Apr 2010 - Royal Enfield

THE CLASSIC TRAIL THE JAMBUGHODA RIDE GROUP RIDINGapril 2010www.royalenfield.comepic rideSrann oF kutch + rajaSthan + ladakh + South indiaapollo auto India awards2010: Best Brandzigwheels.com ViewersChoice: Bike of the Year 2009zigwheels.com:Bike of the Year above 251ccnDTV Profit Car & Bikeawards 2010: Motorcycle ofthe Year above 250 ccnDTV Profit Car & Bikeawards 2010:Best PR CommunicationsTeamaRT OF MOTORCYCliNgTOP ROYal ENFiEld dEalERsMARKETING NEWSLETTER

KicK startShaji Koshy, Divisional GeneralManager, MarketingThe Electra UCE350cc is Here!neWsElectra Twinspark (kick start)INR 89,846Electra Twinspark (electric start)INR 93,846(Ex-showroom pricing in Chennai)Royal Enfield introduced into the Indian market, the ElectraTwinspark 350 cc earlier this month. With the introduction of theElectra Twinspark, Royal Enfield has taken another step towardsmodernising its range of motorcycles with the UCE family of engines.The Electra Twinspark can now benefit from the superb performance,reliability and fuel-efficiency of the unit construction engine whilstretaining the unmistakable character of a Royal Enfield.According to RL Ravichandran, CEO, Royal Enfield Motorcycles,“It has been our aim to encourage riding as a lifestyle. The ElectraTwinspark, with its performance and comfort coupled to thecharacteristic Royal Enfield styling is guaranteed to kindle wanderlustin our customers.”The Electra Twinspark is available with both, kick start and electricstart options and in colours—silver, red and black.greetings from the editorial desk!Last year has been very good for us in terms ofsheer sales performance and the launch of the tworevolutionary Classic models. Besides creating thesegreat machines, last year also saw the inception ofthe Keep riding campaign spearheaded by our fieldstaff and dealers. as an organization we have always believed inpromoting leisure riding as a lifestyle. a royal Enfield is a practicalleisure motorcycles and not just a commuter bike.We have hit the right note through the Keep riding Campaignspecifically aimed at encouraging our customers to take their bikesand hit the open road. Through this campaign our field staff anddealers jointly organize rides across all our regions, themselvesactively being a part of the bonhomie by riding out. What startedas a small effort today has spread out to become our everyday wayof life with nearly 100 rides organized in 2009.2010 promises more exciting and challenging rides in all ourregions with active participation from my colleagues at the hOas well. The mood has been contagious with the entire euphoriaaffecting the dealer fraternity also, which immediately got hookedon to this unique programme as it gave them a chance to unwindwith the customers. I am no exception either and have experiencedthis first hand riding out to mahabalipuram with the Chennai team.Today we are strongly focussing on encouraging our customers notjust to own our motorcycles but ride them as has been evident byour ‘Leave home’ and ‘Trip’ campaigns and now the “Keep riding”campaign. We now have 3 new calendar rides to engage customers,the Tour of rann of Kutch, The Southern Odyssey and The rideof rajasthan apart from the legendary himalayan Odyssey. Thesewould all be rides of discoveries in more than one way, like wefound a Shrine dedicated to a royal Enfield - “Bullet Baba” deepinside the rajasthan hinterland, where the devotees offer ‘Bullet’Beer in reverence!!!I am looking forward to joining you in some of the subsequentrides organized in other parts of the country getting a chance todo what royal Enfield loves most; riding the open roads. Let’s rideand let’s discover…This issue of The Beat brings to you some interesting storiesfrom these rides and we hope it inspires you to don your helmetand open the throttle to gobble up the highways.ride SafeIf you would like to contribute to THE BEAT email us at schavan@royalenfield.com E D I T O R I A L T E A M Shaji Koshy, Sachin Chavan, Praveen P SathayeRoyal Enfieldat the AutoExpo 2010royal Enfield was part India’smost prominent automotiveshow, the auto Expo 2010,held from January 5th to 11that the Pragati maidan in newDelhi. royal Enfield displayedthe recently launched royalEnfield Classic 500 EFI and theroyal Enfield Classic 350. Themainstay of the royal Enfielddisplay were the soon-to-belaunchedvariants of the Classicin gleaming Chrome and inClassic Battle Green.The company also launchedthe Bullet 350 and BulletElectra 350 with the unitConstruction Engine. Themodels will go on sale inFebruary and march 2010respectively.The Expo turned out to bea rather rewarding experiencefor royal Enfield with theroyal Enfield Classic and themarketing team picking up asmany as five awards.■ Apollo Auto India Awards2010: Best Brand■ Zigwheels.com ViewersChoice Bike of the Year 2009■ Zigwheels.com Bike of theYear above 251cc■ NDTV Profit Car & BikeAwards 2010: Motorcycle ofthe Year above 250 cc■ NDTV Profit Car & Bikeawards 2010: Best PRCommunications Team23

