Chikka Tirupati Near Bangalore

About:
As the name suggest , this is the miniature version of the Tirupathi Temple, 'Chikka' means small in Kannada. This temple lies very close to Sarjapur and is easily accessible from Bangalore. The roads overall are good from Sarjapur route with some bad patches. As all the temples in South India this too has beautiful gopuram and is peaceful place devoid of large crowds.

There is also this story about why this temple was built. It was built by Lord Agni to please Lord Vishnu. Agni deva was suffering from severe stomach ailment. Lord Brahma advised him to consume the herb-rich 'Khandava' forest to cure his ailment. However, Takshaka the Serpent-king and a close friend of Lord Indra , was residing there. Whenever Agni tried to consume the forest, Lord Indra’s thundershowers quickly extinguished the fire. With the help of Sri Krishna and Arjuna, Agni managed to consume 'Khandava' forest. During this, he caused injuries to Takshaka who cursed Agni that he will lose his 'teja'. 

To get rid of this curse, Lord Krishna suggested Agni deva to please Lord Vishnu who could return back Agni deva his 'teja'. Agni to achieve 'shaapa vimochana' built this temple of Lord Venkateshwara to please Lord Vishnu who returned back 'teja' to Agni Deva. The Lord here is also called Prasanna Venkateshwara for this reason.

Best time:
Throughout the year, an hours drive from Bangalore.

How to reach:
From Silk Board: 33 kms approx
Take the outer ring road to get to Sarjapur road. Continue on this road, till you reach Sarjapur. Its a pretty small town. Once you exit Sarjapur, there is a Y-Junction where you need to take a left and continue for another 10 kms and on the left hand side you should see the temple.

From Electronic City:
Take Hosa road to join Sarjapur road and continue with the same driving Directions as above

From Marathalli:
Take the Whitefield road and continue on the Bagalur road, NH 207

Route Map:
From Silk Board


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Mangal Murthi Morya Ganapati Temple

The Mangal Murthi Morya Ganapathi  also know as Birla Ganapati is a staggering 54ft tall Ganapati statue just off the NH4, Mumbai road near to the Somatane toll gate. It's a difficult to miss statue as this place is well lit up at night too. The idol is visible from the NH 4\Old  Mumbai-Pune road to the left if you are travelling towards Mumbai just as you approach the Somatane tollgate.

The majestic Ganesh Idol

How to reach:

If you are travelling from Pune, take the old Mum-Pune road(NH4) and go till the Somatane tollgate. On the left hand side you should see the beautiful Ganesh Idol on a small hillock. The entrance to the temple is right after the tollgate and if you are travelling by car, you need to pay a toll of Rs.26.

The stairs to the temple

Right after you cross the tollgate , there is a left turn almost like a V-turn. You can see a big board for Prati Shirdi which is on the same road about 1.5 kms from this junction. After you take the turn, after about 500m there is a small road climbing up to the left leading to the parking lot of the temple. There is a board with 'Mangal Murthy Morya Temple' indicating the left turn. There is ample parking space once you make your way up and they charge some nominal amount for parking. I had to pay Rs.3 for my two wheeler. Then you have to walk up the stairs to the temple. The climb is pretty easy and even elders and children will enjoy it. The place is kept very clean and secured with cctv cameras.

View from different angle

Best Time to visit:

Morning or evening, any day of the year. Morning 10 am should be a good time as the Idol is facing North-east and the light conditions would be better to take a clear shot at this time. The idol is not covered so visiting the place is monsoons might not be a good idea. I went to this place at 5 in the evening and could not get clear photos as the sun shining right behind the Idol. However, it is a good peaceful place to be with your family in the evening.

Places nearby:
The Ghorvadeshwar Cave temple is just about a km apart and can be covered on the same day.
Pratishirdi at Shirgaon is on the same road some 3-4 kms ahead.

Route Map:

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Ghorvadeshvar Cave Temple

If you are looking for a quick trek to a nearby place, why not combine it with visit to a temple. Ghorvadeshwar Cave temple is a active Shiv temple on top of a hillock just before the Somatane Toll gate if you are going towards Mumbai. A short walk up the stair will take you to these old caves. The view from the top is quite nice and on regular days the number of visitors is also not high making it an ideal evening destination. I could not make it to Shiv temple on MahaShivratri hence had planned to go to this temple on Sunday.

Temple arch

Best time to visit:

Any day of the year, preferable morning or evening to avoid afternoon heat.

