March 2010 ROAD-TRIP SPECIAL

www.motoroids.com
VOLUME 1 ISSUE 008

Dev Bhoomi Ride

Riding high up to get a glimpse of the
Nanda Devi peak

Singapore & Malaysia

On a pair of Honda CB400s

Konkan
delight
Spotting

The
dolphins on the
virgin beach of

Contender
Tarkali

RE RoK Ride
Tasting the salts of adventure
in theGreat Rann

Can the Twister end the 27-year old reign of the CD engine?
“ Riding is a therapy March 2010

they say. Those who

ride, know why. There
is nothing more
rejuvenating than
hitting the road for a

S
ome things in life never change, for they work best in their original form.
long journey on They exemplify the rare phenomenon of humans managing to get it right

”
two-wheels in the first shot, or the first few shots. These things never go old or out
of fashion. For example, you may own a cell phone with the fastest 3G
internet service on it, but nothing works better than the good old newspaper in
the morning while sitting over the pot. Thousands of brands have come out with
their own varieties of beverages, but nothing has been able to replace the hot cup
of tea on the breakfast table. Nothing can substitute such things, for, somehow,
nothing else works better.
The Hero Honda Splendor is one such thing. In the past 27 years, we have
seen hundreds of motorcycle models try and displace this humble HH from its
position, but none has succeeded. That puny sloper mill may look like another
ordinary engine, but it has managed to give birth to the world’s largest two-
wheeler producing company. It’s a legendary powerplant, an act that motorcycle
brands have tried to follow and have failed at it time and again. The Japs at
Honda know how to make good engines, and it seems after almost 3 decades,
they have made a new, better one for India. The Honda CB Twister featuring
the new engine, according to me, is the most important bike in the history of
Indian motorcycles after the advent of the legendary CD100 (the mother of the
Splendor). Hero Honda have a reason to be scared. In our comprehensive test of
the CB Twister and the Splendor, we’ll try and find out whether the new bike is
good enough to outshine a legend. Don’t miss the comparo.
Riding is a therapy they say. Those who ride, know why. There is nothing
more rejuvenating than hitting the road on a pair of wheels. Road-trips and the
associated joys form the basis of the common bond that connects bikers across the
world. For a biker, the experiences that a road-trip brings along is what motivates
him to keep taking to the road over and over again. This month we have compiled
the experiences of a few such spirited riders. From the sweltering heat of the Rann
of Kutch to the freezing peaks overlooking the famous Nanda Devi, and from
the treacherous deserts of Rajasthan to the silken roads of Singapore, we have
bundled together an eclectic mix of riding experiences from India and abroad. We
hope you’ll enjoy the imagery and the depictions.

Rev freely,

Amit Chhangani
amit@motoroids.com

02
 March 2010

Contents Regulars
BRAKING NEWS 04
News with a pinch of salt

LETTERS 07
What our readers have to say
Features
BIKERS 08
A WAR’S GETTING FUELLED 11 Because you are important
Honda CB Twister Vs Splendour
BIKER PERSONALITY 49
ONE HELLUVA SALTY ADVENTURE 17 We get talking with Anil Gautam
Pradeb joins in the RE Trip to the Great
Runn of Kutch MOTO CLUBZ 65
Team 456 from New Delhi
A W A R ’S G E TTING SFpUleEdLoEurD!
A VIEW FROM THE TOP 28 11 Honda CB Twister Vs
Team 456 ride through the hills to
MEN AT WORK 66
Motoroids behind the scenes...
get a glipse of the Nanda Devi Peak
CRAZY, CRAZY, WORLD!! 67
THE ASIAN VOYAGE 32 For the light hearted
Singapore- Malayasia Cross 32 The Asian Voyage
Country Trip Log Two cousins embark on a cross country ride
37 The Weekend Respite
THE WEEKEND RESPITE 37 Praveen Sathaye and his
buddies head towards Konkan to catch
Praveen Sathaye rides to the
a weekend break
Konkan Coast over the weekend

INDI MOTORCYCLE DIARY 40

Pankaj Trivedi’s travel tales on two wheels

Columns
MINDREVVIN’ 09
Amit Chhangani

THE FAT BIKER 10

Rohit Paradkar
i M o t o r c y c le Dias royf Pankaj’s road trip
40 Indventure travel tale
Ad Dev Bhumi Ride 28
Team 456 take on to the Nandi Hills 03
 March 2010

BRAKING NEWS- Stoppie

News that makes our heart skip a beat
WSBK started, MotoGP
It’s time for all of us to rejoice again. After the chilling
winters, the motorcycle racing season has now started!
February end saw the fully tuned litre-class production
starts in April
is as fun as always even with no Ben
Spies around. The latter now moves to
MotoGP as the première motorcycle
racing championship is all set to burn
the rubber yet again amidst the sands
of Qatar on April the 11th.
What’s more, the ‘King of Slide’,
Gary McCoy returns to MotoGP
this season to take on his compatriot
Caasey Stoner and give him a lesson
or two on how to make MotGP even
more exciting! The Australian has
the ‘King of Slide’, Gary McCoy signed a contract with the FB Corse
team and will be riding the same
returns to MotoGP bike that was designed for BMW’s
MotoGP venture. Will this combo be
machines making a comeback with the World explosive enough to make head tunrs
Superbike Championship getting underway at Philip at MotoGP? Well, we are as excited as
Island in Australia. With crashes and dogfights, WSBK you are to see it all happen…
BMW eyes the
Isle of Man
After a gap of over three decades, the German
automobile giant, BMW, will return to the Mecca
of motorcycling racing – the Isle of Man! The
manufacturer has announced that they will compete
in the ‘Superbike’ and ‘Senior’ Isle of Man TT as a
manufacturer-backed team. Wringing the superbike-
spec S1000RR’s throttle around the iconic TT course
will be BMW’s test rider Rico Penzkofer. Rico has
been actively involved in the development of the
S1000RR and has won two bronze replicas at the
2009 TT. BMW itself recorded 30 TT wins between
their debut in 1937 and last exit in the late 1970s.
The S1000RR has been an instant hit the world
over – from journos to racers, everyone loves the bike,
either for its outright performance or its controversial
styling. But somehow the bike hasn’t made the kind
of mark BMW would have expected at the WSBK.
Lets hope things are different at the TT though. All
said and done, the S1000RR is another reason for us
to wait for the TT oh-so-eagerly!

04
BRAKING NEWS- Slide
News that’s neither here nor there
Honda acquires more land Bajaj
Honda India (HMSI) have announced its plans to build another motorcycle production plant in India to meet the ever
increasing demand for its two wheelers in the rapidly growing motorcycle market in India.
The Japanese giant is in the process of acquiring close to 240,000 square meters of land within the Tapukara Industrial
Area in Rajasthan. The second plant will hence be in the proximity of 40kms from the existing plant thus helping them
maintain their logistical costs. The new plant is scheduled to become operational in the latter half of 2011 with annual
production capacity of 600,000 units. As if that wasn’t enough, HMSI is expanding annual production capacity of its
existing plant from the current 1.25 million units to 1.55 million units by the end of this month, with a further expansion
to 1.6 million units scheduled for next year. This means that HMSI’s total annual production capacity will be 2.2 million
units when the second plant becomes operational! Sigh, that means more long lasting stylish commuters will be adding to
the crowd every year. The positive side is that the new plant will open employment options for almost 2,000 associates at
initial stage of full capacity. An investment of Rs. 4.7 Billion (approx) will be infused in this project.
March 2010
launches Platina 125
One word of advice – never believe Mr. Rajiv Bajaj when he tells you his company
is not going to venture into a particular segment or is going to stick to a particular
sub-brand for the future. Why do we say this? Well, we saw the demise of the Platina
brand some time back as Mr. Bajaj said, ‘We were trying to be someone we are not
with that bike’. But now, out of the blue, what they have is a new 125cc commuter
called the ‘Platina 125’.
Interestingly though, the power figures for the new Platina have actually gone
down as compared to its older variant. While the 100cc model produced 9.5 PS, the
125cc mill on the new bike produces 8.5PS! Torque too has gone down from 10.85
Nm to 10 Nm flat. The new bike however gets a 5-speed gearbox, which along with
the lesser power and torque figures, should returns better fuel efficiency figures...we
assume!
05
BRAKING NEWS- Crash
March 2010

News that shouldn’t have been news

Splendor threatened by Twister?

The CB Twister has finally gone on sale after its official unveiling in December. Like most Indian bikes on
Are the Wego and sale, the Twister too comes in three variants – drum brakes and kick start, drum brakes and electric start and disc
brakes and electric start. The top end model is our favorite for sure, but the ~58,000 rupee price tag sounds a
Jive on sale? little to exorbitant to us. However, look at the basic model and you will be startled that the CB Twister is priced
almost similar to the Hero Honda Splendor. Yes, that very bike which gave the competition sleepless nights with
its unbelievable sales figures year on year, its highly reliable 100cc engine which has been around since the mid-80s
and still doesn’t need any upgrades to fend off competition. It has the brand loyalty which has given Hero Honda
its numero uno status.
But the Twister has a more advanced engine from the same engineers. So does that mean that with new age
stuff under its belt, the Twister is trying to tell us that the only thing that can beat the Splendor is not a Bajaj or a
Yamaha or a TVS, but another Honda? Well, we have every reason to believe that it’s something special, especially
with that Wing eblem emblazoned in the fuel tank. However, to see the pride of the Indian motorcyling industry
coming under a threat is something that makes us feel a bit sad.

The Wego and Jive were launched in November 2009 and as per our knowledge,
were supposed to go on sale in February across all TVS showrooms in the country. We
were pretty sure that both the vehicles would create quite a stir in the market. The Wego
for its fantastic unisex styling, metal body and scooter convenience and the Jive for its
innovation, ease of use and urban ergonomics. What further has us excited is the price
tag to both the two wheelers, which lies in the range of Rs. 44,000 to Rs. 47,000 which
is very very competitive.
But contrary to our expectations, we have not seen a single Wego or Jive at any of the
TVS showrooms around us. There can either be two reasons for this – either the bikes
haven’t gone on sale yet, or they have sold out already! Or the other two reasons are, that
our team is either too busy with the work assigned to them or we are just too lazy to call
TVS up and ask them what’s happening…
06

Your bouquets and brickbats for the February
issue of Motoroids2
Unique Stories
Ever since the first issue of Motoroids
e-magazine went live, it has always carried ‘out of
the box’ comparo’s and features. The unique story
ideas are the USP of Motoroids. Even though it
doesn’t actually have any selling price! The cover
story of CBR 400RR v/s the baby Kwacker is among
the best motorcycle comparisons that I have read
till date. As of now, I cannot afford either of the
motorcycles, though I wish to own a performance
bike someday. Reading the article gave me a feeling
of the pleasures of riding a fast motorcycle! Earlier I
was of the view that all big cubic capacity motorcycles
would be similar in terms of performance. The story
made me aware of the differences between the two
motorcycles with respect to performance and better
buy. I have decided to save up some more and buy a
second or third or whatever hand 400cc motorcycle
instead of the Ninja 250. The photography was
poster quality too. You guys not only came up with
a different cover story idea but gave it a stunning
treatment too. Thank You Motoroids for continuously
arming automotive enthusiasts with fresh motorcycle
reviews and features! Cheers!!
- Sean Pereria
Helpful Comparo
STAR LETTER Your comparison between the recently launched
In-depth Review
Pulsar 135 and the FZ 16 was of immense help.
I was trying to coax my parents into buying me a I am an aspiring Buleteer and have been scouting
150cc motorcycle for the past couple of months. around town for a good buy. The Classic had really got
My parents being typical folks, were skeptical me hooked since rumors about its launch surfaced.
of giving me a motorcycle high on cc. They were The only factor preventing me from buying the Classic
unsure about the necessity of me having a 150cc was its steep price tag. I went around checking out
machine. They were unable to understand my cubic a few other Royal Enfield motorcycles. On one such
capacity cravings. They felt I should be merely scouting trip I happened to come across a LB500.
happy about being gifted a new motorcycle. My dad After requesting the owner, I got to ride the motorcycle
was planning to gift me the Pulsar 135 as it was for a short distance. I was impressed by it and started
to seriously contemplate about owning one. The main
a new product and cheaper than the FZ. But I had
my apprehensions. Thankfully Motoroids compared worry was the availability of spare parts. Upon weighing
the two motorcycles at the right time. All my doubts the pros and cons I was confused about which Bullet
with respect to the 135’s abilities were cleared. I to buy. I was eagerly awaiting Motoroids comparison
realized that this 135cc motorcycle will fulfill my of the two motorcycles after reading Rohit’s first ride
performance needs but won’t meet my styling, report. I was unaware about the numerous positive
quality and refinement requirements. It has became qualities of the Classic over the LB500. Thank You for
easier to convince my parents into buying me the enlightening me. After a short test ride of the Classic, it
FZ 16. After reading your comparo, they understood became evident that the Classic is indeed the ultimate
my needs and the qualities of both the motorcycles. performance Bullet. Your in depth review has really
I really can’t thank you guys enough for this timely helped me in deciding which Bullet I should buy. I have
motorcycle comparo! decided to stop cribbing about the high price tag and
start saving up for the Classic.
- Arun Mohan
- Sreeram Padmanabhan
Gets better every month
Traditionally all auto magazines have been
concentrating more on carrying first ride stories
than interesting feature articles. The new age of
journalism ushered in by Motoroids is changing
the characteristics of every automotive magazine.
All auto magazines have suddenly become bold
and enthusiastic about carrying different and never
done before stories. However, they still have a lot
of catching up to do. Motoroids is currently the
country’s best automotive magazine in all respect
be it photography, content, writing style or magazine
design and appeal. With every issue the quality of
your magazine is only improving. If things continue
in the same way, then very soon the other auto
magazines will have few takers. I earlier thought that
Send us your letters at
being a free magazine, there would be shortcomings letters@motoroids.com
with respect to overall quality and execution. But I
am being proven wrong issue after issue. In fact, you If you wish to contribute to
guys are getting better with every subsequent issue. the magazine, in any way by
I sincerely hope that you get better as the months
and volumes roll by. Like all Motoroids followers I
providing content, have a look
know that this e-mag shall only get better with age! at the last page for the exact
Keep Rolling Team Motoroids!! email addresses to send the
- Arun Iyer mail to.
07
 March 2010

BIKERS
Share with the world your great adventures on your bike.
Send us your pictures along with a small description at
bikers@motoroids.com

his ‘Love for Bikes’ folder

Amit Bhagat, sends us few snaps from

re
the stunts performed which left the audience wanting for mo
vale campus. These are some of
show last month at the Symbiosis, La
RSA Stunt Team held a stunt

08

Columns
B
efore I begin telling you
this tale, let me clarify
that it happened more
out of compulsion than
Mindrevvin’ choice. I am terrible planner when
it comes to personal life. This
particular situation arose out of
AMIT CHHANGANI my philosophy that the unplanned
way out is the most fun way out,
One of the craziest things I have ever something that has fortunately
done on two-wheels worked for me thus far. It was a pre-
Diwali afternoon, I was in Pune and
there were no bookings available in
any mode of transport to Jaipur. I
had to be home, else my extremely
conservative, elderly parents would
“
assume that I was doing drugs and
The epidemic had had eloped with a Muslim girl.
ridden the town of half So I decided to ride the 1200km
in one shot, and thankfully managed
its elderly population,
to do that as well. Quite a feat,
and while I was not old, knowing that this was the first time
I wasn’t very keen on I was ever riding for anything more
”
taking any chances than 700km in a shot. It wasn’t
without incidents though. The bike
heated up and stalled somewhere
near Udaipur. I had to drag it to a
mechanic for about 5km, and get the
engine oil replaced before hopping
on again. The rest of the journey was
rather slow with the engine heating
up every now and then and making
me wait for it to cool down again.
I don’t know whether it was luck or
my parent’s prayers to have me back
home, still single, but the bike ran
the distance. Incredibly, the engine
seized right in front of my home’s
main gate.
This gave birth to a thought.
If I can cover 1200km with a bike
in 20 odd hours in an impromptu
attempt, there was a good chance
I could do a Saddledsore as well.
So I got the bike repaired from a
dunderhead who thought it was not
important for him to open and clear
the crankcase even though he knew
that the piston had broken into four
pieces. He simply drained the oil,
changed the piston and topped the
reservoir again. Of course, he didn’t
tell me about his smart deeds while
handing the bike over to me.
Now I don’t know whether
I should term it as fortune or
misfortune but for the next 600km,
which were a part of the conditioning
and breaking-in run, the engine ran
as if it was immeresed in butter.
Totally convinced that I will do it
without breaking a sweat, I started
off early morning the next day to
ride non-stop to Pune and beyond
to see whether I really possessed
an Iron Butt. I was averaging a
little over 90km/h for the next two
and a half hours, and the Pulsar
180 under my groins was running
exceptionally smoothly for what
perceptions I had about the machine
prior to this ride. But the inevitable
soon happened. The engine started
making weird clattering noises
and came to a halt in the next two
kilometres. It had ceased again. The
chips of the broken piston that my
mechanic friend had so conveniently
not bothered removing from the
crankcase had somehow entered
the ignition chamber, damaging the
con-rod.
Now began the tough part.
I was in the middle of a highway
with a broken down bike, with the
nearest small town being about
20km away. Fortunately a rear-entry
passenger tempo soon emerged out
of somewhere and agreed to tow me
to the town. Tied to a rope, I got
March 2010
towed for the next 20 km, and even
ate dust once when the contraption
pulling me took a vicious turn
without any prior indication or
warning. I didn’t break any bones,
thankfully. Bhilwara was this place’s
name and fortunately I had the
contact of a friend whose family
stayed there. I was soon received
by his elder cousin, who looked
pale and somewhat staggered as
he walked. As we walked towards
their home, I realised there wasn’t
even one healthy soul around me.
There were hardly any people on
the streets, and the rare few who
emerged out looked ill and walked
seemingly like zombies.
I was told that the whole town
was hit by dengue and chickengunya
epidemics, and almost every
villager had been affected. Now
chickengunya is a dangerous
disease. Once you fall prey to it, you
need 2-3 months to fully recover,
until when your joints feel jammed
and you can’t move your limbs or
walk properly. This was scary. The
very thought of getting inflicted
with dengue or Chickengunya had
me shitting bricks. I once even
thought of taking the next bus to
Ahmedabad, but visualising just a
glimpse of my then editor hollering
at me was good enough to make me
stick to the original plan.
Thankfully this was still not
later than 11 in the afternoon, and
there was a chance that I could have
gotten the bike repaired at the local
Bajaj showroom. The service station
people were welcoming and agreed
to help, but owing to Eid, the
mechanics were on a leave. I would
have to wait till the next morning

