Congrats. Wishing you many more happy kilometers on your bike!

NOTE: DISTANCE COVERED AS PER BIKE'S ODOMETER IS 1624.6 Kms. IBA HAVE THEIR OWN WAY TO CALCULATE THE DISTANCE COVERED AND AS PER IBA DISTANCE COVERED IS 1662 Kms

3rd May morning:

I looked down and my bloated tummy gave me jitters. Last three days of upset stomach had taken the toll on my body. I was slowly recovering, but still unfit. just one more day to go.But, I had made up my mind. Now or never. I was sure it's gonna be now, even if I have to crap all the way till Pune and crap all the way back to Bangalore. Thank god, NH4 was saved from all that crap

Sometime in March 2011:

I had laughed when my brother had mentioned " IRON BUTT" for the first time. I laughed more when I learnt that there's an association with that name. I thought it was something like a joke. Who the hell would name an association like that I did not bother to explore more about it at that time. It was dawn of my biker's life and did not realize how much those two words would mean to me one year down the line, and was more occupied with leisurely rides to some spectacular spots.

Over last one year:

Time passed by, and with each day I learnt more about my bike. I gradually fell in love with my bike. Embarked on some excellent rides. Each ride was a love affair. Each ride taught me new things. Each ride was a meditation, sometimes alone, sometimes with like minded friends. With each ride, my bike started loving me back, and despite its few shortcomings, it behaved like a well brought up disciplined kid, and never failed me regardless of how much undue stress it's made to take. I am lucky to have such a steed.

Back to present:

One, who could come in the way of success, was me. My apprehensions regarding bike's and my abilities, lack of good technical knowledge about bikes,especially repairing part,and above all fear of not succeeding crossed my mind umpteen times. Lot of questions were spinning in my head and most bothering one was "CAN I?" Conviction matters. Where it comes from matters even more. My heart ruled my convictions, and last week of April I decided, the D-day would be 4th May.

For some time I have been checking out on Iron butt certified rides and it amazed me how riding a bike can add a new dimension to your personality and how it can squeeze out the hidden potential in you like your stamina, ability to focus, calculate and do the math on the go and can bring out that sense of urgency. Endurance ride is all about tactically solving a complicated eqation of time, distance, speed and stamina. I went through many blogs, some amazing write-ups, how obstacles were smashed by sheer determination to achieve the task one loves.

On paper it looks quite easy. 24 hours, 1610 kilo meters. Average speed required to achieve target is 67.08. I wish it was so simple. Write ups by some dare devils gave me an insight of what I am set out to achieve. I realized that it's not like I pick up my bike and cover the distance in a jiffy. If it was like that it would be boring. I am glad it was not like that. This was like a game, required thorough planning and execution.

I contacted Major HarikeshPK on XBHP who gave me some good inputs. Thanks a lot Major Harikesh sir and fellow XBHPians who responded to my help post I shared my plans with my family and I was in for a surprise. I got a morale boosting go-ahead and that propelled my confidence to sky high, and I had decided that I have to crack this, no matter what. I began to collect more information about documents required to get my ride certified and began to chalk out the plan.

PLAN:

After I decided that I am gonna take on this challenge, I first analysed my strengths and weaknesses. I am not a speed freak. I am more of a "Better-late-than-never" or "safety-comes-first" guy. So, speed was not my real strength. I am like 80K or Max 90K guy.But this ride brought out the speed freak in me. Thats what this ride can do to you. But, I can ride for long without many breaks at decent pace. And, that's good enough to crack this nut. And, I have the habit of going on for more than a day without sleep. Thanks to my graduation days, especially exams time

Now, comes the critical part. The route. I thought of many routes. Finally decided upon Bangalore-Pune-Bangalore, after going through few travelogues, and I myself have travelled on NH4 many a time as my hometown is on NH4. So, I had a fair idea about the route, and my friend who had done a trip to Pune on his Avenger, and he had praised the stretch a lot. And, this route is supposed to be one of the best in India, part of great golden quadrilateral. But, I was in for a shock. More about it later.

Then, I got my Avenger serviced at Khivraj Bajaj on Kasturba Road. Service center folks were great and they allowed me to spend a day at service center with them, and I learned few things about my steed.My steed was in good shape, but some voracious eating at an office celebration ruined my shape, and my tummy remained abnormally bloated for next four days, casting doubts over my fitness to take on the challenge. However, good sense prevailed. Some controlled diet slowly brought me back in shape, and that too just in nick of time.

Two days before the ride, I shared my plan with a friend, and asked him to be my witness at the beginning and end of the ride. He readily agreed and was very excited about the whole thing. I also borrowed his helmet for the ride. I guess, I am now gonna keep it forever One day later I shared my plan with another pal, and he too agreed to be my witness at the start of the ride. Then, I got one day leave on Friday, and I am thankful to my managers Sharu and Prashanth for that.

Thursday, after office, I went on a recce to pick the right starting point near Nelamangala. We picked a fuel station which also issued computer generated receipts with correct date and time stamp, and was also right next to the fly over from where I can take off.We checked the bill and found it good enough. We looked for some other fuel stations but decided the first one was the right one.Then we rode on the flyover. I wanted to test my Avenger's condition. It looked good. From Nelamangala, others left to a Dhaba for dinner, and I rode back, checking for other fuel stations where I wanna end my ride. Found one twenty-four hours fuel station which issued proper bill.

I decided that I would begin my ride at 10.30 pm or 11 pm and since, I knew the route till Davangere, which is approximately 250 Kms, I thought I could cover that distance quite easily and that would give me a good launch in terms of time, and it would be to my advantage if I am riding first four and last four hours on a known stretch, and that too at night, given the stock headlamps of my steed. But, I was in for a shock!!!