on the roadThe Jambughoda RideAhmedabad to Jambughoda—a ride organised by Royal Enfield . Words and Pictures by Pradeep ChaurasiaROYaL EnFIELDrecently organiseda ride for itscustomers andenthusiasts from ahmedabadto Jambhughoda. Leading theride was a royal Enfield Classic500 in pristine green followedby Thunderbird TwinSparks,Electras, machismos and Bullet350s – just about all the modelsfrom the royal Enfield stable –15 roaring and thumping royalEnfield motorcycles conqueringnature’s elements.What started at 0630 hrsin front of IIm Campus,ahmedabad as a motorcycleride, ended at 2000 hrs thenext day at the royal ridersshowroom as a memorableexperience. By the end of it,the riders had ridden andtriumphed over tarmac, water,slush, rocks, sand and believe itor not, even fire.after instructions onstaggered riding, single file,no racing, etc were sharedover some chai and cookies, allriders were raring to go. Kickstarts, electric starts, idlingdone, riding gear worn, helmetsin place – time for fuel. afterfilling their bikes with fuelnear Shivranjani, it was timeto fill themselves with fuel.The riders had a chai, samosaand parantha stop after 35 kmin the ride. Seeing the trafficon the road, a regrouping ofthe riders was done and thenthe thump started again. Theheat of the moment and thatof the surroundings mandatedfrequent sutta and water breaksduring the ride. CrossingVadodara from the bypass, theriders reached the halol tollgate where they were joinedby more riders from Vadodara.Pleasantries exchanged, hugsdone, more water consumed,and all were ready to roll. Theride after that was a breezewith wide expressways and thegroup crossed the heritage siteof Champaner and the templesof Pavagarh. Fun and frolicwas what the calm twistingcountry roads had for theriders while welcoming them toJambughoda. The resort therewas waiting to serve the riderswith some mouth-wateringlunch and rest for their sorebums. after the food and asmall nap, the royals wereready to thump again.next on menu was the offroadsection, slush, rocks andmore around the Kada Dam.Situated inside a protectedwildlife sanctuary, the damhad much to offer and test theskills of the riders. The offroadexperience was new formost of the riders and aftertaking a complete round of theKada Dam, they had sore armsbut happy souls and as all ofthem said – we now have moreconfidence in our machine.There were some good photoopportunities near the dam soeveryone jumped to have theirphoto taken with the gorgeousgreen Classic 500.It was nearing sunsetand when asked what theywant–ride or resort–came athumping “let’s ride” response.Everyone wanted to ride moreand some more. The beautifulvillage roads took them to Jhandhanuman. En route therewas a jungle fire and amazingphotos by the fire were taken.The broken roads, darkness,poor visibility could not stop theriders from getting the most outof their royal Enfields. The bikesliterally flew as bridges, potholes,sand etc were all handled withpower and speed. Post the ride,the usual dinner and rider talksensued. While it was a dry state,the riders made it wet with theiramazing ride stories.The return ride started thenext day with most peoplenow taking turns on theClassic 500. as expected, theywere impressed. With moreconfidence in their bikes, theythemselves rode faster andmeaner.at the end of it they allgathered at the newly openedroyal riders showroom nearCG road. Lots of chai, pakoras,hugs, smiles and cheers later,everyone went back home —with a promise to ride again.ROYAL ENFIELD’S NEWEST DEALERSHIPS126 new Dealerships were addedto the ever growing Royal EnfieldNetwork.1 ADITYA MOTORSRajkot, Gujarat2 LAMBA ENTERPRISESDwarka, New Delhi3 MUNISHWAR MOTORSBelgaum, Karnataka4 AGARWAL TRACTORSNajibabad, UP5 ROYAL RIDERSAhmedabad, Gujarat6 B&C SALESRudrapur, Uttar Pradesh5 6NEW OVERSEAS DEALERS43dealerTOP 10DEALERSJAN '10 - FEB '10Jaycee Motors CorporationAmritsarDhone AutomobilesPuneJalandhar MotorsJalandharBarnala AutomobilesLudhianaGarg AutosChandigarhEss Aar MotorsNew DelhiRoyal MotorsAmbalaManmohan Auto StoresChandigarhSTATE OF THE ART WORKSHOP OPENS IN BANGALORERoyal Enfield opened its new format Service Station Workshop associatedwith the Brand Store in Bangalore on 28th January, 2010. This state of theart workshop would serve as the reference workshop for setting up similarfacilities in the future all over the country. Facilities include 6 automatedbays with hydraulic ramps, an air conditioned customer lounge that hasa better view of the work area, a multi-utility roller test bench and partscleaner etc to name a few. The workshop has sufficient parking for 30customer bikes inside the compound and a separate parking facility for theworkshop staff. There is also a separate service manager cabin for detaileddiscussions with customers.M/S ALVAREZ MAQUINARIASCordoba, ArgentinaCLASSIC MOTORS LLC, DUBAIDubaiSouthern MotorsChennaiSukhdev AutomobilesPatiala4 5

dealersDealer ConferenceKEEP RIDING CHAMPIONSRank dealer1 Royal Motors, Ambala2 Aman Autos, Gurgaon3 Ahuja Enterprises, DehradunSPARE PARTS PERFORMANCE: ALL INDIARank dealer1 Kinematics, New Delhi2 Senthil Murugan Auto Parts, Erode3 Cashmir Sales, PathankotSERVICE PERFORMANCE: CAPITAL MARKETSRank dealer1 Amar Auto, New Delhi2 Lamba Enterprises, New Delhi3 Teknik, BangaloreSALES PERFORMANCE: CAPITAL MARKETSRank dealer1 Amar Auto, New Delhi2 Lamba Enterprises, New Delhi3 Teknik, BangaloreSALES PERFORMANCE: CAPITAL MARKETSRank dealer1 Essar Motors, New Delhi2 Southern Motors, Chennai3 Soniya, MumbaiNEW DEALER PERFORMANCERank dealer1 HSR Services, Bangalore2 Navyug, Jalandhar3 Chandra Motors, KanyakumariSERVICE PERFORMANCE NON CAPITAL MARKETSRank dealer1 Dhone Automobiles, Pune2 GG Motors, Madurai3 Paragon, NagpurSERVICE PERFORMANCE: ALL INDIARank dealer1 Barnala Auto, Ludhiana2 Kishori Auto, Khanna3 Sukhdev Automobiles, PatialaSALES PERFORMANCE: NON CAPITAL MARKETSRank dealer1 Dhone Automobiles, Pune2 Padmaja Commercial Corp, VijaywadaSALES PERFORMANCE: ALL INDIARank dealer1 Jalandhar Motors, Jalandhar2 Barnala Autos, Ludhiana3 Manmohan Auto Stores, Chandigarhroyal Enfield recently held their all India Dealer Conference in november 2009 at the GrT Temple Bay in mahabalipuram near Chennai.at this conference, 3 new motorcycle models namely the 350 uCE, the Electra uCE and the Classic Chrome were unveiled to the dealers.awards were also given away at this conference to the best performers amongst the dealers in the area of sales and service in each region aswell as overall across India. The winners of the awards are as follows:Rankdealer1 Teknik, Bangalore2 Marikar Motors, Kollam3 Blue Mountain, CalicutBEsT salEs PERFORMaNCE REgiON WisEREGION 6 REGION 3Rank dealer1 Shahila, Guwahati2 Ahuja Enterprises, Dehradun3 East India Agro Pvt Ltd, KolkataREGION 5 REGION 2Rank dealerRank dealer1 Royal Engineers, Hyderabad1 Sukhdev Automobiles, Patiala2 Kay Jee Engineers, Secunderabad2 Garg Autos, Chandigarh3 Auto Centre, Ranchi3 Cashmir Sales, PathankotREGION 4 REGION 1Rank dealerRank dealer1 Saini Motors, Goa1 Royal Motors, Ambala2 Paragon, Nagpur2 Lamba Enterprises, New Delhi3 Ostwal, Nasik3 Amar Autos, New Delhiawards were also given to dealers under following categories at an all India level. uCE ChamPIOn, CaPITaL marKETS: SouthernMotors, Chennai. uCE ChamPIOnS, nOn CaPITaL marKETS: Dhone Automobiles, Pune lETTERs■ I am a student of engineering in Manipal and whileon a visit to the Royal Enfield showroom in Chennai,I came across The Beat magazine. It made for a goodread with lots of pictures and interesting information.I especially liked the article on the NDTV documentaryon Royal Enfield riders in Ladakh that was well-written and featured awesomeimagery. Not that I haven’t seen or read articles about adventurein the Leh-Ladakh area but then some of the images taken reflect a lotabout the serenity of the environment there; kudos to your lensmanHarsh Man Rai who has done a great job of capturing nature at its best.I am looking forward to reading more about the adventures of RoyalEnfield Bulleteers in the subsequent issues.Could you also include some of the photos as centrespreads or postersthat we can put up on our hostel walls to serve as inspiration to usfledgling bikers and motivate us to venture far and wide on our Royal Enfieldmotorcycles? The Classic artwork poster in the current issue is goodbut I would love a natural action shot with impressive scenery and theRoyal Enfield Bullet. I hope that the next issue of The Beat will also havemore such interesting articles and much more amazing photography.– ADHISH K, MANIPAL■ I never knew Royal Enfield too had a corporate magazine till I saw oneat a dealership in Pune. It is indeed a good one especially the name “TheBeat” so apt for a magazine from your company whose motorcycles arebest known for the distinctive engine beat. Interestingly, it also relates toemotions and feelings by means of a Heartbeat.It was a good initiative from your side to enable Zeroone technologiesemail your letters to schavan@royalenfield.to Log Out of their workstations and experience life in the open whiletouring on Royal Enfield motorcycles. We, who have been working in theIT sector, have actually lost out on the basic excitement of life itself and itis experiences like these which can serve as great stress busters givingus the much needed break.It would be great if you could organize something similar for us inPune. Please let us know how we can get in touch with you or someonefrom your organization and get the same Log Out organized for us. Suchan opportunity will be great for us to seek our adventurous side, somethingwhich we keyboard punchers might have forgotten long ago.The rest of the articles were also very interesting and informative withsome real good photography. I hope to read more such interesting stuffin your subsequent issues and even get featured in The Beat by meansof a Log Out some day.– KHYATI V DESAI, INFOSYS,PUNE■ I have been regularly following your rides on your website. I have readall the write-ups you have posted there and in your last edition of The Beat.Some of the photos are breathtaking and so are the places that you ride to.I am a proud owner of a Electra 4-speed 2004 model and have beenregularly riding around Pune since then. Now I want to be a part of yourbig adventures. Can you suggest which ride I should be a part of? Andwhich one will be the best with a pillion?The Beat magazine is very well put together. Hopefully, you will have alot more content in your next edition. I also liked the section on Riding inthe Wet. Hopefully you will have more such sections on riding skills.Also I would like to congratulate Royal Enfield on winning a number ofcoveted awards this year.– HARDEEP, PUNE6 7