Columns
now. Moreover, they hadn’t sold even a single
Pulsar 180 in the whole of Bhilwara which
meant I was supposed to wait till the co-rod
arrrived to Bhilwara from jaipur.
I ate my meals with great apprehension,
with a fear of getting infected. The epidemic
had ridden the town of half its elderly
population, and while I was not old, I wasn’t
very keen on taking any chances. I ate as less a
quantity as possible with sweating temples and
made sure I didn’t touch anything uncooked.
The night passed without a blink as I burnt an
entire packet of Kachhua Chhap Machchhar
Agarbatti that I had duly bought after my
dinner. I smoked the room as if it was a portion
of hell, and spent the night sleepless to make
sure the nasty mosquitoes didn’t touch me.
Thankfully a connection in Jaipur ensured
the timely delivery of the con-rod to Bhilwara,
which meant my bike was ready to go again by
6 in the evening. The mechanics confirmed that
there were pieces of piston in the crank case,
causing the damage. I hugged each one of the
mechanics (again, with a little apprehension)
and set off for Pune once again.
I knew this was not possible now. A newly
built engine, which had broken down twice
in the past 1000km didn’t have a chance of
completing something as rigorous as the IBA
Saddlesore. I rode slowly at about 50km/h,
just to be sure that I didn’t land in another tub
of shit. Over the next two hours, the engine
kept running more smoothly than ever, even
as I upped the pace a bit. A wild thought
which was overpowered by my sensibilities
was rearing up again. Being the one who likes
the fun way out of situations, I decided to give
it a go again.
At Chanderia, a village somewhere
near Bhilwara I had taken a fuel bill with a
time stamp from a Reliance petrol pump. I
decided to make it my starting point. And
since I had already wasted too much time, I
whacked the throttle open. Soon after, I met
with a gargantuan traffic jam, to beat which
I took a side road which in turn led me into
a totally unknown territory. By the time I
managed to find the highway again, I had lost
crucial time. The good thing was, the bike was
running like a dream, allowing me to wring
the throttle open with disdain, revving all the
way up to the redline without emanating a
single worrisome noise. I knew this time she
was game for it, the onus was on me now.
Dr. Arnob Gupta, the only erstwhile IBA
certified guy in India who had been guiding
me all this while to prepare for the run, in vain,
met me at the outskirts of Mumbai at Manor,
to guide me out of the city towards Pune. I
kept riding at a seriously fast pace, managing
to average more than 90km/h throughout,
after my exit from Mumbai. I rode all the way
to a place called Hanchinal, somewhere close
to Belgaum, found a fuel pump there and
turned back for the final dash.
It had been more than fifty hours since I
slept properly; as I had not been able to sleep
on the night before I started off from Jaipur
either. But surprisingly, there wasn’t a hint
of fatigue or a sign of sleep. The anticipation
of making it happen was overpowering every
other mental or bodily reaction. The bike
never felt as much as a part of my body as it
did during those last eight hours. My wish was
its command – that was one moment I rode
without a doubt, I rode with a conviction, I
rode as if nothing could ever go wrong. It was
a spiritual experience.
At the end of it, when I hopped off, there
was a gentle smile of satisfaction on my face.
The odo read 1660km. I knew probably
that won’t be good enough to qualify for the
certificate, but was that ever what I set out
for? The feeling of having fulfilled a promise
I made to myself could be felt in the electric
sensation that ran across my body. I had done
what I set out for.
To all of you who have ever thought of
doing it, shun all apprehensions and do it. It’s
a divine experience. Take my word for it.
ROHIT PARADKAR
THE FAT BIKER
Is MotoGP on a gaming
console fun enough?
F
rom many bikers I have come
across until now, most are as
hooked onto gadgets as they are
with their bikes. Afterall, the bike
too is a high performance gadget that you
buy from the showroom and instill within
it a soul that connects with you as you
start spinning the odometer. I too, am
a gadget freak, and since I’m more than
happy with my iPhone for quite some
time now (which means I’m not changing
handsets every fortnight), I’m splurging
my ‘gadgetry’ budget on console games
these days. For the last couple of months
I have been totally hooked onto Forza
3 and DiRT 2; but what I was longing
for was a bike-oriented game that could
give me equal amount of fun. And that’s
when I came across the demo version of
‘MotoGP 09/10’ – MotoGP’s officially
endorsed gaming product for 2010.
Being the official licensed product,
the game lets me play as any of the racers/
teams of 2009 and 2010 – from Valentino
Rossi to Hiroshi Aoyama. The game has
March 2010
all the MotoGP tracks recreated in a digital world and promises weather
changes as well when you travel to various circuits on the calendar – wow
what attention to detail! Since I was playing the demo version, I was forced
to start with the 125cc motorcycles. Fair enough. But my expectations were
shattered in no time! Not because I had to start with a 125cc when I was
expecting my surround sound system to blast with a Desmosedici growl; but
because the game had got the most important aspect of sport biking wrong
– cornering! Let me try and explain. When you can see the suggested line
on the track and try to follow it, it’s all cool till it’s a straight line. However,
when you decide to stick to the line while tackling, say, a right hander, both
the wheels will slide off to the left the suggested line while your rider will drag
his knee on the right side. In simple words the rider and bike seem to move
like a ‘Wheel-of-Fortune’! You have to make sure you have to ‘slide’ on to the
racing line (instead of sticking to it), even in tight, slow speed corners, instead
of negotiating it the way you would in real life.
My argument is simple, it’s been over 5 years since Polyphony Digital
(makers of the famous Gran Turismo series for the Playstation) made the
marvelous ‘Tourist Trophy’ motorcycle riding simulator. Then why is it, that
even after half a decade the industry hasn’t learnt how to make a similar (if
not better) motorcycle simulator like Tourist Trophy? Year after year, there
is a new MotoGP or WSBK game being churned out and not a single one
cuts the cake. A couple of game distributors I spoke to are blaming the lack
of demand, for the current motorcycle sims not being as serious or exciting
as their four-wheeled counterparts. So its a chicken and egg situation here
– sales are not high because the simulations are not serious enough, and the
developers are not putting in as much effort as the car games because the sales
don’t translate into enough dough. So probably the solution lies with Dorna
(owners of the MotoGP franchise) themselves – don’t give the official license
unless and until the game is up to the mark. Probably then we can have some
simulation that comes close to the real life experience…
A
war’s
getting
fuelled
India’s ultimate
econo-commuter is
facing its biggest
challenger yet.
Which of the two
is going to win
Round One of this
mega battle in the
making?
Words Amit Chhangani
Photography Eshan Shetty
H
ave you ever
visited the Hero
Honda website? I
really suggest you
go there once and choose the
Splendor+ from the models
displayed. You’ll be taken
to a new page, where the
company talks about some of
the greatest feats us humans
have achieved. The Great
Wall of China – the largest
man made structure ever,
Queen Mary2 - the biggest
luxury liner afloat, Airbus A
380 – the most gargantuan
passenger aircraft, and Burj
Khalifa (though they have
used a wrong picture)– the
tallest edifice on the planet,
all find a mention there.
What follows these marvels is
the ubiquitous, unassuming
Splendor, which happens
to be the largest selling bike
in the world. And that‘s the
legend of the machine that
we have here on these pages.
For the past 27 years, ever
since its emergence, that
puny looking sloper mill has
passed the test of time in a
fashion which has extremely
rare equivalents. The only
bikes running without a fuss
from early eighties cannot
be anything but these utterly
practical contraptions that
gave mobility a whole new
perspective with the mantra
of ‘Fill it, shut it, forget it’.
It’s a phenomenal feat, to
sell in such huge numbers,
and still run without a fault,
in every single instance for
ages together. And that’s
why Honda, the original
designers of this engine
March 2010
are such a revered brand
across the world. And that’s
precisely why, Hero Honda,
after ruling the Indian roads
for ages together have a very,
very serious reason to worry
about.
The CB Twister features,
what may potentially be
considered the biggest shift
in the Indian two-wheeler
industry after the advent
of Hero Honda. The new
109cc single cylinder petrol
powerplant is the latest what
Honda has to offer in the
bread-and-butter commuter
market. Honda have not
shared this engine with their
friends at Hero Honda,
making this engine the first
major aberration from the
legendary sloper mill that we
were discussing in the earlier
paragraph. Being a Honda,
reliability is a given, and we
have every reason to believe
that this is going to be the
next big thing in the Indian
two-wheeler industry. And
that’s the whole essence of this
story, to find out, what exactly
has changed after almost
30 long years, and whether
the newest offering from
Honda is capable of doing
the unimaginable – snatching
the bestseller crown from the
formidable Splendor.
There couldn’t have
been a better way to begin
this comparo than putting
the new contender through
the ultimate test parameter
of this genre of bikes– fuel
efficiency. Over the years,
the Splendor has proven its
mettle as a bike that’s utterly
12
 March 2010

terms of functionality though,
with a speedo, tell-tale, high
beam, fuel gauge combo.
Once aboard, the sculpted
tank fits snugly between the
legs and charms you with its
well proportioned, yet angular
styling – it’s a feeling that you
never get while being aboard a
100cc commuter. Everything
is perceptibly more stylish and
upmarket. The Splendor’s age
shows though. Hopping on to
the Splendor’s saddle makes
its old design evident. The
Twister feels fresh, vibrant and
very today.
Of course, being a new
bike, the Twister is bound to
grab more eyeballs, but the
pencil guys at Honda have
pulled off a fabulous job
with the Twister’s lines. The
perception about the Twister’s
visual superiority is further
substantiated as you get on the
move. Even after belonging
to the most basic segment in
the Indian market, the Twister
manages to make necks twist.
Be it the sharp, angular, tank,
the chunky, sabre-like panel
hanging off it, the cute, stubby
exhaust or the two-tone
treatment – the Twister has
the goods to stand head and
shoulders above the rest of the
commuter pack.
Slotting the bike into first
gear introduces you to the
generous amounts of torque
available at the bottom end.
The bike tends to wheelie
inadvertently in the first gear
if you twist it a little too
much. Even in the second gear
there is a tendency to shove
you behind at low revs. The
shift feel is a slightly notchy
though, and you have to make
an effort sometimes trying to
pull up that sporty gear shifter
with your toe. The feeling
is even more pronounced
while shifting from the first
gear into second. The silken
smooth engine is a joy though.
Handlebars don’t get more vibe
free than this. The Splendor’s
engine is smooth enough to
fend off any competition from
the new age pretenders, but
the new Honda mill somehow

reilable. It may not be the most fuel
efficient commuter around, but
it delivers a very respectable fuel
efficiency figure that hovers around
the 60kmpl mark very consistently.
We wanted to be absolutely spot-
on with this test – this was a zero
tolerance zone for us. We drained
the two bikes empty and ran them
until they spluttered and died down.
We now filled the same quantity of
fuel in the tanks of both of them
and rode them around the city,
while swapping riders all the while
to compensate for a difference in
riding styles and see whether the
new engine manages to overshadow
its elder sibling. And while that
surely was the best way to begin the
shootout, we’re afraid you’ll have
to wait till we reach the end of this
comparo to know which of the two
eventually won.
As both these bikes are not
meant to be ridden on the highways
too often, and are meant to serve
their owners primarily within the
city confines, we decided to test the
duo in the urban jungle during the
peak traffic hours. We decided to
start off from our office at 8:30 in
the morning, travel all the way to
the other end of the town in rush
hour traffic and come back.
Bringing the Twister to life
makes one thing very evident –
very few companies in the world
could make engines which are as
refined as a Honda. Not even half
a dab of the starter button and the
engine comes to life, and gets to
work in the silkiest fashion possible.
The Splendor, which is a smooth
runner itself, feels slightly gruff in
comparison to the new 109cc unit
of the Twister. With the new mill,
Honda has taken engine refinement
to a new level; the smoothness of
the CB doesn’t have a parallel in the
commuter segment.
Swinging a leg around the seat of
the Twister introduces you to one of
the liveliest looking consoles in the
business. It doesn’t feature anything
digital, but the choice of shape,
colours and the sporty design lends
it a very fresh appeal. It’s basic in
13
March 2010

14
manages to achieve the lofty
feat of bettering the HH
in smoothness. The power
delivery is very progressive
after the initial rev-band and
the Twister surges ahead in a
reassuring yet jerk free and
smooth manner once set in
motion.
So far so good, but like
most things in life, twister
too has its own set of
downsides. To start with, the
suspension is way too harsh
for a commuter bike. I could
feel very undulation on
the road getting translated
directly into my spine,
making me conscious of my
back which has been in a
terrible shape of late thanks
to long hours of sitting in
the chair. I am sure there are
many others like me who will
choose to overlook the other
outstanding characteristics
of the bike for the sake of
health. Surprisingly, there
isn’t even an adjuster to
reduce the stiffness.
Dynamically, the
Twister turns out to be an
accomplished bike, as we
realized when we took the
bike to the famous twisties
of Lavasa after our city run.
The skinny tyres create some
apprehension but aren’t as
disappointing when you tilt
the bike on dry surfaces.
In a straight line, however,
the lack of a central groove
makes things precarious as
the bike slides at the slightest
hint of the rear brake
coming into action. We get
the shivers thinking about
what would happen when
someone tries to tread the
wet and oily monsoon roads
on this rubber. The rear tyre
on the Twister requires to
be replaced. The Splendor March 2010
may not be as accomplished
as the Twister in terms of
engineering and dynamics,
but it definitely sports a
better rear tyre.
The twister sprints to
60km/h from a standstill
in 7.02 seconds, about 0.7
seconds quicker than the
splendour. It has a better top
whack and a substantially
better in-gear performance
in third and fourth gears as
well. There isn’t a shade of
doubt that the Twister is a
better performer no matter
which way you look at it.
The top speed of 94km/h is
a good 5km/h better than
the splendour too. However
we think that within the
city confines the splendor’s
performance is reasonably
good too, and practically
there isn’t a reason why you
should choose one bike
over another as long as you
don’t wish to head out of
the town. Having said that,
even the Twister with its
slightly better performance
isn’t much of a highway bike.
What matters eventually is
fuel efficiency, and if more
power equates to the bike
guzzling more fuel, then it
doesn’t make much sense to
the sensibilities of the great
Indian urban commuter. We
shall see how the CB fares in
that department towards the
end of this shootout.
Panel gaps, shoddy fit
and finish and thin, flimsy
feeling panels are some more
“
disappointing aspects of the
Twister. It’s disheartening to Even after belonging to the most basic segment in the Indian market, the Twister
”
know that a bike which looks manages to make necks, ER, twist!
so cool from a distance turns
15
 March 2010

out to be a rather not-so-neat job when looked at TWISTER SPLENDOR

closely. No complaints about the quality of the
paint though, the finish and the gloss make the 0-60 7.06 sec 7.82
Twister look like a machine more from the premium
segment. Top Speed 94.03 89.31
Overall, the new Honda turns out to be a very
flamboyant, modern looking machine which has
3rd gear roll on 7.58   12.41
been robustly built and excels in most departments, 30-70
including performance. Ride quality, fit and finish
and the flimsy feeling plastics is a concern area, 4th gear roll on 13.81 21.26
30-80 
which Honda will have to look into if they don’t
want to disapoint their customes in the long run.
But the most crucial aspect of these bikes, as we
discussed at the outset, is fuel efficiency. After
trundling around in the city for more than 5 hours,
we were getting irritated, as we expected these bikes
to run dry by this time. Surprisingly, they were
still chugging along happily without any signs of
splutter. I had put my money on the Twister, while
the rest of the team believed that the Splendor will
take the ultimate efficiency accolades.
And finally it happened, the trusty old Splendor
gave in to the new tech and came to a halt after
coughing a bit. The Twister kept going some
distance to prove that new technology, at the end
of it, matters. We managed to get a fuel efficiency
of 64kmpl from the Splendor, while the Twister
returned a substantially better 71kmpl.
The price comparisons don’t make much sense
here, as the Twister is decidedly a better package
and there has to be a price difference. At Rs 2500
for base models, that difference doesn’t look
like much, making the new Honda a value deal.
However, more than a head-to-head, this comparo
is about whether the new Twister can has the goods
to replicate the success of the Splendor (and the
rest of the products on the same platform) – a feat
which no other bike has managed to achieve. As an
answer, we think that while there are a few rough
edges to the Twister, it still has the makings to do it.
A new revolution is just about to begin!