How to Reach:

The Temple is very near to Pune and just about 800m before the Somatane Toll plaza on old NH4 road. There is no distinct marker for this temple but if you are traveling towards Mumbai, the temple will be on the left hand side of the road. Look out for arch and stairs when you start approaching the Somatane Toll gate. Also there is a big water tank on the right hand side which is just a few meters after the temple entrance but to the left. There is ample space for parking your vehicle and there is a small dhaba where you can have snacks. The main stairway of the temple is a few meters away from this dhaba and is uphill. I parked my bike right next to the dhaba. An old man keep a watch on the bikes and charges Rs.5. You can also park your bike right next to the stairs leading to the temple but i preferred it next to the dhaba. Cars can park right next to the dhaba as there is enough of open space.

On way to top

The water tank on the other side of road- marker

 

Going to the top:

To reach the temple you need to climb the stairs which then lead to rough terrain again joining the stairs. The initials stairs are quite good but elders might find a difficult time as the steps are quite big. Once you reach the end of these stairs there is a small flat top from where you can see the highway and the Birla Ganapati at some distance. Good place for few snaps. There are no stairs here. Climbing uphill you will eventually get to the stairs but this time the stairs are not that good. I followed the stairs whic lead me to a path, quite easy to follow and not that difficult and eventually got to the temple.

Birla Ganapati as seen from top

On the kutcha stairs, flat top seen below

Once you reach the top there is a junction and here is where there are two ways- left Vitthal Temple and right Shiv temple. Though I am not 100% sure of which deity was in the temple to the left but as far as my knowledge in mythology and gods it was Vitthal. 

Cave next to Shiv temple

Shiv temple

You can either start you way back after seeing the temple or make your way to the top. There are different routes you can take, one is right next to the temple a small narrow path. There is also a way marked with arrows right at the junction of two temples. This one is a bit difficult to climb as there is no clear path, just rocks. I made my way up this path and reached a point from where I could see the Mumbai-Pune Expressway and the new stadium. The way up is however steep and families definitely need to avoid it as the descent is a bit tricky. The view from this place is awesome but the time I went, 4 p.m. was wrong and I had the sun shining at my lens, so could not get clear shots. After seeing around and getting a couple of shots I made my way down, a bit tired but happy to have visited the Shiv temple and I could not go to a Shiv Temple on Mahashivratri.

The marked path up the hill

This is how it looks like once you climb up

The Xpressway and Stadium from the Top

Places Nearby:

• Birla Ganapati
• Pratishirdi

Route Map:


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Kolli Hills Tamil Nadu

Kolli Hills 'Mountains of Death'
It was a usual Sunday when I was surfing the net at home looking for new destinations to ride to when I came across Kolli Hills. What caught my eye was '70 hairpins'! The best I had heard in South India was Ooty with 36 hairpin bends and this one is no doubt just double. The destination was set, and too add to the excitement Kolli Hills is also know as 'Mountains of Death'. The much spookier name is not due to the roads but due to local folklore of a maiden luring travellers with her beauty and killing them! Yeah, I know sounds spooky, you go to save some damsel in distress and get killed!

View off Kolli Hills

The ride was all set for weekend of 12 March. As usual one call to Arun aka Bevda and he was ready to join in.We started a bit late as usual at about 7 am from Bangalore. The ride till Salem was smooth also the roads were very familiar as this patch had been covered many time. After refueling at Salem, we started again. When Namakkal was nearing, we kept a lookout for a left towards Sethamangalam. The names of all these places are tough to remember and the pronunciations differs a lot from the way we try to read it. Atleast it's easier than Kerela. We managed to get the proper route and once on this route to the base of Kolli Hills we had to ride through small towns on the way. The road here is not a NH but quite well maintained. We were stuck in traffic in a town and this slowed us down a bit. And anyways we were not in a hurry as I had not slept the previous night and was damn sleepy. The only thing going on in my mind was to go to Kolli Hills, find Hotel Nallathambi and sleep for an hour.

