Lovely Trip log, lovely pics... Awesome....

start recall my days at jodhpur,yes there are some amazing polo (prof) players who are recognised by whole world.

Thanks Ravi glad you enjoyed it.

Thank you Jerrin

Thanks mate

Day-11: Jaipur to Bhilwara

Route: Jaipur-Kishangarh-Nasirabad-Bhilwara


Jaipur has got a huge list of places to visit and for tourist's delight they all are queued up in one direction of the city. Hotel owner has helped me with the list and visiting sequence starting from Amer fort which opens as early as 8am. Roads were not so confusing as Jodhpur so it was a bit easy to find the way to Amer fort and I was there by 8.15am. Stuck with awe when I first saw the huge fort and elephants climbing up were looking like ants . Had breakfast and chose to climb up by foot to burn some calories and also the best way to enjoy every bit of it. Got a ticket (50 bucks) which will include entry to 5 places in the city.








If its a fort, pigeons are a must






More than people's it will be difficult for them to carry their own weight up there









They are so discipline





















Los turistas



Great wall of Amer??






After detailed rounds on Amer fort, moved on to Jaigarh fort which is next in the checklist. Both these forts are next to each other actually. Above said ticket doesn't include Jaigarh fort, so one has to buy a separate ticket for self and camera. Apart from the Big Jaivana canon there is nothing much to see in the Jaigarh port. It was so deserted and hardly any tourists around.








World famous 'Jaivana' where the test canon shot has travelled 35kms and it was never used again. That sound has killed several animal and birds in the surroundings.











Moved on from there towards Nahargarh fort which is 5kms away from Jaigarh. This fort stands on top of the hill and got nice city views from its windows.

















View of Jalmahal on the way back from Nahargarh fort.





Next place on the checklist was kanak bhag aka Vrindhavan. Just another garden which is maintained very neatly and seems to have painted recently .
Man, what a gift this is to find places one next to the other. Jaipur is a real treat for eyes. It was around 1pm by the time I reached here and so far Jaipur was the hottest city in Rajasthan. I was sweating for the first time after so many days..











While coming back from there, Jalmahal is just next to the main road. It can't get better than this.





Moved and from there and City palace comes in no time. Once you enter inside, its pinkooo pink everywhere but a delight to watch.


























From the other gate of City palace, one can go to Jantar mantar which is a must visit in Jaipur. Being a part of World heritage list, this was very informative with different instruments used to calculate time, eclipse etc.














An example of how close these places are, the fort on top of that hill is Nahargarh.









Hawamahal is also just next to Jantar Mantar. Really need not to search for places here.



Enter city palace again to come out from the other entrance.









Last but not the least was the famous Hawa mahal which is one of the worst maintained than the city palace in Jaisalmer. Very hard to find entrance as the entire lane was covered with shops. By mistake I was going inside the City commissioner office and a cop stopped me asking 'cant you see the board'? Heights of cloning you know . Hawa Mahal a 5 storey building called as the palace of winds. Congested with the tourists and school children.











Is the bike safe??









With this, the check list comes to end and I came back to hotel around 5pm. Thought of staying overnight at Jaipur but again considering these palace timings in Rajasthan I had to make sure that evening times are utilized by riding so that morning times can be covered visiting the places. Packed things, checked out of hotel and moved on towards Udaipur. I wasn't sure of road conditions so thought of travelling as much as I can and stay at some place on the way. Zipped through Kishangarh and enquired truck drivers about road conditions towards Bhilwara, they told its all 4 lane and I can do it easily. Mad truck traffic all the way but without much troubles I reached Bhilwara around 9pm which was almost deserted. Hardly anybody to ask for directions and after some roaming finally found a hotel near railway station. Surprisingly Bhilwara was as cold as Jaisalmer, I was shivering even after 2 layers of blankets. Uff!! last few days I have been running behind time to keep up with the schedule. Hope things will fall in place from tomorrow.