passing throughpassing throughtographs of the old painted haveli’s andtemples but best of all was their interactionwith the local kids—one of the reasonsthey have come to India is charity work forhearing impaired kids. We took excellentpictures of village children and our bikes.Vincent even did some drifting in the dirtand some jumps much to the amusement ofthe kids while Baz took photographs. Soonwe rode out for a small ride over broken,sandy, Royal Enfield-style tracks throughthe backyards of Mandawa. We rode backto Dundlod by sunset as Baz and Vincentwanted to paint one of the walls of the fortand I’m sure Thakur Randeep will cherishthat painting forever.The Classic TrailRoyal Enfield takes director Baz Luhrmann and artist VincentFantauzzo for a ride to remember to Shekhawati in Rajasthan29th JanBy kanwardeep Singh Dhaliwalaz LuhrmanN is famousfor directing movies: Romeo +Juliet (1996), Moulin Rouge!(2001) and Australia (2008).Vincent Fantauzzo is a world-renownedartist and recipient of many prestigiousawards. As a good break from their hecticschedule while in India, we took them fora ride to Shekhawati region of Rajasthanalso known as the open art gallery for itspainted havelis and paintings, noted fortheir frescos depicting mythological andhistorical themes.31st JanOn the 29th of January this year,while I was waiting at the airport forMessrs Luhrman and Fantauzzo I hadno idea what I was getting into. WhenBaz landed, he told me that he had neverridden a bike before and got his drivinglicense just three days back! I hadone hour to get him on a gorgeous greenRoyal Enfield Classic 500 and hit the road.Well I got to hand it over to Baz and Vincentfor their determination and enthusiasm.Baz got on the bike, learnt to shift throughgears and to brake well enough in an emptyparking lot at the airport. Though a bitshaky and slow at first (Indian city traffichad it’s share to contribute) he got his composureas we caught the highway and weresoon cruising down the smooth Bikanerhighway. By the time we reached Sikar hisconfidence was soaring. Vincent rides superbikesand motocross back in Australiaso he adapted very well to the Classic.At Sikar we left behind the traffic andhit the smooth country roads of Rajasthan.Vincent was raring to go and test thebikes capabilities. He started trying to pullwheelies on the first day itself—he soonlearnt that a Royal Enfield was more thanjust a highway cruiser and found out thatspeed breakers can be fun to ride over. Wereached Dundlod by sundown and ThakurRandeep Shekhawat had a warm welcomefor us at his fort. Vincent started trying todrift here in the hard sand. We spent thatnight at the pristine castle of Mandawa.On 30th Jan we first went for a ridethrough Mandawa. We took plenty of pho-When Baz landed, he toldme that he had neverridden a bike before andgot his driving licensejust three days back! Ihad one hour to get himon a gorgeous greenRoyal Enfield Classic 500and hit the road.n 31st morning Baz and Vincentwanted to paint a village wall aswell. Initially the villagerscouldn’t figure out what theywere up to and passed smirks, but by thetime the painting started to appear theywere awe-struck into silence. The plan wasto ride to Jaipur and catch the evening flightbut I guess they were having so much fun ontheir bikes that they wanted to ride straightto Delhi. Now this was a real ride with a distanceof 260 km and half a day to cover it ona unplanned route. The ride turned out tobe an excellent one a—we rode throughsome sand, tight village gullies, brokenroads, along bright yellow sunflower fields,and great highways—a real a Royal Enfieldride. There was more riding, less stops, lessphotography and total fun. Baz was gettingbetter and proving to be a decent rider,while Vincent was going all out with driftingat corners, high speed off-roading,jumps, wheelies, burnouts and donuts. Aswe got on the highway, 90 km from Delhi, itgot really cold, extremely dusty and trafficseem to be getting worse with difficult overtakingand even traffic jams on the highways!Yet we rode on with a smile on ourdirty faces and dust in our eyes. Baz wasmoved enough to exclaim that every time hegets used to the ride a new level starts: “Youhave now reached level 10!”. Yes, this doesbeat videogames.t the Delhi press conferenceSiddharth Lal gifted Baz andVincent a Royal Enfield Classic500 each with their nameson their tanks. In Baz’s words ‘this is themost gorgeous looking bike I have seen’and Vincent exclaimed this is the most funbike he has ever ridden. They are sure tocontinue riding their Royal Enfields backin Australia. It was a most humbling experienceto see the much-acclaimed directorand artist in action, both of whom alsomade for great riding partners. It certainlywas a ride to remember.8 9

