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**antz.bin** · 11-23-2012, 12:50 AM

Thread Approved

Best of luck Ananth on your ride

Do keep the updates coming in.

**ridermax** · 11-23-2012, 12:01 PM

All the very best for the ride Ananth ! Looking forward to your blog ! Have a great and enjoyable ride !

Take Care & Ride Safe

**Satishrajdev** · 11-23-2012, 12:50 PM

best of luck...........be careful and be safe

**itsmevini123** · 11-23-2012, 01:59 PM

All the best buddy, will wait for the upcoming pictures...

**kripra2003** · 11-23-2012, 02:29 PM

All the best Ananth.... Be ready to Park your Harley in your Garage

**phanikar** · 11-23-2012, 02:55 PM

Originally posted by Ananth View Post

“There is no happiness for him who does not travel. Therefore, Wander!”

- Rig Veda, 1700 BC

Says it all

All the best buddy

**Ananth** · 11-23-2012, 07:46 PM

Thanks Guys. The Flag off was done last evening. Started my ride today morning, Had covered 365 Kilometers and camping near Yercaud Lake for the night. Its a really cold night here!

**harishkumarko** · 11-23-2012, 08:01 PM

Hope you are having a wonderful time camping in the woods. Wish you all the best!

**Ananth** · 11-24-2012, 08:36 AM

Day 0: The Flag Off...

The D Day is here! After all those nervous days and anxious nights, the ride is going to begin. The True Wanderer Ride was to be officially flagged off from the Wrangler Anna Nagar Store in Chennai this evening. A big round of thanks to all my friends who came up to the store to send me off amidst rain and in the middle of working hours.

I was given a quick tour of the store and the Wrangler's area manager did take his time off to explain the history and evolution of Wrangler as a brand. We did a photoshoot of the store and myself for publishing in the blogs and the media. By then officials from Indian Express had arrived to interview me about the ride and the focus of Wrangler in the True Wanderer Campaign. Since i had already been in the same campaign last year, it was more easier this time to express how much Wrangler has evolved from True Wanderer campaign 1.0 to 2.0. By 5 30 PM, I was flagged off from the Wrangler store by the store manager and area manager for Wrangler, along with all other staff, friends, and the gentlemen from the media. Once again, a big Thank You to every one who was present to cheer me up and send me off from the True Wanderer Ride's Flag off.

**Ananth** · 11-24-2012, 08:39 AM

Day 1: From Chaos to Tranquility...

It's time for the game to begin. A thousand thoughts, aspirations, and expectations have alone made way for this True Wanderer Ride. I could hardly get any sleep, just like any night before the ride. My eyes shut only around 1 30 AM, and the alarm rang at 4 30 AM. Few more snoozes here and there, the four-hour sleep concluded and I was off to get ready for the ride of my lifetime.

I freshened at my own pace since I did not want to push myself and take the ride at its own pace. My mom was also up by then and welcomed with a special coffee to brighten up things. I was all set by 6 00 AM, and it was raining hard early in the morning. I took rest for a while till the rain subsided. I started off from my home close to an hour later. Dad and mom, as usual, bid me their usual adieu for the ride.

Unexpectedly, all roads leading to the highway were chocked. May be for the Black Friday holiday rush to get out of Chennai. It was chaos out there, a literal dogfight for space on the road. This was the condition right from my home till I reached Sriperambudur, 50 kilometers away. Incessant rains, the smell of rain, mud, and the cool wind on the face made things much better after the roads became free.

I continued to ride on in slower speeds, to enjoy the ride and to be more cautious since the roads were wet and slippery. It was raining on and off. Wearing the water-repellant denim, I did not really care about the rain gears. Every now and then it would pour down completely soaking out my dresses. But then it would be all sunny in the next town which will dry them out on the ride itself. Much easier to have a comfortable jeans like this. I remembered the Kawasaki Wind motorcycle advertisement which portrayed the same concept of drying clothes on a ride.

I stopped after Vellore for my first break, to have some tea and snacks. Checking with the truckers about weather updates, it seemed like a lot of rain up ahead. Relentless I wanted to ride the whole day without wearing rain gear, even though I was with just a Mesh Riding Jacket (and a Wrangler Jacket for cold protection). Many kilometers passed, crossing through Ambur, Vaniyambadi, and finally to the deviation towards Yelagiri. The common route for Chennai - Yercaud is to go via Krishnagiri - Salem, which is 90% 4 Lane roads. There is no fun riding speeds above 100 kilometer per hour than to ride at a 60 kmph on state or village roads. I took the deviation after Vaniyambadi for Thiruppattur. I wanted to take the state highway connecting Tiruppattur - Harur - Salem. The road is really beautiful, trees all over the place making a canopy across the entire route. The condition of the road is not perfect, but there are enough corners, greenery, and vistas to keep the rider enjoy the ride. Some times, enjoying the ride matters more than the destination. Destination is just a choice for us to enjoy the ride!

The vistas were getting better and better. I chose to take a few detours to see how what village would come, to strike a conversation with the locals to know how life is in the peaceful side of the world. In most cases, the locals feel the contentness they have in these remote villages could never be achieved by living in corporate jungles or metropolitan cities. Just for the sake of getting lost, I kept wandering here and there - checking out places to shoot or to meet some locals, be it kids or elders. It is always fun to start a conversation, get more social and accustom to the place.

I kept riding on, enjoying the ride to the fullest. I crossed through Harur and went through a village called Kuppanur, which had a signboard for Yercaud. On checking with locals, I was told its a forest route - but not many take the route since the roads are narrow and hardly any people on the road for help or any emergency. Without a thought, I took the diversion and headed towards the forest route to Yercaud. Riding the ghats was not scary but a different experience, since there is no oncoming vehicle you get to know your corners more and there is always the smell of forest that keeps you alive. I took more than a hour to cover the 30 odd kilometers through the forest. Though not a dense one, it was calm and peaceful. The roads were in a very good shape. I reached Yercaud a little past 3 PM, and most of the hotels are booked owing to the long weekend.

I continued on the road visiting few local places of interest. As early as 4 PM, the fog started spreading down and the visibility levels were dropping. Since there was nothing more to see, I decided to return back to Yercaud town in search of accommodation. Hotel Tamil Nadu, had the rooms available. But they also had a camping ground where you could pitch your tent and light your own camp fire! I chose a Lake View space to camp, just around the dorm where the workers were staying. They helped me with some food and soup for dinner.

I had to wrap myself up with layers of clothes and the Wrangler Jacket to keep myself warm. It is one of the best experiences I have done, and proud to have done it myself. I blogged for the next couple of hours and bid adieu for the cold night...

.

GPS Log from the ride..
Chennai - Yercaud at EveryTrail

**sri.rtr160** · 11-25-2012, 11:53 AM

All the best bro..take care ..ride safe

have fun and we are waiting for more pictures

**Ananth** · 11-25-2012, 08:26 PM

Thanks. Will upload them soon. Dont forget to vote

**sri.rtr160** · 11-26-2012, 11:56 AM

ya sure...

**atul0204** · 11-26-2012, 09:16 PM

Great going bud. I have seen all your previous logs, believe me they are beautiful, wishing you a safe ride for rest of the leg.

Do ride safe and take care of yourself.

PS - please update us about the performance of Ninja once you come back from the trip.

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