Jay, that's one heck of a ride.The fact that you undertook such a long ride and all alone is inspirational. Felt sorry while going through your Rann-Ride.Nevertheless, nice informative trip log with great captures

Re: 6500 Kms and 6 states of West India

Thanks a lot Raghu..

Day-12: Bhilwara to Udaipur

Route: Bhilwara-Chittorgarh-Udaipur


It wasn't a pleasant sleep last night, something was haunting me like in a horror movie. Was freezing cold outside and I was awake by 5.30am. Pushed myself to take bath and bucket-mug didn't workout so turned on the hot water tap and sat under it for almost 30 mins, aaah!! what a pleasure no mood to come out of it because the moment I turn off the tap that cold weather was freezing me out. Finally hotel guy came knocking the door thinking that I have forgot to close the tap .


Checked out of hotel and started to find my way to the main road. Not even 15 mins of ride from there and my hands weren't able to sense anything. Badly needed a break and stopped by a roadside Dhaba for tea. Shivering cold+Ginger tea is a perfect match, every sip down the throat was pumping hot air out of my ears. 1 cup wasn't enough, when I asked for the 2nd, chai wala gave a look like "Thand me lagg gayi kya?" . With much difficulty in the cold weather, reached Chittorgarh and headed towards Victory Pillar. Reached parking area and asked the guard if I can leave the luggage and go inside, he said to keep the bike next to him as monkeys there are notorious and flick off things if left alone.





First view of the Victory Pillar, massive it was!!

















From there, had breakfast and reached Udaipur without any hassles. 4 Lanes all the way and then the city was so congested. Just kept moving with the arrow marks towards city palace but the roads were getting narrow and narrow. Decided to get out of those messy streets and find some decent hotel. Finally settled with hotel Kanchan palace which is around 2-3kms from the city palace. Freshened up and took a rick to city palace as parking the bike in those busy streets is not a good idea.














Did they really use this??









Chetak!!















Made with Ivory






Rehearsal for tonight's wedding











Pichola lake






As big as my lens can't capture it.



Took almost 3-4 hours to come out of the palace and I was damn hungry as it was late for lunch. Had a nice Rajasthani Thali, took a walk back to hotel to digest it and for some rest till evening. Woke up somewhere around 7pm and went walking around to search for some local food. With a heavy dinner and lot of sweets headed back to hotel to catch up the missed sleep last night.





Day-13: The watery side of Rajasthan..coming soon

Re: 6500 Kms and 6 states of West India

Jay,

You have done such an awesome ride and stayed at so many wonderful places.
It would be great if you could share some brief info about accommodations you availed during this great journey, which, I am sure will be helpful to riders visiting these places.

Please share accommodation info here:

Budget hotels/ resorts/ home-stays/ motels for motorcycle tourers

Re: 6500 Kms and 6 states of West India

Day-13: Udaipur to Dhule

Route: Udaipur-Jaisamand-Salambur-Banswara-Ratlaam-Palasner-Dhule


6am and its the morning of uncertainty for me. Journey till now was the major part and I had a well written plan only till Udaipur. From here the target was to reach back home and cover a couple of places that come in between to kill the boredom. It took 12 days for me to come till here but I have only 3 days to get back. So the race against time begins right here and I zoom in the Google maps for the next closest checkpoint on the return route. First target was to reach Banswara through the most shortest route and had no clue of the route condition whatsoever. Did some minor checks on the bike, topped up engine oil and I kick start a journey where everything I encounter from now will be new and a learning.


Reached till outskirts of the city and asked a guy for way to Banswara. He didn't quite catch the name for the first time, so I had to repeat it twice and thrice then he says "Ohhh!! Banswara?? Oh yeha thodi hain, bahut door jana parega" I was like 'Abhe Bose D K, I know that!! how to go there?' but had no freedom to tell that on his face. So, went to a traffic police who asked me to go in a route which was quite jammed because of a local bus. With the gear lever going up down up down for sometime and then road started to get lonely and empty. I was sensing of getting into a forest and soon saw the wild life warning board. Ohh ho ho!!, what way to start, superb, narrow, curvy, lonely road through the green forests teaches me about another shade of Rajasthan. I was thinking, if there is a forest, there definitely should be water resources around and soon I get to witness a lot and lots of them.