One of the 70 hairpins

The narrow adrenalin filled hairpins

After about an hour we reached the base of Kolli hills and the stopped at the base. Wow! Finally a chance to take on the 70 hair pin bends. The road looked narrow and if a heavy vehicle approaches on the hairpins, it will surely get stuck. We jumped back on our horses and started our way to the top. As the first hairpin approached, I saw a marker indicating '1\70'. The winding road looked just awesome. Left and right all the way up to complete 70 hairpins, a very exciting ride. We stopped for a few snaps on the way and complete the winding roads to the top. After asking the locals about accommodations, we made our way to Hotel Nallathambi. Unfortunately there was no vacancy and we headed to another Resort called P.A. Resort. This really blew my brains off. I would have preferred to stay on the road then paying Rs.1500 for that untidy place. There was one more place we had in mind, NPS Lake view. But that too was under renovation. We headed back to Nallathambi and luckily they said that they could provide a room after 3pm.

Beautiful view off the hill surrounding Arappaleswarar Temple

We sat at the reception, a small lobby with a TV and counter where they sell cold drinks and wafers too. The agonizing wait came to an end and finally we got our room. It was a clean and decent room, though I cannot recall the cost, it was worth it. I removed my jacket and shoes. The bed looked very inviting. I told Arun that I'll take a quick nap after which we can go around to see the view point from where Namakkal town can be seen. Just as I was about to crash out on the bed, I saw Arun remove his bottle of rum form his bag. 3 pm and rum, thats Bevda for sure! I was too tired and took a quick nap which ended up being a long one. I woke up at 5.30pm which ofcourse did not affect Arun who was more than happy to have found some more time to sip on his rum.

View point- Namakkal Town seen in the back

I packed my camera and wore my riding gear, Arun was getting ready as pillion this time. We rode to the view point. All the roads at this place are full of twists, hairpins all the way. By the time we reached the vie point it was pitch black. We removed our head torches, I made sure I parked the bike at a proper place and looked around. There was no one around just the sound of crickets. This place is so untouched by commercial tourism that you'll hardly find anyone around. Gives you a good feel, but gives you the goosebumps at the same time. Using our torches, the only source of light around, we made our way toward the View point. It's a small concrete structure, like a watch post from where you can see Namakkal town. The top view of the town with all the lights is just beautiful, but I had a feeling that only a handful of people must be coming here at this time. We took a few snaps. I tried my hands on photography but due to lack of expertise could not get those pro shots of Namakkal town at night. We were the only tourist around that place at that time and we took our own time to get some photos around the place using tripod. We packed our stuff back and check around if we forgot something. It was damn dark and the wind making its way through the bushes was trying to scare us. It hardly mattered as I was worried about buying some whisky on the way back.

Arappaleshwarar Temple

I rode back to the market place- a dull road with 5-6 shops but one which was crowded, TASMAC. Hell yeah, found it. Something is better than nothing! In Tamil Nadu, only government shops called TASMAC are allowed to sell liquor. There is hardly any choice available here and you need to pick up whatever is in stock. I bought myself a bottle of rum and some snacks and rode back with my pillion, who was all set for boozing again, to Nallathambi resort. We ordered some food and had good time boozing as usual and ended the day.

The steep stairs down to Akash Ganga Falls

The next morning we woke up at 8 and got ready to go to Arappaleeswarar Temple. There is s a very good waterfall right next to the temple which we planned to cover and move on to another spot. We got there on my bike with Arun as pillion. To reach the falls, I had to cover again a dozens of hairpins. The ride was really exciting, but what was in these hills to have so many hairpin bends, quite astonishing. The temple was closed by the time we reached there at 10am, so we decide to move toward the waterfalls. There was an entrance fee of Rs.10 per person and we could see the stairs leading down to the falls. The waterfall was however not in view. With my camera and backpack along with me and Arun carry a bottle of water, we started walking down the stairs. The stairs were never ending ones and were quite steep all the way down. It was quite hot that day and we were tired and sweating . On our way down we saw a small waterfall which was quite scenic but the way down was too tiring. Just when I was asking Arun to talk to couple of people on their way back up about the total steps yet to cover, a lady said that there were a total of 1000+ step and that I won't be disappointed once I get down to the falls. I believed her. Actually it was not the way down I was worried about, it was the way up those 1000+ steps!

A small falls seen on way down to Akash Ganga

Once we reached the waterfall after a tiring way down, truly the view was magnificent.The waterfall is called Akash Ganga, suite the name. It was not at it's full glory, but considering it was March and the place is in Tamil Nadu it definitely was too good. We just freshened up in the cool water, did not get much time to enjoy as we had to leave Kolli Hills by afternoon. Then came the humungous task of climbing up those 1000+ stairs.