“ Overall, the new Honda turns out to be a very flamboyant, modern looking machine
which has been robustly built and excels in most departments, including performance
16
 One Helluva Salty Adventure!
Pradeb Biswas, ventures to a place where time stands still, the calmness envelopes
souls and tranquility prevails in abundance
Words Pradeb Biswas Photography Arup Das, Biplab Deka, Sanat Tanna

I
t was a usual
Monday morning
at the Motoroids
headquarters. The
schedule for the week
ahead was being planned.
Work pertaining to
various sections of the
magazine and website was
being delegated by the
Editor. Like usual, the Ed
made an announcement
of a press invite having
landed up in his mailbox.
Everyone’s eyes lit up.
The Ed further revealed
that Royal Enfield is
organizing a tour of
Rann of Kutch and the
manufacturer had asked
Motoroids to participate.
Generally, when a
press invite involving a
motorcycle ride arrives
there happens to be no
dearth of takers for it.
This time the scenario
was quite different. For
starters, there are two
‘Buleteers’ in our office
namely Praveen and
Gauri. Unfortunately,
neither of them could
go for the ROK trip.
Praveen had represented
our magazine at the
recently organized personal commitments not the Classic. I was
Southern Odessey while and should be attending aware about the Classic’s
Gauri had some other the trip on behalf of abilities having ridden
commitments to fulfill. Motoroids!! Frankly, I one before.
Rohit immediately was not excited about The Thunderbird
realized that he had some getting to participate in TBTS was an unknown
work pending work in the Rann of Kutch tour. I entity to me. I was sure
Chennai which couldn’t am not a big fan of Royal that riding a ‘Bullet’ for a
be postponed! Amit was Enfield motorcycles. The week wouldn’t be a very
required to be in office proposition of riding enticing experience for a
for taking a final call on one for a week was a bit performance bike freak
all Motoroids related too much too accept in like me. Ironically, as the
matters. So he couldn’t go a dignified way. Adding trip ended, it turned out
either. salt to my wound was a to be my best one on a
Without asking call from the organizer motorcycle till date! In
me, it was unanimously informing me that the week that followed,
decided that I was I would be riding a I traversed through rural
free of any editorial or Thunderbird TBTS and backroads, left my treads
 March 2010

The route plan for the trip

gets charted out.

on the little and greater Rann, made new At the pre-trip briefing all participants were given route maps and informed about the schedule
friends and came away impressed with the for the trip.
Thunderbird TBTS. Here’s a thump by
thump account of it. everyone headed back their motorcycling After the flag off we questioned by the locals
to their allotted rooms experiences’ were shared got out of the city about our intentions.
Day One (Arrival at Ahmedabad) for a power nap. In the before retiring for the onto the highway and Some of them even
As per the tour schedule, we had to reach a evening we all gathered night. re-grouped at the turn started riding with
particular hotel after arriving in Ahmedabad. in the lobby for the off towards Dasada. It us to feel a sense of
A few participants arrived by morning while pre-trip briefing. The was a unique experience belonging. It took us
the rest came in by early afternoon. There briefing was done by Day Two (Ahmedabad- to ride alongside 14 about an hour to get
were a total of 14 participants in the ROK All motorcycles were first subjected to scrunity and a Kanwardeep a.k.a KD, Dasada-Little Rann) ‘Bullets’ in two by out of the city and
tour with 7 representing media houses. A few of them were subjected to minor tweaks. our guide for the trip. All participants two formations in the reach the briefing
few participants from Pune and Mumbai The route was charted assembled in the heart of Ahmedabad. point. After a 15 min
rode their steeds all the way to Ahmedabad! me to choose from among mileage on the odometer. I out and participants hotel lobby before the Amid the chaotic flow ‘sutta and pee break’,
By 2pm all participants had arrived and their the two remaining keys. I followed the advice which were informed about scheduled departure of traffic, all road users we headed off towards
motorcycles were subjected to scrutiny. All said what difference would later made sense for no the destinations that time of 7am. After a were stopping to make the Rann Riders resort
minor problems were sorted out. The media it make and requested major mechanical troubles they would be halting briefing session by KD, way for the Buleteers. in Dasada which was
motorcycles were up for grabs and everyone him to give me any one. cropped up. at on each individual about the immediate People all around us our scheduled lunch
made a beeline to choose the best ones from A fellow participant and A customary ‘intro’ day. Then we all went plan we all thumped were smiling and giving stop. A sumptuous
the lot. media rides veteran, session took place followed to KD’s room where off to the Royal Riders us the thumbs up! lunch awaited us and
In true non-Buleteer fashion, I waited informed me to choose the by a typical vegetarian all stories pertaining showroom which was At every traffic we didn’t hesitate in
for the organizer to hand me a key. He told motorcycle with the lowest Gujju lunch. Post lunch, to ‘Buleteers and the trip’s flag off venue. stop we were being revealing our digestive
18
Before entering the
little Rann, KD made
us ride through fields
to help us get familiar
with the nuances of
riding on sand.
While
villages, we would become an
attraction for the local folks .
prowess.
We left the resort at around
3pm and followed the backroads
leading through villages to enter
into the little Rann. Our trip
organizer KD had done a recce of
the various destinations and ways
to reach them. He was well versed
with the village roads and could
comfortably thump along at speeds
on the northern side of 80kph. We
were all trying to keep up with him.
Sensing our enthusiasm KD decided
to get us into little rann through
an unconventional route. Actually
there was no route. It was just a
trail leading through fields with
barely enough space for a human to
walk through. KD rode his classic
over the path effortlessly. We too
pampered our egos and rode off
behind him.
For the majority of participants,
it was our first off-road experience
on a Royal Enfield motorcycle. It
was getting difficult to maintain
momentum on the sand filled trails.
The first timers were fish-tailing all
over the place while the experienced
riders were easily maintaining speeds
in excess of 50kph. On paper that
doesn’t sound much. The first timers
on sand including me, were finding
it impossible to cross 15kph without
dragging both feet along to avoid a
fall. A few words of wisdom and a
15 min break later, we were pumped
up to tread on the little Rann.
By the time we entered little
Rann, the sun had already set. The
visibility around was low for the
other bikes were spewing trails of
dust around us. Like a herd of sheep,
we merely followed the support
vehicle that was leading us. Riding
a motorcycle on the little Rann is a
feat that one should experience at
passing through least once in their lifetime. It is a flat
vast ground covered by loose sand
 on top! Intially it was a weird feeling as
the front was rolling off in a different
direction while the rear was trying to go
somewhere else.
Soon we got the hang of it and gave
mild doses of counter-steer whenever
the situation demanded so! At night, we
stopped near a temple and had packed
dinner under the illumination of a
million stars. I have never seen such a
clear sky and bright stars ever before.
That night, I really cursed my city life
and wished to stay in a village away
form the pollution. After dinner, a few
star gazer participants decided to sleep
in the Rann itself under the bright sky!
While the other guys moved to a nearby
temple to grab some forty winks.
Day Three (Little Rann- Dholavira)
At around 5 am, the head priest of the
temple started performing the daily
rituals waking all of us up. Once the
puja was done, he took some time
out and made tea for the entire pack
of riders! By sunrise we all freshened
up and completed breakfast. Before
pushing off, two participants found that
their front tyres had gone flat. Along
with the service vehicle, they headed

During daytime the temperature in the Little Rann reaches up to 40 degree

Celsius drying up the land completely resulting in cracks appearing on the
surface

While the other group members went to get their bikes topped up, I pulled
over to satisfy my sweet tooth and experience a local sugar rush. “ Riding a motorcycle on the LITTLE RANN IS A FEAT THAT ONE SHOULD
ACHIEVE AT LEAST ONCE IN his LIFETIME.
20
 March 2010
01

01.
The Archealogical Museum at Dholavira
in Kachchh district is an excavated
site which was home to Harappan
civilization back in 3rd millenium BC
02.
A large cache of antiquities have been
unearthed from the site including these
vessels of chlorite schist.
03.
The unique feature of this site is its water
reservoirs that were used for storing fresh
water

02

off to the nearest village to get them
repaired.
The rest of us, under the leadership
of KD decided to explore the Rann and
spot some wild asses. In the morning
we finally got to see what little Rann
looks like. A vast patch of barren land
which seems to stretch till the horizon
in all directions! The gujrat government
is trying to extract whatever salt that
remains in the Rann. For that it has dug
a foot deep trenches which tread across
the entire bed. Water from the river
Narmada is being pushed into the Rann
through these trenches. During daytime
the sun heats up the land causing water
to evaporate and the salt remains behind.
Owing to the combination of water
and salty barren lands, some portions 03
of the land become very soft during the
night and early morning. It is very easy
for people and bikes to get stuck in these
quicksand patches. While riding through
the little rann, one rider suddenly
encountered soft ground. He lost
control and had a nasty fall. It shook the
confidence of other riders and everyone
decided against riding flat out. A few
minutes later, we spotted a pack of wild
asses and chased them around.
We soon got bored and had a chai
break at the Mendhak Mata Mandir
before exiting little Rann. After getting
out, we stopped for lunch on the
21
 highway enroute to the night was arranged at managed to get out of space gets utlizied by
It looks a lot like snow but day’s final destination. a government hotel our beds, freshen up, shepherds guiding their
touch it and you realize that its We reached Dholavira located nearby. After finish breakfast and herds of cows to the next
salt, in granular form at around 5.30pm. It is checking in we first gather around in time grazing ground! When
an excavated Harappan freshened up and got our for a 6.30am briefing. we entered into greater
site, spread over an motorcycles tweaked up Post briefing we headed Rann, the conditions
area of 100 acres which by the accompanying out of Dholavera with seemed perfect at first.
dates back to around mechanics. Once the the intention of entering Alas, luck was not on our
three million BC. The minor mechanical issues Greater Rann provided side.
unique feature of this were sorted out, we had the salt pans had dried After covering a
site is its reservoirs dinner and slept off only up enough to not suck kilometer the ground
that were used to store to ride another day! bikes into it! started getting soft and
fresh water. We strolled While getting out our bikes started getting
around the site for an of Dholavaira we again stuck. It became obvious
hour taking pictures Day Four (Dholavera- treaded through village that the ground was still
and asking questions Greater Rann-Bhuj- roads. Riding on these wet. We stuck around for
about its history to the Nakhatrana) roads requires one to be a while clicking pictures
government official in Day-break seemed to in an alert state of mind of each other and helping
charge of it. have arrived sooner than because along with slow those who got stuck.
Yes! I didn’t Our stay for the expected. We somehow moving tractors the road Soon we turned around
shy away from
practically
tasting the salts
of adventure The Greater Rann hadn’t
dried up completely and our
motorcycles started getting
stuck in the soft ground.

22
and rode off towards harder ground.
During our briefing KD told us
that we had to reach Bhuj before 3pm
to get our permits for visiting the next
day’s locations. All of us had to go to
the Police Commissioner’s office and see
him in person in order to get permission
for visiting the scenic locations which
are located in restricted areas. We
decided not to waste any more time and
rode off towards Bhuj.
En route to Bhuj one participant
suffered a flat tyre while another needed
a chain sprocket replacement. We waited
alongside them as the mechanics set
about to bring the motorcycles back to
their running condition.
Once the work was completed
we headed off to get our permits.
After receiving our permits, we were
about to set towards the next location
when another participant’s motorcycle
developed a flat. One participant had
ended up burning his motorcycle’s cutch
plates while another one needed to
change the engine head. The guys whose March 2010
motorcycle required servicing went over
to the nearest workshop. The rest of us
rode down to a nearby restaurant o have
an unusually late lunch.
At 7pm we were informed that it
would an hour more to get the repairs

“ Riding along these roads requires one to be in an alert state of mind

because along with slow moving tractors the road space gets used by

”
shepherds guiding their herds of cows to the next grazing ground!.
23
 only to get ready and ride away by 7am the next morning! One couldn’t disagree. The resort had a hot
water pool which was too tempting for one to resist a dive in! Sensibility got the better of us, for we
got ready, finished breakfast and rode off towards Khavda. The plan was to reach a scenic view point
atop Kala Dungar hill.
From the view point on top of the hill, one can see the vastness of the Greater Rann which
endlessly stretches for miles in all directions. The Greater Rann looks like a big, flat, sheet of white
paper containing numerous water pools acroos it. The area beyond this hill is under the control of

done. Instead of waiting for the

other group, we decided to push
off and reach the hotel where we
would be staying for the night. The
route that we were instructed to
follow traversed through remote
villages. There were no signboards
and it would be a few kilometers
before humans could be spotted.
We decided against continuing
on the same route and searched
our way to the nearest national
highway. It was a smooth ride and
we easily followed the signboards
to reach Nakhatrana, our final stop
for the night.
Once there, we checked in at a
four star hotel which offered us the
privilege of a non-vegetarian meal.
We could finally relish non-veg Our scheduled lunch stop was took us a 1km The lunch was one of the few memorable ones
detour from the main highway into a village for we he had the pleasure of relishing on non-
food to our heart’s content. We where a local family hosted us. vegeratian food!
were so mentally exhausted owing
to the route fiasco that we slept off
early hoping that tomorrow never
arrives.

Day 5 (Nakhatrana-Kala Dungar-

Mandvi)
A few participants were of the
view that they were taking part
in an army boot camp and not
a motorcycle tour. Everyday we
were going to sleep post midnight
 BSF and entry is prohibited
for civilians. Tourists and locals
are allowed access only till the
‘India Bridge’ which connects
the northern boundaries of
the Rann. The international
border with Pakistan is only
70 kilometres away from the
bridge. Locals say that at times
when visibility is clear, one can
spot the Pakistani outposts on
the other side of the border.
We rode down from Kala
Dungar till the India Bridge.
We spent a few minutes
hanging around and chatting
with the BSF officer on duty.
Then we rode off towards
Mandvi beach which was our
scheduled stop for the night.
It was an enjoyable ride from
Khavda till Mandvi beach. The
speedo needle was consistently
hovering around 100kph.
We reached Mandvi beach
around half an hour before
sunset. Looking at the beach
we couldn’t resist going for
a stroll on our motorcycles.
At first only, two participants
succumbed to the pleasures of
riding on the beach. In no time
the others joined in too!
The beach was motorable
from start to end which
comprised of a distance of
around 4 kilometres. Like
pucca holligans we rode up
and down the beach a couple
of times till we got tired and
had to stop. We parked our
motorcycles, and made a
futile effort in showing off our
masculinity by playing beach
rugby. We ran out of breath
in the next five minutes and
decided to take it easy. We got
“ Everyday we were going to sleep post midnight only to get ready and
ride away by 7am the next morning!
”
hold of a few chairs, sat around
each other and chatted about
our experiences on the trip so
far.
According to the original
plan we were supposed to sleep
on the beach in our sleeping
bags. We dumped the plan, and
resorted to an impromptu one
of sleeping in the mosquito and
crab free hotel rooms.
Day 6 (Mandvi-Little Rann-
Dasada)
We were scheduled to leave
Mandvi by 7am. Owing to the
lack of sleep and tiredness, we
managed to get ready and leave
only by 9am. While getting
out of Mandvi, one Classic
had a mechanical breakdown.
We all stuck together and
waited for the backup vehicle
to arrive. When the mechanics
arrived and opened up the
engine, it became clear that
the job at hand would take
time to complete. With around
350 kilometers left to cover,
we participants decided to
continue riding ahead instead
of waiting in a pack.
The roads were flat, straight
and completely boring. We
all started feeling sleepy and
it was becoming difficult to
concentrate while riding.
We pulled over for a break
and had two glasses of sugar
cane juice with the hope of
energizing ourselves and feeling
fresh. After covering around
70 kilometres we got elated
to know that the remaining
route ran through the national
highway!
We immediately forgot
our fatigue while the sleepiness
seemed to have self-medicated
itself. We all went flat out on
the butter smooth and perfectly

