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Congo Probiker!

Congrats !!! all ready & set for action

Congrats Probiker... So, you were the surprise contestant... Great to see so many fellow Hyderabaadi's finishing their SS and BB successfully.

Congrats, irrespective of this being a successful attempt or not.

Today's a weekday. Where's the post?

did ss1600k & the bb2500k in the same trip on the puny R15 in feb -- still awaiting cert. since the iba folks are tied up in god-knows-what

will be interesting to know your account

Congratulation buddy, waiting for detailed log.



Oh, thanks for reminding me. I think even i had done something similar like you.

Sorry For the delay

Was tied up with things yesterday.
Will post lot of info Today!!!
Thanks all for the wishes.

And the wait continues

The Story

Two Guys planned an IBA ride in 2009.
Six months of planning and close to 20k of expenditure per Bike/Machine combo was their effort.
They did some trial runs of the entire stretch.

The Result -

They successfully completed it in a good 22 hours.
They did comfortably without any dramas.
They had all the proofs & everything.
However the start & end witnesses went on missing.
They were fuel station attendants who were kicked off from the Petrol bunk due to some gufla they did.
Now they don't have the witnesses in spite of having everything in place.
So technically even though they were the first to complete a documented ride of 1784 kms in 21 hours and 55 minutes from south they are not certified by IBA.

They were down for an year or so.
Then again the Keeda for IBA started.
They thought of different permutaions & combinations for another six months.
Both of them discussed again & planned different routes.
Finally one guy was to try a different route as the earlier route was far off & witnesses can become a problem again.
So he needed to do the recce of the SS 1600k.
The plan is from Hyderabad to Erode Via Madanapalle & return back in the same route.
Set out on one fine evening and did 840kms in 9 hours & 48 mins.
He stopped for a quick reconditioning of the bike along with fuel.
This time he had all the documents in place & started his return journey.
1150km in 15 hours & then a traffic jam.
Now he gets stuck there due to an accident 2km away & waiting for the traffic to clear.
finally when the traffic clears he lost close to 2 hours & did only 4 kms.
So now the task is to complete 550 km in only 7hours including fuel stops.
Very much do able.
However he felt he may be just on the edge all the time & may become too risky as he did not have sleep for 23hours by then.
Further 7 hours would make it 30hours & he may not be able to concentrate the way he was in the earlier part of the ride.
So he called of the ride, took a hotel & slept.

Now after the second failed attempt the determination went higher.
As usual like the saying Kutte ki Dhoom tedi hi hoti hai -
One more trial was planned.

This time the plan was -
To take NH7 - Hyderabad - Banglore - Kanyakumari- Coimbatore for the SS 1600k.
Take a break of 3-4 hours in Coimbatore & continue to Hyderabad Via Banglore to complete the BB 2500k.

As usual took a good nap in the afternoon & started at around 10 in the night.
Start time was 22:33 and the journey started.
At 18:49 he was in Coimbatore.
Called up a friend who is the witness there & completed the documentation.
That was as planned.
However he was very tired now.
He planned a quick nap & set his alarm for 3 hours without snooze ( Alarm will not repeat).
He thought if he can wake up with one alarm he'll go else He'll sleep and enjoy only the effects of completion.
The alarm went on as per time.
However he woke up after a full 10 hours later.
So he had the SS 1600k under his kitty.
Then he called up his partner & gave him the details.

Now the twist came up while he was preparing the documentation.
He completed 1720km in Just above 20 hours.
He noticed that with a little more planning he might have completed more than 2000 kms in 24 hours.
This will be a SS 2000k which no INDIAN completed till now & that too on INDIAN soil.
As you say more is never enough he planned another ride which is only the 2000k.

The Planning for this started with a round trip of the route to check the best possible times to hit the respective sectors, the Filling stations etc.

Now a new problem came up.
Vitamin M.
He approached different companies with the proofs of his earlier attempt & his rides.
Finally one company came forward for sponsoring him.
So he informed his friend about the same & they decided to give it a shot.
Only 1 bike was being sponsored so this guy has to set out for the task all alone again.

Rest of the story tomorrow.
Till then enjoy!!!!