MY TRIPBy Arun Kumar Saigal s Photographs by Harsh Man Raiof falling!). I bought a bike in Jan 2008—ablack Royal Enfield Thunderbird againsta lot of opposition and, of course, doubt.Learnt how to ride the bike decently welland learnt to enjoy riding. However thenon-rider/wannabe rider tag kept gnawingat me. Did the Mumbai-Pune and someother highway rides but really did not leavewith any sense of achievement or belonging.But I enjoyed the bike and loved everythingit symbolized to me—power, freedom,expression, fear. The question really wasto prove to myself that I am a good rider,have nothing to fear and can do whatmost define as one of the toughest rides.Basically it boils down to an ego thing—aterm defines a lot of me and drives a lotof me, but also there was a fierce desire toride and to break free—a first real vacationin years, the feeling of getting away, beingclose to nature, etc. There are probablyeasier and better ways of achieving thesecondary reasons but they were reasonsnonetheless.himalayan Odysseyodysseythrough cold and miserable roads andpasses on the way to Keylong and Sarchu,magnificent Moré Plains and never-endingnervous Gata Loops, beautiful tarmacroads though colourful mountains on theway to Leh, the off-road fun stretch whereno road was supposed to be there but weran through it, the most beautiful straightroads through valleys and green patcheswith snow-capped mountains keepingguard on the way to Kaza, the windingroads along the raging Sutlej, the hillyregions and greenery (a sight for sore eyesused to bare rocky mountains) of Kalpaand Rekong Peo and finally back to thesweltering heat of Delhi.It's really difficult for words or evenpictures (especially for me given that I havenone on account of a lost camera) to reallyexpress what we rode through and whatBack... back to the crowded city,back home, back to work, backto routine, back to this deskand computer... physically atleast. Mentally, to be honest, I am lost—drifting, searching and trying to find a spotto anchor. Head feeling light and too manydifferent thoughts pulling me in differentdirections—focus on work, get back in thegroove AND the yearning to break free,to go back out in the open and to find theelusive meaning.Woke up this morning feeling lost anddisoriented wondering what time breakfastwas (had to make it myself by the way!),I had to be reminded about my officetimings. I could barely recognize the blokein the mirror.When I left for this trip, everyone thoughtthat I would/should change and hopefullywould get a larger picture than I currentlyhave. I have always been a pretty simplestraightforward bloke (pretty boring infact) with really no perspective beyond myimmediate environment. Just being goingthrough the years like a horse with blinderson—running on the same path and doingsanjay Ahlawatsanjay Ahlawatthe same things. Through the trip nothingreally changed and my overall focus wason really just going through each dayand completing the ride safely, doing thebasics and leaving everything else in thebackground. On reaching back to Delhi thefeeling really was of relief on completingthe ride in one piece, of not quitting.However with each passing day it’s allstarting to sink in. I guess the pressure, thestress and the joy of being on the bike fortwo weeks really did not give one the timeto reflect on what exactly was going on andto understand or experience consciouslythe changes and the environment aroundme. I find myself a changed person—notdrastically but definitely in small ways.Also I have taken some small steps towardsunderstanding myself, what drives me andwhat’s important to me (really tiny stepsgiven my primitive mental status andthe long journey required to get to beingdefined NORMAL). I am going to try andput on paper exactly what I am feeling andthinking right now and try to structure(job hazard) my thoughts into somethingmeaningful and useful.First of all why did I do this? Notsure—I was the guy who could never ridea bike when I was in school/college. Alwaysprotected, I had a car and had very basicexperience with bikes (most of which wasSo what did I do? I signed upfor the Himalayan Odyssey—atrip to the top of the world toKhardung La and then somemore. Loved the Royal Enfield tag: “Theroad to salvation was never a straight line”—that’s literally and figuratively bang on. AsI told the Big Bosses (the RE boys) you can’thave guys like me just get off our asses andgo for this ride, the RE guys definitely needto strain out people like us (otherwise theyend up spending most of their time pickingus up and changing our handlebars!). Butwell on the flip side I did complete it, didn’tI? I guess if you believe it and want it, thenit will probably happen.The Trip took us from Delhi-Chandigarh-Manali-Keylong/Tandi-Sarchu-Rumtse-Leh-Khardung La-Tsokar-Keylong-Kaza-Kalpa-Narkhanda- Parwanoo-Delhi.That’s just the headlines—how can oneforget the passes: Rohtang (pass fortourists, traffic jams and dirt), BaralachaLa (the one mothers will use to put badriders to bed “so jaa nahi to Baralach Labhej dungi”), Lachulung La (easy for somebut not for me) and Tanglang La (badroads). And the tiny stops in the middleof nowhere with just dhabas (meaninghot food, hot water/tea and shelter fromthe winds for 30 minutes) at Khoksar,Bharatpur, Pang, Upshi, Losar amongstothers. The ride took us from the plainsof Delhi, Chandigarh, to the first twisties(borrowed term) en route to Manali,we went through mentally and physically.There were times of exhilaration—whenyou managed to complete a ride in one piecewithout falling and achieved what you hadset out to. Feelings of extreme loserness—when you realised you are not the rider youthought you were and people are zippingaround at twice the speeds weaving circlesaround you. The feeling of insignificance—when faced with the beauty and the size ofthe landscape you were riding through. Thefear—on patches of roads and through rideswhere you felt you would never make it andfelt that you just didn’t belong (wanted todrop the bike and just run). Panic—whenyou fell and got up first checking yourself,then your bike and finally, the gear toensure you are all in one piece. The feelingof camaraderie—when we managed to pusheach other to do things which alone I doubtwe could have achieved.12 13

himalayan OdysseyIalso learnt along the way to travellight and pack smartly. Ensuredthat warm gloves, monkey cap, andsocks were placed handily to ensurethat you made yourself warm as soon asreaching your destination and proceededto have a cup of tea and darned everythingelse. Finally understood why people loverum—saviour in cold weather and cure forbad throats (and it does not matter if it’s aBacardi/Old Monk or Black Bull—in thecold it all tastes the same). Figured thatwhen push came to shove, you can take adump anywhere and the smells and the crapdissipates in the face of the overwhelmingfeeling of relief; how the basic bed andhotel room or the dirty plate or the craplookingwater does not matter when youare exhausted/hungry and want to sleep,how anything hot tastes great in coldweather (especially combined with pyaazand mirchi), how you are not supposed tohave a bath when temp is below a certainthreshold, how clothes don’t get dirty in coldweather (or maybe you need to believe that),how its important to brush even thoughno one is smelling your breath (otherwisethe helmet can get really claustrophobic)and more importantly how you should letyourself and your mind go—get crowdedwith too many thoughts and you will failor alternatively be too focused and you willfail to enjoy the experience.We all started out as a bunch of strangerssitting around a circle for our first briefingtelling us what to expect and what not toexpect. Of course I personally don’t liketaking instructions—always used to beingleading and not really listening (that’ssomething that changed in a fortnight).People from all over the country speakingin all languages and sticking to their citygroups and pals. But that changed over thecourse of the trip. We all got to know eachother better and realised at least in someways we are the same. Made some prettygood buddies along the way—these are theguys who really pushed me to complete thisjourney especially when I just wanted to letgo, who shared their experiences and madeyou realise you are not going through allthis alone and there is plenty of company(misery loves it!). People from whom youlearn and realised what riding is all about—sticking through thick and thin with yourbuddies, not taking things for granted andalways covering your ass, smoothly rollingon the throttle on corners (Twist of theWrist, Chapter 1), look where you want togo (target fixation is the technical term),never f*%# around in the shit (i.e., avoidbrakes when you most want to use them),opposite lock and throttle (to be honest onlyto be used by the people at the pinnacle ofmotorcycling), and lastly just enjoy theride man, enjoy the freedom and enjoy theopen road for the minute you stop enjoying,the fun is replaced with fear which screwsyou up in the head and paralyses positivereactions. And of course we partied hard (Iwas good at that at least) and got loose withthe booze (no women sadly).Lastly, what I have learnt? Thebiggest thing was that I and Ialone define what I can or can’tdo. I fell on the very first day andwanted to just get up walk away and sell mybike but I picked myself up, refused to letanyone else ride it for me and chugged alongin slow motion (at least for the next 15 kmafter which I guess it got boring). I wantedto leave the trip mid-way as I believed I wasnot having fun nor enjoying the ride. I thenrealised that whether I live in fear or enjoythe moment is a choice that I must make.I continued for ego, friends and the feelingthat if I don’t do this now, I never will and Iwould probably not be able to ever face thepeople, including me, who I would let down.Also learnt how you should never get cockyhimalayan Odysseyor it will come and bite you back on yourass (read second fall). I also realised withhow little one can get along and the basicsof food, shelter and clothing are really whatone needs to survive and what one reallycraves for—the rest are just frills that youwon’t even remember or care for later. Howstrangers in the middle of nowhere takecare of you not out of any monetary or otherselfish motives but for the simple reasonthat we just look out for each other—period.How the feeling of being on the open roadin natural beauty in the middle of nowhereis a truly liberating experience—makingyou realise that we were not meant to belocked up (that’s exactly what we have doneto ourselves). We are meant to be Riding onthe Open Roads !!14 15