After dinner, started checking on the turn around point. First thought of a place called Katraj. Finally Decided upon a place called Shindevadi, which comes before Pune, and Google maps showed the distance to be 808 Km. Good for me. Then again checked on blogs about saddle sore, made a check list of the things to carry. Charged my Ipod. Checked out few videos on bikes. Idea was to not to sleep entire night, shop for things-to-carry in the morning and then go to bed at around 12 PM on Friday noon, get up at 8 pm, get ready and leave. But, I could not control my sleep, and hit the sack at 5.30 AM. Next day got up at 12:30 PM, had lunch, my brother came back from his exam [He has been doing a different kind of saddle sore for last three months preparing for his exams. I have no doubt that my saddle sore is relatively easier than his ], had a word with my family, then went to buy things-to-carry. bought a clutch cable, chain spray, Balaclava, five snickers energy bars, 1 packet of lion dates, three Gatorade bottles and two Red bull energy cans. Kept the energy drinks in the fridge, and packed rest of the stuff, and went to bed at 5.30 PM to catch some three hours of sleep. But, as usual, like before any ride, I was not able to sleep. I tried my best to keep my eyes closed and sleep. I simply could not. Then watched my favourite scenes from the movie 'World's fastest Indian'. What a movie, and what a guy. Simply amazing and truly inspirational. I jumped out of my bed, freshened up, got ready, completed daily prayer rituals, took my mom's blessings, had dinner, double checked if I am carrying everything and started towards the starting-point. Stopped by Lord Venkateshwara swamy temple, prayed for a safe and successful ride, and reached meeting point.

We reached starting point around 10.20 PM. Had a brief chat.Then, filled the fuel. Got the receipt which showed 10.37 PM. Double checked the receipt to ensure that date and time stamp are correct.I started the ride without further delay, got on to the fly over and started riding at a speed of 70 kmph.

SADDLE SORE BEGINS:

Since I have travelled from Bangalore to Chitradurga many a time, I thought I know the road conditions very well. I was in for a shocker. Road repair work was going on in full swing before and after Tumkur, and there were just too many diversions. And, traffic was, as usual, more, with roads infested with huge trucks. Diversions lead to service roads with huge potholes, and stretches laced with gravel and sand, which is a nightmare for an Avenger, and also too many humps. This had a drastic impact on the speed. Once, after Tumkur, I entered the service road after a diversion and only after entering I realised that I am on a road with only gravel. Bike ran erratically, and my heart was in my mouth, and with great difficulty maneuvered the bike out of that gravel-piled road. It was close to 1 hour and I had covered about 60 Kms. I was not expcting this. It was as if I was a total stranger on this road. However, after Sira, road conditions were good and I could maintain a good speed of around 100kmph. I rode non-stop. I wanted to cover up for the initial hiccup. I decided not to take any break till Davangere. After Chitradurga, roads seemed to be pretty good. I continued to maintain the speed around 100 kmph. To my dismay, I came across a huge hump, when I least expected it.I have never seen such a huge hump. By the time I could apply brakes and decelrate, I was air borne, and landed with a thud, and felt a shock-like pain in my left shoulder. I managed to balance the bike, and avoided the fall. Slowed down a bit. maintained a speed of around 80kmph and rode cautiously. Reached Davangere bypass at 2.10 am. Decided to take a nature-call break. Made a note of the trip meter and odometer readings and time at which break was taken. Started again at 2.15 am. Rode for next 45 minutes and decided to refill near Ranebennur. Thr first gas station guy told me that they did not have stock and asked me to ride for another five kilometers to the next station. I reached the next fuel station and the guy was in deep slumber. I felt really bad to wake up a guy who was in such a deep sleep, probably after a tiring day. but, did I have a choice? I woke the guy up. Refilled, obtained the receipt, had a snicker bar and bit of gatorade, thanked the guy and left towards Hubli.Beautiful wide roads and traffic had reduced to a great extent and I was hitting a constant speed around 100 kmph. Only hindrance were the cross-winds making the bike wobble quite a bit. I did not stop and did not slow down. I had gained momentum and did not wanna lose it. I felt as if I was part of a video game. Wide, long stretch ahead. Only soul on the prowl. Splendid moon lit clear sky, with gusts of wind hitting me from the side. Alas! I could not stop and take a snap. I reached Dharwad outskirts. Trip meter showed 407.1 kms. I stopped for a butt/ nature-call break of seven minutes. Stretched a bit to loosen the joints. I had covered 407 kms in 6 hours. Not bad...I felt, given the initial slow down. I proceeded towards Belgaum. Again came across couple of diversions, but not as bad as were near Tumkur.

Belgaum-Kolhapur stretch was a blessing and a biker's bliss. Amazing roads. superb landscapes. I was riding at a top speed of 120 kmph. I was ecstatic. Sky displayed some amazing colors. I opened the visor and allowed the breeze to hit my face. Great coolant, I told myself. Slowly sun rays emerged from the side and I was enchanted. I forgot all the calculations running on my mind, and considered myself lucky to witness God's amazing creativity at work. There were few curves which entranced me. I felt like stopping and clicking couple of pics. But, I was jolted back into world of calculations and estimations. I decided not to stop. I continued, pleased as punch, and crossed kolhapur. After Kolhapur, took a break, when my trip meter showed 615.7 kms and time was 7.20 am. I was feeling hungry and my mouth was dry like an empty well. Saw a fuel station. My Avenger was also thirsty after the kind of run it was being subjected to.

