Travelogue approved.

but the picture links are not working...

nice teaser,broken links.

@sunilg
Thanks for the approval sunil bro. I've reposted the links

@sanyank10
I've reposted bro, now pics are visible.

Fantastic looking KB everything looks stock

The original Kwacker...... Bring it on....

I'm glad to see your T'log here. You must have had one fun filled ride with KB100 which is amazing! Waiting for rest of the story.

@Dinesh.P
Thanks bro

@Guru_DTSi
Will be done soon.

@SriramEfunds
Thanks sir. A little held up. The trip log will be up tonight.

Speaking the truth its been years since i saw a stock KB most of them what I saw is either dying or crap.

I saw a blue KB in ooty it was driven by a old person the bike was stock even the paint (god faded) was stock. Sorry didn't take a photo of it

Needed a big break to get the stress out of me before exams. Had been planning to do Pichavarm but eventually found out that the ECR is too hot. So locked on Yelagiri since I saw it was a place where many bikers begun their biking days. Meanwhile I was also carefully loading the KB with all the essesntials and planned on the dates only after I was sure that the bike will hold on.
I was keen that this trip(2nd) must be better than Thekkady(1st) in terms of planning. Got inputs from various people(Dad, PSR sir, Sriram sir, Ananth bro,google map) over time and planned the trip. As for the riding gears I still have not brought the proper touring jackets and gloves. But had all that was necessary for a rookie.

22-03-12

Dad: Hmmm....so you've found the slot to go huh??

Me: Yes pa. And if I miss this one I won't have time to go touring anytime before my 3rd year. That's too long for a biker to starve you see?

Dad: All that OK but who is accompanying you?

Me: (I was actually grinning). The bike??

Dad: Its a long one this time!! What if something goes wrong??

Me: I wish I had company but all my friends and their riding manners!! Oh please!!

Dad: How is the bike doing??

Me: Better than ever before. I trust her.

Dad: OK. But stay awake and careful. Enjoy.

Me:

That's how I got the big man's approval folks. Filled up and checked the air pressure before bed.

23-03-12

Woke up by 5:30 AM. By dad's orders I was not to leave before 6:30 AM since the sun is not up and you see.....of course he's right. The headlamps are too weak compared to modern age bikes. So waited for light and started at 6:30 from college. A few students jogging in the college road got to see a freak fly past them in a KB. Took the road from Vandalur to Sriperambadur. A very nice and low traffic four lane road. Reached Sriperambadur and continued towards Vellore. I was not in a hurry so took my time, was doing 60-75kmph and took plenty of breaks for pics and water(You see it was "HOT"). Also this was the first time I was doing such a long stretch(226kms one way). Stopped at Kanchipuram for breakfast. The food was very good and damn cheap for that place must say. I had Idlis and coffee and ended up payin 30 bucks!!



The awe expression


Back view


Front View


Side view(I know, engineering has spoilt me too much)


Ever heard of the Cheetah rider??



Reached the foothills around 10:30 AM. The first view of the hills started emerging as I got closer. And a fact that I learnt....There are no fuel stations in Yelagiri Hills, says a board at the foothills. Probably a lot of bikers know this but thought I should mention it here. There is a IOC bunk in Ponneri village(foothills). The uphill ride is easy and not much of a task for any bike I must say. I remember touching 70kmph uphill once. There was meagre traffic but still had to be cautious. There are 14 hairpin bends totally. But I felt the road could have been better. Cornering was fun but around a few corners I found the road had worn out and was risky for cornering. The uphill was gradual and I was on 4th gear most of the time except for hair pins. The view of the land below from a few hairpins was nice. Guess it would be better at night. Reached Yelagiri like within 20mins. Noted all the places to visit and started searching a decent place for stay. Found a lodge called Ashoka. Looked decent for 350bucks; asked the receptionist if that included TV and hot water and he nodded. Bliss .
Yelagiri has both cheap lodges and high end resorts. Its a matter of choice I would say.

From the fourways


A beauty isn't she??


From the foothills


A view from the bottom


Starting to climb



Kinda looks nice na?


Looks solid even among the rocks


A view of the land below


The last hair pin bend


Like I said the roads had worn out



On reaching Yelagiri


Natural and man-made beauty


The stay place

The room


By the time I had a nap, my room mate had arrived


Velavan temple


To be continued.......

Dil Khush Kar Diya Yaar!!!!!!!!!!!

The KB! It was Dad's first bike! And man DO i remember that console! Used to stare at the needle when I was a kid sitting on the tank between dad's arms! I was SO looking forward to inheriting it when I turned 18! But alas he sold it without telling anyone in the family! Mom was the one most upset! I came a close second!

Absolutely awesome awesome pics!

Sure is a Beauty!