First view of a water reservoir in Rajasthan



While on the way I read a familiar name which says "Jaisamand-5kms". After a while it flashed to my mind that I read this name yesterday when I googled for 'Places to visit in Udaipur' I thought this might be somewhere inside the city but was little happy to see it is on the way. Actually this lake seems to be a back waters of some dam, so we need to climb up the hill to see a lake.





Jaisamand fort- had enough of palaces, forts, museums. Not this one again. So, just clicked it from far.



Had breakfast and moved on from there to Salambur. It was a little confusion with the route inside the town but road opens up right from here. Two lane but seems like widened and freshly laid. I was wondering about such a beautiful road in interior places but with in no time I saw a toll booth, which gives a sign that, this will the road condition till Banswara. I was so relieved at that point of time. Came across so many canals which shows that greener side of Rajasthan.





Clicked the below pic when stopped for a pee break where actually found that I was peeing from top of that bridge into a graveyard and there was a just burnt dead body with tiny fumes were still coming out. S**t, no human movements insight and couldn't either stop the muthravisarjan process in between. So, just closed my eyes, gave entire pressure to finish and quickly moved away from there.





Somewhere around 15kms before Banswara, Road was under construction and they have dug up the existing road. It wasn't so easy to go on the tarmac flakes so the speeds were reduced to 15-20kmph. Slowly and steadily crossed Banswara entered Madhya Pradesh towards Ratlaam to catch the Indore Highway. Lot of time was wasted due the bad roads and they got better only around 20kms before Ratlaam. After that it was a beautiful 4 lane all the way and I stopped around 4pm for lunch. Checked in google maps for the next possible destination and Dhule was 300 kms away. Gave a thought and decided to push as much as I can and stay wherever I feel tired. Had a heavy lunch and started the race against time.


More and more water in this part of Rajasthan





Entering Madhya Pradesh. That was just a 100 meters of good road at the end of Rajasthan





Lunch



Crossing the Vindhyan mountain Ranges which means no more cold wind blasts from now.



With some good speed, finally reached Dhule at 9.30pm and stopped at outskirts for tea. That tea shop owner guided me on how to find a hotel inside the city and asked to rush as they might close it off early. Went inside the city and the very first hotel had only dorm room available but the entire room was free. I was so tired to find another hotel at that point of time so had accepted it as no one else will be there with me. Just 200 bucks and was comfortable enough to spend the night. Today's ride was tiresome with 600+kms and some bad roads So, left all the things scattered and slept off unknowingly.


Day-14: How bad a ride can turn into..keep an eye

Re: 6500 Kms and 6 states of West India

Day-14: Dhule to Beed

Route: Dhule-Chalisgaon-Ellora-Aurangabad-Beed


Even after a tiresome ride, I was the first one to wake up in the entire hotel. No more shivering cold in this part of India so that was a pleasant sleep after so many days. Got ready and started my journey towards Aurangabad. Deja vu!! 4 lane was only till Dhule and after that one has to take a diversion towards Aurangabad which is a two lane road. Narrow road which goes through foggy green fields with sun just popping out was like a bliss. Stopped by a road side shack for breakfast, enquired about road conditions for the next destination "Ellora" and moved on towards Chalisgoan.





Just before the ghats, cops stopped me and was asking something in Marathi.


Cop: @#$$%%^&*()
Me: Hindi, Hindi
Cop: Aah, Hindi!! Acha..Remove your helmet (Commanding)
Me: Removed the helmet and asked what happened.
Another cop: Where are you coming from?
Me: Dhule
Cop: Where are you going now?
Me: Ellora, taking my license and RC book out.
Cop: Its Ok, we know you will have all the documents. Just stopped to see the bike as it was big and looking weird with luggage.
Me: Deep breath to control.