Refilled Avenger and myself. Break lasted for about fifteen minutes. Had dates and gatorade.I calculated the distance to be travelled to make it to 805 kms mark, time left and average speed I was maintaining, and felt I was doing a decent job. Relief was no back aches or joint pains. Only problem area was my left shoulder, since that jump over the hump

I dashed towards Pune. Decided to not to take any break till the turn around point. Again nice roads. Only change was just too many people thronged the roads and there were too many intersections before and after Satara. Found lot of riders speeding without helmets and many bikes had three people on them. Intersections cut my speed down. Around 9.30 am saw the board which showed Shindevadi. As per google maps Sindevadi is approximately 808 kms from nelamangala. But trip meter showed around 786 kms. I was surprised. I was riding inside a tunnel for the first time in my life. A huge board on the tunnel said naveen-Katraj tunnel. Riding inside a tunnel of that size gave me a different feel altogether. I felt like a secret agent lurking in a dimly lit burrow. Tunnel ended, and I was greeted by a heavy traffic. I cut across narrow passages amongst hordes of truck, packs of cars, and a cluster of two-wheelers. Trip meter showed close to 812 kms and I saw huge hoardings of cricketers like Sourav ganguly and Robin Uthappa who represent Pune warriors in the current IPL season. It was the new stadium. Nice place. Rode a bit further and took a U-turn, and found a fuel station. trip meter showed 816.4 kms. Time was 10.30 am. Refilled and got the computer receipt. Also, had snicker energy bar and quenched my thirst with Gatorade. I also saw an ATM in the station. Withdrew money but got the message that machine could not dispense receipt. I was trying to take a pic of the receipt with odo meter, and a young chap came to me and said he would like to demonstrate something and requested me to spare a minute. I told him that I dont have a single second to spare. i thought i was bit rude to that fella. I called him, and told him about the rush I am in and said I am sorry. The chap understood my situation, wished me good luck and he also held the receipt for me to take the pic, even though he could not understand why the heck I was trying to take a pic of a bill with the odometer. I thanked and wished him well and bolted towards Bangalore. Time was 10.45 am. I thought I could easily make it to Bangalore in time. Well, another setback awaited.

I just rode along with the swarm of vehicles and by the time I realized I had hit the curves ascending to nowhere. Again traffic was heavy and this time monster long-trucks added to the congestion and I had nowhere to go. A monster truck was slowing moving with a bunch of cars on either side, and that killed lot of precious time. I, for a moment, thought I had taken a wrong route. because I never anticipated such ghat section while returning and had also not been informed me about this. So, I was totally not prepared for this stretch. I, by now, know that this is the beauty of the bike trips. So, again I started maneuvering around and slowly got rid of the congestion and hit the downward spiral and finally on to the straight roads and I was overjoyed. I had lost lot of time and now balance tilted not in my favour. I wrung the throttle and was honking horn incessantly and was blasting my way through the intersections. Broad day light helped me to anticipate any sudden emergence around intersections. I could not imagine riding like that in the night. I took couple of minute-long butt breaks to stretch. Slowly I was being saddle-sored I took a five-minutes break when my trip meter showed 999.9 kms somewhere before kolhapur. I hydrated myself with lot of water and Gatorade. Resumed my ride at 1.33 pm. I had 9 hours to cover 610 kms. Simple maths showed I had to maintain an avergae of 68 kmph. But, I knew i had a daunting task at hand. At the same time, the thought of Kolhapur-Belgaum stretch cheered me up and boosted the confidence. I would like to say that how this stretch is utilized, along with Belgaum-Dharwad and Hubli-Davangere stretches, decide whether you can crack the saddle sore or not.

Long stretches of well-laid tarmac welcomed me as soon as I crossed Kolhapur. I maintained a good speed of around 110 kmph, and this stretch was my saviour and this would help me to make up for the loss of time I had suffered earlier. It was getting extremely hot and I could smell the burning rubber. My Avenger was guzzling gasoline. Stopped for a fuel-refill near Nippani. Also, quenched my thirst. Break lasted for about fifteen minutes. Stretched a bit in the shade. At 2.40 pm resumed my ride towards belgaum. I darted past Belgaum, reached Dharwad and continued towards Hubli. The single road and traffic were slowing me down. Joint pains were slowly creeping in. Especially my left shoulder and left wrist started paining more. Fatigue was setting in. Took a break near a toll plaza between Dharwad-Hubli route. Time showed 4.26 pm. Trip meter showed 224.2 kms (Which actually is 1224.2 kms). I felt I was slowly falling behind the schedule. Drank lot of water. Resumed the ride at 4.36 pm. Rode non-stop at a good solid pace of around 110 kmph till the fuel level fell into reserve mode. Avenger, I guess, was feeling the heat and was devouring more gasoline than ever. Refilled near Haveri at 5.45 pm. this fuel station did not have the computer billing facility. Got the hand-written bill and resumed the ride. On way to Davangere, a stupid guy riding without any safety gear, was upto some circus, and was riding in a zig-zag way, and paid no attention to the horn yelling at him. I missed him by a whisker. What a jerk!!!

I crossed Davangere at around 6.30 pm. Cool evening breeze made me feel sleepy for the first time during the ride. I immediately pulled over. Stretched a bit. Took out Red bull. I was drinking this so-much-heard-about energy drink for the first time in my life. Gulped one down. Had an energy bar and darted towards bangalore via Chitradurga and Tumkur. Pain increased in my left shoulder. I slung the backpack on my right shoulder, and I regretted not having a saddle bag for this trip.This time I was very careful about the hump and knew where exactly it was located. Crossed Chitradurga around 7.35 pm. I had three hours to cover around 150 kms to reach 1610 kms mark. But odds were it was a night-ride and high beams hitting my eyes were making me totally blind to road ahead. I called up Bhaskaran. Told him about where I am. I told him that I am gonna finish the ride within stipulated time and told him to be at a point which was around forty kilometers from bangalore. He agreed and told me to ride safe. I refilled again after Chitradurga, but forgot to collect the receipt as I was in a hurry to resume the ride. I just could not see what was ahead because of high beams from vehicles coming from he other end. I just opened the visor to get a clear view, and something hit my face like a bullet right below my right eye. I was wondering what it was, and lowered the visor down. Again, couple of such objects follwed by few more hit the helmet visor and Avenger's wind shield. A mini truck was moving ahead of me loaded with sheep and I took my bike next to the truck and realised that objects hitting me and my Avenger were nothing but pieces of sheep crap. I simply could not control my laugh and was laughing loudly and that laughter was a huge relief to my aching system.