curved four lane highway till
Adesar. Upon reaching Adesar
we stopped for a 10 min chai
and smoke break. We then
entered little Rann and re-
grouped at the Mendak mata
mandir. We waited for the other
participants and the back-up
vehicle to arrive. By 8.30pm
everyone had arrived and we left
towards Dasada where we would
be staying for the night.
To reach Dasada we once
again had to traverse through
little Rann. Everyone among us
was excited about the prospect
of riding on little rann again.
The confidence level and riding
speeds of all the participants
had improved considerably.
Unfortunately, two participants
got stuck in the wet patches. It
took us about an hour to rescue
them as their motorcycle tyres
Inside the little Rann, we only have the moon, a million stars
and fellow trip members for company
March 2010
were covered with muck which
ended up blocking the wheel.
We had to remove the muck after noon! The earlier night
from the tyres to free up the we were too tired to even
wheels. chew food properly. We
We managed to reached woke up with a hunger pang
Rann Riders around 2am. It that could be satisfied only
was the most tiring day of the by a heavy breakfast. After
trip as we were on the road for having our fill of parathas
around 14 hours. We somehow and toasts, we headed back
gulped down some dinner and to our rooms for a quick
crashed on the super-comfy shower.
beds in our rooms. An early check out
later we lazed around in
Day 7 (Dasada-Nalsarovar- the resort premises. Soon it
Ahmedabad) dawned upon us, that we
I reckon everyone would have guys are here to have fun
slept till late afternoon on this and not laze around. We
day. Unfortunately, we were decided to have fun in our
woken up by the hotel staff own way. In simple terms
at 11am. That is because, the an impromptu stunt session
rooms were reserved for another followed. A few wheelies,
batch of tourists that were burnouts, and drifts later we
supposed to check in anytime were all back to our smiling
happy avatars. KD briefed
us that after lunch we would
ride to the Nalsarovar bird
sanctuary and then proceed
to Ahmedabad.
After a delicious lunch,
we started contemplating
about the idea of giving
‘Hot Chocolate’ (?!) is a local delicacy in This is how a wet patch of groung in the little Rann looks like.
Mandvi. Its a fried maida cone filled up
While riding there, always saty off the white patches on ground
with the regular dabeli filling.
Nalsarovar a skip and
heading straight to our
hotel rooms in Ahmedabad.
Afterall we were not here to
watch birds! Besides we were
all tired and desperately
needed hours of sleep. A few
minutes later we awoke to
the fact that we are here to
ride. We are here as a group
with a schedule to follow.
The advantage of going to
Nalsarovar would be that
we will able to ride over a
longer distance. Soon we
all rode off towards the bird
sanctuary!
We reached the
sanctuary close to sunset. It
basically comprises of a few
islands which are home to
migratory birds. At sunrise
the birds fly away while
at sunset they head back
home. We hired a few boats
to get closer to the islands
and increase our chances of
spotting a few rare birds.
We were lucky enough to
see the saras crane and lesser
26

flamingo among the many migratory
birds which flock to the sanctuary as it is
a breeding spot.
The short boat ride had a soothing
effect on us. We could not spot many
birds but all the mosquitoes around
sure spotted us! For the majority of
participants, it was their first visit to
a bird sanctuary. It was a memorable
experience; we had our biker buddies
for company. Once off the boat, a sutta
break was announced after which we
rode back to the scheduled hotel stop in
Ahmedabad.
Memoirs from the trip
This particular trip across Gujrat and
into the Rann of Kutch was organized by
Royal Enfield for the first time. It allowed
all participants to indulge in motorcycle
travel, meet new people, photograph
scenic locations and return home with
the desire to thump down the same route
again. The trip armed us motorcycle
enthusiasts with a sense of achievement.
It made one realize the importance of
biker buddies. Traveling on a motorcycle
to explore unknown destinations with
like minded people for company is a great
feeling that cannot be rightfully expressed
in words and needs to be experienced
once at least.
This tour into the Rann of Kutch,
allowed all participants to analyse and
improvise on their riding skills and the
motorcycle’s abilities. As bikers, we were
not only exposed to new riding scenarios
but also got to deal with them. In the
March 2010
With not much riding
to be done on the final
day, impromptu photo
breaks became the
norm on that day.
end, we all came out of it with enriched
biking skills. I for one, am now more
comfortable with riding a ‘Bullet’ on We said our final
dirt. I also got to witness first hand the goodbyes to each
other post a final
amount of beating that a Thunderbird gossip and bitching
can endure. session
It allowed the participants to do
fun stuff which otherwise we wouldn’t
have even bothered about on a solo trip.
I mean can you imagine riding your
motorcycle solo to traverse across the
little rann? Now image yourself doing
the same thing your biker friends..!
Get the drift? If not, then take part in
future trips organized by Royal Enfield.
The experience will be really worth the
money spent. I for one, will surely try
to attend all RE motorcycle expeditions
henceforth. 27

I
hadn’t felt this excited about
anything in recent years as I was
for the Devbhumi Ride organized
by Team 456. The feeling I had
was very similar to the sort of feeling
you have when going on a first date.
You look forward to it until-your-
eyes-pop-out with a lot of expectation,
lust, even trepidation. Now, if you are
looking for sex, murder, drugs, high
speed motorbike chases, treasure hunts
or escape from high security zones,
then this is not the place to be. This
is about how few strangers who are
passionate about biking get together
Team 456, a biking club from New Delhi embark upon a weekend ride to catch the glimpse of the famous Nanda Devi Hills
on a demanding ride into the hills and
get to know each other; fall in love with
each other and live happily ever after.
I have travelled quite a bit across
the country mostly in cars and also
have little motorcycle riding experience.
However, the DBR was quite unique
for me as it meant about 1100 kms of
motorcycling in a group of about 35
riders. I had had no such experience; and
I was very eager to test my motorcycling
skills and to meet the other 34 mentally
deranged guys who wanted to do this
for pleasure. In the event, it turned out
to be a motley ensemble of guys ranging
in ages between 18 to 48 years. Some
were from a professional background;
few of them were freelancers while some
hailed from a Business background.
But the common denominator which
brought us all together for this ride was
the manic obsession with motorcycles
and riding.
So, we were all to assemble on D-Day
(Thursday, 1st October, 2009) at the
Ghazipur Petrol Pump at 18.30 sharp.
And like good boys, we were all there by
20.00. The organisers had forgotten to
mention that they will wait till eternity
for all the riders to show up who were
A View from the Top
Words
running late. So, after about two hours
of smoking countless cigarettes, drinking
innumerable soft drinks the moment of
departure had finally arrived! We were
a group of 27 bikes and 35 guys with
a few pillions. We also had Mayank,
who had hurt himself in an incident
prior to the ride and therefore chose to
accompany us in his car, which served
as a backup vehicle and a mobile wine
shop. Parmesh was to lead the pack and
Sreejith was designated to sweep. So
with that, the engines roared to life and
we were off on or ride.
The traffic was heavy, because of
Abhishek Thakur Photography Team 456
which we could not keep a good pace
until we crossed Ghaziabad. Thereafter,
the traffic thinned, the air cooled, the
pollution receded, and the ride started
feeling different. We reached Hapur
without any incident and halted for
dinner at a roadside dhaba. After
dinner, the riding got a little difficult
as drowsiness began to set in. It was
decided to take halts after every 80 kms
or so, which were religiously taken.
After about 200 kms of riding
on smooth highways, we turned left
from Rampur. It was 03.30 a.m in the
morning and the weather was beginning
 March 2010

04

nd I even
u nd a bit a while. I
ly. Most of
th e a ro
pped for a 05
to get chil rs, jackets, catna rcibly woken up to 03
ate as fo
wind che e tc . slowly w me the journey.
n ts ,
track pa of resu Almora,
02 m a d e th e ir way out
oo n Ju st short of became
d
e bags. S r, it got foggy an l. We 01.
the luggag R u d ra p u
ly b e a u ti fu
ss e d in g s
we cro ed ach of cloud Taking on the twisties enroute
a ld w a n i and reach 0 could see banks v a ll e y.
H 5.3 the Chaukori
h e e m T aal at 0 nd below us in d o n to p
B
cold here, a ra is perche 02.
a.m. It was was looking Almo ountain and as we
y a m n
everybod hot masala
of the su View of the parking lot outside the
ed there,
forward to uch needed reach ut. A breakfast halt hotel in Dehradun where we stopped
m eo
chai and ver, it turned brok heduled at Almora, for lunch
e sc
sleep. How a halt of half was we had hot parathas
st
out to be ju out sleep or where a. I suffer from a 3.
r w it h it h te ll
an hou
w grumblin
gs w I can sme Abhishek & Vinod posing for a pic
t tooth and
tea. With fe e were on the swee ts shop from miles. outside a fuel station
unheeded,
w a swee s fo r B a l
ra is famou 04.
road again. eem Taal, it Almo which is a sort 06
e r B h b M it h a i d
Aft coloure
s uphill clim chocolate Enjoying the early morning
was a 60 km . The cold of a nd has small white sunshine at Charkata
ora a
upto Alm itting us hard, Burfi opathic pills-like
h
winds were in getting rid hom alls on it. Once the
oe 05.
which h e lp e d
th e su g a rb k e n c a re
ta Fully Loaded and raring to go!
siness and t tooth was
of the drow through high swee were on the road
curvy road
s
demanded again.
of, we 06.
moun ta in s o m b a c k si d e s
fr r Time to re- group
ntration
full conce was getting By now, ou ke crazy.
te h u rt in g li
us. The rou which called were ad been on bikes
sc e n ic W e h more
more h a lt by the continuously for
b ri e f hout
for a e place was than 13 hours, wit the
rivers id e . Th now
ater
and the w . any sleep. So, g longer
beautiful, a rm in
singly w were gett
was surpri us splashed halts
01 Most of 29
than usual. Until now, the riders were
not that well acquainted with each other
but thanks to this halt at Almora,we
started socializing beyond the formal chit
chats. It was close to noon when we left
from Almora. Chaukori from Almora
is 110 kms, but it felt nothing less than
300kms. It was getting hot now and our
fatigue was getting worse. The roads here
in few patches were bad and everybody’s
arses were on fire from continuous riding.
After clocking in few more kilometers,
we made a final halt at Arai Gar. From
here, the objective was only 20 kms or
so, and we made a dash for it. Parmesh
01
02
had started off in advance of all others to
see to the arrangements at the resort that
was booked for us. It was exactly at 1600
hours that we made our grand entry into
Chaukori.
Chaukori, is a small village and its
sole claim to fame is that it offers grand
views of the Nanda Devi range. I had
been here some 10 years ago when there
was only the Kumaon Mandal Vikas
Nigam (KMVM) for shelter. But now
there are about 4 to 5 resorts and Ojaswi
resort was one of them, where we were
put up. Soon after settling in, like a pack
of hungry wolves, we descended on the
01.
Walking on ice!
02.
Don’t even try to mess with us!
03.
Riding in the wee hours of morning calls for
regular intervals
poor staff, ordering omelettes, pakoras,
and the likes. After which I had a log-like
sleep for a good half an hour. The whole
evening thereafter, we ate, so much so,
that the dinner could only be served at 10
p.m in the night, because the kitchen was
overwhelmed with the snacks ordered
by the marauders. Dinner consisted of
chicken curry and some variety for the
vegans. It was past 23:00 hours by the
time dinner was done.
The next day we were supposed to
head out early to catch the sunrise and
visit the Pataal Bhuvaneshwar, a pre-
historic cave temple, 35 kms away. But
03
after the hard core riding of the previous
day, I could only get up at 08:30 a.m.
So, I missed the sunrise. The skies had
cleared in the morning after the rains last
night, and I could have got a grand view
of the Nanda Devi. But sadly, I missed
it. Nevertheless, many riders in my group
got to see and capture this sight.
After breakfast, we started for Pataal
Bhuvaneshwar, the prehistoric cave
temple. The entry to the cave was narrow
enough to deter some of us from entering.
It was also mentioned clearly outside
the temple that during this period, the
oxygen level inside the cave was very low,
and that heart patients, asthmatics and
diabetics should not venture in. The cave
goes down 90 feet through a very narrow
passage, with iron chains on both sides
to cling on to for dear life. The passage
was steep, slippery and required careful
handling. Most of us decided to go and
made it safely to the cave. There were
very interesting natural shapes inside the
cave, which our guide interpreted as the
shapes of various Gods. All in all, minus
the mumbo-jumbo, it was an interesting
experience.
I will always remember the ride back
from Pataal to Chaukori as the most
30

The Team 456 Family pose for a group snap
romantic one of my life. I was one with myself and had my bull for companion. The skies had darkened the
gently swaying pines and I was greeted to a clear and surprisingly smooth road. In such August company, my
thoughts wandered to all the blessings of my life, all the loved ones in my life, and this memorable ride. I was
filled with gratitude to the Lord Almighty. On reaching Chaukori, I straight went to the place from where the
Nanda Devi is said to be seen the best. After spending few moments of bliss in solitude I was joined by few
other riders and together we trekked further to the top of an adjoining hillock.
Soon the full moon peeped out and it was time for bonfire, cold beer and hot dinner. We all settled down
with our drinks around the flame and then begun another round of introductions. This time though we had
made way past our formal self and really got to know one another. The night was meant for bonding with the
guys and lasting friendships were conceived with promises to be there on future rides.
The next day we were to ride back home, so ideally we should have turned in early. But everybody lingered
around, stretching the night into wee hours of morning. Somehow, I managed to wake myself up at 05:45 a.m
and rushed outdoors to soak in the sight of Nanda Devi one last time before heading back.
By 08:30 a.m all of us had geared up for the ride back home. As we bid adieu to Chaukori and the
serene surroundings, it started to drizzle. The journey back was long and arduous, even perilous, as it rained
incessantly. I had to pull out my rain-suit from its hiding place. We stopped for refreshments at Almora, and
we all gorged on some excellent pakoras there. After Almora, the rain got heavier and we were forced to stop
March 2010
just short of Bhawali, the market town. Thereafter, we got separated and reached Kathgodam in groups of
threes and fours. We lost precious hours in regrouping. By then it had got dark making the ride even more
difficult.
All those who wear glasses can vouch for the difficulties of riding in the night when it rains. The light
from oncoming traffic scatters on your glasses, hampering visibility to a great extent. Also, the famously
discourteous and ignorant drivers of this country do not know to dim their lights if there is traffic coming
from opposite direction. On one such stretch, I completely lost sight of the road ahead, and went into a ditch
on the sides of the road. Fortunately, I somehow escaped the fall but the incident shook me to the core.
Thereafter, we stopped at Rampur for dinner at a roadside dhaba. Few of bikes had some minor technical
issues which were being sorted out by the mechanic we had on board. It was a slow progress but nevertheless
we reached Ghaziabad at about 03:45 a.m. Once the group reassembled, we took onto our separate ways back
home but not before we made promises to keep in touch.
I reached home at 04:45 a.m, bone tired, filthy and grimy, but with a sense of accomplishment. I do
not know what is it about riding and travelling that I love so much. I have tried to analyse it many times.
It is certainly not the scenery, it is neither the food nor the drinks, and it is not the wish to get anywhere. It
is probably the desire to keep going and being on the move on your favorite vehicle. And while doing so, if
you’re lucky enough to make friends for life then it’s just an icing on the cake!
The Asian
V o y a g e
Immanuel VJ & Sam hop onto their Hondas and find the
perfect way to spend their Chinese New Year holidays
Words & Photography Immanuel VJ & Sam
 March 2010

laysia >
Where- Singapore > Ma
Singapore
m
Who- Immanuel VJ & Sa
ech X 2
Bikes- Honda CB 400 V-t
10
When- 13th - 15 Feb 20

