^^ nice one there....

the trip log is on the desktop...just that it needs a few more lines to complete...shall try to post it today...that is if I start from the office in an hour or so from now...

My part of the Log is too almost complete...!! So, vil post it by tomm. morning...!!

OR

If NV posts it pehle then i wont post it...!!(No need na then )

aree kar de inder bhai...y so shy

Trip Log

Ok guys the trip log goes like this..

5.30 AM:
Got a msg from Ritwik asking whether i got up or not.? My reply to that was "Hmmm...i got up"....(that too i msgd in my sleep....see i type proper english even while sleeping ) Sorry dude, maine tabhi galti se jhooth bol diya tha....!!
Then the next moment i got to sleep....!

6.15AM:
Then next i get a CALL from Niranjan(read NV henceforth), whether i got up or not.....i confidently told "ya ya i got up and getting ready"(par sach to ye hai ki tabhi main bas utha hi tha )....!! Due to his constant screaming at me my sleep went off and finally i had to get up only...!!
So, got up, had bath, got ready, and reached my bike's parking lot by 7.05 AM.

7.30AM:
Reached the Chandni chowk petrol pump to fuel in, called Ritwik to check whether everyone reached the meeting point(Chandni chowk CCD). As expected he also started screaming and saying "Abe kidhar hai be, jaldi aa sab ruke hue hai tere liye yahan pe"...
Told him that i am coming in 5 mins you all can kit up(wear all the gears...as it normally takes 5-7 mins for us to wear the gear and get ready)

7.45AM:
Reached Chandni chowk CCD where everyone was just ready to go. I met all and left from there....!!!
Hit the Pune-Banglore highway and started cruising at 75-85 km/hr. towards Pune-Satara on NH4.!!

The route which we were to take was Pune-Banglore highway -> Pune-Satare highway on NH4 -> Shirwal -> Wai -> Panchgani -> Mahabaleshwar -> Tapola.

While, enroute the formation was like NV(P220) -> Ritwik(P200) -> Kashif(P180) -> Sneh(R15) -> Inder(Karizma).

So, at some times NV and Ritwik used to go ahead as it was difficult to view the riders behind them bcoz of the super cool RVMs provided by Bajaj.

So, in order to curb this situation a small halt was taken(just after the tunnel on the pune-bangy highway was finished and the pune-satara highway was starting) to reshuffle the formation. And after the discussion the new formation decided was Inder(Karizma) -> Kashif(P180) -> Sneh(R15) -> Ritwik(P200) -> NV(P220). This worked fine and everyhting was going along as planned.

So, while cruising passed thru one "tapri/chai ki dukaan" where all the SBKs were parked(Those were members of C.O.P.S -> Club Of Pune Superbikers). Thought of having a pit stop there, but then everyone wanted to stop at Shirwal for breakfast so didnt stop there.

1st Pit Stop:Shirwal
In some time, we reached Shirwal(its our usual stop whenever we go to Mahabaleshwar its a tradition) for our breakfast break. Everyone contributed 200 bucks and gave it to NV(our official accounts manager for the rides), so that all the food expenses/tolls/etc. can be handled within that.

Everyone ordered their own preference of food. I, Sneh and NV ordered Misal Pav(mannn that was tasty typical marathi style ), Kashif ordered Sabudana wada and Ritwik ordered Wada Pav(staple food of Marathi ppl)
All marathi ppl plz dont mind, its just a joke.. ...!!

When we were thru with our khana/pina and got up from the seat, suddenly heard some superbikes coming everyone's ears rised like dogs and started concentrating on the exhaust notes of the SBKs...
Note: This happens everytime whenever we are at FC road(Pune) for a small meet OR on a similar ride.

Then we saw one of almost all of the SBKs available in India including Monster, Busa, CBR, Comet and what not...!! Then we all had a discussions on those bikes(regarding their speed capabilities, how was its exhuaust notes,etc. etc.).

Finally, after some time kitted up and started again towards our destination. The formation that time was also the same.



More coming soon................