I was not able to sit anymore in one position for more than five minutes and back portion was paining like hell. I changed positions quite frequently and at one point I literally was on the pillion seat, and another time I was literally standing. Once, i tried the Burt munro style from my favourite 'World's fastest Indian' movie as well and loved it I am sure couple of guys who sped past me in their cars cursed me for the antics I was displaying, and couple of stares said it all. What did they know what I was upto and what I was going through, and what anyone in the world thought about me at that time, I could not care any less. In the mean time, when I was struggling to see what lay ahead of me, and I was again entering the under-repair sections interwined with diversions, a Tata-Safari and a Qualis went past me and they were going at a good speed. I thanked them for arriving just in time. I maintained about forty meters distance from those vehicles and set my eyes on their tail-lamps and jsut blindly followed them. And, this was good ploy and worked perfectly. I was covering good distance at decent speed, without worrying much about the speed-breaker humps. I could smell the soil and it was an indication that it had rained in that region. I came across few wet patches. I prayed to god that I did not want rain at that time. Wet surface is another nighmare to Avenger. I crossed Tumkur around 9.25 pm and I had about an hour to cover forty kms to complete the ride. I parted ways from the guiding vehicles (Angels) near a toll plaza. I upped the speed. I did not want to relax. I did not want to be casual. I reached 1610 kms mark around 9.55 pm. I punched the air with my fist. I was jubilant and thrilled. I had achieved what I had set out for. What a relief. Wow.What a joy

I started looking for fuel stations. All the fuel stations were located on the other side. I rode further and then took a U-turn and entered a fuel station. Trip meter showed 620 kms (1620 kms). Without inquiring whether they have computer-generated bils, I filled petrol worth 200 bucks and then I was told that the dont have the computer billing. I cursed myself for stupidity. I still had another half an hour to go before stipulated time ended. I inquired about next fuel station which was about five kms ahead. Rode to the next station. I got the receipt and this time with my vehicle number on it. All other stations did not know how to punch in my vehicle number on the bill. I ended my ride at 10.12 pm, 25 mins before the stipulated time. Took a pic of the receipt along with odometer. Called home and informed that I successfully completed the ride. I also found an ATM in the fuel station and this machine dispensed the receipt.In the mean time my friends came and congratulated me at the fuel station. They hugged me with joy. I was excited. We took pics. My face was battered by dust, wind and sun. My eyes were blood shot. But, I forgot all the pain in the joy of triumph. Talked to my pals for quite sometime. Then, headed back home. Reached home by 1.15 am. Patted my Avenger for what it has achieved in last 24 hours. I am madly in love with my steed now. To me, the best bike in this world. Talked to my family who were extremely happy at what I have done and also called me nuts for attempting something like this. My joy knew no bounds. I offered my prayers and obeisance to Gods. Took my mom's blessings. Carefully kept all the receipts, logs and forms in the cupboard. Logged into XBHP, opened a thread and typed just one sentence that I returned a while back ( due to which thread was closed ), and crashed. Slept like a baby

I would like to thank everyone who contributed in every way to make this ride a success.I am going to apply for IBA saddle sore certification by this weekend with all required documentation and hope to get the rewards soon.

I took very few pics during this ride (due to lack of time) and most of the pics are of the fuel receipts at the beginning, turn-around and end points. But whatever pics I have I would upload them very soon and I tender my apologies in advance for the poor quality of few pics.

I wish all the best to everyone attempting saddle sore. This ride has given me a great experience about endurance rides. I hope my trip log would be of some use to all the aspirants.

Thanks for patiently going through this log. One more trip to western ghats (Kodachadri), A trip across Karnataka, Bun-burner and Leh-Ladakh are next on my wish list. But, they would have to wait for some time.

Time for me to soak in the joy and recuperate from all the sweet pain emanating from my body.

Following are the trip details in brief:

Steed: Avenger 220
Route: Nelamangala-Wakad (Pune)-Nelamangala
Start time and date- 22:37, 4th May 2012
End time and date - 22:12, 5th May 2012
Distance covered - 1624.6 kms (1662 kms as per IBA since they have their own way to calculate actual distance)
Average speed - 69.57 kmph
Avergae mileage - 28/29 kmpl
Overall expense - Rs. 5300 (Which includes all the stuff purchased for the ride)

Good luck to everyone. Ride safe. God bless

Sorry for poor picture quality


From right to left: my friends and me, at the ending point:





Finally my IRON

Congratulations bro, ur experience is awesome.. Not for all, but a real rider can...
I hope to try my ride by this year end , so I need some help from previous ride... Let me know the details if anyone from bangalore, thank u in advance

Ah... What an achievement! Brings back the memories of my SS attempt back in 2011 (iirc ). Did 1750 km in 23hr and 11m.

I hope you have lots of pics, petrol slips, food bills and toll receipts etc to prove your claim. And most importantly, I hope you're applying for the certificate.

Did not know about this kind of certification, but it is a great feat to achieve and congratulations for achieving your target

Its quite a ride experience I must say....not something everyone can achieve hence makes you unique...and the narrative is as slick as the ride itself...