E
ver since I got my Honda
CB 400 I wanted to do a
long road trip. Six months
had rolled over in wait
of a good weekend to embark
upon the much awaited ride. The
Chinese New Year was approaching
ahead and most of my colleagues
and friends were preparing for a
vacation along with their friends
and families during the New Year
holidays. For me too, this seemed
like a good opportunity to hit the
road and therefore I teamed up with
my cousin Sam who also owns the
CB 400. Once the dates for the ride
were decided the next thing we had
to do was to finalize a destination.
Upon hours of pondering, we finally
decided to do a cross country ride
from Singapore to Malaysia covering
a distance of about 1400kms. We
were to ride all the way to Kuala
Lumpur, Malaysia’s capital and then
head towards Cameron Highlands
which is a lush green hill station.
The next few days were spent
in deciding upon the route, hotels,
places to visit and other details of
the itinerary. With this, began our
countdown to the D-Day. Both
of us were really excited about the
adventure we were about to get
into. We got our bikes serviced 33
 March 2010
and checked thoroughly to minimize any
technical glitches on the ride and also
shopped for new riding gear and some
accessories to secure our luggage onto our
bikes.
Finally, it was the Chinese New Year! We
were up with the first sight of day light and
geared up for the long ride ahead. After few
last minute checks were taken care of, the
engines roared to life and we were off on the
road at about 08:00am. We headed straight
towards the Singapore-Malaysia check point
to cross the border. At this point, we were
greeted with heavy traffic jams in all the five
lanes which easily covered over 2kms of the
highway.
By 9am we cleared all the Custom’s
procedures and crossed the check point.
After refueling at the Petronas fuel station
we headed towards Melaka, a historical
place located 220 kms away from Singapore.
We kept riding at a constant speed for the
next 90kms, soaking in the warmth of
the sun and fresh air from the lush green
forests alongside the road. Next we stopped
for lunch which turned out to be a long
break which put us off our schedule. So, we
decided to ride till Melaka in one stretch.
It was a fast paced continuous ride and this
is when I understood the potential of an
inline 4 cylinder engine.
On reaching Melaka we took another
long break exploring the place. The fuel
here didn’t cost much on our pockets as it
was just Rs. 26 to a litre. From Melaka we ion
Singapore 3. Petronas fuel stat
k enroute Kuala Lumpur to
headed out towards Kuala Lumpur which
is around 160kms further. On our way, we Ge nt ing 2. Ta kin g a br ea
saw the sign board of Sepang and couldn’t 1. Night time in
resist riding to Sepang to check out the
international F1 race track. It was a detour
of about 40kms but totally worth it. On
reaching Sepang, I got to know that Sepang
did not only have an F1 track, it was a
whole area dedicated to various motorsports
activities. We tried our hand at Go-Karting
on a 100cc 4-Stroke cart in Sepang and
also met up with some track personals who
shared with us some information about the
track activities and racing scene in Sepang.
 After clicking loads of snaps, we were
on our way to Kuala Lumpur. After
clocking in about 40kms from Sepang,
we reached Kuala Lumpur and found
ourselves a decent hotel to crash in
which had secured parking. The day
ended here with 410kms on the trip
meter.
On the second day of the trip
we had planned to ride to Cameron
Highlands, a hill station which is
around 220 km from where the hotel
we stayed in. Unfortunately, there was
a pressure drop in my bike’s rear brake
and the day’s journey soon became a
question mark. We managed to find a
local mechanic to fix the problem and
the next few hours were spent at the
workshop.
This totally put us off our schedule
and once my bike was fixed, we
decided to ride to the Petronas Towers.
It was real treat to the eye and made us
wonder about the engineering marvels
who designed these towers.
After posing innumerable times
A kid in a go- kart at at the tower, we rode to Genting
the Sepang
F1 race track Highlands, which is a small hill station
located at 5700 ft above sea level. The
place is quite popular for its casinos,
theme parks, expensive hotels. It’s
also known as the Vegas of South East
Asia.
We reached Genting late in the
evening and were welcomed by cold
weather to a lively evening filled with
people bubbling with enthusiasm. We
entered a casino called ‘6000 ft’ and
tried our luck. At 10 pm, we suddenly
decided to make up for the day’s plan
which was incomplete due to the
technical glitch in my bike and got
onto the road again to a place called
Tapah. Enroute, my bike started
giving the same trouble as it did in the
morning. The rear brake caliper was too
hot and there was no brake pressure.
The caliper literally steamed when we
tried to cool it with water. With much
Street
d very busy Petaling disappointment, we decided to ride
The famous an
back to the city and reached at about 3 am March 2010
in the morning. Even then, the place was
bubbling with people and activities. With
a broken heart of not having being able
to complete the day’s plan. We somehow
cursed ourselves to sleep.
Day Three began a bit late and today
we planned to explore the city of Kuala
Lumpur. We visited a place called Masjid
India which replicates the general Indian
layout of a busy market place with Indian
restaurants, shops, etc. From there we
made our way to Petaling Street- the China
Town of Kuala Lumpur, which is popular
for the fake stock of all the branded goods.
We were very careful about parking our
bikes here as this area is known to be very
notorious and bike thefts are common in
Kuala Lumpur.
It was soon time to head back to
Singapore and we started our ride back at
2:30 pm. The first stop was again at Melaka
where we halted for 20 minutes and headed
for Johor. The ride from Melaca to Johor
was one of the best routes in our trip with
hills and scenic landscapes accompanying
us all along. The inline 4 cylinder engine
performed really well on the highway
with quick acceleration with every small
twist of the throttle. The suspension and
tyres complimented the engine for better
handling. I managed to reach a top speed
of 185kmph and the busy highway didn’t
allow me to go any further. We managed to
ride 340kms in 4 hours 30 minutes, with
2 short breaks for re-fueling, photos and
grub.
We reached Johor at about 7 pm and
took it easy for the next 50kms till the
Singapore- Malaysia check point. Once
the re-entry procedures were done, we
were back in Singapore and had to ride
again within speed limits. Finally, our great
adventure road trip came to an end and
we got back home with some wonderful
memories, snaps, and stories to tell. The
thought of our next bike trip is already
lingering strongly in our minds…

36
 The Weekend Respite
Praveen Sathaye, along with his buddies heads out to the Konkan coast in search
of friendly dolphins and Malwani food
Words & Photography Praveen Sathye
T
he much awaited Republic Day long weekend was
approaching. Such an opportunity seemed too tempting
to most of the overworked IT souls working their
backsides out in the metropolitan twin cities of Mumbai
& Pune and therefore these bunch of wizards decided to hit the
Konkan coast. The keyboard tapping, mouse jostling professionals
moved in two teams with Praveen Sathaye on his Pulsar 180 and
Kedar on his Apache RTR 160 from Pune. The second batch from
Mumbai joined aboard with Hrishi on his Pulsar 180, Ryan on his
Pulsar 150 Classic and Karthik on his newly acquired Karizma.
Apart from having an interesting mix and match of motorcycles
from across all generations, Manoj and Sachin hopped into a Fiat
Punto which was termed to be the backup vehicle for this weekend
adventure ride.
The first meeting point was at Vatkal Naka where we all
biker brothers met each other after a very long time. Once the
ceremonial hugs were done with it was time to sit down and gobble
the first meal of the day - Udipi cuisine and Chai. The troupe
thereafter zoomed off onto the NH17 heading towards Konkan
via Kolad, Mangaon and Mahad. Enroute, we stopped for a brief
break at a point called Vashishthi Darshan which lies at the top
of the Ghat section. From here you get to see the entire river line
making its way through the low lying plains and cutting across
the mountains. The bikers tanked themselves up with Kokam
 Sherbet, a local refresher which was
01 01 now essential as the sun was soaring
high and building up heat. By late
The three idiots afternoon, we reached Ratnagiri and
camped at a local friend’s farmhouse.
02 After settling in, we all went down to
the beach to immerse ourselves in the
Boats in the morning mists gorgeous sunset accompanied with
local refreshments. As night dawned
03 upon, the coastal delicacies in the
form of fish curry and rice made way
Farm house at Ratnagiri where we into our tummies. After dining, we
sacked for the night once again headed out for a night
ride down the beach after which we
02 04 curled up in our cozy beds and called
it a day.
Day break at Malvan beach Next day we woke up early with
the first rays of sun hitting our tired
05 and sleepy eyes and geared up for the
second leg of our journey. We once
The devil wears Fieldsheer - Hrishi again hit the NH 17 at Rajapur and
on his 220 DTSi then continued riding all the way
03
05
04
until we reached Kankavli via Kasal.
After clocking in few more hours of
riding we finally crossed Malvan and
reached Tarkali beach. After checking
into a hotel and changing out of our
riding gears, it was time to hit the sand
and luke warm waters. We lay there
relaxing and soaking the sun’s warmth
and then after a while ventured into
the waters of the Arabian Sea for the
ceremonial dip. After the holy dip, it
was time once again to feast on sea
food. We gobbled nearly everything
there was on the menu. After stuffing
dinner in our belly’s to our heart’s
content, we called it an early night
and hit the sack, as the next morning
we had to rise up early to catch up
with the Dolphins!
The following morning we woke
up in good time and headed towards
Sindhudurg beach also known as the
Malvan beach. Once we reached the
beach, we quickly piled into a Suzuki
power boat and set off into the deep
sea in search of Dolphins. The sight
of the sea fortress was intriguing and
gorgeous at the same time. Soon
enough, we sighted a whole family
of Dolpins bobbling up and down
in the water while blowing air and
making funny whistling noises. It was
definitely an awesome sight! Once we
got back to the shores, it was time for
a short round of snorkeling. So again
we dived into the deep waters and
explored the beautiful flora and fauna
around the coral reef near Sindhudurg
Fort. After the action packed early
morning activities, we were all very
hungry and made a dash to the closest
shack for some cold beer and hot
grub. Post lunch we all went back to
the hotel and spent some time lazing
 01 02 03 04

08 07 06 05

around. In the evening, we yet again made
our way to another well known Malwani
joint. After dinner, we called it a day and hit
the sack early as the next day we had to gear
up for our ride back home via the Deccan
Plateau.
The following morning after we woke up
and gulped down a cup of tea we hit the road
and caught up with NH 17. Throughout our
way we saw Indian flags being hosted at many
places with children dressed up in crisp school
uniforms singing the National Anthem. It
certainly does fill one’s heart and soul with
a sense of pride towards our Nation. We We made a halt at Chandni Chowk to
continued riding until we reached Tarele and gulp a nice warm cup of coffee and also to
then parted ways with NH 17 and headed celebrate the birthday of one of the biker. 01
towards Gaganbawda Ghats. The worst part After more chat sessions and more cups of
05
The trees along the beach
of the ride was getting out of Kolhapur which coffee, we parted ways, with Pune bikers were dotted with aquatic Seagulls prying for food
was infested with heavy traffic, roads which heading back to their respective homes while birds and their nests over the sea
were under construction and few commuters the Mumbai riders got on to NH 4 again
with no traffic sense. But we soon cruised and rode towards the city of dreams. In this 02 06
through the turmoil and hit the NH 4 and manner, the awesome weekend ride ended Riding the ranges Fly away home
let a sigh of relief. We whacked open the which gave all the riders enough recharging through Gaganbawda
throttle to hear the mighty engines churn our power to help them sustain hours and hours
07
oodles of torque as we continued clocking in of work and deadlines to meet in the week 03 First and Latest - Classic
kilometers and descended into Pune city. ahead. View from Vashishithi Pulsar 150 with 220
top DTSi

04 08
No, not all of us rode The awesome Malvan
on this single bike. Just coast
trying to get in a single
frame
 Indi motorcycle DIARY - 2
After having brinjals for 9 consecutive meals in Gujarat, I had Hrishikesh and Rajasthan in my
sight. I rode on... Words & Photography Pankaj Trivedi

Last month, we caught with the travel tales of Pankaj Trivedi, as he said goodbye to the adventure, bikes, people and remote places as he crosses the state of Rajhasthan and enters
bright city lights of Mumbai and dissolved himself in the silence of the Rann. This month the crowded streets of Hrishikesh in time for Kumbh Mela and much more.
too, the nomadic biker cruising on his Karizma brings us back some fabulous tales of
Day 21: Prince Desert
Camp
ert Camp. The
en ta ry for the Prince Des

T
filmin g a do cu m e eyes who saw it
oday, I worked on ed its worth, when th
hour s pu t in sh ow highly appreciated
hard work and long as loved by everyone at the camp. They
w
twinkled with joy. It orth all the effort!
e. It w as w
the outcom

y 2 2 : R e s t D ay
Da
ging, or
e! I won’t be blog

T
a re st da y fo r m y, I’m
oday is rid ing. Today whole da for
, or fil m in g or
working and rest
much needed sleep
going to catch up on
my body and mind.
 Day 24:pIa’nvye !
Got Com
Day 23: Don’t

T
go Pankaj he phone rang
early this
e of friend
morning and it on s interest
hi
who had expressed
m e on th is trip. He
in joining st
stances for the fir
was riding long di r one touring bike,

T
be
he morning was filled with emotional time, on India’s num e a bit concerned.
t m
moments as I was about to leave from the Enfield. This go I myself own and
e as
No disrespect ther
the camp and the staff and owners
o En fie ld bi ke s back in Mumbai on
use tw y
of Prince Desert Camp were not yet ively toured to man
ready to let me go. I was poured with love and which I have extens an di ng
its just too dem
places. But I think u
affection. Despite the overflow of emotions, I had ance which slows yo
to leave and before doing so I gave them the CD in terms of mainten
I had recorded a day before. I was on my way to down big time. to ride with me
He was very keen as
Sirohi. dilemma. As he w
The roads were fantastic and the bike was which left me in nc es , I
ing long dista
running smoothly after being serviced. I was relatively new to rid his safety.
of
enjoying every bit of the ride; occasionally stopping was a bit concerned along would mean
Also, taking hi m
of
at milestones to gather footage. I reached Jodhpur w down my pace
covering a distance of 300 kms from Jaisalmer. I would have to slo I decided taking
s,
But the road from here to Pali was a nightmare. riding. Nonetheles until we were both
p
The roads were bad and the oncoming traffic him along for the tri idea of him going
e
lacked traffic sense because of which I had to ride comfortable with th
with extra caution. 15kms down and I stopped for it all alone.
for lunch of Chana masala and Roti.
Post lunch I got back on the road which
continued to be bad in shape and to make
matters worse, there was heavy traffic. Somehow,
I managed to reach Sirohi and headed to Kalindri
to meet my friend Kalpesh’s cousin, Chandu who
guided me to the village of Falvadi. We reached
his place at 6 in the evening and were greeted
warmly by his family members. It was a pleasure
to see them again after three months. We had
some yummy home made food of which I relished
every bite. This time I had a whole room to myself
and didn’t have to share it with anyone. Resting in
a home, away from home, indeed felt special!
 2 6 : E d u c a t i o n in
Day
Rural India g the
t dumbstruck realizin rted

T
on ce I w as lef
oday morning I ge
ation impa
poor quality of educ a sorry state
ro de to th e vi lla It w as
again ry to these students.
I w as ve dation
school an d
m y of aff ai rs here. Th ry foun ble!
e ve
excited. Packed in d of education remains questiona
camera kit an ondering about all
this and
backpack were my I w as W ol, and
Kalpesh. was out of the scho here
those CD’s from d se e m or e, I
e kids an home w
eager to be with th reached at Kalpesh’s Post lunch,
their progress. nch awaited m e.
ol at 10:30 hot lu m Banna-
As I entered the scho smiling my friend and I left for O
t&
scene of hich is
Temple in Sojat w
y 2 5 : C h i t C h a am, I saw a familiar
uniform s an d th e Bi ke

Da t h A a k ash
faces clad in blue
gs t themselves. 15
0kms away.
story goes like
this…
i
am on
w
ay in g
i
pl
a
ily Th e
h
ga
C ll rang, th e ki ds biker,
But as the school be eu es So m e ye ars ago a Rajput
es in qu with
organized themselv te re d by th e na me Om Banna met at
for the assembly.
As I en d lost his life
here a kid named
Aakash e an accident an the temple now

T
as w offi ce I sa w th
his m or ni ng I w about 12 the Principal’s e place where
to vi sit worked, who was rs w hi ch I had installed 3 th s. According to the beliefs
on m y w ay aving his co m pu te exist
or 13 years of age. W seat we g there covered ries we heard, Om ay to
Banna’s
the vi lla ge sc ho ol a months back sittin an d sto
hand he offered us indicatin g th at
lously made its w
at Falvadi to check obliged and started chatting in plastic clearly ed . It w as a bike miracu the accident in the
students ly be en us
on the progress of g the hot they have hard e location of
n an d with him. Havin pp oi nt in g bu t anyway, I had th t from the police station and
computer ed uc at io asked him bi t di sa nigh
masala chai , we oved the dusty ppened more than soul,
once!
give them few C D ’s w hi ch paid. He work to do! I rem th is ha
the amount to be compute rs an d
en, to please his
my friend Kalp es h ha d se nt called you covers, started the dia Ever since th
th s humbly replied, “I ng th e en cy clo pe
has not been moved a’s
from
along with me. Th re e m on is on me!” started installi th e bi ke
in to have tea, it aining to th em
ve that Om Bann
ago, during ou r las t vi sit , w e s humble CD. I started expl t here. They belie as immense and
rs I was touched by hi lik e fir e en gi ne bu
ke w
had installed tw o co m pu te smile. I some concets d. love for his bi be left where he
ds re ply and warm co m pl et ely da ze
here and train ed th e ki s picture, the kids looked wanted it to
uc at io na l wanted to click hi gl ed ha rd to get my points he life. Over a period
of time,
to use them fo r ed shyly refused. I str ug d. It lo st hi s
U nf or tu na te ly, to which he two choices, I succee de
across but I doubt if estion mark the popularity of th
is place grew
purposes. gave him a major
nc ha ya t Elections, Now I cture! He seemed like an open
qu
an d no w it has become
du e to Pa either money or pi clicked perience fo r m e.
worship. As a biker, ing
it was
the school w as clo se d fo r
ly chose to be but it was a good ex , an d pl ac e of
back here smiling When you teach,
you learn see people bow
da y so I ha d to ge t e money!
as he did not want th of this io n in ru ra l wonderful to ing with
tomorrow. ly picture you grow. The ed uc at
ed do w n to a bike and pray
friend Got a love y. more sim pl ifi . It is a
On my way my bo India needs to be to su it so m uch faith and love joy for
t little oriented d sheer
snack shop swee and be practically moment of pride an s such great
and I stopped at a ru ra l en vi ro nm en t.
to w esitn
the needs of a ho ol di d not every biker
The setup of th e sc a biker.
m e. Th er e w er e ju st 3 devotion for
fail to surprise
ndred students!
teachers for two hu
Day 27: S Seeking
e T r u e t o r y o f
th
Om Banna erty
sort, a heritage prop

T
to go to So ja t Re

Day 28: oTtihoen of

oday we pl an e priced
te d to a re so rt where the rooms ar
now conv er ts of the
sa nd pe r night. The layou

Killer P
at 12 to 15 th ou caught
ry in te re sti ng , but the one that
rooms ar e ve e and
overlooked the stabl
A&A
he re th e w in do w
my attention was w d with paintings of horses.
rate in a
the walls were deco to visit Om Banna’s father who lives
From there I wen t Om
w on de rin g sin ce yesterday about d ng