ajasthanrajasthanTHE ROYalRUMBlEBy KANWARDEEP SINGH DHALIWALroads must be ridden and thejourney must be traversed.Pictures and words can at bestbring back those savouredmemories. Over the Tour of rajasthan,everyone learnt something new about theirbikes and improved their overall ridingskills whether off road, or on tarmac. It isdifficult to describe the challenging terrain,tarmac, tracks, and back roads wetraversed, but we all had lots of fun andhave memories to cherish for a long time.18th Oct, 2009 - all participants andtheir steeds gathered at Jaipur from allover India. after scrutiny and briefing, itwas time to celebrate as Jaipur was brightlylit up and colourful for Diwali.19th Oct - The Tour of rajasthan beganwith a flag off from the royal EnfieldBrand Store, Jaipur. Our first stop afterour lunch at Sikar was Shardung Singhjiki Chatri in Parasharam Pura—the onlypainted chatris in rajasthan. The road tomahansar, snaking through farms, is a singlelane road, little traffic, no potholes, fewsurprises and mostly just fun. at mahansarwe are put up in nirayan nivas Castle— anentire castle only for us! Some of us eagerlyhead out to get our first taste of the sanddunes. In the evening party we are served abottle of the local liquor that’s famed to beenough for 20 people.20 Oct - rise and shine early to a beautifulsunrise. mahansar also has a uniquehaveli that’s painted in gold and best seenduring sunrise. Today we encounter someminor sand crossings, and a forest wherewe can spot deer. These roads are so goodthat everybody forgets the wildlife androars through. We do get lucky and spot afew white eagles though. I actually endedup cruising the entire route at good speed,through fantastic places and wherever Istopped, the food too was excellent. TheBikaner highway is as smooth as any roadcan get and not in the least boring. Thelandscape starts to change slowly to moredry and sandy. There are still plenty oflarge shrubs and some trees. I can’t waitto have the famous rasgullas and sit downfor a drink with Bikaneri bhujia. Bikaneris also famous for Laxmi niwas palace andJunagarh Fort which is the best in rajasthan.21st Oct - I love surprises and there wereplenty of them in this route. In the entireTour we rarely take the straight roads,instead choosing to ride routes rarelytravelled. First stop is Karnimata temple,Deshnok. This temple is unique for it’sthousands of rats that roam freely. Fromhere we take a route that’s not marked onour maps. The only traffic we encounter isa bus, couple of jeeps and camel carts. Theroad is smooth, gentle curves, rise and dipsand plenty of sand crossings. This was ourfirst real taste of sand and these unmarkedroads lasted a good 150 km. First few times(days actually) we’d hit the brakes at thevery sight of sand and cross with a lot ofcaution and struggle till we got the trick.Then we couldn’t get enough of it! We finallyregroup at Kichan where we spot lotsof cranes. rains have been very little thisyear and almost all the lakes of rajasthanare dry, so not many migratory birds havemade the trip. after Pokharan we ride a desertedstrip of a road that arrows 90 km toJaisalmer with fewer vehicles on it than insidean airport. Some say that this highwaywas actually built to also serve as a landingstrip for IaF fighters in case of war. Someof us decide to ride in 2 by 2 formation andscare oncoming buses, trucks everybody tomake way for us.We explore Jaisalmer on 22nd Oct andvisit the exquisitely carved Pattuan kihaveli and nathmalji ki haveli, the royalburial chatris, Jaisalmer Fort and finallysee a puppet show at a famous one-mancollection museum. not to forget Jaisalmerbrand cigarettes…23rd Oct – From Jaisalmer, tourists normallywould travel to the famous sand dunesof Sam in 40 km but we took the roundabout300 km route! no fuel is available till tomorrowas these are rarely travelled roads. Firstup is asia’s highest TV tower that is visiblefrom 25 km away and to get there we firstgo off-road over gravel, through dry farms,over mounds and through green vegetationflanking a canal. We test our off-roading16 17