No.....no CBZ's

may be we must have crossed when we were in Mapro gardens or thapa point or may be when we were in the lake (boating)

Trip Details from my side
30-Nov-2008 5:30 AM: My alarm clock rings and I wake up instantly. There is only one worry up my mind...it had rained yesterday evening and nite...how is the weather now? One look outside the window and all I can see at that time is dark sky. Since it is too early to predict anything, I grab my towel and decide to be ready for the ride. A scant 25 minutes later, I emerge from the shower and start my routine check up on the ridin gear and a final checklist review. Simultaneously, I power up my computer, intending to see a quick satellite picture to get a final nod. Damn!!! the net connection does not respond. Now I am frantically trying all other options at my disposal including my cellphone but all are of no use. Its then that I realize that my TISSOT has a meteo function that has been pretty precise. Checking the TISSOT meteo confirms that it will rain but the probability is quite low. Just then, Ritwik sends in an SMS to confirm whether I am awake...I call him and decide to meet up at the pre-decided venue...just that I will be a bit late as my 220 is runnin dry and I need to tank up. The fuel station that dispenses Speed 97, the preferred brew for my 220 opens at 6:30 AM.
Minutes later, I call Inder...who apparently just woken up (paaji dont lie). He says that he will be ready in 15 minutes...and I do not believe him. Thinkin that I will take some more time as I need to fuel up, I send him an SMS and ask him to meet us directly at the rendezvous point.
The morning cold air is something that one has to experience. The joy of ridin in the cold air brings tremendous zeal and spirit. After around 10 minutes or so of riding at 84-85, I reached chandni chowk and catch up with the rest of the horde. Ritwik Kashif and Sneh were already there and we waited for Inder to catch up. After almost 15 minutes of waiting Inder shows up and we get ready and start off. At the start, I take the lead followed by Kashif, Ritwik, Sneh and Inder. I keep a speed of 72 and keep on observin Kashif.