With a bit of detailing about my trip and a million dollar 'mileage' question, they wished me all the best and advised to ride carefully in the ghats. Started climbing the Chalisgaon ghats and it was spectacular. Looks like Grand Canyons of Maharastra. It had waterfall marks at a lot of places which means this will be a heaven during monsoons. Roads were very narrow that two trucks cannot pass by at any of the corner.








Reached Ellora and enquired at ticket counter If I can leave the luggage somewhere and go till the caves. He told we can keep it in the canteen and then go by bike. Left the luggage there (charged Rs.40) and moved on to cave numbers 30-34 which is the farthest from starting point and then started coming down from there. I'm falling short of words to describe the beauty of these sculptures. So, lets the pics talk now.









































These two are common for most of the entrances









Cave no.16, Kailasa temple. Such a beauty it was


















Walked around all the caves like a mad dog, had lunch at the very same canteen and moved from there towards Aurangabad. Went ahead around 5 kms and people coming from the other direction were waving their hands not to go. I stopped and enquired an auto driver who told that there is an accident at the ghats ahead, a gas tanker had tipped over and they are not allowing people to go suspecting gas leakage. Asked him if there is any other way to go to Aurangabad and he told I have to go back till Ellora and take the Pachapirwadi -Devgad route. With no options, I headed back and found the alternative way.


A common view in this part of world.



Passed through the busy roads of Aurangabad under scorching sun. Stopped somewhere at the outskirts to adjust the chain and moved on towards Solapur. Roads after that got even narrower and lot of bullock carts with sugar canes were queued up all the way. It was very tough to over take those carts with oncoming vehicles. After some distance I found a sugar mill which gave a big relief that all the carts would end up here but I was wrong. There were carts coming from the other side of the mill as well. Uff!! had a tough time and then eventually they faded away.


River Godavari, life for so many people.



Every thing was going smooth and I was enjoying the head turners at my bike. All of sudden I heard kirrrrrr kich kich turrr tuduk tuduk and ZMR halts. I was astonished as what in this world would have sounded so loud?? first I thought something would have got stuck at the rear wheel or chain but it was all fine. Started the bike and found that weird sound was actually from the Engine :surprise:. It starts but with squeaky noise and couldn't make out what could the problem. I wasn't able to believe that moment. India's most trusted engine gave up?? It took a while for me to come to reality, its that feeling when you feel like crying but you control it. Tried to move the bike but gear wasn't shifting, thought gears might have got jammed so started looking out for help and finally a 7 seater auto was coming from the other direction. Stopped him and enquired if there is any Hero showroom near by, he told YES and we have to go till Gevrai which is 7kms away from there. Explained him about the situation and begged him if he can tow me till there. He accepted and tied a nylon thread to the forks and started the Auto. Phaaat...thread got cut, it wasn't strong enough to pull the bike. So he puts double folded knot and tied it tightly this time. I sat on the bike holding the clutch all the way @ 10-15 kms speed and syncing the brakes with auto. I was looking like Joker to everyone, there wasn't a single person who looked at me and didn't laugh


Finally reached the Hero showroom at Gevrai and the thread got cut once again without putting any efforts to remove it. Paid the auto guy and went inside the service station explaining the situation and asked if they can help me out. Mechanic out there asked me to wait for manager. Around 5 mins later that so called manager came, sees my bike and says, ohh! this one got a disc break at the rear too!! I was was like WTF!! which world I have landed into?? Explained him as what happened and he told the mechanic to check. He started bike, there was no noise now, he tried to shift the gear, everything was smooth!!!. Again explained him clearly on what has happened but he says they do not have tools or trained mechanic for ZMR and asked me to go another 30kms to a city called Beed where I can get this done. Told him to check the engine oil and change if required, they checked and said everything is fine and I can go till Beed without any issues.