L
as lef t
nearby village. I w agically got back to the accident area
an d and I were shoppi
ke , w hi ch m ha ve li, bu t to ast evening, my frien on an interesting
Banna’s bi towards hi s ll
w as rid in g when our eyes fe d
wanted to know m
or e. I
the life of a hermit m
in a th at was a concocte
nn a’s fa th er liv ed ayurvedic potion w as a
my surprise, Om Ba e huge Haveli. As I entered, I saw
hi ziabad, which
us e op po sit e th ed m e. somewhere in Gha ra. My friend was
small ho
le and with a smile
he welc om and Aloeve
surrounded by peop rted speaking in Marvadi and asked l
me mixture of Amla ght it would
sta pe r ex ci te d to tr y it out as he thou m of Rs.
As I settled, he e loca su
health and paid a
su
no t. I w as un ab le to converse in th do wonders to his very good idea to me and I
if I was married or translation.
g around helped in of me and offered a
dialect bu t ot he r’s sit tin nt 250! It didn’t seem but he insisted on buying it.
came and sat in fro warned him ag ai ns t it
ent to bed
Meanwhile a Rajput Afeem. In this region, it is a ritual to n w e go t ba ck to our room, I w
called er. La te r, w he I was fast
me Opium, locally fir m en ou gh to refrain the off ha d 2 sp oo nfuls of the potion.
ts. I w as
offer Opium to gues about Om Banna and this is what he sa
id, w hi le he are of events
d re m ai ne d completely unaw
I finally got to as k d gone as lee p an y friend was
O m Ba nna on his bike ha His g in th e ni ght. Apparently, m
e w he n
“It was election tim and he was drunk on the way back. ha pp en in s to the rest
th e ni gh t m aking frequent visit
g
to Pali for a meetin d and having repaired that he was rid
ing up all r potion!
re om to off lo ad th e effects of the kille and got
bike tyre got punctu banged ro day, we went out
n he fe ll in to a 15 foot ditch and The Later during the he retired
towards home whe ch of a tree along with the pillion. e m as ala so da for him, after which Pushkar
an his so m e
his head on the br aged to crawl up from the ditch in t made my way to th without
an
pillion somehow m taken to the hospital by the locals. t
Bu to the room and I ss
e place looked lifele
drunken state and
was was lef Mela Grounds. Th
sw er w he re O m Banna was and he dy the mela crowd. artist,
he was unable to an lost his life. The next morning his bo met an interesting
he aling In the evening we ap pr ec iated
in the ditch where e fa m ily was in deep grief, de ce ho se pa intings I highly
e bi ke . Th
was found next to th ys later Om Banna made an appearan N ar es h w hi op, I
s sh
w da rin g m y las t vi sit . Tracing my steps to orn Ok
with their loss. A fe rds) to du e ‘H
dr ea m an d as ke d for 2 Bhiga (2 ya .” ke d hi m to pa in t me a T Shirt with th him, and
r’s as t
in his Gransmothe as the reason they made a temple here to know more abou
build a temple. This
w was a Plz’ logo. I wanted od way to break the ice. He
wards Pushkar. It go
With this, we m ad e ou r w ay to
parated thought this was a as painting
m y friend and me got se ha pp y to do the artwork,
smooth and safe rid
e ex ce pt th at Pushkar. was more than o and do a
-united just before ered to shoot a vide
for a while, but lu ck ily , w e w er e re r and is his passion! I off he more than happily agreed.
e entered into Pushka ch
We rode together by House.
th e su ns et as w story on him, to whi sting conversation with him,
in te re
checked in Payal G
uest After having an was on my
a co m fortable rapport, I
and building
way to the hotel.
Day 29: An
Artist’s Struggle
for his Passion of
Art

T
his morning I went to the artist, Naresh’s
place, for getting my t-shirt painted. But
as I couldn’t find any good quality t-shirt,
we decided to invest his efforts into
something more lasting. We chose the windscreen
of the bike to be painted!
Naresh, suggested that a painting of a Tiger
would be a good option as it would reflect the
personality and traits of the rider. So, he painted I
made my way to an Internet café to get some work
done.
After 2 hours I got back to Naresh, and started
getting an insight to his life. He was always inclined
towards painting since childhood and would paint
Day 30:
Fusion o Global
the walls outside his house during Diwali. In Grade
10th, he got an opportunity to learn oil painting
for a month in his school; which was the only time
Pie n a Pizz
he got some training. His family however did not
appreciate his talent and failed to understand his a
passion; especially his father who wanted him to
pursue MBA or become a CA. He gave up to the
family pressures and attempted to crack CA exams I made a ‘T
twice but failed. He lost precious time in which he breakfast, o Do’ li
and then st at picked up my
could have honed his painting skills. Futhermore, in out to get hailed cre Karizma. M
it ati y
Rajasthan, child marriage still prevails and Naresh on the list all done. First, and ve juices were flowin
was to bath I got in a g
was married off to a girl at the age of 15. His wife baby and e my dec mo
continued to stay with her parents until they both service sta
so I rode
to the of o ra te my bike w od to
tion. I dro st ith lots
were mature enough to live a life together. When he her there pped hea ickers. Thereafter w
fo d e
turned 22, his wife was brought home to Naresh. It I went to r a wash and at ed to have some gru
a music st a pizza pa b
was the first time he saw her and realized that she pick up so ore to ch rlour. As
m eck we
was not the one with whom he wanted to spend the task on my e music. Third som ed the menu, we sa
li st was to e w eird com w
up my lic
rest of his life with. This time though, Naresh was ense which pick toppings comin binations of
strong enough not to be boggled down by family deposited a was pecu g from eac
t h
pressures and left home. He came to Pushkar and as a forma a mobile store eve liar state in India. Th
lity to get n had a P ey
sim card. a u
started painting again and now makes a living of Next was new It was a globa njabi Pizza!
mere Rs. 4000 a month! my friend’s to g e t pizza l fusion on
a
I was touched by this story of a struggling artist tyre repaire punctured bike mu pie! We settled for
d. Last was shroom g a
to Ajmer to to go piz a
trying to keep up with his passion. Once he finished za and so rlic cheese
with painting the windscreen, I bought 2 of his jobs of ban get some odd piz me Chine
king d za with sch se
artwork and had dinner with him before I retired After I w one. ezwan sauc
e !
as done,
back to my room. I
 Day 32:
Mela P Kumbh
Day 31: reparator
y
Pushkar-
Hrishiskesh L a

at German
st night, I
without ea was asleep (bath)

got myself so
tin
and so I wa g anything, Haridw t the ‘Har Ki Paudi’
s up early a
m
a
nd Naga ar where thousand in
e breakfast Baba’s (N
aked Sadh of
s

W
guest house B a k e ry c lose w o u ld c ome for th u’s)
e were up at 6 am and were on . I reunited to the in River e holy dip
our way to Hrishikesh. Riding friend at th with my Ganga on
e o
in the cold morning weather was a bit shake bakery who seemed Mahashivratri. I need ccasion of
n up. He h th e place in e d to survey
on his way ad
extremely difficult as our hands for tea whe stopped locations order to find the best
were freezing, prevailing a burning sensation. of men st n a couple for video co
op ve
To distract myself, from the intense cold I was him what w ped by and asked had specially arrange rage. They
as in his ba fo r photo d a podium
insecure a
singing to myself. nd jittery g. Feeling location graphers at the main
We reached Jaipur at about 10.00 am and unsure of th and being for the holy
e ir in te n t, h a p p y se e bath. I was
hightailed
took a halt for breakfast. It took longer than I them and z my friend excited fo ing the location an
as fast as he ipped away r th d
expected, probably because of traffic and the could. would sure e next days shoot. It
ly
poor weather conditions. The road from Jaipur Tomorrow
is the big for good fo get me the best view
to Delhi is a four-lane highway calling for high ‘Snan’ otage.
speed riding. I zipped through as I had to meet a
friend of mine in Noida and reached Delhi in 3
hours. I parted ways with my partner enroute and
decided to meet him directly at Laxman Jhula in
Hrishikesh. After meeting my friend, I headed
towards Ghaziabad but took a wrong road and
reached Ghaziabad only at 4:30 in the evening!
I still had 150kms of riding and only 1 hour of
day light riding time. So I wanted to make the
most of it. Post sunset, chills began to set in and
unfinished road constructions made my ride a
nightmare, making it difficult to maneuver my
bike. I finally managed to reach Hrishikesh at
9:30 pm and was relieved and exhausted. This
was my worse day of riding so far in this trip and
I was glad that it was over!
 3 : K u m b h M ela
Day 3 ni fic en t vi ew of so
d ages,
many people of varie aga
N
ra ge . I w ok e people. It was a mag ed together in one place. Soon, the
cove bl ords,

T
in terms of video sex and castes assem ere smeared with ash and carried sw to
oday was a big day ar K i Pa ud i” in w in
up early morning
and started for “H e po di um so Baba’s arrived who ter doing some ritual they all jumped
on th Af sh ort
a particular spot
Haridwar. I wanted bird to get the best location. spears and tridents. p. It was an indescribable sight. I am g
ly di az in
decided to be an ea
rly
e all ot te d ar ea the river for the ho e truth of that mesmerizing and am
ke in th stify th
e and parked my bi to of words to ju lieve it!
I reached the venu dium is 3.5 km away. I had some tea m om en t. Yo u ha ve to witness it to be
th e po m ed ia
and from this place alking to reach the tower meant for
up an d be ga n w
warm

a y 3 4 : L a x m an
D
Jhula

I
usted from the
was totally exha mbh Mela and
Ku
previous day at the
e than usual. After
woke up a bit lat
German Bakery I
having breakfast at
the Laxman Jhula.
decided to walk to the bridge, I kept
As I walked towards the
sdrop on some of
an ear open to eave ople were having. It
pe
conversations other
lis te ni ng to people from various
was fun e
discussing about th
parts of the world ula. Soon I reached
Jh
theories of Laxman t
Jh ul a an d w ent to an eatery join
the Ram a bi g
here a man with
called ‘Chotiwala’ w ted on his face, had
in
belly and rangoli pa acted like a mascot
at on hi s he ad
a long pl
for this pl ac e.
t to for the famous
In the evening I wen et
and on the way I m
Aarti of Hrishikesh is running a rafting
ho
up with Ramesh w . We passed a few
in H ris hi ke sh
agency r
sc us sin g th e course of action fo
hours di
the following day.
Day 35: Rafting
Expedition

I
, where the
was really excited for of our trip
ruct ors briefed us
the rafting expedition, inst
ut the terminology
I had planned for the abo
com man ds to be
day and woke up early and
wed and emphasized
looking forward to raid the follo of strictly
imp orta nce
white waters of Hrishikesh. the inst ructions.
win g the
I rode to Ramesh’s office follo abo ut the
Exc ited
who worked for a company whi te-water
of
called ‘De- N- Ascent thrills e read y to go!
we wer
Expeditions’ and met up rafting Hri shikesh
rapi ds of
with our rafting guide from The
the
3+ level
g
Gra de
n
of
New Zealand called Dale. were
He was very funny and and it was so muc h fun to
Day 3 6 : M e e t i
friendly. We would burst triumph
over the hars hne ss

p a n i s h T . V C rew
S
natu re. I got a littl e
out laughing listening to of wild rou s and
adv entu
his funny tales of travelling more
risk of getting out
in India. Being relatively took the
and got some

T
era
new in the country he was the cam o footage of oday morning
us. was
totally traumatized by road excellen
t vide The situation
rapi ds, without I woke up to a w an te d to
traffic and assured us that certain ipm ent. phone call by
hilarious. They
us an d
my equ Sa dh
rafting was surely safer than wetting the thri lls of Ramon, who interview th
e
ta lk in g
Afte r all th em
driving in India!
wat er raft ing, we th at a Sp an ish TV get footage of sp iri tu al
As we reached the white said aining
sh and and expl
storeroom, I was amazed took a
halt at a plac e from crew was in Hrishike d do concepts. So, we headed to
an
to see the advanced rafting where
we jumped into the wanted to meet us us as the Kumbh Mela. The irony
of
equipment this company Ganga
from a height of a story on the two e Sadhus spoke
feet above ground rs in In di a. Th e whole was that th and the TV
uses. Each of us was given twenty bike
ting so only in
Hindi
a wetsuit, a waterproof level! We
were back at base thing sounded exci ew on ly spoke in Spanish,
ag re ed to go cr
jacket, an excellent quality by 3
pm at the Laxman I im m ed ia te ly clue of Spanish
ea ge r to get I had no
life jacket and a helmet. Jhula,
cove ring 26 km in beca us e I w as on managed to
rs. po rtu ni ty to se e how while Ram anish. So we
Attired in our rafting six hou an op speak some Sp
suits, we reached Marine this crew worked. a set circle of
ns, had to follow to get the
After initial discussio tions
Drive, the starting point pressed interpreta
they seemed im ered messages across to the TV
off
with my work and of crew and to ultilingual
the Sadhu’s.
ve r an en tir e sh ow
to co ity of m
t ep iso de s on me in The hilar and interviews
eigh ns
t India translatio
a TV show abou on a went on till evening. There
d
that would be aire ent roars of
nel. were frequ e linguistic
lar Sp an ish ch an
popu as th
ell idea laughter
It sounded like a sw an ip ul at ions took place
di dn ’t ex ac tly know m
but I e day.
ld w or k be cause through th
how it w ou
ie r be tween ...to be continued
of lan gu ag e ba rr
 March 2010

The
Humiker
ne
From participating in motorcycle rallies and expeditions, to

a
organizing road safety awareness weeks, to guiding amateurs in
realizing their motorsport dreams, Anil Gautam has done it all.

B
Words Pradeb Biswas Photography Vivek Sharma, Xtreme Pictures INC

often

A
During vacations he would
cross the globe, there is me r an d back
ride from Jaipur to Aj
no dearth of individuals eve n co mp ete
in a day! He would
who continually day e gro wi ng up
in cycle races. Whil
dream about pursuing a on mo tor cyc les .
eer in mo tor spo rt. M ajo rity of he had a crush e wa s at the
car th on
c when His first tryst wi
them get highly enthusiasti of 13 .
t their age
it comes to cribbing abou ing Anil’s father used to
serve
tor spo rt dre am s rem ain an d ha d a
mo ce
liz ed . Th ey say the issues in the police for disposal. He
un rea his
lack of motorcycle at
holding them back are uld oc cas ion ally ride it on
of gu ida nce, a wo
fin an ces , lac k ds until the day he
sio na l life and private groun
de ma nd ing pro fes g license. Since that
st co mm on on e be ing ‘age got his drivin re than
the mo
e’. day, Anil has covered mo
is no t on my sid on mo tor cycles
ong 8 lakh kilometers
If you identify yourself am gth an d bre adth
ab ov e cro wd of ‘wa nnabe across the len Ap art fro m
the !
wi th car eer sta rt issues’ of our country merous cross
rac ers in nu
re is a participating
then do not despair. He un try mo tor cycle rallies, he has
tur e art icl e about co
mo tiv ati on al fea d taken part in a
ral lyi st for yo u to also organized an
a mo tor cyc le le expeditions too.
me the ple asure of few motorcyc was
rea d. Al low
to An il Gautam During the 70’s there
int rod uc ing yo u dia exp osu re ab out
o sta rte d his rac ing career at not much me ou r co un try.
wh ing in
age of 33 . Cu rre ntl y at 48years motorcycle rac to he ar ab out
the t got
age , he is too old to cri b about When he firs de cid ed tha t
of es, he
’s pro ble ms bu t yo un g enough motorcycle rac uld tak e pa rt
life wo
ng in someday he too
to continue participati in mo torcyc le rac es. In those days
tor cyc le ral lie s yea r aft er year. s an expensive
mo two motorcycling wa
Anil’s fascination with n’t want his family
du rin g his school passion. Anil did
wh eel s sta rte d the expenses of
wo uld wa nd er off members to bear
days wh en he his passion. So he
on his bi-cycle. him pursuing
for lon g rid es time he could afford
, he ha d a thirst waited till the
Sin ce ch ild ho od motorcycle rallies.
ad ven tur e an d wa s always taking part in
for
ench it.
trying out new ways to qu
49

