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Hi Guys,
Yes! Finally my dream came true. I have always wanted to do Thane - Chennai. I did it on 31st Mar- 1st April.
I was in two minds whether to do it or not till the last moment. My girlfriend was of great support and she thought I should just do it since I wouldn't get this opportunity again in life. I somehow convinced my to-be in laws. They agreed to it readily. I did not open my mouth to my parents because for sure I know they wouldn't approve and I would start getting advice!! So I maintained that I would be coming by train as per plan.
Bike: Honda Unicorn
Age: 7years
KiloMeter Reading - 71830
Day 1: 740 kms covered
31st March 5:30 AM : I left from her house in Thane. Once I started I got back all my confidence and motivation. I took it up as a challenge. I haven't done such a long ride in my life. I have just done Chennai-B'lore, Chennai-Trichy couple of times. My first target city was Pune. I couldn't take the expressway because bikes are not allowed. Hit the NH4- The road for next 1300 kms!! The roads were curvy and it was little foggy so I decently maintain 60kmph.
8:15 Pune: I did my first mistake of missing the bye-pass road in Pune so had to go inside the entire city, which wasted half hour.
8:45 NH4 again: Joined the highway again and my next target was to hit Satara by 10:30 and I did it with ease. Good roads and ghat section in one stretch.
10:30 Satara: I took a butt break and moved on. My next target was Kolhapur
12:30 Kolhapur: Paid a quick visit to the Mahalakshmi Temple. Had a good darshan and was lucky enough to see the Mangalaarthi in time!
Felt good. The heat was to the fullest. Quenched my thirst by having a lime soda. Grabbed a quick bite of Thepla (Paratha) packed from home.
3:00 Belgaum: I wanted to cover as much distance as possible on Day 1 since I wanted to reach Chennai the next day at around the same time the train reached. :P. I kept moving after taking short butt breaks. I just had a backpack and I did not tie it to the bike cos I wanted to take it around. It was quite heavy. No backpain at all. Just lil trouble in the shoulder. Otherwise things were just fine.
4:30 Hubli: Another butt break. I wanted to reach Chitradurga by around 9. Still 200kms left so I wanted to cover as much as possible before dawn. I started pushing up the speed. I was constantly maintaining 75-80kmph. I moved to the 90's.
6:30 In the middle of nowhere: My second mistake! Yes had a tyre puncture. It was just around the corner and a puncture as expected. I should have changed the back tyre before the journey cos it had quite worn out. But was lucky enough to find a puncture shop in a petrol bunk nearby. Got it fixed it by 7. I did not want to take any more risk in the night so I decided to stay at the next city Devanagiri, which was some 40kms away.
8:15 Devanagiri: A small town with lot of liquor shops!!! Found a decent hotel. Paid Rs.450 for the single room. Hit the bed by 9:30. Had a disturbed sleep.
Day 2: 620kms covered
7:30 Another surprise: 2nd puncture in the same back tyre. I was kind of frustrated now. It was a Sunday and the shops do not open till 8:30-9. Found a puncture shop near a petrol bunk. He came at around 8. Asked him to change the tube, the spare one which I had.
8:45: Hit the road again but totally out of confidence because I had to cover another 650 kms for the day. I knew for sure I would meet with another puncture. Chitradurga was some 60kms away.
10:00 Chitradurga: Some good decisions too!! Yes I decided to change the back tyre. I was lucky enough to find an MRF showroom open on a Sunday. Withdrew money from the ATM and changed the tyre. Felt so good now!!! Got back all my lost confidence. I started singing again!!!! Bangalore was 200kms away and my target was to reach by lunch.
1:20 Bangalore: Was in the outskirts of bangalore. Took the NICE road to avoid the city traffic. Was in no mood for lunch. I took coconut water in a bottle so drank that. Was not feeling hungry. NICE road was just too nice!!
2:10 Hosur Road: Hit the hosur road. Was happy to see that Chennai was only 310kms away!! Smiles in my face.
5:00 Vellore: Maintained a decent 70-75kmph and reached here as per expected time. Chennai was 125kms.
7:40 Home: Home sweet home!!! I made it safely. Great feeling of accomplishment!!
Total Distance covered: 1350kms
Fuel consumed: 31 litres
Mileage: 43.5kmpl
Meter Reading: 73180
Body pain: Shoulders and butt
Lessons learnt: Check your bike for weak points and make necessary corrections before the trip!!! (Could have avoided the tension of puncture)
Break the entire distance to be covered into small pies. Every 100kms covered could boost your confidence.