The elderly or people having heart problems need to stay out of this. Probably the waterfall will be more enjoyable if you see it in the pics rather than attempting that long walk.

Akash Ganga Waterfalls

Once we made our way back panting, took a small break and made our way back to the hotel. We had  a light snacks and packed our stuff and began the return journey with those 70 hairpins making our joy-ride a memorable one.

Beautiful view of Hill ranges

This place is truly a beautiful place, calm, untouched by commercial tourism, good place for some time off the hustle-n-bustle in city and for people who love to ride\drive, believe me, it's a awesome ride to Kolli Hills!

Travel Details
Starting point: Bangalore
Destination: Kolli Hills, Tamil Nadu
Duration: 2 days, 1 night

A weekend would be sufficient to visit this place. The hill station is pretty small.


Best time to Visit: Aug to Feb
Although I went to this place in March, I would recommend to visit it during monsoon and winter.

Things to carry:
This is a pretty remote location and I could not find any ATM here. Also, shops and medical stores are limited.

• Enough cash
• Refill your bike\car
• Foodstuff \ essential medicines

Accomodation:
There are not many options for accommodation at this place as it is not yet a commercial tourist spot.

• Nallathambi Resort

This is the best option available here. Decent and safe place for families. There won't be an extravagant menu but the place is quite clean and affordable. Also, this is the oldest resort in Kolli hills.

• NPS Lake View Resort

This place was under renovation when we went. They have tents placed near a river, good place for group of boys to have fun. Not recommended for family unless going in group. Also from the location I feel, you might need to carry good mosquito coils.

• PA Holiday Inn

Avoid this one at any cost. We checked out the rooms and it seemed no one every cared to clean the rooms for ages. Better of stay in your car if you do not get any accommodation.

How to reach:
The distance of Kolli hills from Bangalore is approx 290kms.
It should take about 4.5-5 hrs by bike and 6 hrs by car.
Take the Hosur road from Bangalore right upto Salem. The road is 4 lane and neatly maintained. After Salem, the next major town is Namakkal. Right about 5-6kms before you enter Namakkal, there is  a left turn towards Sendamangalam. Alternately you can travel via Namakkal too. You might need to ask locals on the way as there is no landmark. Once you join this road continue till Senthamangalam and ask for Kolli Mallai. All the route marker here are written in Tamil, better take directions from locals or use GPS. Luckily Arun knew Tamil and we could make it without any problems.

Route Map:

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Breakfast at Nandi Hills

Nandi Hills

    Nandi Hills is a great place which lies at close proximity to Bangalore. It’s a good place to visit for it’s magnificient view once you reach the top. Makes you feels like you are on top of the clouds. It’s proximity to Bangalore makes it a good choice for a breakfast ride or for people looking for small break from work. The winding hill road is quite scenic and good for a bike ride.

View from Nandi Hills

Best time to Visit:

Any time of the year, but during Monsoon it’s a treat.

Distance from Bangalore:

80Kms approx

How to reach:

View Larger Map

Travelogue:

Nandi Hills was one of those places which could be a good hangout spot with buddies. That was my plan that weekend. One of my friend who was onsite for a year was back to Bangalore for a visit and we were planning for small hangout.

So as planned, Arun, Manas, Anirudh and myself started off for Nandi hills on 21st Nov, 2010. I had planned to meet the guys under the airport road flyover at 5 a.m. I was going to start off from Silk board while others were starting off from places in the city. Luckily everyone started early and to everyone's surprise Arun made it on time.

We continued on Devanhalli road till we reached the place where we need to take left for Nandi Hills. There is a clear marker indicating the same, but one can miss it early in the morning. Once you pass the airport junction where there is ramp for airport watchout for the left for Nandi hill. The road to nandi hill once we are off the highway is not that excellent but decent one to ride. Although you need to watchout for oncoming vehicles as the road is a bit narrow. We found a few group of Pulsar's on the way and ofcourse loads of couples mostly on Activa or Dio.

On this road you might end up on few junctions but it is quite easy to figure out the way . We reached the foothills at around 5.45 am. It was still pitch black and we could see a long queue of vehicles. At first I thought the traffic jam must be due to an accident or broken down vehicle, but later found out that it was due to some new rule the police had barricaded the ghat road. The ghat road opens at 6 am in the morning only and before that you are not allowed to go uphill. That was probably done to avoid accidents in the dark. Also this place is know for lots of drink-n-drive cases, so better watch out for cars with loud music and rash driving.