Having grown up in Jaipur, the desert is his playground
Anil leads the SAAHAS memebers at the 2010 Road Safety Week
Once the money rolled in, he plunged True to its name, the society not slow moving auto rickshaw or truck
into the world of motorsports. In 1995, he only helps amateurs in developing driver. He says bikers should instead
participated in the Mountain Challenge Rally their racing skills but also chisels try to understand the plight of the
which was his first cross country rally spanning them into a cultured, modest, driver trying to steer his slow moving
over 1000kms and two days. Owing to a front disciplined and aware citizen. Anil vehicle through heavy traffic. One
sprocket trouble he could not finish the rally. rues the fact that we bikers often will realize that we bikers are way
The next year he participated in the same event tend to overlook the plight of other luckier and hence should be more
and finished in the 12th spot. In 1997 he road users. humble. Anil modestly says that
claimed the second runner up trophy astride While riding through city since the word humanity is present
a Suzuki Shogun in the Sportscraft Challenge traffic or on highways, we never in the society’s name ever member
round held at Pune. In 1998 he entered the miss an opportunity to curse the should behave in humanely fashion
Desert Challenge Rally in Group C category
held at Jaipur and finished second. He manages to just about grin for the camera after winning the
In 1999 and 2000 he even participated gruelling 2006 Desert Storm Rally
in the grueling Raid-de-Himalaya rally on his
Shougun in Group C category finishing in the
5th and 4th place respectively. From 2002 till
2005, Anil took part in the annual SJOBA sub
Himalayan rally which is a two day event and
runs from Chandigarh to Shimla and back.
He successfully crossed the finish line in each
of those events. It doesn’t sound difficult but
finishing a motorcycle rally without suffering
any mechanical breakdown or physical injury
requires a fair amount of skill. In 2006 he took
part in the Desert Storm Rally on a Yamaha
RX135 and ended up bagging the winner’s
trophy in the prestigious event.
Upon venturing into the unexplored
world of motorcycle racing, Anil experienced
every major and minor problem from lack
of guidance to lack of training and lack of
enough events to participate in first hand. He
decided to work towards reducing the existing
hindrances and making it easier for amateurs
to realize their racing dreams. In 1998, he
founded SAAHAS (Society for Adventure
Awareness Humanity & Automobile Sports)
to offer guidance to youngsters who have
a passion for adventure on wheels. It is a
motorsport organization which also aims to
promote motor racing by organizing events
and rides in Rajasthan and across India.
Anil founded SAAHAS with a vision that
there shall be no human made hindrances like
war, terrorism, racism, visa etc and the world
shall become a peaceful global village in true
meaning so that motorcyclists could travel to
any country and compose cultural harmony.
 Anil Gautam presenting a memento to Brigadier K.A.Cariyappa, Commandant Signals Goa,
during the 2005 ‘Sand to Sea’ Motorcycle Expedition

while riding a motorcycle.
Anil Gautam and the members of
SAAHAS believe that our countrymen
serving in the armed forces are a true symbol
of courage. To spread this message and
honor the sacrifice made by our soldiers,
SAAHAS members have undertaken
quite a few motorcycle expeditions from
Jaipur. In 2002, he along with the fellow
members organized the first ‘Sand to Snow’
expedition which involved riding from
Jaipur till Khardung La on a motorcycle.
In 2003, he and the SAAHAS
members rode their motorcycles from
Jaipur till the Siachen Army base. The
following year they rode from Jaipur till
the ‘Indo-China’ border at Nathu La in
Sikkim state. In 2005, they traversed
down south by undertaking a ‘Sand to Sea’
expedition. They rode off from the sands
of Jaipur towards the beaches of Goa via
Udaipur-Lonavala-Hydrabad-Chennai-
Kanyakumari-Trivendrum-Bangalore.
After reaching Panjim they rode back to
Jaipur via Pune and Indore.
Inspite of having participated
in numerous competitive rallies and
motorcycle expeditions, Anil Gautam still
yearns to cover more miles on the saddle.
Anil started taking part in motorcycle rallies
at an age when most professional rallyists
retire from the sport. It would be foolish
to expect him to retire at a conventional
age. He has no intention of hanging up his
rallying boots soon.
In fact he is trying to inch towards
realizing his dream of participating in the
Paris-Dakar rally. Given his conviction for
riding motorcycles and seeking adventurous
thrills aboard it, we reckon his love for life
on two wheels is unlikely to ever end. He is
an inspiration to all motorsport enthusiasts
for proving that age is just a number which
doesn’t necessarily restrict your passion.
It requires a lot of mental and physical stamina along with a
high level of skill to even finish a motorcycle rally
 Save money

; Karizma spares
on

Karizma spares are known to be expensive. Arnob Gupta tells you how you can
save money by fitting alternative spares in place of the OE ones

Dhak Dhak! That’s the sound the Karizma owner’s
heart makes when they go to the authorized workshop
to change parts on their prized possession. For they
know that they are about to be charged an arm and
a leg for what their Pulsar owning neighbors would
pay a few pennies. However, they steel themself
into believing in Hero Honda “quality” and bleed
through every available orifice to get the pads
changed, cam-chain tensioner replaced, along with
the front fender which has cracked for no reason
they can think of. Considerably lighter in the wallet,
they ride off, safe in the knowledge that they have
bought the best for his bike! Or have they??
What I am mentioning below is the result of
some time spent on this bike. How much time –
you can figure from the odometer shot (on the next
page) if my words are not enough.
I’d also like to mention that I am extremely
happy with the level of care provided by the
workshop I go to (Fort point, Mahim) and am
almost always present while the bike is being worked
upon. Unfortunately, they do not manufacture the
parts…
Whatever I will mention below has worked
for me/been my experience with Hero Honda’s
recurrent income scheme/CD dawn sponsorship
programme. I cannot guarantee that it will work
for you too. You are encouraged to do your own
research! I can, however guarantee that Hero Honda
cannot guarantee that their Karizma clutch plates
will last 10000 km (ditto for final drive chains!). Or
that the…oh never mind, let’s just get on with it!
 > Brake Pads
> Arnob’s Odometer
Maruti 800 OE pads (4 nos.) cost Rs 500. Splendor+
brake pads cost Rs. 200. But you pay a whopping 2,300+
rupees for the Karizma brake pads! Incredible, isn’t it?
Usage history, OE: 1st pads (original) wore out at
23,000 km. The next pair (replacement OE Nissin’s)
debonded and failed after hardly clocking 11,000 kms.
Usage history, Locally made: All the pads have lasted
approximately 30,000 km. Except for the last set which
has failed after debonding, the rest were replaced only
when they reached minimum thickness levels. There was
absolutely no difference in brake feel under regular usage
at all.
Costs involved: The local brand used was “ASK” (Rs.
110). ANL will set you back by Rs. 130 [not tested by me
as yet]. You save Rs. 1,700 per set of pads!
> Swingarm Bushes
The OE set for the Karizma costs approximately Rs.
1,300 (each of the plastic bits cost Rs. 303).
Usage history, OE: 1st set lasted for 40,000 km.
Thereafter, the next sets failed every 10,000 km. After the
fourth such set I decided to make my own!
Usage history, Fabricated: Bought one original bush
(for the dimensions) then had 4 such pieces machined out
of gunmetal – total cost came to Rs. 440 inclusive of the
raw material. Remember to cut an oil groove in it! The
metal sleeves in the kit were not fabricated as the OE ones
are dirt cheap - Rs 40. I’ve had to replace the sleeves once
(it had dried out and jammed), but the gunmetal bushes
are still running fine after 70,000 kilometers of Indian
roads!
Another, easier alternative: Cut the worn bushes to
size to seal both ends – and place the NRB that fits on
the Hunk (less than 200 for the pair) in the centre. It is a
direct fit and does the job pretty well (has lasted 25,000
kms on my bike, still running so far). It is not that my
gunmetal bushes had failed – just wanted to see if this
‘jugaad’ worked, and guess what, it does!
 > Clutch Plates
> Drive Chain, Final
Usage history, OEM: Till date, one set of OEM plates has lasted
Usage history, OEM: The chain wears out a lot 36,000 kms. Believe it or not, I had to replace the basket and the oil pump
faster than the sprockets. Most places will sell only gear with that set as the former had developed deep notches where the
the complete set, ie, chain + sprockets and it will set clutch plates had eaten them away! The rest have lasted less than 17,000,
you back about Rs. 2,600. No chain has lasted more with at least 4 sets having failed in 5,000 km or less and two sets failing
than 10,000 km, in spite of all possible care in terms in less than 3,000 km. The set costs Rs. 1,300. Only one set which failed
of lubrication as most of my running is at speed. The within 2,500 kms was replaced free of cost, the rest I have paid for.
chain loosens on its own and adjustments are necessary Usage history, Locally made: Unfortunately no good substitutes as yet.
after every 1,000 km, approximately. Two chains have The Honda Unicorn plates are supposed to be a good fit, but I haven’t
failed (stretched out fully) within 3,000 km. tried them out yet. Other local units do not last much longer, but they
Local Usage /Substitute: Pulsar 220/200 “O” ring offer a better feel and cost only Rs. 150 on an average.
chain. Fits exactly onto the sprocket, cost less than Rs
500. However you need to buy two chains initially,
as the length is 2 complete links short of the Karizma
chain, and one has to be cannibalized. Do not use
the removable link – take out one of the pins and
use – so you will have a spare removable link in case
of emergencies. One chain has now been replaced
at approximately 20,000km (which included 6,000
kms in less than 5 days), the other is going strong
at 10,000+ kms. The P220 rear sprocket also allows
for more relaxed cruising at highway speeds without
losing much by way of pep – and it is a bolt on fit, no
modifications needed at all!
Latest development – the front sprocket is now
made of such inferior metal, that the teeth actually
bend. That must be something unique. No wonder
Hero Honda do not make more powerful bikes as the
massive 16.something bhp turned out by the Karizma
mill is too much for the final drive components to
handle.
> Rear Cowl, Aft of Tank

Usage history, OEM: Changed to fiberglass as the originals

would break every now and then for no reason at all. Replacing
all of them would have cost approximately Rs. 5,200. These are
a perennial source of rattles.
Usage history, Locally made: The fiberglass panels require
splitting the seat, plus some welding onto the frame. Fit and
finish is also inferior to the OEM, as my work was done as a > Front Fender
rush job in 4 days. But they are very very tough, can be repaired
properly and cost half as much. And no rattles whatsoever!

Usage history, OE: The front fender would crack

spontaneously within 8,000 kms near the nuts holding it
and the crack would then proceed forward and separate
the front half from the rest of the fender, within the
next 2,000 kms or so. On NO occasion was there any
accidental damage. Each fender costs approximately Rs.
800. I went through four similar fenders.
Usage history, Locally made: The locally made
fiberglass fender is much better looking and costs Rs.
200 for an unpainted piece. It lasted for 70,000 kms,
including one minor hit at 20,000 kms. and one major
hit which crushed the front portion towards the end. The
fender was still functional when replaced, but was not
worth repairing and was hence replaced with a new item.
The only downside is that it isn’t sufficiently extended on
the back and hence sizeable mud/slush is thrown onto
the engine during monsoons. Basically, unless you hit
it hard, really hard, this unit should be looked upon as
indestructible! To be fitted once only.
 What’s in this for you?
Assuming a mileage of 20,000 km a year, all this will save you (subtracting the cost of the replacement
item, and completely IGNORING labour and the time wasted making trips to the garage) approximately
Rs. 3,500 for the 2 sets of pads, Rs. 2,300 for 2 sets of clutch plates, Rs. 4,800 for two drive chains with
sprockets sold as a kit, Rs. 2,600 for 2 swingarm bush kits, Rs. 1,600 for 2 front fenders, or about 75 paise
per kilometer in parts alone. The labour will set you back another Rs. 2,000 for all this. There are more
items such as the brake caliper seals etc, but as those are not replaced so frequently, they have not been
included in these calculations.
In other words, your Karizma running costs will drop by about a third when you calculate the costs of
fuel and spares. Of course, you can keep buying OE so that HH can use you to subsidize their CD Dawn
users. By the way, there is another pattern here. Have you noticed how much longer the part originally
fitted on the bike lasts as compared to the genuine spares?
The excuse trotted out glibly when asked about the outrageous cost of the parts is that they have
“quality”, though usually it is not mentioned as to whether they are “good” quality or “bad”. And of course
the fact that they have to supposedly pay their Japanese principals royalty at usurious rates. Is this what
the Government is trying to achieve by banning all bike imports below 800cc and mollycoddling our
manufacturers who have little incentive to improve? That HH, after completing 25 years and boasting in a
loud and shrill manner about being No.1 bike manufacturers in the world is still incapable of manufacturing
reasonably priced quality spares (lets leave high quality on the backburner and move up to moderate first,
shall we?) or doing their own R&D (stickers and paint jobs don’t count) and actually designing bikes which
do not have borrowed Honda engines and other bits? So that the Indian public benefits?
MOTOMEETs A log of Motoroids’ get togethers across the country!
Mumbai-Pune
Eshan Shetty and Shrey Sunil.
The riders refueled their tummies with some
tasty grub at the restaurant and then made their
way towards Tiger Point which is about 8 kms
from Lonavala. The entire group of more than
40 bikers and few pillions rode together and
Y
ou can easily distinguish a breed of true spirited and hard core bikers from a sea of commuters, just by demanded a second glance from passerbys, who
watching them cruise streets smoothly on their two wheeled beast, covered in shiny helmets and riding gear happily obliged. Just in a matter of few minutes,
like it was some kind of art form. One such breed of passionate motorheads came together on a Sunday the group reached at Tiger Point and parked
morning to ride together and bond with fellow bikers. their babies in two long rows. It was getting
It all started with a thread on one of the Motoroids forums, where like-minded people got know each other hot now, as the sun was sitting right above
virtually. Soon, the common interest and love for automobiles fondly grew and gave way for ‘MotoMeet’ to come in our heads literally trying to evaporate us with
being. The first MotoMeet was decided to be held on 21st of February, 2010 and the same was declared on Motoroids the intense heat. Yet, the torture from the Sun
website and the news was circulated in the biker community. God took a back seat and the bikers formed a
Hotel Kamat in Lonavala was the pre- decided meet up point for the two riding groups coming from Mumbai circular formation and started the initial round
and Pune. At about 10:30 a.m in the morning, a battalion of a little more than 40 bikers arrived at the decided of formal introductions.
location. Four amongst these were the Motoroids core team members including Amit Chhangani, Rohit Paradkar, After the brief introduction session, Amit
introduced the concept of Motoroids to all
those present there. One such philosophy we
truly believe in is giving what our readers want
and not giving our readers what we want to give.
MotoMeet was one such vital opportunity for us
to get to know our readers and understand what
they exactly want. With that, began the round
of suggestions and feedback from the bikers
wherein they showered us with some marvelous
ideas and pointed us as to how we could connect
even further to these petrol junkies. Some of the
key issues discussed were:
1. Some technical / functional additions on
the website to make it more user friendly and
easier to navigate
2. To structure the information available
on the website, especially the forums and user
generated content to make it more organised
and easily searchable
3. To create awareness about safe riding,
and the importance of riding gear.
4. The discussion was ensued by suggestions
by some members to organise a training camp
for first aid and a manual on the legal right of
someone who carries an accident victim to the
hospital
5. Suggestions / ideas on what more can
Motoroids do to enrich the experience of
members
Finally, it was time to say goodbye, but not
without a group snap to take home and post it
on Facebook. The entire team posed while our
shutter-bug - Eshan quickly took some snaps of
the first MotoMeet ever!
We would like to take a moment here and
extend heartfelt gratitude to all the Motoroids
from Pune and Mumbai who helped us, firstly
to spread the word for the MotoMeet and then
finally showing up and joining in our little
Sunday morning celebration. Needless to say,
from gauging the phenomenal response to the
first MotoMeet, you can anticipate many more
such meets to come!
BangAlore
T
he MotoMeet in bangalore
was more of a city based meet
primarily targeted at increasing
interaction between existing
and potential Motoroids. The attendance
largely consisted of seasoned bikers who
already are associated with some or the
other motorcycling club in the past
and have added Motoroids to their set
of activities because they found it to be
something different from the run of the
mill automotive lifestyle entity and feel it
has a potential to make things better in
the overall motoring lifestyle segment.
Following were the participants of
this Moto Meet:
1. Venkat Shyam
2. Harshad Sharma
3. Avin Richards
4. John
5. Manjunath
6. Jasir Man
7. Niranjan Prasad
8. Praful tripathy
9. Renukumar
10. Prasanna M
11. Praveen Sathaye
The meet started off with a round
table conference at Venkat’s Service
station in Banashankari, Bangalore and
continued over cups of coffee and mini
idlis and other South Indian snacks at
Shri Ganesh Coffee House at Jayanagar.
Starting time was 2:00 pm and it went
on till about 8:00 PM. Following is the
crux of the discussion:
Why do you want to be a Motoroid?
Most of the riders had joined in with
a sole motive of meeting fellow bikers
and in some little way make a difference
to the motorcycling community. They
wanted to be a part of this motorcycle
lifestyle movement and wanted to do
something different from the other
forums. Most importantly they wanted
a platform where some really sensible
stuff could be discussed instead of the
usual clutter seen on some of the forums.
Hence, it was mutually agreed that the
forum on Motoroids would be more
versatile than what a normal forum
usually is; where every topic would be
taken seriously and provide a learning
experience for all. It should
be an eye opening article
rather than just a thread of
meaningless arguments and
discussions.
Some of them wanted
to actively take upto
motorsports or radical
motorcycling and thought
of Motoroids as a good
platform from where they
could receive information
and details of all such events.
Overall most of the people
were here for the sheer love
of riding and touring as
most of the people owned
premium motorcycles and
were interested in spanning the length and
breadth of the country.
What can be your contributions?
Most of the riders volunteered to
help in organizing meets in the respective
areas and also help in covering ground
events if given the right authority and
prior intimation. If invited to cover an
event as media, they would be the official
representatives of Motoroids in Bangalore
and cover the same for us and send in
details and pictures. The Meet or Ride
coordinator would eventually be a single
point of contact for any future ride or meet
called for; and shall take responsibility of
the venue, the destination and supervise
the overall event.
They will also assimilate a rich
repository of content detailing the closest
places to ride in and around Bangalore,
the ideal route to take, basics of group
riding; and ways to gauge the weather
conditions under which a ride can be
planned and done. They would also help
in planning and organizing long touring
expeditions around their region. Same
goes for track days and other motorsports
events. Unanimously everyone is ready to
volunteer to take up the responsibility,
as long as the same has been formally
entrusted to them tough official Motoroids
communications channel.
Suggestions received at the meeting:
• We should identify people in
the ‘Hall of Fame’ and list out their
accomplishments.
• Individual Motoroids profiles needs
to be created and updated regularly.
• One person should be appointed as
Chief Coordinator to send out reminders
for updating or update the same from his
end as soon as an event is registered.
• There should be a different space
dedicated on the forum to update about
past rides and events undertaken by
Motoroids.
• Add Google trails and maps to profile
view also, for to share accomplished rides.
• Extend forum activity to real meets
and rides. Type less; ride more!
• Create a Who’s who of Motoroids?
Identity crisis needs to be removed and
contact details need to be shared.
• More details of people’s personality,
their bikes should be shared and less about
their lifestyle.
• Everyone should be encouraged to
get out and ride.
• We must have an Induction process
and procedure with necessary paperwork.
A Short 20 Km ride should qualify for
membership and riding style, etc. should
be supervised by Motoroids officials and
MotoReps.
• Motoroids should be like an
umbrella of multiple activities and all of
these should simultaneously take off which
means we need to have more people taking
complete responsibility of each activity.
Turn to friends and volunteers for these
activities. Have them take responsibility
on a rotational basis.
• Also merchandising activities needs
to be started. We can have more versatile
merchandise rather than just stickers
and tees like glasses, caps, bandana’s, key
chains, etc.
• For attempts in motorsport events,
we should have better machines allotted
to us or procured with the help of
manufacturers.
• All MotoReps and Motoroids
members should make use of social
networking and help in every small way
to spread the word of events, activities and
initiatives.
• Forum can be made more interactive
with the inclusion of a interactive chat
session too for instant pinging and
messaging.
HYDERABAD I
t was a lazy Sunday morning in Hyderabad when
the Motoroids decided to have the first Motomeet
in the city of Biryani and Nawabs. Praveen
Sathaye, from Team Motoroids had come down
to Hyderabad and decided to meet the local Motoroids
Satyaveer, Pushkar and Raghu on the sunday the 7th
of March 2010. Pushkar, a red Pulsar 200 rider had
recently shifted from Pune to Hderabad and had been
a riding partner of Praveen in pune earlier. Raghu
and his Yellow Karizma had been part of the Rubber
Smokin Angels riding group from Pune and had
shifted to Hyderbad recently too. Satyaveer originally
from Chennai had been working in Hyderabad and is
a aproud owner of a RD 350 and a Bullet Lightening
535, and has been an avid biker for years. The venue
was decided as the Hussein Sagar lake, also called the
necklace road and the 3 stalwarts along with a 4th
localite, Satyaveer met up outside the movie theatre
near the lake. A quick spin around the lake to warm
those cold tyres and the group headed to the local
eatery for a heavy breakfast of Paneer butter dosa and
hot chai & coffee.
Once tummies were full and another short ride
was done, the group sat down to discuss the progress
made by the sole members of Motoroids in Hyderabd
and the kind of riding scene prevalent there. Depite
having quite a anumber of 2 wheelers hyderabad is
still not so great when it comes to traffic sense from
the riders and this was one of the things discussed
in the meet. As active Motoroids the riders would help
in promoting safe riding culture in Hyderabad and also
help organise rides and tours in and around the city.
Hyderabad has always been getting attention in the
state commercially and also a number of automotive
events take place in Hyderabad. This would definitely
give the local Motoroids a canvas wherein they could
promote the free revving spirit of true motorcycling
which Motoroids so painstakingly cultivates and
nurtures.
After the discussion the group broke off in
various directions and with the promise to meet us
as frequently as possible in the coming weekends and
months to organise more rides, get togethers as well
as other activities to promote safe motorcycling as a
means of healthy liesure.
Incidentally for this meet everyone, including
the pillion rider turned up wearing helmets, which
is an indication of good and sensible riding. On the
same day another rider meet was being organised by
some other bikers in a different part of the city where
Prabhakar was to introduce the concept of Motoroids
to the bikers present there and get feedback and
inputs from them. Thus biking scene in Hyderabad is
surely going to be revolutionised with the advent of
the free revving species and responsible motorcycling
activities. Looking forward to more action in the
coming days from down south, the hub of telugu
cinema and biryani.
CHANDIGARGH A
fter Mumbai, Pune, Bangalore and Chennai it
was now the turn of Bikers from Chandigarh
to meet up and step away from their virtual self
by interacting with other like minded petrol
heads. So, last weekend a bunch of bikers took onto the
streets of Chandigarh on a Sunday morning to meet up,
interact and share their biking feats and experiences...
In all there were 11 bikers present at the meet out
of which six had to leave early due to ongoing 10th and
12th Board examinations. Rest of us, i.e Harkamal Singh,
Divjot Singh, Sam, Anshul and Abhishek Chaurasia
decided to head towards Mohali for a cornering practice
session.
During the meet we discussed certain aspects by
which the Motoroids forum can be made more user
friendly and convenient. For example, to post pictures,
one has to first upload them on website such as flickr.com
and then provide a link to these pics in order to share
it with the other members of the forum. Therefore, it
would be much easier and conveninetr if there was a way
by which we could upload pics directly on the forums.
Another concern was regarding the e-magazine. It was
suggested that the e-magazine be kept in a pdf format
which could be downloaded instead of viewing the
e-mag online in a flash application format which proves
to be quite a hassle for slow internet connections.
Towards the end, we decided to organize another
MotoMeet after 28th of March, as we speculate to have
more participants since most of the bikers were pre-
occupied this time with their respective 10th and 12th
Board examinations.
 New gear, more often than not will work perfectly. We tell you what state it’ll be in after it undergoes some hammering ACID TEST
Praveen’s Mahindra-
Kinetic Rodeo
Power scootering is back, says Praveen, and in a bid to prove it, makes