The Next part of the story - Bike set up

Now the interest was on the Saddle sore 2000k & if Possible Bun Burner 2500k.
SS 1600k is history now.
Not even planning for the certification.
Done twice - once without proper & one with all witnesses.
So again the whole planning changes for the Ride.
Fuel stops, Turning points etc.
To add to the confusion the Bike is also getting changed.
That means the range of the bike, top speeds, average speeds & most importantly the parts which would Pain are also going to change.

Did I write change in the bike??
Yes that is right.
The Bike is also different now.

Ah!!!
Too many changes.

Now again trial runs to get average speeds, Paining points in the body & range has to be done.
So once again on to the task.

Now time to introduce the Hero of the Whole Story -
Lets welcome the Hero - R15.
In comes the R15 and out goes the Trusted Pulsar 220 DTS-FI which saw 35k kms & did 2 SS1600k runs.

Problems with the R15 for Timed runs -

1. Aggressive seating position,
2. Need more changing of gears for the rider's driving style and
3. Most importantly - low range ( More number of Fuel stops required).

Resolutions for the problems -

1. Aggressive seating position - Take more breaks - Not possible,
2. Need more changing of gears for the rider's driving style - may lose time & may get the left foot & hand combination strained more - Not Possible,
3. Most importantly - low range - Tank has a capacity of close to 12.8l Upto Brim - so take a couple of extra bottles of fuel to increase the range.
   Even then the total distance between fuel stops will be less than the intended range of 500kms.

So back to Square 1.

Now enters Mr.K ( Full names will be provided in the cast) who is from the Company which is sponsoring the R15.
He said he can resolve the last 2 issues.
Frequent gear shifts & Lower mileage.
He asked the rider to ride the vehicle in the rider's own style & tell where the power characteristics need a change.
Rider finds that R15 has lower or no Torque under 5k rpm.
Between 5-7k Rider is ok. Also Rider wanted slightly more top end.
Rider also has doubts about the reliability of the R15 after sustained high speed run at the top speed.
Now Mr.K said he can resolve all these.
That was a bouncer for the rider.
Rider asks Mr.K how can he do all these?

Mr. K says he can -

Increase the torque of the Bike under 5k RPM,
Increase the torque and power at the high RPM,
Increase the RPM at which the Rev Limiter kicks in,
Decrease the temperature at which the Radiator Fan activates if required,
As a safety measure Decrease the temperature at which the High temperature warning shows up if required,
Program a shift light for optimal gear shifts,
Etc., etc.
In short change the Bike exactly as the Rider wanted with the Mileage close to 35kmpl at the high speed.

After a short 150km ride, the vehicle is back for a heart Transplant to MR. K.
Rider gives his feedback & Mr. K performs the required changes.
Now he asks rider to ride for a good 500km and come back to him.
He tells that the Fan thing was not done as it is not required and if rider finds the overheating lamp on he'll do it.

The Rider sets out and does a 600 km ride and returns to Mr. K.
The Feedback -
Mileage increases from 31.5 to 33.2,
High Temperature lamp did not come up,
Top Speed increased from 144 to 147.
Overall it may not be able to meet the requirements.

Mr. K said he'll set it in a slightly different way and the gear shift indicator also at different RPM.
This as per Mr. K will increase the Mileage & top speed.
He also suggests the rider some minor changes or adaptations in the riding style.

One more trial ride of 600km ( Same route & time) and the result is -
A big smile on the Rider's Face.
Reason -

Mileage goes up to 37.4,
Top speed goes to 148.
It reaches the Top Speed much quicker too.

Mr. K Explains to the rider that initially he set the bike purely based on the Feedback & expected that a minor change in the riding style is required - not the set up.
He changed only the Gear shifting RPM but nothing else in the second set up.
That was a surprise for the rider.
Mr. K further explains that due to the usage of a bigger capacity bike for years rider got accustomed with that.
So the minor change in riding style did the trick.
Mr. K mentions that the Top Speed can be increased further but this set up is the best to meet all the requirements in optimal way.

Next Update will be very soon.
It'll have the ride plan.
Sort of tied down with work so updates are becoming a premium.

The Producer

The Producer for the whole event is Race Dynamics.
They sponsored the Bike, The Heart of the Bike & Fuel along with other additional expenses.

The Lubricants are sponsored by the Oil company Motul.

Pics of the Bike with the Producer's Logos -