At the base of the hill it was like a  small fair. People had parked their cars everywhere and we having tea. A couple of chaiwallahs were having  a good time making profits. November was nice and cool and having a hot cup of tea in that cool early morning was a delight. we too parked out bikes and enjoyed tea. We could see a few guys playing loud music, enjoying beers and dancing. Once the police opened the barricade, we zoomed uphill on our bikes. On the way we found  a good spot to get a view off the hill and decided to stop for a few snaps. The sun was not fully out yet and the sky was filled with vibrant colours. It was mother nature's fine art, all those shades of red, orange filling up the infinite blue, truly a sight to gaze at! We took a few snaps and carried on ahead.

Pic taken midway to Nandi Hills, Beautiful effect of refraction.

The ghat road uphill is nice and winding one, not too difficult except for a few hairpins which are a bit narrow. Also watch out for vehicle parked in the middle of the road. people do stop for a  few snaps here and there and forget that the place they have parked their car is a blind spot. After a couple of minute we reached the parking lot to find a long queue for entry tickets. This is the max where you can take your two-wheeler. Don't remember the entry fee but its quite nominal. Plus the place is kept quite clean. Cars are allowed to go ahead with some premium fee about Rs.70-100 I guess. The only trouble this place is that there is only one filthy toilet, so if you woke up early and missed your daily chores, you are screwed. Moreover to add more they charge you Rs.5 to use the toilet.

View from Nandi Hills

We parked our bikes after finding one safe spot away from the hustle-n-bustle and after buying the tickets we had a cup of tea again, grabbed on to some pop corns and started our trail. The place was lush green and the early morning dew was making it more beautiful. Once on the top there are a few view points from where you can see clouds a level below yours. It looks just awesome! People try to take snaps climbing on to dangerously positioned rocks but it's just too risky. There are security guards who tell people to climb down the rocks on edges if they try to go ahead and do some superhuman stunts. The hill is like a table top and if you slip off the cliff it's a direct drop of 500 ft. We found a good spot to sit and relax. The started our usual discussions on motorcycles and snap! An hour went by just like that.

 It ain't Raymonds but it does feel like heaven

After roaming around for a while we decided to head back. Descending on those winding roads is quite fun. We managed to get to the base fast as there was no stop this time. We halted at a local eatery in one of the villages for some snacks. As usual there was idli, dosa and medu wada on the menu. The service was ultra slow and we were wondering if they guy is actually preparing the batter for idli once you order. Anirudh was getting impatient at times but Arun's chatter kept everyone occupied. Manas as usual was sitting silently and I was hell hungry waiting for the idlis to arrive. To our luck the food was good and then again there was a long wait for tea! Finally after having the tea we headed back for Bangalore. We decided to regroup just before the Hyderabad flyover. It took us about 45 mins to get there. After saying goodbye we dispersed off. I took the outer ring road to go back to Silk board. It was about 11 am and the police were on lookout for their Sunday chai-paani on the ring road. I had to be a bit careful as my bike was Maharashtra state registered. I managed to get past and reached back at around 11.45 am. It was a short and refreshing ride!

Rider Mania X: Ride for RMX

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Bangalore To Mumbai

As RMX was hosted by Inddiethumpers I was sure that it would be held somewhere close to Mumbai so my plans to ride up north to my hometown were already flying in my head. I had two options, one was to ride solo to Mumbai, take a break and then ride to Sajan for RMX. The other one was to ride with RTMC (Rolling Thunder Motorcycle Club) from Bangalore to RMX. I chose the first option. The dates for RMX were 23, 24 Jan, so I planned my vacation from 16th to 31th Jan.

My plan was to start off from Bangalore on 16^th Sat, early morning and reach Pune and on the next day cover Pune- Mumbai. The official distance from Bangalore to Pune is 835kms but travelling from South end of Bangalore via ring road adds to it. I was expecting it to come to 880 considering I had to reach Pune and find my friends place too. The previous evening which was Friday I packed the saddle bags and the back box with all the essential stuff I needed to carry which included the toolkit and all and some food and water, not to forget Redbull! Somehow on long rides I tend to carry Redbull as it helps to get rid of the drowsiness that arises due to fatigue. Riding under influence of Redbull is a different feel.

After finishing off with all the last minute adjustments to my bike and preparing the saddle bags and all, I finally slept at around 12 at nite. I managed to wake up at 3.30 and freshened up by 4. It took about half an hour to gear up myself and load the bike. At 4.30 I started off from silk board with target to reach Pune by 6 pm.

