For as long as I can remember, I have been fascinated by motorcycles. In my experience, the thrill of exploration and the feeling of freedom is best felt on two wheels. Another thing I have always loved is photography and filmmaking. These passions of mine set the stage for the kind of life I lead, that of a traveller and a motovlogger. And this is another one of my stories.

Despite being where I want to be in the present and heading towards where I want to be in the future, I sometimes still wonder about the decision that led me here. I had a secure job in IT which is what most people want.

Yet, my heart was always somewhere else. In that sense, it was a big risk to listen to my heart and forego logic. Deciding to let go of that job and pursuing my passion was a drastic step at that time, a lot of people including myself thought that way. But in the end, it all worked out.

To that end, I have ridden around 1 lakh km, across 21 states in India. That’s a lot and there’s much, much more to come. I say that because that is what I yearn for. To see more, to know more, to capture more, and to ride more. So when the opportunity to be a #CEATxPlorer came by, how could I say no?

I came across the #CEATxPlorer program on xBhp.com. It is a platform created by xBhp and CEAT Tyres that gives passionate riders like you and me a chance to explore new places and also, experience the wide range of bike tyres from CEAT. So, I filled up the form, provided details about my ride plan, and waited. Imagine my excitement when I got the go-ahead.

Now, the thing you have been waiting for; my actual ride plan. For a long time, I have wanted to explore the Western Ghats more comprehensively. From the twisties of Chorla Ghat to the high bumpy roads of Karnataka and from random trails in the wild to the mud and slush caused by sporadic rains. In short, I was riding from Hyderabad to Goa.

Why such love for offroading? Well, when you ride a Royal Enfield Himalayan, you are bound to be that way. I consider my Himalayan a member of my family and I have named her Savithri. The story of that name is for some other day. For now, Savithri was raring to go on this adventure but she was in desperate need of some new tyres.

That is where CEAT came in. A big thanks to them for sending their Gripp XL set of bike tyres. On the front, I had a 90/90-21
which is down one size and on the rear, I had a 120/90-17 which is one size up. In order to gauge the changes in dynamics and also to run the tyres in, I rode for a while before embarking on this trip.

The tyres are specially designed for the purpose that the Himalayan serves; adventure touring and accordingly, my initial impression of the tyres was pretty good. More on that later. Since everything was set, it was time to explore our way to the pristine beaches that stretch along the Arabian Sea!

Day 1

I, and my better half, have done some pretty awesome couple rides as Jodi Riders. For this trip as well, she decided to join me. She has now become well-versed with the tidbits of riding long distances. One of those tidbits is to start early and so, on the day we were supposed to begin, we were up early thanks to her. I had done the pre-ride checks the night before and she had done her due diligence as well. As such, we were on our way at 6 AM.

But then, being bikers we know that if it’s going that well, something must be wrong! The twist in this tale was the missing PUC for Savithri. And so, we had to wait till 9 AM for the centre to open and get a new PUC made. So much for starting early. This slight niggle should also serve as a reminder to you guys to be more thorough when preparing for a ride.

Anyway, we were delayed already and our destination was Belgaum which was around 550 km away. That’s 11 hours of riding at the very least and we were a bit anxious. But to our surprise, we did not find much traffic even in the city and so, we were able to save some time. Not too long after, we reached Ganagapura, a well known holy place in Karnataka.

Riding on NH-65, around 160 km from Telangana to the Karnataka border, was a pleasant experience. The climate was nice, the roads were well-built, and the journey felt like it was over in no time. The already scrubbed-in CEAT Gripp XL bike tyres had already come into their own. Commendable stability on the highways even at decent speeds is something that already had me impressed.

We entered Karnataka and we still had around 390 km left to cover to reach our destination. Now, the rest of the journey was a little less ideal. The roads were full of bumps and potholes and corners.

Gladly though, the tyres were able to deal with everything and not for a moment during this stretch did I feel a loss of control. But at any rate, this stretch took us a while and we made it to Belgaum around 11 PM. Knowing that we made it to our destination safely, albeit a little late, was comforting and we headed straight to our stay to be well-rested for the next day.

Day 2

The destination for day 2 was North Goa; around 120 km and approximately 4 hours of riding time. But the thing that I was most excited about was the Chorla Ghat stretch. This is one stretch that every motorcyclist must try once. Due to the excitement, we started early and we were welcomed with fog and wet roads. This dampened the excitement a bit, please excuse the pun.