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eady, steady, po!A SOUTHERNsojournBy Lt Col Hardeep Singh(Retd) and Bhupinder Kaur¡Astrong desire to see the southernpart of India was lingeringsince the last three andhalf years ever since I wasposted to Bengaluru, and finally the opportunityto tour the southern peninsula ofIndia materialised by way of the SouthernOdyssey being organised by Royal Enfield.However we were not at all prepared forsuch a long road journey by a two-wheeler.As the tour was to cover over 3000 km, we,after some hesitation due to our age, I am59 and my wife 54-years old, apprehensivelydecided that it is either now or never.Never having taken to such long trip on amotorcycle, we mentally prepared ourselvesfor an arduous journey with muchyounger participants. I had ridden smalldistances earlier in my Enfield, the longestbeing from Bengaluru to Chennai, adistance of about 340 km. We packed oursaddlebags and reported at the designatedhotel on 13th December 2009.The participants started pouring in andby the afternoon all had gathered at HotelEmerald, Chennai. Here we met John andTrudy, a British couple who were the oldestto participate at 62 years and we werequite inspired by their adventurous spirit.Since only Royal Enfield motorcycles werepermitted to take part, I chose a 350ccThunderbird as my steed to take us bothon the ride.Next morning Sachin Chavan grilledall participants at Chennai racetrack, ensuringthat we honed our riding skills forbetter riding reactions, specially the brakingpart, using both the front and the rearbrakes. After extensive practice in brakingand tackling blind corners for few hours,we returned bubbling with confidence. Inthe afternoon we had an opportunity to seethe manufacturing process of the legendaryRoyal Enfield motorcycle during ourfactory visit. The tour guides conducted usto the various parts of assembly line, includingthe specialised engine testing anda fully assembled bike testing bays. It wasan exhilarating experience to see how thebikes that we were going to ride are manufacturedand rigorously tested.On 15th morning all 20 riders assembled,donned in their compulsory protectiveriding gear at the Royal Enfield BrandStore at Adyar. All were wearing the speciallydesigned T-shirt for the ride, with thetour slogan reading “READY, STEADY,PO”, PO meaning go in Tamil. Soon, theSouthern Odyssey 2009 was flagged offby Sidharth Lal (MD,Royal Enfield). Theriders hit the famous East Coast Road toPondicherry, our regroup point for lunch.The rain accompanied us continuously andwe reached our destination for the night atKaraikal, well drenched in spite of our raingear. However riding in such a downpourwas an experience in itself and gave us a lotmore confidence to handle wet road surfacesand low visibility.Next day also saw intermittent rainstill we reached Rameshwaram. Till nowthe roads were quite smooth and despitethe rains we had a trouble-free ride andreached our destination well on time. Mostof us who reached early utilised the availabledaylight clicking pictures at the famousPamban bridge. The island of Rameshwaramis connected by a road and a rail bridgerunning parallel to each other and a sectionof the rail bridge opens upwards to allowbigger vessels to pass through it. The viewof the island and the sea from the bridgeheld all the shutterbugs clicking their camerasendlessly.Next morning saw us to anearly start for Kanyakumariwith some apprehension as itwas overcast. Having experiencedextensive riding in the rainssince last two days, everyone waslooking skywards and praying fordry tarmac to ride. The rains mercifullyspared us and by afternoonthe sun God also decided to bless us,peeping intermittently through the clouds.The road condition was smooth and dryand having built our riding confidence,most of us whipped up the pace. The routepassed through hundreds of huge windmillsspread over miles and miles, dottingthe landscape and gave the impression ofbeing in Holland. Having reached the destinationfor the night early in the evening,all of us quickly changed into casuals andheaded for the seashores of Kanyakumarifor some sight seeing and sunset viewingfrom the southernmost tip of India’s mainland.The clouds threatened to obscurethe sunset but finally relented at the verylast moment and what a breathtaking sunsetgreeted us and camera shutters neverceased capturing the scene.The destination for the next day wasKottayam. Jeff, a journalist from Francealong with his wife Jane as pillion camerawomanjoined our group at Kanyakumari.KD spent extra time during the morningbriefing, warning us about the hazards ofdriving on hilly roads and facing Malayalidrivers and traffic. These drivers, includingpedestrians will move at theirfree will with scant regard to thetraffic rules. Kerala is like an endlessvillage where you keep encounteringhamlet after hamlet withoutany noticeable break. The hillyroads started after 60 km and the beautifulcountryside was covered with rubberplantations, lavish bungalows and a clearsky soothed our tired eyeballs. Riding awkwardlyinitially on the meandering hillyroads soon turned comfortable, after recollectingthe lessons taught by Sachin at therace track. We were now traversing God’sOwn Country. Having reached Kottayamwell before dusk, few of us headed to viewthe backwaters about 20 km away and onreturn, painted other lazy riders an enviousdescription. The night at Hotel Arcadia,in the heart of the town with a majesticview of the whole city from its rooftop, wasquite rewarding.22 23

eady, steady, po!The next destination being only 140 kmaway saw us taking a proper breakfast anda lazy start at 8.30 am. Since the last fourdays 7am was our briefing time after havingan even earlier breakfast, as we werecovering close to 300 km everyday. By10 we regrouped on a beautiful hilltop atVagamon 65 km away, but Jeff and Janewere nowhere in sight. We learned laterthat they found their way after considerabledelay and effort. From here KD tookus off the route to Vagamon top, the highestpoint in Idukki ranges through a verysteep track and some of us experienced ourfirst falls. Driving our motorcycles on suchsteep, bumpy and rough surface was ourfirst major challenge till now. The capacityof our machines and the riders themselveswas put to the toughest possible test in this2-km off-road stretch. A few minor falls bya few of us, we all managed to reach the topand were rewarded by the magnificent sightof Idukki lake. The entire group remainedbusy savouring the sight and clicking theircameras. Few adventurous ones tried theirskills to ride higher on a non-motorablesteep track and ended in uneventful falls enroute. Sachin alone managed to do it fullyentrenched on his saddle. Harsimran andSantosh too managed with some struggleand stubborn effort. Having had our fill ofadventure and the beautiful sights, we returnedback to the road to recommence ourjourney to Kumili Camp, Thekkady. Aftersuch an arduous off-road experience, ridingagain on smooth roads appeared a child’splay. Having reached our destination wellbefore dusk and after a quick change mostof us ventured out to the nearby lake in thePeriyar wildlife sanctuary. Few adventureseekers went for a night trek into PeriyarNature Reserve hoping to see some wildlife,but had to return tired, satisfied with thesight of few leeches feeding on them.The next day again was a comfortabledistance of 130 km toKodaikanal through a hillyroute littered with dense rubberplantations and well-laid endless teaestates spread over thousands of acres thatthe drive pleasant throughout. Havingreached the destination well before timeRohit, well familiar with the place, tookus on a guided tour to his favourite hiddenscenic spots. At night around the bonfire atour hotel Kodai Resort, singing and dancingcontinued late into the night, the camaraderie,despite the big age gap, that haddeveloped in the last six days was clearlyvisible. Our youngest rider was 19 year-oldPrahalad and the oldest to complete theride was myself, age 59.Next morning after driving around fortwo hours, again sightseeing some morescenic spots around Kodaikanal, we headedtowards Munnar via Udumalaipettai,passing through Indira Gandhi NationalPark and a few lucky ones glimpsed bisonsen route. The route hereafter had morecurves to negotiate thus keeping us alertall the time. John, the seniormost rider,with Trudy had to unfortunately abandonthe ride after Kotagiri due to a shoulderinjury that refused to subside. Munnar isfull of tea estates and in the local marketwe found every third shop was selling teaand spices. We now started feeling a dropin the temperature and the nights becamechilly since it was the peak of winter.After a restful night at Munnar, the nextmorning we headed toward Valparai, takinga long and circuitous route passingthrough Kaladi, Angamal and Chalakudi.En route we stopped at two magnificentwaterfalls, Athirappilly and Charpa. Therefreshing break at the Athirappilly waterfalllured a few riders into removing theirboots and dipping their feet into the water.Though KD had given a break of only30 minutes, the riders were in no mood toleave the spot so soon and it took some effortto coax them out, before the ride couldrecommence. A little further ahead Sachinhad found another small scenic waterfallclose to the road, which served as an excellentbackdrop for our group photoshootalong with our iron horses. Since we werealready running behind schedule, we didnot stop any more and reached Valparaijust before dusk.Next day, the ride from Valparaito Kotagiri took usthrough Pollachi, Paladam,Andur and Mettupalayamthus avoiding the main highway and Coimbatorealtogether. Having reached the AnjangiriTea estate some 20 km away fromKotagiri much before dusk, Srinivasanoffered to conduct us around his estate includinga trek through the reserve forest,to the top of an adjoining hill. After an arduous30-minute climb the view of a smalltemple at the peak greeted us. The peakoffered a grand view of our surroundingscovered with forests, a small village and teaestates all around for miles. Before dark wedescended back to our tents and refreshedourselves before gathering around a bonfirewhere much singing, leg-pulling and merrimentensued. The night was quite chillybut the bonfire and a good supply of moodenhancers kept us warm till we retired toour tented accommodation for the night.Destination for the tenth day wasMadikeri 310 km away and demanded anearly start. At seven in the morning aftera very early breakfast and detailed briefing,we took off towards Ooty, and passingthrough Masinagudi Ghats and MadumalaiNational Park reaching Sultan Bathery,150 km away for our regroup. Negotiatingthe 36 sharp and very steep hairpin bendson Masinagudi Ghats was a challengingand thrilling experience as these were thesteepest tarmac descent so far in our route.Riding inside Madumalai National park,a little before Gudalur, we came acrossa small herd of wild elephants very closeto the road. Keeping a safe distance wewatched them for few minutes and tookphotos before silently resuming the ride.After lunch at Sultan Bathery, we hit theroad again trying to reach Madikeri beforedusk. Now we were riding amidst coffeeplantations of Kodagu (Coorg) hills in Karnatakaand passing through Manthawadi,Tholpetta, Gonokoppa and Virajpet. Thecondition of the roads in this part of Karnatakaisn’t good and tested our24 25