After some time, once we clear the tunnel, we stop as I need to confirm whether the pace is ok or we need to be faster. At that moment, Inder sarcastically clatters "Pulsar wale dont lead...they dont look in the mirrors" turns out that Sneh was caught up in some traffic and we kept on pushin ahead. So we decide to allow Inder to lead and I say that I will be the tail. So the formation is now Inder, Sneh, Kashif, Ritwik and Me. We reach Shirwal and head to our ever favourite place to eat Misal-Pav...after a hearty breakfast, we start off once more and the same formation. On reachin the Khambataki ghat (one way), we start off in a different way as the faster riders will go ahead and others will catch up slowly.
I explore the 220 in a new way...the handling, torque, rev nature and brakes. The 220 is a perfect tool for this sort of a ride. It pulls clean without fuss...leads ample torque and the brakes can be so effective. I went over a lot of bumps in mid corner at decently fast speeds and all that the 220 did was a controlled salsa. Guys...don't barbecue me with this but since I have a 220 now, it is but obvious that I will like it more than anything else. So before I keep on singin praise about the 220, let me write the rest of the day's events.
We stop over for a small photo shoot (the same ones that were posted in the earlier post). After that, we head to Wai. On entry, we are stopped by cops who ask for our papers etc. The cops are pretty decent and post inspection of the documents, wave us off...not before they see the R15 firin up...since it does a priming routine, one of the cops remarks "heater dena padta hai" I smile under my helmet and we start off...
The ghat that leads up to Panchgani is a joy to ride on...but at the same time, one has to be extremely careful. we break formation to let the faster riders ride ahead...I slow down as Inder and Ritwik start buildin pace. At one point, I start building my pace and catch up with the front runners who have stopped to see others behind. We all ride sensibly and reach the entry to Panchgani. At the entry, we are asked for the papers once more and we oblige. The ride from there to Mahableshwar is quite a pleasant one and on this occasion, it was more pleasing than any other ride to this place. A lot of fog, cool atmosphere and the soothing atmosphere...this was enough for me and Ritwik to stop by at the bhilar waterfall point.
Special mention must go to Sneh who kept on marking his territory with each stop (dont be angry buddy)...I wonder how much of water must he have drunk before the trip. Nevertheless, we all posed for a territory marking routine .
From there the plan was to reach Tapola. At the entry to Mahableshwar, they charge a tax of some kind and we were stopped yet again. While we were busy with the tickets, a bus with a lot of school children went ballistic when they saw us...they had seen us climbil the ghats as we had overtaken them but they went ahead when we stopped by at Bhilar waterfall. The school kids asked Ritwik if we were testing bikes and Ritwik in his total Mumbai hindi said "aaise hi ghoomne aiyelle hai" (sorry dude).
From there, the ride to Tapola was quite new to us and we were cautious about the road and the speed. Inder led in the first part and we all followed him. Later we stopped at a point where Inder paaji wanted to have a riding photo shoot...much to the annoyance of a couple who were enjoyin their privacy in the nearby bushes. First it was Ritwik...then it was Inder and then they insisted me to ride on the stretch so that they could snap my picture. A nice photoshoot and we started off. At this point, I took the lead and went around at a considerable pace. The road is quite narrow and any oncoming vehicle comes quite unexpectedly. The road is quite nice in parts and a bit harsh in some parts. We were snatching many admiring looks as the distant parts of that area have not seen bikes like these (maybe not so frequently).
We stopped by at a place where we could see the entire valley and that is where we snapped the teaser pic. We had fun there too as Sneh was lookin for a place to mark his territory . Riding further, we reached Tapola. We were expectin much from all that we had heard about Tapola. All that we could see is a nice lake and a lot of boats and waterscooters.
The moment we parked our bikes, we were surrounded by local children, teenagers and the likes...each one of them commenting on the bikes and tryin to capture photos of our bikes. The R15 was a crowd puller followed by the 220 and then the others. With all this on, we decided to have lunch at a hotel from where we could see our bikes.
The menu was simple and we ordered some Alu Paratha and Dal...this is the safest menu that one can get anywhere. Add to it, a bottle of packaged water and that is quite safe then. The Alu Paratha was quite small and with more fire in our bellies, we ordered some more rotis with dal to satisfy our fuel tanks.After a hearty meal, we started off and this time too, I led the formation till Mahableshwar. Once we crossed the tax naka, we stopped by at a place called Bagicha. For some strange reason, Inder was hell bent on stopping here paaji, do I reveal the reason?
This is the place where you can eat some of the most mouthwaterin treats like Fresh Strawberries with Cream We all enjoyed a tall treat. At this time, most of us were also enjoying the other part of scenery I hope you all know what we are talking of From there, the ride was slow up to Panchgani as there was a lot of traffic. From there, the ghat section, we had decided that we would not be takin any risks. I led the formation with ritwik behind me. I could see some other bike behind Ritwik but could not determine who it was...for sure it wasnt one of ours. As I approached a corner, I saw two riders on a 180 (both had helmets), come up on my outside. I braked as I knew that they could fall on me or cut into my line if they lost control. From there this madness started. To speed away, they started using the entire road and went all over the place in the opposite lane too. At one point, I wanted to catch up and take them but when I looked back at Ritwik, he was riding cool and signaled me to let them move (more on this later). Towards the end of the twisties, I passed the lead to Inder.
There was madness in the town after the twisties. An auto rider was desperately trying to pass Sneh (almost clipped him) and then Inder. After avoiding all that traffic, we joined the highway and started cruising towards Pune. We took two breaks just to ensure that all were not extremely tired. We did come across many madmen on their HH Passion and Cars...but we kept our speed between 70-90.
The entry in the final tunnel before Pune was a special one. There was almost no traffic and I was riding at the tail end. In the tunnel, I opened the throttle and the induction roar and the exhaust note of the 220 filled the tunnel...it echoed from the walls and the experience is just worth a special mention here.
From there, the Pune traffic was at its prime and we finally reached Chandni Chowk CCD for some coffee. Here while talking we also settled our accounts and finally started for our homes. It was almost 7:30 PM and it had been a full 12+ hours of fun. We enjoyed the trip. Hope you all enjoy the details.
More pics tomorrow.

@ALL the trippers: SEXY LOG n KOOL PICS... Am waiting fer more n better pics, am sure you guys hiding 'em...

One of the hidden images for you!

Some more images

some more pic

some more pic

ok...the final batch

@nv-u forgot to mention our antics in the kambatki ghat as well as the once while commin back frm tapola

That one...I left it for you :P

Fer Me... I feel Blessed!

LAST BATCH of pics is really KOOL...
Rest are also good...!