Dropped my stuff at the room and asked the locals about yelagiri. Had lunch in a small hotel called Hotel yelagiri. There was nothing but only meals. I expected it to be bland but to my surprise the food was decent; good in fact.

Got back to the room and took a small nap. Woke up by 4 and set out to Velavan temple. After Velavan temple, I tried to find out the lake and lost my way into some odd place(Either the guy whom I asked gave wrong direction or I didn't ask him correctly; the probability of the latter being higher). I was led into some tribal kinda settlement!! But the fun part was it was total off road. A very narrow uneven dirt track. But to my surprise even there, a TVS XL managed to overtake me!!!!. Then got out of the place as I didn't want to miss the sunset.

Reached the children's park, this place has a large lake in the center. A very calm and not so crowded place. A nice place for a morning stroll must say. There is a view point from a treetop which gives an exhilarating view of the lake and the sunset. Shot a few pics and left the place before it got dark. Reached the hotel only to find out there was no power. Yelagiri has a scheduled power cut for 8hrs a day. Luckily the place I stayed had power back up for fans and lights. Left for dinner and found a small dosa shop; not very satisfying. After dinner had to do a little social service I would call it, a govt bus had broke down and 5-6 men were trying to push start. So gave them a hand and tried for long but never did the bus crank once. So left the place after the 10 ton workout and hit the sack.

KB Photoshoot


Heavenly


Lost:Season7


How about a little off roading dear?


Yes. That's a TVS XL


Some proper tribal home I guess


The lake at the children's park


You can see these trees all over Yelagiri


From the treetop


Sunset(Wish I had a DSLR)


As the sunset it became a little cool(Not chill)


24-3-12

Woke up by six and asked the hotel guy to get the hot water ready. Went out for a walk and was disappointed to find no tea shop nearby. Then came back, took my bath and left to the lake to get a glimpse of the sunrise. But eventually got there a little late due to my laziness. Clicked a few pics and left without wasting anytime. I saw a group of bulleteers arriving as I was leaving. Hopefully xbhp people. Shut the visor and mad cornering from then. I was seeing 60-70kmph on the speedo without even accelerating. But still stayed cautious. I remember doing 85kmph in one stretch but was pretty risky as there was a hair pin at the end. Promised myself not to do it again thereafter. After I reached down, filled a little fuel in case of emergency as I was running with a broken fuel gauge. Return stretch on the plain tarmac was more of a endurance run. Both for me and the KB. I held on 80-85kmph for the first time and the KB didn't show any signs of problem. She gave me a green signal and I went on. Stopped at vellore for breakfast and started again. Still kept holding high speeds. The weather was getting literally freakin hot!! It was like I wanted it to rain just like that. Not till I slowed down at a toll near kanchipuram did I notice that the bike was idling higher than normal. I thought the screw for adjusting the idle speed might have got loose or something. made adjustments and no changes. Had to call the doctor. Called up PSR sir immediately and told him the situation. He asked me check if the 2T oil level was low. I could see the green oil through the oil level indicator on side panel. Then he said its probably because of overheating. Only then did it strike to me that I was driving a 2 stroke bike at 85kmph @ 40 degree celsius for more than an hour. Now that's putting the bike to its limits. Was happy nothing really bad had happened and let the vehicle cool down. Started after 5min and KB was back to her soft tone. Set to chennai and reduced the crusing speed to 75kmph with occasional blasts to 90's. Managed 110kmph at one stretch. But was careful and reduced the speeds to 65-70kmph to avoid over heating. Hereafter the bike did not show any signs of overheating.

Sunrise


They stood alone


Kinda reminded of the movie: The Ring


The only pics of me and my girl together


Beginning to descend


A view of the land below


At Kanchipuram Toll


Patted and left my trusted steed at the parking lot


Reached college by 1:30 PM. A few friends who recognized my bike stopped me and asked me if I was mad to wear a jacket and travel 230 kms on a 20yr old bike in the mid of a hot day. was my answer. Obviously I cannot explain to them what fun I had on the KB and they won't understand what touring means. I was the proudest man parking his bike then in the parking lot. I patted my bike and returned to my room.

Inferences:
1. KB gave an overall mileage of 47kmpl!!!!(Doin 80's and 70's)
2. KB is damn reliable. Overheating problem was only caused because of a nut not belonging to the bike. Bet I

can do 85kmph constantly during normal weather.
3. KB is 20yrs old and still awesome.
4. KB by my opinion is the best 100cc bike ever to be manufactured in India. I would have told this before as

a normal KB fan. But to have owned and understood what it is capable of, it calls for an award(No offence to other bikes).

@plasmabhai
Thanks bro. Nice to see another KB fan.

Great ride Harish. Great to see that your KB is maintained in a good condition. Just wondering, does that tail lamp belong to a Boxer AT?
I am no KB expert, but it did look out of place to me.

congratulations

great ride there