Many many congratulations sir ✌������

NOTE: DISTANCE COVERED AS PER BIKE'S ODOMETER IS 1624.6 Kms. IBA HAVE THEIR OWN WAY TO CALCULATE THE DISTANCE COVERED AND AS PER IBA DISTANCE COVERED IS 1662 Kms

3rd May morning:

I looked down and my bloated tummy gave me jitters. Last three days of upset stomach had taken the toll on my body. I was slowly recovering, but still unfit. just one more day to go.But, I had made up my mind. Now or never. I was sure it's gonna be now, even if I have to crap all the way till Pune and crap all the way back to Bangalore. Thank god, NH4 was saved from all that crap

Sometime in March 2011:

I had laughed when my brother had mentioned " IRON BUTT" for the first time. I laughed more when I learnt that there's an association with that name. I thought it was something like a joke. Who the hell would name an association like that I did not bother to explore more about it at that time. It was dawn of my biker's life and did not realize how much those two words would mean to me one year down the line, and was more occupied with leisurely rides to some spectacular spots.

Over last one year:

Time passed by, and with each day I learnt more about my bike. I gradually fell in love with my bike. Embarked on some excellent rides. Each ride was a love affair. Each ride taught me new things. Each ride was a meditation, sometimes alone, sometimes with like minded friends. With each ride, my bike started loving me back, and despite its few shortcomings, it behaved like a well brought up disciplined kid, and never failed me regardless of how much undue stress it's made to take. I am lucky to have such a steed.

Back to present:

One, who could come in the way of success, was me. My apprehensions regarding bike's and my abilities, lack of good technical knowledge about bikes,especially repairing part,and above all fear of not succeeding crossed my mind umpteen times. Lot of questions were spinning in my head and most bothering one was "CAN I?" Conviction matters. Where it comes from matters even more. My heart ruled my convictions, and last week of April I decided, the D-day would be 4th May.

For some time I have been checking out on Iron butt certified rides and it amazed me how riding a bike can add a new dimension to your personality and how it can squeeze out the hidden potential in you like your stamina, ability to focus, calculate and do the math on the go and can bring out that sense of urgency. Endurance ride is all about tactically solving a complicated eqation of time, distance, speed and stamina. I went through many blogs, some amazing write-ups, how obstacles were smashed by sheer determination to achieve the task one loves.

On paper it looks quite easy. 24 hours, 1610 kilo meters. Average speed required to achieve target is 67.08. I wish it was so simple. Write ups by some dare devils gave me an insight of what I am set out to achieve. I realized that it's not like I pick up my bike and cover the distance in a jiffy. If it was like that it would be boring. I am glad it was not like that. This was like a game, required thorough planning and execution.

I contacted Major HarikeshPK on XBHP who gave me some good inputs. Thanks a lot Major Harikesh sir and fellow XBHPians who responded to my help post I shared my plans with my family and I was in for a surprise. I got a morale boosting go-ahead and that propelled my confidence to sky high, and I had decided that I have to crack this, no matter what. I began to collect more information about documents required to get my ride certified and began to chalk out the plan.

PLAN:

After I decided that I am gonna take on this challenge, I first analysed my strengths and weaknesses. I am not a speed freak. I am more of a "Better-late-than-never" or "safety-comes-first" guy. So, speed was not my real strength. I am like 80K or Max 90K guy.But this ride brought out the speed freak in me. Thats what this ride can do to you. But, I can ride for long without many breaks at decent pace. And, that's good enough to crack this nut. And, I have the habit of going on for more than a day without sleep. Thanks to my graduation days, especially exams time

Now, comes the critical part. The route. I thought of many routes. Finally decided upon Bangalore-Pune-Bangalore, after going through few travelogues, and I myself have travelled on NH4 many a time as my hometown is on NH4. So, I had a fair idea about the route, and my friend who had done a trip to Pune on his Avenger, and he had praised the stretch a lot. And, this route is supposed to be one of the best in India, part of great golden quadrilateral. But, I was in for a shock. More about it later.

Then, I got my Avenger serviced at Khivraj Bajaj on Kasturba Road. Service center folks were great and they allowed me to spend a day at service center with them, and I learned few things about my steed.My steed was in good shape, but some voracious eating at an office celebration ruined my shape, and my tummy remained abnormally bloated for next four days, casting doubts over my fitness to take on the challenge. However, good sense prevailed. Some controlled diet slowly brought me back in shape, and that too just in nick of time.

Two days before the ride, I shared my plan with a friend, and asked him to be my witness at the beginning and end of the ride. He readily agreed and was very excited about the whole thing. I also borrowed his helmet for the ride. I guess, I am now gonna keep it forever One day later I shared my plan with another pal, and he too agreed to be my witness at the start of the ride. Then, I got one day leave on Friday, and I am thankful to my managers Sharu and Prashanth for that.

Thursday, after office, I went on a recce to pick the right starting point near Nelamangala. We picked a fuel station which also issued computer generated receipts with correct date and time stamp, and was also right next to the fly over from where I can take off.We checked the bill and found it good enough. We looked for some other fuel stations but decided the first one was the right one.Then we rode on the flyover. I wanted to test my Avenger's condition. It looked good. From Nelamangala, others left to a Dhaba for dinner, and I rode back, checking for other fuel stations where I wanna end my ride. Found one twenty-four hours fuel station which issued proper bill.

I decided that I would begin my ride at 10.30 pm or 11 pm and since, I knew the route till Davangere, which is approximately 250 Kms, I thought I could cover that distance quite easily and that would give me a good launch in terms of time, and it would be to my advantage if I am riding first four and last four hours on a known stretch, and that too at night, given the stock headlamps of my steed. But, I was in for a shock!!!