While the road is well-built and twisties a delight, the wet roads were a challenge. So we proceeded with caution. And after a while, the road condition deteriorated as well. Now we had potholes, mud and slush to contend with. In one instance, I encountered a fairly big pothole right after a nearly hairpin bend. I was not able to avoid it and the mudguard broke into two pieces.

Fortunately, I was still able to maintain control in all such situations. The tread on the CEAT Gripp XL tyres made sure that we still had ample grip even when the roads were not ideal. Still though, one must be wary of such roads. When the amount of water is decent, it is still good. But a thin layer of water wreaks havoc on the amount of grip available.

By noon, we made it to Goa checkpost. Here, one needs to present the motorcycle’s documents and also, a complete vaccination certificate or a recent RT-PCR test result. These are essential to enter the state but for the most part, this is how it is everywhere nowadays. Despite having made it to our destination before evening, we headed to our hotel and decided to rest. The day’s ride was short but more difficult due to the road and weather conditions.

Day 3

On the third day of our trip, we were finally in Goa! The thing I was looking forward to the most was riding on the beach. And what fun we had! Riding on the beach was so immensely joyful that I lost track of time. I can’t even remember how many hours I spent having Savithri tangle with the waves in the Arabian Sea.

Riding on the beach though is proper off-roading territory. There’s no gravel or anything but the sand is loose and slippery and even more so when it’s damp with the waves from the sea. There are not a lot of beaches that allow it but some do and if you land on one, you have to give it a try. It is an altogether different experience existing at the edge of control when your rear wheel is snaking around in the sand like a Sidewinder.

I have a fair bit of experience with my Royal Enfield Himalayan and quite a bit of it is off-roading. I have also used quite a few sets of bike tyres but by far CEAT Gripp XL set is right around the top of the list mostly owing to its all-around performance. Highways, bad roads, dry roads, wet roads, and even a bit of off-roading. All in all, I had a whole lot of fun on the beach before returning to our stay.

Day 4

When you have a good time, time passes more quickly and that is a fact that I come face to face with at the end of every roadtrip. Day 4 was the day of our return journey. That is why, in order to make the most of each one of my journeys, I plan the route as a circuit. So, our journey way home was through a different route.

We when from Goa to Hyderabad via Amboli Ghat, Belgaum, Vijayanagar, and Kalaburagi. This meant 691 km to be covered in one day. Google Maps showed 15 hours so it was imperative that we started early. That is exactly what we did as we made a beeline for Amboli Ghat. Our breakfast was a very short break as we decided to make up as much time as possible and minimize night riding time.

The stretch from Goa to Amboli Ghat was pretty much like Chorla Ghat but with slightly better road conditions and slightly better weather too. The visibility was decent and the roads were fairly dry too. We were able to maintain a decent pace because of that and reached Vijayapur by noon, where we had our lunch break.

Now from Vijayapur onwards, the road conditions got worse. So the rest of the ride was tiring. We reached the Telangana border post where we knew the roads were decent. So we decided to another snack break and reached home around 10 PM. I am glad that we were able to complete the ride safely. More so, I am very happy that I got to do this circuit and for that, I’d like to thank xBhp and CEAT tyres for letting me be a #CEATxPlorer. Until next time.

Tyre Review: CEAT Gripp XL

This ride of mine was dominated by two things; picturesque vistas and bad roads. We traversed some of the toughest roads of Karnataka and the Western Ghats. We encountered everything from broken roads to bad roads. But no matter what the journey threw at us, CEAT Gripp XL bike tyres dealt with everything. On the highways, the tyres felt planted even at high speed. Though fortunately, it did not come to that, I could feel that we had enough grip even in case of emergency braking. What did happen though, was the incident with the pothole that broke my motorcycle’s mudguard. Even in some serious potholes, the tyres never left their composure and I had the confidence to keep going. And what finally convinced me to think that CEAT Gripp XL are the best tyres for Royal Enfield Himalayan, was their performance at the beach. From their tread to the compound used, everything makes them an ideal partner for the off-roading performance of the Himalayan. I could easily control the motorcycle in the sand and even in waves and that is why it was one of the most fun experiences for me on this roadtrip. My two cents in the end; CEAT Gripp XL is one awesome pair of tyres!