With the hope they gave, I rode on from there but that noise was popping out whenever I try to change the gear. Stopped multiple times but use to start again. Went around 15kms like that and this time the sound was even louder and bike stopped like as if it has hit a wall. It didn't move even an inch, just dragged it to the side of the road with rear wheel locked and put it on the side stand. That's it!! engine oil started leaking out near the front sprocket faster than it comes from the drain bolt. My heart was pounded!! and tears were at the edge to roll down. Sat at the roadside for sometime for the bitter truth to sink in and started looking for help again. Stopped an auto guy who was bit hesitating to come till Beed and cribbing that he has come empty from the that side and the Hero showroom is too far in the city and all. I let him go, and stopped another auto guy who accepted the deal and the towing comes into picture once again.





It got dark when I finally reached the Hero showroom in Beed and they were almost closing down. Auto driver himself explained what has happened and requested them to check my bike. A senior mechanic there started the bike and straight away told that the "Clutch shaft bearing" is gone and asked if engine oil has leaked. When I said YES, he told 'then engine casing is also gone', opened the front sprocket and showed the actual picture as what had happened. The clutch shaft bearing has broken inside the engine and drilled out the engine case. I was lost, my head started going round and round. He told it will not be possible to open the engine today, tomorrow is sunday (holiday) and the bike can be attended only on Monday. I was not pleased with that answer and explained him about the situation that I need to be back in Bangalore by Monday and get back to office. They gave me two options, one is to leave the bike there, go by bus and collect it next week or to put it in a truck and go to Bangalore and get it repaired there. Thought for sometime and I couldn't find any person who can help me out there. Called Pradeep from Sai motors (Bangalore) he told it will be best to bring it over a truck and he will take care of it. Phanikar also insisted to do the same. I wasn't so happy with that option but there was no better choice either. Finally made up my mind told the showroom people I will take to Bangalore. As a helping hand, they told that one of mechanic who works there has got a lorry transport office as well and he can help me out with that. That guy came and told that his truck is not there today but one of his friends truck will be leaving to Bangalore in another 1 hour. I accepted and that senior mechanic has put Mseal to the hole on the engine case so that the remaining oil doesn't come out. Another mechanic rode my bike through the confusing city roads till his friend's truck while I was following him on his Hero Hunk.


That's what happened. Bearing ball peeping out of the hole.



Time was around 9pm. We reached there and for my dismay that was already a fully loaded truck with wooden logs and they told will be putting my bike on top of it (safely). They quoted 3000 bucks which is a total loot but I accepted that as well considering the situation. Next task is to get the bike on to truck. They planned it so many ways but the bike was too heavy to be lifted onto a loaded truck. They ran around and gathered few people for help and everyone were giving their own ideas. One says to take it on the sand heaps and then build a wooden bridge to push it on the truck. Another says to bring a crane and put it but nothing seems to be working. I was so pissed off with their actions and told them its ok I will find my own way to transport it. Tried to google for 'Logistics in Beed' but the phone battery got over and it switched off. Man!! how bad one's luck can get?? Enquired one of the guy from the group of people who gathered to help, if there are any transport options like VRL or GATI are available in that city. He told there are lot of transport offices but he is not sure whether they would be open at this time. He enquired with his friends, collected few phone transport office phone numbers but none of them were responding. Whilst, I have explained him about the entire scene and he asked me to come with him and he will find some options. Took my bike and followed him to his friend's place which was very interior and deadly. I was afraid at this moment, there is no track if they mob me. Later he and his friend came saying that I might have to wait till tomorrow morning but not sure if any transport office will be open on Sunday. I kept quiet for sometime, thought 'I came riding so far, now whatever happens I will get the bike ready and 'ride' it back home'. Asked them if there are any local mechanics who can check my bike. They were so kind to check with some of their friends and finally found a mechanic's phone number and called him. In no time, that mechanic came and enquired about the situation and he promised that he can work on the engine only if its company sealed one. I said yes, he agreed and went to get the garage keys and rode my bike till his garage. I came along with the other two on a their chetak.