After dinner, started checking on the turn around point. First thought of a place called Katraj. Finally Decided upon a place called Shindevadi, which comes before Pune, and Google maps showed the distance to be 808 Km. Good for me. Then again checked on blogs about saddle sore, made a check list of the things to carry. Charged my Ipod. Checked out few videos on bikes. Idea was to not to sleep entire night, shop for things-to-carry in the morning and then go to bed at around 12 PM on Friday noon, get up at 8 pm, get ready and leave. But, I could not control my sleep, and hit the sack at 5.30 AM. Next day got up at 12:30 PM, had lunch, my brother came back from his exam [He has been doing a different kind of saddle sore for last three months preparing for his exams. I have no doubt that my saddle sore is relatively easier than his ], had a word with my family, then went to buy things-to-carry. bought a clutch cable, chain spray, Balaclava, five snickers energy bars, 1 packet of lion dates, three Gatorade bottles and two Red bull energy cans. Kept the energy drinks in the fridge, and packed rest of the stuff, and went to bed at 5.30 PM to catch some three hours of sleep. But, as usual, like before any ride, I was not able to sleep. I tried my best to keep my eyes closed and sleep. I simply could not. Then watched my favourite scenes from the movie 'World's fastest Indian'. What a movie, and what a guy. Simply amazing and truly inspirational. I jumped out of my bed, freshened up, got ready, completed daily prayer rituals, took my mom's blessings, had dinner, double checked if I am carrying everything and started towards the starting-point. Stopped by Lord Venkateshwara swamy temple, prayed for a safe and successful ride, and reached meeting point.

We reached starting point around 10.20 PM. Had a brief chat.Then, filled the fuel. Got the receipt which showed 10.37 PM. Double checked the receipt to ensure that date and time stamp are correct.I started the ride without further delay, got on to the fly over and started riding at a speed of 70 kmph.

SADDLE SORE BEGINS:

Since I have travelled from Bangalore to Chitradurga many a time, I thought I know the road conditions very well. I was in for a shocker. Road repair work was going on in full swing before and after Tumkur, and there were just too many diversions. And, traffic was, as usual, more, with roads infested with huge trucks. Diversions lead to service roads with huge potholes, and stretches laced with gravel and sand, which is a nightmare for an Avenger, and also too many humps. This had a drastic impact on the speed. Once, after Tumkur, I entered the service road after a diversion and only after entering I realised that I am on a road with only gravel. Bike ran erratically, and my heart was in my mouth, and with great difficulty maneuvered the bike out of that gravel-piled road. It was close to 1 hour and I had covered about 60 Kms. I was not expcting this. It was as if I was a total stranger on this road. However, after Sira, road conditions were good and I could maintain a good speed of around 100kmph. I rode non-stop. I wanted to cover up for the initial hiccup. I decided not to take any break till Davangere. After Chitradurga, roads seemed to be pretty good. I continued to maintain the speed around 100 kmph. To my dismay, I came across a huge hump, when I least expected it.I have never seen such a huge hump. By the time I could apply brakes and decelrate, I was air borne, and landed with a thud, and felt a shock-like pain in my left shoulder. I managed to balance the bike, and avoided the fall. Slowed down a bit. maintained a speed of around 80kmph and rode cautiously. Reached Davangere bypass at 2.10 am. Decided to take a nature-call break. Made a note of the trip meter and odometer readings and time at which break was taken. Started again at 2.15 am. Rode for next 45 minutes and decided to refill near Ranebennur. Thr first gas station guy told me that they did not have stock and asked me to ride for another five kilometers to the next station. I reached the next fuel station and the guy was in deep slumber. I felt really bad to wake up a guy who was in such a deep sleep, probably after a tiring day. but, did I have a choice? I woke the guy up. Refilled, obtained the receipt, had a snicker bar and bit of gatorade, thanked the guy and left towards Hubli.Beautiful wide roads and traffic had reduced to a great extent and I was hitting a constant speed around 100 kmph. Only hindrance were the cross-winds making the bike wobble quite a bit. I did not stop and did not slow down. I had gained momentum and did not wanna lose it. I felt as if I was part of a video game. Wide, long stretch ahead. Only soul on the prowl. Splendid moon lit clear sky, with gusts of wind hitting me from the side. Alas! I could not stop and take a snap. I reached Dharwad outskirts. Trip meter showed 407.1 kms. I stopped for a butt/ nature-call break of seven minutes. Stretched a bit to loosen the joints. I had covered 407 kms in 6 hours. Not bad...I felt, given the initial slow down. I proceeded towards Belgaum. Again came across couple of diversions, but not as bad as were near Tumkur.

Belgaum-Kolhapur stretch was a blessing and a biker's bliss. Amazing roads. superb landscapes. I was riding at a top speed of 120 kmph. I was ecstatic. Sky displayed some amazing colors. I opened the visor and allowed the breeze to hit my face. Great coolant, I told myself. Slowly sun rays emerged from the side and I was enchanted. I forgot all the calculations running on my mind, and considered myself lucky to witness God's amazing creativity at work. There were few curves which entranced me. I felt like stopping and clicking couple of pics. But, I was jolted back into world of calculations and estimations. I decided not to stop. I continued, pleased as punch, and crossed kolhapur. After Kolhapur, took a break, when my trip meter showed 615.7 kms and time was 7.20 am. I was feeling hungry and my mouth was dry like an empty well. Saw a fuel station. My Avenger was also thirsty after the kind of run it was being subjected to.