A very good ride! My unicorn just rocks even after 7yrs and 70000 kms
Yes! Finally my dream came true. I have always wanted to do Thane - Chennai. I did it on 31st Mar- 1st April.
I was in two minds whether to do it or not till the last moment. My girlfriend was of great support and she thought I should just do it since I wouldn't get this opportunity again in life. I somehow convinced my to-be in laws. They agreed to it readily. I did not open my mouth to my parents because for sure I know they wouldn't approve and I would start getting advice!! So I maintained that I would be coming by train as per plan.
Bike: Honda Unicorn
Age: 7years
KiloMeter Reading - 71830
Day 1: 740 kms covered
31st March 5:30 AM : I left from her house in Thane. Once I started I got back all my confidence and motivation. I took it up as a challenge. I haven't done such a long ride in my life. I have just done Chennai-B'lore, Chennai-Trichy couple of times. My first target city was Pune. I couldn't take the expressway because bikes are not allowed. Hit the NH4- The road for next 1300 kms!! The roads were curvy and it was little foggy so I decently maintain 60kmph.
8:15 Pune: I did my first mistake of missing the bye-pass road in Pune so had to go inside the entire city, which wasted half hour.
8:45 NH4 again: Joined the highway again and my next target was to hit Satara by 10:30 and I did it with ease. Good roads and ghat section in one stretch.
10:30 Satara: I took a butt break and moved on. My next target was Kolhapur
12:30 Kolhapur: Paid a quick visit to the Mahalakshmi Temple. Had a good darshan and was lucky enough to see the Mangalaarthi in time!
Felt good. The heat was to the fullest. Quenched my thirst by having a lime soda. Grabbed a quick bite of Thepla (Paratha) packed from home. 3:00 Belgaum: I wanted to cover as much distance as possible on Day 1 since I wanted to reach Chennai the next day at around the same time the train reached. :P. I kept moving after taking short butt breaks. I just had a backpack and I did not tie it to the bike cos I wanted to take it around. It was quite heavy. No backpain at all. Just lil trouble in the shoulder. Otherwise things were just fine.
4:30 Hubli: Another butt break. I wanted to reach Chitradurga by around 9. Still 200kms left so I wanted to cover as much as possible before dawn. I started pushing up the speed. I was constantly maintaining 75-80kmph. I moved to the 90's.
6:30 In the middle of nowhere: My second mistake! Yes had a tyre puncture. It was just around the corner and a puncture as expected. I should have changed the back tyre before the journey cos it had quite worn out. But was lucky enough to find a puncture shop in a petrol bunk nearby. Got it fixed it by 7. I did not want to take any more risk in the night so I decided to stay at the next city Devanagiri, which was some 40kms away.
8:15 Devanagiri: A small town with lot of liquor shops!!! Found a decent hotel. Paid Rs.450 for the single room. Hit the bed by 9:30. Had a disturbed sleep.
Day 2: 620kms covered
7:30 Another surprise: 2nd puncture in the same back tyre. I was kind of frustrated now. It was a Sunday and the shops do not open till 8:30-9. Found a puncture shop near a petrol bunk. He came at around 8. Asked him to change the tube, the spare one which I had.
8:45: Hit the road again but totally out of confidence because I had to cover another 650 kms for the day. I knew for sure I would meet with another puncture. Chitradurga was some 60kms away.
10:00 Chitradurga: Some good decisions too!! Yes I decided to change the back tyre. I was lucky enough to find an MRF showroom open on a Sunday. Withdrew money from the ATM and changed the tyre. Felt so good now!!!
Got back all my lost confidence. I started singing again!!!! Bangalore was 200kms away and my target was to reach by lunch.1:20 Bangalore: Was in the outskirts of bangalore. Took the NICE road to avoid the city traffic. Was in no mood for lunch. I took coconut water in a bottle so drank that. Was not feeling hungry. NICE road was just too nice!!
2:10 Hosur Road: Hit the hosur road. Was happy to see that Chennai was only 310kms away!!
Smiles in my face. 5:00 Vellore: Maintained a decent 70-75kmph and reached here as per expected time. Chennai was 125kms.
7:40 Home: Home sweet home!!!
I made it safely. Great feeling of accomplishment!! Total Distance covered: 1350kms
Fuel consumed: 31 litres
Mileage: 43.5kmpl
Meter Reading: 73180
Body pain: Shoulders and butt
Lessons learnt: Check your bike for weak points and make necessary corrections before the trip!!! (Could have avoided the tension of puncture)
Break the entire distance to be covered into small pies. Every 100kms covered could boost your confidence.
A very good ride! My unicorn just rocks even after 7yrs and 70000 kms
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