Time was around 10pm, I was hungry and relieved at the same time that I got somebody to check my bike. Mechanic called his assistant and told him come to garage immediately and I was impressed at the speed they opened the fairing and got the engine down!! and he had got knowledge about FI as well so I was confident that he will not screw anything. While I was chatting with the other two guys about the trip, a middle aged guy came there pushing his bike. After knowing about the situation he assured me that I came to the best mechanic in this city and my bike will back to life soon. He also told that he is from police department, showed his ID card and told me not to be afraid because all these guys are Muslims, told they all are good and I'm in safe hands. I said nothing like that but he overtook the conversation and said nothing to worry about and asked the other two guys to take me for dinner and help me to find a hotel. Other two guys called one more guy to get his bike and they took me to a hotel which is famous for Biriyani, then helped me to find a hotel and dropped me back at the garage. Oh dear!! who said Humanity is dead in this world??!. Just thanking them will not be enough, I owe them big time.





By this time mechanic has opened the engine and called one of his known spare parts shop owner to open his shop to procure the broken bearing. That guy came in sometime, opened his shop at midnight and gave the bearing. All this is being done just for me? I cant believe that things are happening so positively for me after going through so much. He also told that engine sealing has come off very nicely so I need not to buy a new one. Also, the hole can be filled with mseal which will be stronger enough to hold the heat and I can ride back without any problems. I told ok and he applied mseal on the engine case and told, let it dry and we can just fit the engine back in the morning and I can ride back without any problems.











That's the man, with white tee.



Time was around 1.30am, he dropped me at the hotel and gave directions on how to come to garage tomorrow and said he will start the work by 6am. When I lie down on he bed, today's flashback was of mixed feelings. Just believe that whatever happens is for good and hopefully I can get the bike ready and ride back to home.


Lesson learnt: One who gets on to the road is never alone.


Day-15: Picture abhi baaki hain-coming soon

Re: 6500 Kms and 6 states of West India

Am happy you got the right people, hoping all the best for you and your bike.

----consecutive posts auto-merged-----

Hahah these are the rural lands where Splendour, Discover even Suzuki max100 rule.

Re: 6500 Kms and 6 states of West India

Thanks Yeah, I learnt the last line in my log by coming across those people..

Re: 6500 Kms and 6 states of West India

6500 KMS of Pure Awesomeness!!...Nice log brother!!..Loved reading it!!..And you are very lucky to get such good people @ BEED..Unbelievable!! Keep it coming!!

Re: 6500 Kms and 6 states of West India

Wow!! That's an amazing journey!! Very nice pictures... I started reading it and just got addicted to it.

Riding alone and something goes terribly wrong with the bike is the worst that can happen on such rides. Unfortunately you did experienced such an ill fated situation. I don't know what I would have done in such situation. Salute to your courage not just for the unfortunate incident but for the whole ride as well. Luckily you found such helpful people at the time when needed. May the luck be on your side always !! Wish you good luck and really a great log and awesome pics there !! Good going !!

Ride safe and be safe !!

Re: 6500 Kms and 6 states of West India

Thanks Pavan

Thanks Neeteesh

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Day-15: Beed to Beed

That was not a night to sleep and it was very long. I was waking up every 10-20 mins to check if the clocked has ticked 6am. When its 5.45am, I couldn't resist any more, got freshened up, took a rick and went to Garage. Bang on, Mechanic was just opening the garage shutter when I reached there. He straight away picked up the parts and started fixing one by one, Mseal has dried up and become as strong as steel now. I kept watching him silently like a obedient student. Slowly traffic has picked up and engine is almost fixed. We just need to get that back on the chassis and I will be ready to ride


The culprit, this is what was left, everything else was grinded inside the engine.



Struggling with the timing chain.



Engine was put back on the chassis and started for test ride, there was still little noise coming out of the engine but he told it might be grinding the mseal and would be fine after sometime. That was a convincing answer and everything was fine apart from that noise. Around 12pm I was all set to go, after a never ending thanks and exchanging phone numbers, I left the place praying god to take me home without any issues.


