the throttle. Once I hit the open, deserted Lucknow-Gorakhpur highway, the single biggest weakness of the Apache hit me. As much fun as it is in the low and mid-range, its top end power is a bit of a downer. Hit 100 and you hit a wall, the bike struggling to make inroads beyond. Which isn’t a big problem if you aim to cruise at 100, but fast overtakes on large commercial vehicles is a bit tricky. Fuel efficiency for the bike also dropped as my right wrist became liberal. I got around 30-33kmpl from thereon till the end of the ride.
Boring, uninspiring tarmac whizzed past me as I made good time through Uttar Pradesh. I had kept an extra day at hand for traversing the state of Bihar. Having heard many ‘stories’ from the state, I was apprehensive. And my fears seemed to have been founded as I crossed state borders from U.P. into Bihar. The first 15 km were an utter mess, single lanes, broken tarmac and maniacal traffic. A test for The Monk, but the Apache’s flickability and acceleration saw me passing with flying colours. After that initial bad stretch of road, the roads were once again fantastic and I called it a day in a random hotel in Muzzaffarpur, on the recommendation of the Lucknow boys.
The next day as I once again zipped it from Muzzaffarpur to Siliguri, I realized my fears of Bihar were unfounded. The section which I rode through was green with standing crops, people looked healthy and reasonably well off and were extremely friendly. Though what was a bit disconcerting was the number of SUVs with no number plates. Those vehicles looked perfect to carry out a hit job, and I gave them a wide berth, to ensure they didn’t hit me! Food was also great as I got a simple fish thali at a dhaba which pretty much made my day! The standing crop was corn, and the corn would be harvested, stacked up and then removed from the cob. The grains were then laid to dry out on the road. So you had black tarmac, with a carpet of yellow. A pretty sight to break the monotony of colours otherwise.
As I entered Bengal, the roads went from excellent to Merde! Once again the Apache shone like a diamond in the sky. Initially I was a bit worried looking at the alloys on the Apache, with the thin joints of the wheel. But after riding roughshod over Bengal roads, I am confident that these wheels can take some beating. The TVS Tyres that my Apache came equipped with also did their duties without any fuss, which did come as a pleasant surprise. I can only imagine how much fun it would be to ride with Pirellis! My night halt was at Siliguri where I reached a day early thanks to the fantastic roads in Bihar. Even the terrible tarmac of Bengal wasn’t enough to slow me down.
Having an extra day in hand I waited for my fellow rider Gourab to catch up and together we hit the hills from Siliguri. Gourab the avid photographer expected to get glorious clicks in the mountains, unfortunately we looked like a couple of wet hens! We got copious quantities of rain, mist and fog as we climbed and finally halted at Darjeeling after having skirted the Indo-Nepal border. Gourab with a grim expression decided that we would leave at 5 the next morning to cover the considerable distance to Guwahati. I shook my head vigorously in agreement and promptly slept off only to wake up two hours late and we finally left the hill station at 9! So much for plans. With a bit more of sunlight shining through the clouds, MG decided to use his camera more than his bike and we made slow progress descending to the Coronation Bridge, where he got back on to the road to Guwahati. After an uneventful ride through the day for me (read Gourab’s adventure elsewhere!), we finally reached Guwahati and checked in to a hotel at 10PM, having crossed the mighty Brahmaputra in the dark. This is 2016 AD and yet we have a single two lane bridge across the river, a vehicle breaking down on the bridge, or God forbid a structural damage, this arterial road will be shut down with zero movement between the north east and the rest of the country. It is absurd how our country’s infrastructure is still terribly lacking.
At the hotel I got a message from the third rider of our trio – Deepak Kamath. We decided to meet up at Khanapura junction on the road to Shillong at 8 the next morning. In true xBhp style, we were late. When we did reach there, we were pleasantly surprised to see quite a few bikers had gathered around the Globe Trotter, including Kaleem sir who had come all the way from Hyderabad, Arunabh on his TVS Star City and Khiyar. Arunabh was once again doing on a 110cc commuter what we were enjoying on our 200cc Apaches. Hats off to his spirit and patience. From there we rode together to Umiam Lake and the MaxBhp festival. (More about the MaxBhp festival soon!)
The next morning we headed to Dawki Lake (read about those adventures in DKs travelogue), where we enjoyed a boat ride in the lake and caressing the Bangladesh border. The morning after the event as my fellow Apache riders headed home, I left for Cherapunjee. The roads in Meghalaya were fantastic and I had a blast on the Apache in the sunny conditions. Yes I was that lucky, to see a sunny sky in the place renowned for the highest annual rainfall in the world! After walking down two magnificent waterfalls, I made the pilgrimage to the Double Decker Root Bridge. 3 km of walking down and then up a staircase with riding gear isn’t a lot of fun. Especially when my size 11 boots barely fit on the step! But the sights and sounds were well worth the effort.
The night was spent at Sohra village in a comfortable homestay which I chanced upon. From there the next morning I headed to Rhino Land – Kaziranga. En route I bumped into a bunch of bikers returning to their hometown in Jorhat after a 15 day Nepal ride and from there on, they showed me the sights and sounds of the area. From Rhino spotting off the main highway to eating traditional Assamese food, they knew it all. Even inexpensive accommodation was arranged for me in a jiffy, where I stayed the night and woke up early for an elephant safari to go Rhino shooting, with a camera of course! After an awesome experience in the Kaziranga National Park it was time to head back to Guwahati, drop off my companion at the TVS office and catch a flight back to polluted, crowded, dirty Delhi!
Many bikers have asked about the TVS Apache RTR 200, since it has as yet been hardly ridden and here is what I think about the bike:
Pros:
Fantastic Acceleration right up till the triple digit mark
Agility and handling
Braking
Luggage mounting points (I had a rucksack slapped on without any problem)
Clock and gear indicator
Refined Engine
Capable TVS Tyres
Vibe free RVM with good visibility
Lots of attention from people, thanks to its sharp and edgy styling
Suspension
Comfortable saddle
Cons:
Smaller fuel tank, reduced range
Headlight with good spread, but poor throw
Slightly cramped for me at 5’11”
Poor top end
READ GOURAB DAS’ TRAVEL TALE FROM BANGALORE TO UMIAM LAKE