I was riding at around 80kmph on outer ring road when I passed Marathalli underpass and hit a big speed bump. My fibre box which was mounted on brackets was too overloaded and when it hit the bump it came off! When I hit the bump too fast the fibre base of the bracket cracked and the box flew off and when it hit the ground I heard a thud followed by a dragging sound. As I slowed down I saw the box sliding right beside me. Luckily there was no vehicle behind me or the box would have been history.

I parked my bike to the side and ran to pick up the box. It was in a bad state with deep scratches all over it, but it was intact. I was barely 12 kms from my place when this happened and I thought of moving back to my place and fix this thing then carry on. However I did not want to go back, so even though I was a bit upset over it, I analyzed the problem and somehow managed to mount the box back with some alternate arrangement. This time I took some stuff from the box and loaded it into the saddle bags and after putting back all the spanners inside the bag, I started off again. It was 5 am this time.

After starting again I decided to be careful throughout the city because of the speed bumps. While approaching Hebbal I could barely see the road as the early morning fog had its dominance. I had to ride without a visor because the visor glass was full of moisture making it difficult to see.

Although this was not the first time I was riding through such weather conditions, I felt the scene was like one in the movies where the hero rides his horse fast through thick fog to reach his destiny where a beautiful princess awaits him. The only twist was there was not princess waiting for me! Well sitting back at the desk I always wonder how I managed to ride such long distance that too without a company. Maybe it’s the passion for bikes or the insatiable hunger for adventure, I don’t know.

As planned I crossed Tumkur by dawn and around 6.45 took the first break. I was a beautiful cold morning and clear road ahead. After having some snack and water I hopped on to my bike and started off. I rode hard all the way and crossed Chitradurga by 9 am when I took another break. I noticed some oil leak which I knew was due to the extra amount of oil I had added. Just to be sure, I had a close look at it and started off again. After travelling for few more kms I refueled and continued. The patch from Davangere to Haveri is a bit bad. I remembered the last time I went on this road which was at night. In some patches there is a challenge to find the actual road amidst the potholes but this time I was traveling during the day so it was not too difficult. However, the average distance covered is affected. I wanted to reach Belgaum by 1 pm which I eventually did reach at around 1.30. After having some light food I started back and reached Kolhapur at 3 pm. Kolhapur to Pune is about 230kms so now to reach Pune I needed to squeeze is as much as I could. After riding hard with few short breaks I somehow managed to reach Pune by 6 pm. Just before entering New Katraj Tunnel, I called up my friend Mangesh who stays in Pune. We were going to meet after about a year and it was his place I was going to stay for the night. I got proper directions to his place and entered the New Katraj Tunnel which is 1.4 kms long tunnel. Riding through this tunnel gives you a different feel. I felt as if someone is closing my ears. Even though there are lights inside it’s quite dark and you just have to follow the marker lines to make your way out.

Once out, I made my way on the outer ring road and reached Mangesh’s place by 6.30 and it was still not dark. I was happy to have reached my destination as per plan. After freshening up we went for a walk to see the locality around. After few minutes of walk, which was really tiring, we found a bar and had a couple of drinks. We had our memories refreshed with discussions about our previous parties and how some of the guys puked around. Drinking is one of the best thing a man can do, I mean how else will you be the King of the World.

I slept early that night at around 11pm and woke up the next morning at 7.30 am. After having breakfast, special omlette prepared in Desi ghee by the chef Mangesh, I left for Mumbai at 8.30 am.

Mumbai Pune road was quite familiar for me. After reaching Lonavala I stopped at my usual stop for buying Chikkis and sweets. One of the customer at the shop was staring at my bike and me. After a while he approached me and asked where was headed to. He had seen the number plates and knew that the bike is from Mumbai. I told him that I was headed to Mumbai and coming from Bangalore. This was more than enough for him to shed in his advice. He told me an incident about a guy from his locality who lost his life in a bike accident when he was riding to Indore. The guy accompanying him was quiet and just said that riding that far distance is difficult. But our one Mr. Right was giving me looks as if I am trying to be over-smart by riding on highways.

I do not totally disagree that the guy was totally wrong on his part, as riding will have its risks. Instead of wishing someone happy journey, giving him weird looks that he is doing something stupid is not what one likes. I have seen guys like Mr.Right many times and it does not affect me. Well my point is that even though cars may seem safer than bikes one should not have a stereotype that they are safest. It depends on various conditions. Even a slip in a bathroom can cause major damage.