Back on Saddle



Slowly moved on towards Solapur. As the kms pass by, bike started giving jerks again whenever I down shift and gets back to normal when I speed up. Came almost 60 kms away from Beed and more trouble was waiting for me. Sound gradually increased in all the gears and I was loosing confidence making it to home in this condition, crossed a small ghat section with the same and stopped at a Dhaba for lunch. Did some testing and it seems to be the same problem as yesterday's. Engine will be smooth when I dis-engage the clutch and starts making grinding noise when I engage it back. I was blank for sometime, tried calling the mechanic multiple times but he was not picking up. Taking the bike back to Beed doesn't seem to be a good option as I might get struck again for the day. Enquired few truck drivers if there is any empty vehicle going to Bangalore. They told me to go ahead for around 5kms and there is another ghat section where trucks would be halting and I can enquire there. Being confused with these two options, my hunger subsided and couldn't even eat half roti. I almost made up my mind to take the bike to next ghat section and enquire with the truck drivers. When I was about to leave, I got a call and it was THE mechanic. Explained him the situation and my whereabouts, he told not to worry and get the bike back to Beed riding down slowly.


The ride back to Beed was the worst ever. Fearing each and every millimetre of it that the bike shouldn't stop and cursing every obstacle that's making me to shift the gears. After struggling for almost 2 hours, finally reached the mechanic's place with a big sign of relief. He just started the bike and said the bearing is gone again!!! called that last night's spare part shop guy and asked if its a duplicate bearing. The moment he said "YES", gaali session started from the mechanic. Calmed him down and asked to find some alternatives so that the problem can be fixed. He got the engine down in a Jiffy and asked his assistants to open the parts and we both went to search for bearing. Being a Sunday there were no authorized dealer's open to source the original SKF bearing and we went around shop after shop. Finally, found a NBC bearing which is good enough to go and got it for a lot cheaper price than what I paid last night for the duplicate SKF bearing.


Superbike, Without engine






Duplicate bearing which got burnt



Entire picture after this was like a recap of yesterday and bike was back to shape by 6pm. Took it through some harsh test riding of around 15kms and found everything is fine. Yes, there was no noise as such this time.Riding back in night wasn't a wise option in such a condition so decided to stay there for that night at leave early morning. Mechanic sent his assistant to help me with luggage at hotel and they didn't accept a single penny this time, not even a Biriyani . Called up my manager and told him I cannot make to office tomorrow. Finally ended up the day with a delicious Chicken Biriyani with a relief that I can reach home tomorrow. Time to catch some missed out sleep.


Day-16: New day new problems. Coming soon.

Re: 6500 Kms and 6 states of West India

Day-16: Beed to Bangalore

Route: Beed-Osmanabad-Solapur-Bijapur-Hubli-Davangere-Bangalore

It was a peaceful night upto an extent. If everything goes well, only target for today is to reach home. No matter how long the journey would be. 5.45am and I'm all set to leave Beed wishing all the best to myself. Quickly passed through the streets of city leaving those mixed memories behind. Riding at 60-70kmph through those beautiful 2 lanes and crouching every five minutes to listen if any noise is coming from the engine. The only signboard that's building my confidence was "Pude gaon aahe, vaahan allu chalao" which ensures that I can get some help in case something goes wrong. Had breakfast at a roadside shack near the Shirdi Junction and moved on.

Time was around 8.30am and I reached Osmanabad. Thought it would be better to change the engine oil as mechanic has mixed some diesel engine oil with the existing HH oil last night. Went ahead to Hero ASC and unfortunately they were just opening and I have to wait till 9am. As there were no options till Solapur, felt its better wait. Everyone took their own sweet time to reach and it was almost 10am by the time they attended my bike, took so long just for an oil change and worst thing after that is they do not accept cards. Didn't have enough cash and they told ATM is near bus stand and I have to catch a auto rickshaw to go there. I was already getting delayed and on top of that all these unwanted things.