D
espite having taken
its looks more or less
from the earlier flyte
this ain’t a dainty
looking light pink or aquamarine
feminine scoot. Somehow it has
a mix n match of what would
appeal to both genders equally. A
stylish front end and instrument
cluster, slightly curvy and
slightly rakish body style and an
instrument console which makes
it look much modern than most
of the competition available.
The graphics aren’t very flashy
or appealing but then looks
like function precedes form in
this case where the decals and
pin-striping is to demarcate the
defining lines of the scoot rather
than make it stand out.
Despite not having gone for
its first servicing the Rodeo still
delivers decent mileage which
however is hampered by a largely
misleading fuel indicator. It starts
flashing alarmingly indicating
ZERO fuel even if there is some
amount to actually do a quick
10 odd km run. This however is
also disastrous as often we do not
remember when the 10 km run
was done last and continue to ride
till we run bone dry in the middle

of nowhere. So this scoot cultivates good
and cautious riding especially when it comes
to filling up. Forget it once or twice and this
ain’t a lightweight baby you can tug along so
you just park it after a few huffs and puffs
and move to the friendly neighbourhood
petrol pump with a bottle and a pleading
look on your face. Fuel efficiency was best at
just about 40 km to the litre and at its worst
dropped just a little over 35 kmpl, which
is quite comparable to the performance
bike I usually ride. The thing that is more
impressive than the speed is the time it
takes to achieve it. Quick acceleration and
ergonomically shaped handle grips making
twisting the wrist fun on this scooter.
The scoot delivers awesome power
and taking off at green lights is a breeze
even with a pillion. This scooter I can
confidently say has put “power-scooting”
back into limelight as its ancient predecessor
the Kinetic Honda DX which had
revolutionised the scooting scene years
ago. Capable of easily touching a top speed
of 95 kmph, this scooter’s speedo may
indicate triple digits too if you really go
for it. Double seat riding manages a little
more than 90 kmph which is quite decent
considering my pillion was also a good 80
kgs. After having spent considerable time
with this machine I would sum it up by
saying that this is a fun to ride power scooter
capable of good acceleration and speed along
with decent ergonomics and a comfortable
wide seat. What lacks is dependable and easy
to understand electronics. One thing which
I found quite strange was the presence of a
digital tachometer on a scooter which has a
variomatic gearbox where in you don’t need
to shift gears looking at the engine speed
thus making the tacho redundant
 ACID TEST
Amit’s Icon Moto Jacket AFX FX-85
Stylish and comfortable, but just a bit short. Cheap and affordable, but still not available

I have been using the Icon Moto jacket Frankly, we did not buy this helmet. Our colleague
for a little over two months now, and it has ‘Cookie’ got this helmet as a gift from one of her rather
come across as one of the most comfortable confused admirers. Why confused? Well, the dude, who
mesh jackets I have ever used. While being got poorer by two and a half grand, sent her a wrong
made of a material that aids ventilation is size – and wrong by a huge margin! It’s a ‘Youth’ size
a virtue in hot weather, a low neck design helmet, which means the only person in our office
also aids passage of air, making it extremely who is eligible to wear it is our pygmy-man, Eshan
comfortable for those shoots in scorching Shetty.
sun. Anyway, coming back to the helmet, AFX is
The finish and materials used on a brand unheard of in India. It is one of the run
the jacket are excellent and it fits of the mill brands in the US, but is making an
sungly, without any rough parts entry into India soon. The FX-85 is a part of
scratching your skin. The use their motocross line-ups and forms one of
of elastic around the arm- the base models in the portfolio. In flesh
pit area and waist helps it the helmet looks decent with entry level
fit nicely. Apart from the paint quality, subtle graphics and a not
usual shoulder and elbow so shiny gloss finish. The plastic quality is
protecion this jacket also comparable to most local/Chinese helmets
has a back protector. available around.
Back protectors usually Since it’s a youth size, the helmet is light on
escalate the weight of the neck and the fastening for the strap is simple
a jacket substantially, to operate. We like the tilt adjustment for the chin/
which surprisingly isn’t jaw guard and the baseball-cap style hood. The latter
the case with this one. helps in knocking off the sun rays during most hours
All the protectors are of the day. The helmet is mainly targeted towards
extremely light weight motocross learners and hence does not come with a
and sufficiently strong. conventional visor that you see on a similar looking
Icon gear is known the ‘enduro’ helmet. What you need instead is a pair of
world over for its cool riding glasses to protect your eyes from the dust and bugs.
styling and designs. I Thanks to the motocross form factor, the AFX offers
love the design of this unmatched peripheral vision and especially in a country
one too, just that its like India, where you need to concentrate on more than
slightly short than the just the road, such a helmet helps for sure. Should be a
right height. value for money offering when it is launched in India
soon.
Promotional Feature March 2010
Continued from the previous issue:

Revolutionising
automotive servicing
Passing out of his diploma at the age of 17 years, Venkatesh Murthy went on to join the 515 Army base workshop
as an apprentice. Post apprenticeship, he moved on to a two wheeler dealership and then on to a car service
station as its lube bay foreman. In those days when govt jobs were considered god sent blessings, he suddenly got
two. The year was 1965 and he had to make a tough choice between the two.

1. Motor Vehicles Dept (RTO) as Motor Vehicle Inspector

2. Central Power Research Institute as its High Voltage Lab Foreman.

He chose the latter as it was research oriented to the former which was more paperwork oriented. 1971, one
fine day his father asked him to quit his secure central govt job to restart the family enterprise, the Automobile
Workshop.
As young Venkatesh Murthy shifted his focus now on the automobile workshop, his father Dr Venkata
Ramaiah happened to notice a young lady with impeccable confidence and a fantastic eye for detail at one of
his family friends’ place. Her name was Uma Devi and she was the second daughter of Mr M.S.Ramakrishna a
successful advocate from the small town called as Penukond. Uma devi had been successfully moulded by her
mother which built up her confidence, combined with heavy load of positive approach thus enabling her “I can
do it “attitude. Dr Ramaiah then put a marriage proposal of his son Venkatesh to Uma Devi’s parents and which
in turn resulted in them getting married on the 20th of May’1967. Uma devi, then 17 changed her name to
Padma (Later date she renamed herself as Padma Murthy).
The “I can do it Attitude” got her into hobby stitching, painting, knitting etc. As time passed by, her
talent in knitting came to the fore & orders for sweaters started to pour in from from neighbours and relatives.
Mechanisation somehow ruled in the family and prompted her to borrow little money from her husband to buy
for herself a knitting machine. This machine not only gave her the joy of knitting, but her time management
skills were honed too. She peaked with her knitting business in the early parts of 1980. Things were moving
perfectly well, a few circumstances forced her to quit knitting. Her own health was falling down due to stress &
Young Venkatesh Murthy the dust of knitting wool and with her husband Venkatesh suffering from a slipped disc she had to take over some
of his responsibilities of the workshop.
Thus Mr Venkatesh moved his bed to the workshop itself as he was advised bed rest and didn’t want to stay
home. He was helped by his wife who moved into the workshop as the overall caretaker. During her stay in the
workshop, her personal involvement in the daily affairs increased and few accounting, auditing & part stock
checking systems started to fall into place. Then on she’s become a part & parcel of the entire service workshop
working system & it was purely due to her foresight that the workshop grew and flourished despite being a single
setup with no company support.

Continued in the next issue:

64
This month Motoroids caught up with ‘Team 456’ - a motorcycle group from New 1. When and where was the club formed?
Delhi. Here’s all the important information about this club. A. Team456 was formed in 2004 in Delhi.

2. How often do members meet up?

A. The core members meet up often where as all other mem-
bers meet whenever a ride is organized.

3. Which aspect of riding is the group more into?

A. The group is more into touring to places less explored;
mostly in the Himalayan region.

4. What distinguishes this biking group from others?

A. Team456 is a club, which understands the social responsi-
bilities along with the need to promote adventure tourism. The
group often takes up some social causes like AIDS awareness,
Eco tourism; encourage the youth to join the Indian Army etc
while embarking on a motorcycle tour. The group will be pro-
moting the Common Wealth Games in the next ride.

5. How many riders are currently associated with the

group?
A. More than 250 bikers have till now participated in the past
rides with more and more pouring in to join the group for the
future rides.

6. Where is one most likely to see the group in action?

A. Mission Ladakh ride is an annual happening where around
30 to 40 members participate every year.

7. Is there any biking hierarchy within the group?

A. Founder members - Parmesh Kumar, Vinod Kumar, Sreejith
R and Ajith Kumar are the four founder members that concep-
tualized and formed the TEAM456.
Core members - Vijay Kumar, Venu Gopal, Mayank Gupta, Mo-
hit Verma, Asad Ali Khan are core members who actively take
part in organizing all the rides.
Senior members - Members who have participated in more
than three long distant rides
All other are members who have participated at least once in
any ride and are found to be a true bikers.

8. Are there any requisites to joining the group?

A. Whoever enjoys motor biking and adventure activities

If you are interested in joining this group, drop in

an email to Vinod@team456.com

If you want your biking group to be featured on

this page, drop in a mail to clubs@motoroids.com with your
group’s pictures and answers to all the questions above
Just in case you thought we ever work....

Rash + Amit’s right leg

= 137 Kgs. Rash was
fled all night about wh baf-
Caught on camer ere the extra kilos cam
a! Not good, Am e from
it, not good!

Pradeb gets slam

med by Amit. Why
slammed by ever ? Because he ge Eshan’s trick - makes amit sit in a Lambo. Adding more salt to the Great Rann of Kutch.
yone! ts
How? Trade secret! Pradeb thinks he’s looking cool while posing like that
 March 2010

get up, buddy. You’ll get run over by traffic

if you tumbled
Oops! All I sneaked in for was milk, promise!
“I can’t sleep without a bed time story!”

Good question... Thou shall wait for eternity to get upstairs but thou
won’t stress thy hamstrings! Two is Company??? 67
Let me take a moment and think over it
 Think you can get crazier than
this? Send us your crazy pictures at March 2010
Crazyworld@motoroids.com and we’ll
feature them here along with your
name.
Disclaimer : The pictures in this feature have been procured from the
Internet and are not owned by Motoroids

So what if you
don’t have the
perfect body,
you can always
wear one!

For that price, it’s a bargain!

Come on in...colour my life!

Where Does this road lead to... Center of the Earth?? Yep, you can leave that at home 68
 Write to us
For feedback, suggestions, complaints, spy pics, or just to say hi - letters@motoroids.com

Letters to the editor - amit@motoroids.com

Whacky snaps for Crazy, Crazy, World!! - crazyworld@motoroids.com

Think you have a great article at hand? Send it to us, we just may feature it - features@motoroids.com

Your bikes’ / biking / travel snaps at - bikers@motoroids.com

For getting your club featured in Moto Clubz section - clubs@motoroids.com

Let us know about the achievers in the biking world at - spotlight@motoroids.com

For marketing and advertising queries - marketing@motoroids.com

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