Finally after leaving Lonavala I reached Panvel which can be considered to be in Mumbai itself. It felt good to ride through the city roads after so many months. I was also surprised to see the development in the suburban areas with towers everywhere. After making my way through Mumbai traffic I finally reached home. Both my mom and my sister were surprised as I had not informed them about my visit.

The next 5 days I spent at home.

Mumbai to RMX

My club in Mumbai, Iron Bulls, was planning to leave early for RMX at about 5 am. I was feeling a bit lazy, so I decided to ride solo. The guys left at about 6 after gathering and clicking some snaps. I woke up at 7 am and left at 8 am. I rode directly to Manor from where the actual venue Sajan was just 30kms. After reaching the venue at 10am I was surprised as our guys were not yet there. After calling them up I found that they were having a break in Manor. I decided to look around. The venue was a Nature resort located in remote hamlet. The approach road was a kuttcha road surrounded by trees. Overall it gave a good feel to be away from the fast city life. The rooms allocated to stay were also quite cool. Some were huts, while some were tents and couples were allocated bungalows. Myself and my friends were allocated huts. The hay roof gave a good feel of staying in a village. Once my friends arrived, we registered, kept our bags in the huts and went near the main stage where everyone had gathered.

A few of the groups which were yet to arrive made their entrance with engines roaring and horns honking in rhythm. In the meantime the beer counter was open and the beer was Tuborg pint served at Rs.50 each. I went to the counter and helped myself with a couple of beers as I could not bear the afternoon heat. That’s one of the reasons why beer was invented.

Me at RMX

The RMX opening ceremony was conducted by calling a member from the clubs on to the stage and sharing a few words. Lunch was ready to be served then. However, the Assembly Wars event was due in just 15 mins, so me and my friends registered for it and went on. The event goes as follows. 9 Teams will participate with 6 members each team. 5 members will be working on assembly and disassembly of the bike while another member will be ready waiting on another bike to get the green signal. The aim is to remove the front wheel, rear wheel, chain, clutch cable and accelerator cable of the assembly bike and give green signal to the 6^th member who will have to ride some 3 kms to collect the keys of the assembly bike. The crew has to again assembly back the bike and once the keys are available start it and take a trial round. Our team played fair to get 5^th place. Tired and excited we had our lunch at 4pm along with couple of beers. The menu was traditional Maharashtrian food which was quite good.

 RMX stage

I then went to the hut and took a nap which turned out to be a big one. By the time I woke up the RMX freestyle events which consisted of burnouts, wheelies etc and arm wrestling were all done. Even the beer drinking games were over. I however managed to see the finals of Girl’s Beer drinking event. I was looking around to find some hot chics around but to my dismay I couldn’t see any. I could see only one solution. I went to the bar and bought a couple of pegs of vodka. After having about 4 pegs, I saw around and VOILA! My prayers were answered. All of sudden there were many hot chics around. Isn’t that great? That’s one more reason why one should drink.

I called up Arun who arrived with his glass of rum. We along with other friends continued to have a good time drinking and having dinner whereas the Rock Concert was going on, right on the main stage in front of us. I don’t think I noticed it, neither did a few others sitting here and there. After getting full, on food ofcourse, I went to the bar and got a couple of more pegs just in case the stock gets over and went to the main ground where the DJ was playing cool tracks. The party continued and drinks flowed till about 2 am. Finally I went to the hut and slept. I had a difficult time sleeping as I could hear some of the worst snoring in the world thanks to Ashok my club-mate. But thanks to vodka I managed it! Here goes another reason.

Assembly wars

The day 2 of RMX was scheduled with Time Trials which is dirt racing, which was supposedly to begin at 8.30 am. Definitely impossible! Well so the actual event began at 11.30 am. My friends Rohan K and Rohan S participated in it. Rohan K was very excited about the event. He had his bike tuned up, silencer removed to increase pick-up and also the mirrors and all removed. I was feeling a bit tired after last night’s so called dancing. Then I saw some guys carrying bottles of wines. It was a new entry to the drinks’ menu, so I got 2 bottles of red wine to re-energize myself. Nothing like a natural grape wine! Carrying the wine and my camera, me and my friend Vaibhav headed on to the track, to find a good spot to sit and watch the dirt race. We found the second corner of the track quite shady and also it looked like good spot to get few snaps. One after the other, bikers came in trying their best to get the best time.