eady, steady, po!rider maniaskills of negotiating potholes for miles. Thesight of coffee plantations on both sides ofthe road in Kodugu country, which is alsocalled Scotland of the east, was a new experiencefor most of us. The group rode intoMadikeri just before sunsetNext days destination was Chikmagalur,190 km away on state roads. The roadswere quite good and driving again on goodsmooth roads after yesterday’s bumpy experiencewas a piece of cake. Somewherebetween Sakleshpur and Mudigere, Sachinspotted a beautiful spot in the pastures,ideal for a group photoshoot and regrouping.Here we again had a long group photosession along with our steeds. Taking a restart,we reached Chikmaglur in no time,thanks to the good roads.On the 13th day we headed for Bengaluruour final destination. The route passedthrough the villages of Jawagal, Harenhalli,Turuvekere, Mayasandra and hitthe Magadi Ring Road. Little further upwe hit the NICE road and reached EagleRidge resort in Begur, which was our padfor the night. Here to our surprise our twopathfinders Rohit and Ranjit got lost in themaze of Bangalore roads and gave few anxiousmoments before surfacing at the rightplace and were greeted with clapping byall of us. After unsaddling and refreshingourselves in the rooms, we gathered in therestaurant hall to celebrate the success ofthe Southern Odyssey 2009, over a roundof well deserved drinks and a slide show.On 27th Dec, we all departedcarrying fond memories of thelast 15 days spent together, traversingthe entire South Indianpeninsula, passing through varied terrainand landscapes. We rode along the TamilNadu coastal belt, and thereafter coveredalmost all the hill stations in Kerala, TamilNadu and Karnataka. It was my cherisheddesire to see the whole of south India, whichfinally materialised, although I never imaginedthat my wife and I would do it ona motorcycle at our age. The experience ofthese thirteen days, riding with the group,which almost became a family towards theend, experiencing the events and places enroute, lingers heavily in our memory. Wecould manage to complete the entire route,thanks to the untiring visible and invisibleefforts put in by the Royal Enfield team ofSachin, KD and Santosh and their two mechanicsand the tour co-ordinator Kingsley.Nostalgia overwhelms my memory while Iwrite this article and motivates me to lookforward to participate in another such tour.The fun of seeing the countryside on a motorcycleis an exhilarating experience whichI discovered for the first time in my life.Bikes, madnessThe Enfield festival of all Enfield festivals. Ouseph Chacko heads to Rider Mania, GoaIf you don’t own a Royal Enfield,you could rent one,borrow one or steal one.After all, the only qualificationyou need to head to a Rider Maniaevent is to ride an Enfield.Four days of motorcycles, sunand beaches — it just doesn’tget better for the Royal Enfieldowner/borrower.If you love the Royal Enfield,it’s a place to live, eat andbreathe Enfields. There’s motorcycletalk, motorcycle shop, motorcyclerides, motorcycle gearand when that’s done, there’smotorcycle tips, motorcyclemovies, motorcycle books andmotorcycle races. This chapterof the Rider Mania was the firstone organised by Royal Enfield,rather than by one of the Enfieldowners’ clubs. About 200bikes turned up in Goa for thisedition, including us. The lureof the ride proved too much,which is why the six of us wokeup at 4am to ride. We have withus one LB500, two standard350s, three Thunderbirds and600-odd kilometres of NH17’scurves to ride on. The neighboursdidn’t appreciate sixEnfields starting up, but to us,it was the sound of freedom —one week on the road, just man(and woman) and motorcycle.Six hundred kilometres, 17hours on the road (courtesytwo breakdowns) and a lot ofengine oil later, we rode intoGoa, ready for the festival thatwas to be. Why the excitement?You meet old friends, peopleyou met on some Himalayanpass years back to share moreride stories. It’s a place to meetlike-minded Bulleteers — take19-year-old Athreya from Mangalore,for instance. Two daysbefore the event, he had noplans of riding up on his 350.A last-minute change of planssaw him in Goa where he wonthe stiffly-fought 350cc dirttrackrace, the obstacle courseand the bike-carrying competition,putting the so-called hotshotriders firmly in their place.Take the nitrous-charger Bulletfrom Kerala and the Raid-de-Himalaya winning monsterLB500 — you only realise theextent of Bullet madness whenyou meet the owners here.Then there’s the Bullet clubsthat turn up — the Fat Bastards,the Roadshakers, the Royal Indians— it’s madness.For four entire days, it waslike a music festival. If you’dhad your fill of the loud pipes onthe bikes, you could step in andlisten to the loud rock bands orDJs playing all through.What’s brilliant about havinga Rider Mania in Goa is thatwhen you finally have motorcycletalk pouring out of yourears, you can head to the beachand reload, and then head backfor more when you are done relaxing.And, when it’s all over,you still have the ride back tolook forward to. We didn’t leaveGoa with the same enthusiasmwe left Mumbai though — youcan’t leave Goa without one lastlate night. And you can’t wakeup early in Goa.The Rider Mania is a oneof-a-kind,almost Mecca-likeevent for the Bulleteer. It’s amust-go, must-see, must-experienceif you love those bikesfrom Thiruvottiyur, Chennai.If you missed this one, and arekicking yourself, don’t worry.There’s always Rider Mania X(X for 2010) in Mumbai in January2010.26 27