Came out, hired an auto to bus stand, Kept wallet in hand and Debit card on top of it. On the way before bus stand, found an ATM across the road and told auto driver to stop, paid him quickly and rushed to the other side. Went inside the ATM and was shocked to see my Debit card was not there checked on the road but no luck, the only place I could have lost is in the auto and I couldn't find any in vicinity. I was completely clueless as what to do at that moment as I had all the money only in that account. Now in this unknown city, the only clue I had was that auto has got a "red seat cover". Ran some distance to find any but no use, quickly got into another auto and tried to chase him down, went around 2kms ahead of the bus stand but couldn't find a single auto with the above clue. Auto driver refused to go further as he didn't have uniform and police will catch him. Had no time to convince him, quickly got into another one and headed towards bus stand again. This auto driver told its not possible to search like this, took me to the nearest traffic police and left me there saying they would help me to catch that guy. Explained my situation to the traffic cops and about the only clue I had. They told not to panic, wait here for 5 mins as all the auto rickshaws in that city will be roaming around bus stand and they can easily catch him.

Within no time, that auto guy himself came to the traffic cop saying something in Marathi, they had a short conversation and the translation says, 'some lady police in civil dress has got into his auto once I got down, she found my Debit card and told him that she would hand it over in the police station'. He had dropped her at GH and we have to go there quickly if we have to catch her. Rushed to GH and auto driver enquired few cops standing outside about the lady who is on duty and all those details and they gave me a hope that she would be somewhere inside. Went inside the hospital, checked on the ground and first floor but couldn't find her anywhere. I was slowly losing hopes on getting the card back and started thinking on alternatives. Finally auto guy traced her out near the emergency ward. After few rounds of enquiry and identity checks they gave my card back and that's a big sign of relief OMG!! what have I been doing from the past one hour?? chasing down an auto with silly clue in an unknown city!! standing on the road with traffic police!! running around local GH!! Uff!! looks like a movie.

Asked the auto driver to drop me back, acknowledged the traffic police who helped earlier and finally reached ASC. Whatever s**t I have gone through this trip has ended up finding good human beings who deserve a ton of thanks from me. Thanked the auto driver a lot, went inside the ASC and they were surprised to see me back so late. Sarcastically told 'I had been to a movie' cleared the bill and got out from there. Each and every mile of the ride from there looked like an achievement.

Wounded Warrior, coming back home with a hole in the heart "Chetak" would be the apt name


Karnataka welcomes, that brings a smile


Reached Bijapur around 4pm and stopped for lunch. There are two options for me now, one is to go via Hospet-Chitradurga which is a two lane and another one is to go till Hubli and catch the NH4 for a tension free ride. I wasn't confident of doing any speeds more than 70kmph fearing something might go wrong again. Chances of getting help on the Hospet road is less compared to NH4, so I chose to play safe. Headed towards Hubli with constant speeds and reached there by dusk. By this time mechanic had called me 3-4 times to check if there are issues. Called him back, informed my whereabouts and told bike is doing good so far. Called up home and informed that I would be reaching late (hopefully) .



Clock was ticking 8pm when I finally came out of Hubli and from there on, it was a problem free ride all the way. Stopped at a roadside Dhaba for dinner and then a non-stop ride till Bangalore. 900+kms @ 60-70kmph and I finally reached home at 3.30am. The moment of reckoning that I'm back home, I rode it all the way!! It was an emotional unpacking for the last time, gave the bike a gentle tap saying "I would get you back to form, no matter what". Such a lovely memory this ride has turned out for me.

While I continue to write this log for 5+ months, had visited ASC for 11 times with never ending issues and listing the below changes. Some of the things are still being done FOC and yeah the bike is out of warranty period . I must thank Sai Motors for the courtesy nevertheless.

1) Crank case (left side)
2) Gear shaft
3) 2nd and 5th gears
4) Main shaft bearing
5) New Cylinder-piston kit.
6) Clutch plates (entire kit)
7) Tappet bolts & O-rings
8) Lifter Assy Tensioner
9) So many other things with general maintenance.

Hoping the list ends with this That's it from me.