 IronBullz in action

The next contender coming in seemed to be too fast. We could hear the sound of the engine roar. Unfortunately, he crashed in at the first corner. Looked like a bad crash but the news came that the rider was unhurt. The event was paused. After waiting for few minutes we decided to go to the first corner as it was more challenging and we could probably get few good snaps there. While walking upto the corner we saw the rider who had crashed, he had his helmet which was incredibly similar to our buddy Rohan K. Even his jacket was too similar. A closer look and even his face looked similar. Maybe it was the wine! Soon me and Vaibhav realized it was Rohan K himself and we rushed to him to see if he was alright. We called up the other guys to inform them. Luckily he came out without a scratch, but his bike was not that lucky. I told him to go and rest and leave the bike there. One more guy had a similar crash at the same spot later which I saw and captured on camera. Luckily he too came out unhurt. Later, we pushed Rohan K’s bike to the workshop later once the event was over. The front forks and clutch covers were totaled.

Ashok's bike

After the exciting dirt racing event, we went for lunch at 3pm. After lunch we went for a small ride to a dam nearby. While coming back from the dam, I lost my way and went some 10kms off the route. I tried calling my friends up but my cell phone did not work- low battery. I tried to remember the name of the resort, but my efforts were in vain. After a while I met 2 local boys riding their bikes who showed me the way. I was happy to reach the resort again. Since I was tired, I went to the bar and had a few pegs of Vodka. The revitalizing effect kicked in and I joined my friends again who were watching the screening. The clubs play their AV’s here in which they show their funny moments as well as some good photos. After enjoying the AV, we went for dinner followed by a couple of pegs to gulp down the food. At the main stage the host’s were announcing the lucky winner of the Mountain Dew bike. When the number was announced, my friend Ashok ran toward the stage. He had won the bike. None of us could believe it. We too ran on the stage and enjoyed the moment. The bike was the lifted by all the guys from the main stage to the ground where people just enjoyed revving the engine. We enjoyed dancing to the music which played as the Rider Mania of the year 2010 came to an end. Truly it was a wonderful experience being at RMX and the host did a very good job in making the event a success. We went back to our hut and slept to wake up late next morning. It was time to ride back to Mumbai. By 12 noon, me and Vaibhav left for Mumbai whereas the rest of the guys were going to ride after a while. Making our way through the traffic, we reached home at 2.30pm. Again the next 4 days I spent at home.

Mumbai to Bangalore

Finally it was time for the return journey, coming back to Bangalore. I had planned to leave on 30 Jan. The previous day I washed my bike and after small tuning and other adjustments I got it ready for the ride back. Riding back always seems like a big pain. I decided to leave by 7 am as I did not want to leave early. As planned I left by 7 am and rode to my grandfather’s house. Met my grandparents and uncles and by 7.30 started the ride back. The traffic was not that dense so I made it quickly to Vashi. Right after I crossed the Vashi bridge I found that my rear brake had failed. It was not working at all. I stopped the bike to see if the brake lever rod had come off. After inspecting it I found that everything was in place yet the brake was not working at all. This really disappointed me. I started thinking about alternate plans as reaching Hubli as planned would be difficult now. With only the front brake, taking unnecessary risk would be too dangerous. So I decided to turn back and get the bike repaired. When I was just about to wear the helmet back, I smelled something burning. On further inspection I found that the rear brake drum was smoking hot. I guess I got it, why the brakes were not working. The last night I had tightened the brakes and the setting was just too tight. Doing just 40kms had burnt the brake shoes. My problem was not solved yet. I poured about a litre of water on the drum to cool it after which I loosened the rear brake. After testing a bit I found that the brake was working fair. Not 100% though, but enough for me to carry on. I trusted my instincts and my bike and moved forward.

After a long ride, I reached Hubli at 6 pm. I took the diversion into the city and went straight into Ayodhya lodge, place where I had stayed a year back when I was returning from Mumbai. After resting for a while I went to a restaurant, had a meal and slept. The next day I woke up at 6.30 and got ready to leave by 7.15 am. After refueling, I left for Bangalore. Seemed a bit boring and the Haveri to Chitradurga patch of road added to it. By 2pm I entered Bangalore and taking the outer ring road I reached my place by 3 pm. A good ride altogether!