Refilled Avenger and myself. Break lasted for about fifteen minutes. Had dates and gatorade.I calculated the distance to be travelled to make it to 805 kms mark, time left and average speed I was maintaining, and felt I was doing a decent job. Relief was no back aches or joint pains. Only problem area was my left shoulder, since that jump over the hump

I dashed towards Pune. Decided to not to take any break till the turn around point. Again nice roads. Only change was just too many people thronged the roads and there were too many intersections before and after Satara. Found lot of riders speeding without helmets and many bikes had three people on them. Intersections cut my speed down. Around 9.30 am saw the board which showed Shindevadi. As per google maps Sindevadi is approximately 808 kms from nelamangala. But trip meter showed around 786 kms. I was surprised. I was riding inside a tunnel for the first time in my life. A huge board on the tunnel said naveen-Katraj tunnel. Riding inside a tunnel of that size gave me a different feel altogether. I felt like a secret agent lurking in a dimly lit burrow. Tunnel ended, and I was greeted by a heavy traffic. I cut across narrow passages amongst hordes of truck, packs of cars, and a cluster of two-wheelers. Trip meter showed close to 812 kms and I saw huge hoardings of cricketers like Sourav ganguly and Robin Uthappa who represent Pune warriors in the current IPL season. It was the new stadium. Nice place. Rode a bit further and took a U-turn, and found a fuel station. trip meter showed 816.4 kms. Time was 10.30 am. Refilled and got the computer receipt. Also, had snicker energy bar and quenched my thirst with Gatorade. I also saw an ATM in the station. Withdrew money but got the message that machine could not dispense receipt. I was trying to take a pic of the receipt with odo meter, and a young chap came to me and said he would like to demonstrate something and requested me to spare a minute. I told him that I dont have a single second to spare. i thought i was bit rude to that fella. I called him, and told him about the rush I am in and said I am sorry. The chap understood my situation, wished me good luck and he also held the receipt for me to take the pic, even though he could not understand why the heck I was trying to take a pic of a bill with the odometer. I thanked and wished him well and bolted towards Bangalore. Time was 10.45 am. I thought I could easily make it to Bangalore in time. Well, another setback awaited.

I just rode along with the swarm of vehicles and by the time I realized I had hit the curves ascending to nowhere. Again traffic was heavy and this time monster long-trucks added to the congestion and I had nowhere to go. A monster truck was slowing moving with a bunch of cars on either side, and that killed lot of precious time. I, for a moment, thought I had taken a wrong route. because I never anticipated such ghat section while returning and had also not been informed me about this. So, I was totally not prepared for this stretch. I, by now, know that this is the beauty of the bike trips. So, again I started maneuvering around and slowly got rid of the congestion and hit the downward spiral and finally on to the straight roads and I was overjoyed. I had lost lot of time and now balance tilted not in my favour. I wrung the throttle and was honking horn incessantly and was blasting my way through the intersections. Broad day light helped me to anticipate any sudden emergence around intersections. I could not imagine riding like that in the night. I took couple of minute-long butt breaks to stretch. Slowly I was being saddle-sored I took a five-minutes break when my trip meter showed 999.9 kms somewhere before kolhapur. I hydrated myself with lot of water and Gatorade. Resumed my ride at 1.33 pm. I had 9 hours to cover 610 kms. Simple maths showed I had to maintain an avergae of 68 kmph. But, I knew i had a daunting task at hand. At the same time, the thought of Kolhapur-Belgaum stretch cheered me up and boosted the confidence. I would like to say that how this stretch is utilized, along with Belgaum-Dharwad and Hubli-Davangere stretches, decide whether you can crack the saddle sore or not.

Long stretches of well-laid tarmac welcomed me as soon as I crossed Kolhapur. I maintained a good speed of around 110 kmph, and this stretch was my saviour and this would help me to make up for the loss of time I had suffered earlier. It was getting extremely hot and I could smell the burning rubber. My Avenger was guzzling gasoline. Stopped for a fuel-refill near Nippani. Also, quenched my thirst. Break lasted for about fifteen minutes. Stretched a bit in the shade. At 2.40 pm resumed my ride towards belgaum. I darted past Belgaum, reached Dharwad and continued towards Hubli. The single road and traffic were slowing me down. Joint pains were slowly creeping in. Especially my left shoulder and left wrist started paining more. Fatigue was setting in. Took a break near a toll plaza between Dharwad-Hubli route. Time showed 4.26 pm. Trip meter showed 224.2 kms (Which actually is 1224.2 kms). I felt I was slowly falling behind the schedule. Drank lot of water. Resumed the ride at 4.36 pm. Rode non-stop at a good solid pace of around 110 kmph till the fuel level fell into reserve mode. Avenger, I guess, was feeling the heat and was devouring more gasoline than ever. Refilled near Haveri at 5.45 pm. this fuel station did not have the computer billing facility. Got the hand-written bill and resumed the ride. On way to Davangere, a stupid guy riding without any safety gear, was upto some circus, and was riding in a zig-zag way, and paid no attention to the horn yelling at him. I missed him by a whisker. What a jerk!!!

I crossed Davangere at around 6.30 pm. Cool evening breeze made me feel sleepy for the first time during the ride. I immediately pulled over. Stretched a bit. Took out Red bull. I was drinking this so-much-heard-about energy drink for the first time in my life. Gulped one down. Had an energy bar and darted towards bangalore via Chitradurga and Tumkur. Pain increased in my left shoulder. I slung the backpack on my right shoulder, and I regretted not having a saddle bag for this trip.This time I was very careful about the hump and knew where exactly it was located. Crossed Chitradurga around 7.35 pm. I had three hours to cover around 150 kms to reach 1610 kms mark. But odds were it was a night-ride and high beams hitting my eyes were making me totally blind to road ahead. I called up Bhaskaran. Told him about where I am. I told him that I am gonna finish the ride within stipulated time and told him to be at a point which was around forty kilometers from bangalore. He agreed and told me to ride safe. I refilled again after Chitradurga, but forgot to collect the receipt as I was in a hurry to resume the ride. I just could not see what was ahead because of high beams from vehicles coming from he other end. I just opened the visor to get a clear view, and something hit my face like a bullet right below my right eye. I was wondering what it was, and lowered the visor down. Again, couple of such objects follwed by few more hit the helmet visor and Avenger's wind shield. A mini truck was moving ahead of me loaded with sheep and I took my bike next to the truck and realised that objects hitting me and my Avenger were nothing but pieces of sheep crap. I simply could not control my laugh and was laughing loudly and that laughter was a huge relief to my aching system.

I was not able to sit anymore in one position for more than five minutes and back portion was paining like hell. I changed positions quite frequently and at one point I literally was on the pillion seat, and another time I was literally standing. Once, i tried the Burt munro style from my favourite 'World's fastest Indian' movie as well and loved it I am sure couple of guys who sped past me in their cars cursed me for the antics I was displaying, and couple of stares said it all. What did they know what I was upto and what I was going through, and what anyone in the world thought about me at that time, I could not care any less. In the mean time, when I was struggling to see what lay ahead of me, and I was again entering the under-repair sections interwined with diversions, a Tata-Safari and a Qualis went past me and they were going at a good speed. I thanked them for arriving just in time. I maintained about forty meters distance from those vehicles and set my eyes on their tail-lamps and jsut blindly followed them. And, this was good ploy and worked perfectly. I was covering good distance at decent speed, without worrying much about the speed-breaker humps. I could smell the soil and it was an indication that it had rained in that region. I came across few wet patches. I prayed to god that I did not want rain at that time. Wet surface is another nighmare to Avenger. I crossed Tumkur around 9.25 pm and I had about an hour to cover forty kms to complete the ride. I parted ways from the guiding vehicles (Angels) near a toll plaza. I upped the speed. I did not want to relax. I did not want to be casual. I reached 1610 kms mark around 9.55 pm. I punched the air with my fist. I was jubilant and thrilled. I had achieved what I had set out for. What a relief. Wow.What a joy

I started looking for fuel stations. All the fuel stations were located on the other side. I rode further and then took a U-turn and entered a fuel station. Trip meter showed 620 kms (1620 kms). Without inquiring whether they have computer-generated bils, I filled petrol worth 200 bucks and then I was told that the dont have the computer billing. I cursed myself for stupidity. I still had another half an hour to go before stipulated time ended. I inquired about next fuel station which was about five kms ahead. Rode to the next station. I got the receipt and this time with my vehicle number on it. All other stations did not know how to punch in my vehicle number on the bill. I ended my ride at 10.12 pm, 25 mins before the stipulated time. Took a pic of the receipt along with odometer. Called home and informed that I successfully completed the ride. I also found an ATM in the fuel station and this machine dispensed the receipt.In the mean time my friends came and congratulated me at the fuel station. They hugged me with joy. I was excited. We took pics. My face was battered by dust, wind and sun. My eyes were blood shot. But, I forgot all the pain in the joy of triumph. Talked to my pals for quite sometime. Then, headed back home. Reached home by 1.15 am. Patted my Avenger for what it has achieved in last 24 hours. I am madly in love with my steed now. To me, the best bike in this world. Talked to my family who were extremely happy at what I have done and also called me nuts for attempting something like this. My joy knew no bounds. I offered my prayers and obeisance to Gods. Took my mom's blessings. Carefully kept all the receipts, logs and forms in the cupboard. Logged into XBHP, opened a thread and typed just one sentence that I returned a while back ( due to which thread was closed ), and crashed. Slept like a baby

I would like to thank everyone who contributed in every way to make this ride a success.I am going to apply for IBA saddle sore certification by this weekend with all required documentation and hope to get the rewards soon.

I took very few pics during this ride (due to lack of time) and most of the pics are of the fuel receipts at the beginning, turn-around and end points. But whatever pics I have I would upload them very soon and I tender my apologies in advance for the poor quality of few pics.

I wish all the best to everyone attempting saddle sore. This ride has given me a great experience about endurance rides. I hope my trip log would be of some use to all the aspirants.

Thanks for patiently going through this log. One more trip to western ghats (Kodachadri), A trip across Karnataka, Bun-burner and Leh-Ladakh are next on my wish list. But, they would have to wait for some time.

Time for me to soak in the joy and recuperate from all the sweet pain emanating from my body.

Following are the trip details in brief:

Steed: Avenger 220
Route: Nelamangala-Wakad (Pune)-Nelamangala
Start time and date- 22:37, 4th May 2012
End time and date - 22:12, 5th May 2012
Distance covered - 1624.6 kms (1662 kms as per IBA since they have their own way to calculate actual distance)
Average speed - 69.57 kmph
Avergae mileage - 28/29 kmpl
Overall expense - Rs. 5300 (Which includes all the stuff purchased for the ride)

Good luck to everyone. Ride safe. God bless

Sorry for poor picture quality


From right to left: my friends and me, at the ending point:





Finally my IRON

Great buddy. Congratulations. It has been in the back of my mind since forever. But You have inspired me to pursue it again. I did Kodachadri ride from Hyderabad and it took 16 hours on the saddle and I was still fresh despite bad roads. made me think i must do this also. Came across your thread for ownership and found this thread.
I will plan for this and do it maybe sometime near April-May before the Rains.
calculated fuel cost is around 6000 with 24+ mileage.

Thanks Arpan. Rules of the game have changed for Indian rides. Please check with IBA India facebook group.

thanks buddy.