ROK around the clockRaiders ofthe rannLike all great places on earth itís difficult to describe the magnificentdesolate beauty of the Rann of Kutch, the time we spent in there andthe fun we had. By the end of it, every participant on the ROK Ride hadtheir own stories to tell and an experience to remember.By KANWARDEEP SINGH DHALIWALThe ROK riders got together inAhmedabad on 21st Feb, 2010not knowing what to expect asthis was an area where few motorcyclistshad ventured into. After themotorcycle and riding gear scrutiny, thebriefing was simple enough and we madefriends quickly.The next morning we were flagged offfrom Royal Enfield dealership at Ahmedabad.The roads till Dasada, where we hadlunch were on good tarmac, but after thatwe plunged into off-road mode and a wholenew level of fun. We rode 40 km in 4 hoursthrough farms, sand, remote villages,swamp, over embankments and some watercrossings to enter the Little Rann fromitís south-west corner at Kharagoda, to ride100 kms across the desert wasteland. Andthe fun was just beginning which wouldlast till we got back. As we entered theLittle Rann, the sun was setting and thevast desolate openness turned into a seeminglyimpenetrable and inky void. As it gotdarker, fear struck some of us as we had noclue where we were going or if were goingto get somewhere. There were no roads, nosignboards to follow and whatever trackswe saw just criss-crossed each other. Itwas a good moonlit night many thoughtthe ground was flat till the horizon. However,at the briefing we were warned aboutsalt farms at the start of Rann so manyof us just rode behind each other eatingdust desperately not wanting to lose sightof the rider in front. The more adventurousones rode more in the open, but everybody stayed in sight of each other for thefear of getting lost. After our first taste ofnight riding in the middle of nowhere, wehad a discussion on how to use the stars tonavigate, which would come in handy later.Our night halt was a temple in the middleof nowhere, like an oasis. Legend has it thata man fought for seven days even after losinghis head and this temple is dedicated tochou chianghim. We settled down to a good dinner andmost of the riders slept in the temple courtyard.A few hardy souls preferred to sleepout in the great wide open under a canopyof millions of stars.Next morning was an early start becausewe wanted to make the most of Rann beforeit got too hot and also, itís impossibleto navigate at noon with the sun at its zenith.In the morning briefing we learnt touse the rising sun to navigate and we wereoff. Now in the daylight since we could actuallysee the terrain we were riding on,our confidence soared. We also spread outfurther; in fact some went so far that theydisappeared over the horizon! No worrieshere, soon every body caught up again aswe all knew the direction we were supposedto travel. There are no tracks to follow here,no landmarks, no features, nothing just avast and sandy openness. Some of us wentall out, some tried their hands at drifting,some just did various stunts and some justfell. As we looped around a hill, Medak nuBet, near the outskirts of Rann we spotteda pack wild asses up close. It felt like a NatGeo moment with the Bullets intersectingthe wild asses path and then the pack gallopingpast us a few metres away. We wererunning short of fuel by now so hesitantlywe rode out of the Rann and stopped forlunch at Adesar.Our destination was Dholavira,the ancient Harappan Civilizationsite. The roads wereexcellent, with very little traffic,smooth surface, curving, rising anddipping with plenty of surprises. At thebridge that connects Dholavira across thewhite Great Rann we got our first taste ofthe salt desert and what was yet to come.The Great Rann is even more vast then theLittle Rann and unlike the harder surfacelike yesterday it’s actually a sheet of solidifiedsalt floating on wet ground. We werecautious walking on it lest the salt crustbreaks—it felt strong enough though andwe had high hopes of riding over it tomorrow.After this the roads were more brokenwith some sand crossings en route and weenjoyed the ride thoroughly. As we reachedDholavira we were offered cool water at aBSF check post.Next day we again started early as wehad no idea how our bikes would fare in thechou chiang ouseph chacko ouseph chackowhite Rann. In the briefing we were told tospread out one behind the other and stop ifthe bike in front gets stuck. We did manageto ride some distance onto the salt flats butafter that the surface got too wet and softto risk riding. So we had some good timethere itself. And there was the promise thatharsh man raithe conditions might differ on the south andthe west side. We would need to get aroundthe white Rann by roads circumnavigatingit and these roads turned out to be as fun asthe road to Dholavira. On the west we rodetill Ekal Mata: a mandir on the outskirtsand from here we again rode some distanceon the salt flats. But this side was damp tooand it was getting hot. As the day gets hotthe sheet of salt becomes thinner as the saltabsorbs water. Villagers do walk across theshortest section of greater Rann but onlyduring early morning hours when the saltsheet is hardest. We had some good timehere too and then rode to Bhuj to get borderpermits for tomorrowís ride. We spentthe night at a luxurious fixed camp.In the morning some dived into the heatedpool for a relaxing swim and then weheaded out toward the border. First stopwas Kala Dungar. It was a visible black28 29

THE gREaTWHiTE RaNNat the bridge thatconnects dholaviraacross the white greatrann we got our firsttaste of the salt desertand what was yet tocome. the great rannis even more vastthen the little rannand unlike the hardersurface like yesterdayit’s actually a sheet ofsolidified salt floatingon wet ground.3031

ok around the clockodysseyphotographs by harsh man raihill from Dholavira towards the south butimpossible to cross over to from there. Thegreater Rann was once part of the sea duringthe Harappan days but had recededsince then leading to the abandonment ofDholavira by the Harappans. Recent geologicalactivity has sprouted springs in thispart of Rann now. From atop Kala Dungar,it was a humbling view of the vastness of theGreater Rann. We rode till India Bridge onthe road going towards the Pakistan borderover the Rann and then headed for alocal lunch at a small hamlet. After a good,exciting and adventurous ride over the lastfew days we cooled off at Mandvi beach.Some of us rode on the beach while otherchose a good sport of beach volleyball.Today we were going to ride across LittleRann again and along a different direction.Everybody was looking forward to it.First stop though was Adesar for lunch.In route the wilder ones and fun stealingsugar canes, rolling in tractor tyres, takinga shower at a car wash and doing a heap ofcrazy stuff for a photograph! Then we rodetowards Medak nu Bet at the outskirts ofLittle Rann, everybody finding their ownway and putting what they learnt to the test.Not everybody could do it and some had tobe rescued. We came up with some ingeniousplans to guide them that worked likeone rider doing circles with his bike withhis headlights on! It got dark soon after weregrouped and we rode out navigating bystars, with everybody sticking together thistime. Some of us got stuck axle-deep in asalt pan. We got them out quickly enoughand had a few laughs over it. As we werecoming out of the Rann many of us wantedto spend another night in there. We all hada scrumptious dinner at Dasada and spentthe night there.32 33

group ridinggroup ridingThe Road TrainRiding with a group of motorcyclists is one of the great thrills of the two-wheeled lifestyle says PRAVEEN SATHAYEIt’s a common observation that whentwo strangers, bikers on royalEnfields, cross each other on a roadthey smile and wave out at each otheracknowledging an undefined camaraderieand association—a natural biker instinct.Bulleteers are always eager to ride togetherin a group. This group of bikers ridingtogether is resonant with the energy andthe sound of the legendary thumper. Groupriding on Bullets has a unique charm initself; first of all there is a strong tendencyof riding together with no competition.Each rider yearns for the resonating soundof the bikes thumping together in closeproximity and the grand spectacle thatis conjured up with a sizeable number ofthese big machines riding together. Thefun part actually happens when the grouprides together and reaches the destinationtogether. This way each of themtraverses through the samestretch at the same time yet hasa slightly different perspective.The end of the ride often leadsto discussions and sharing ofexperiences of the ride. Post ridesessions often are consumedin discussing the interestingthings seen or experienced bythe riders during the ride andlaughing at the common jokes.It definitely is much more funthan discussing somethingwhich each of them hasindividually seen and the othercan’t relate to.riding together makes overtakingredundant as the focus is in being togetherall through the stretch of the road and notracing against time to reach a particulardestination. Group riding silently supportsthe whole idea of enjoying the togethernessof fellow bikers on a ride. Typically, whileriding a motorcycle, the emphasis is alwayson the manoeuvrability of the bike. Despiteriding in close proximity in a group thishowever is still not compromised thoughyou have Bullets running one behind theother there is ample space on both sides tomanoeuvre and avoid obstacles and otherdisturbances. The group in such a situationbehaves like a massive co-ordinatedfreight train snaking its way aroundtraffic and obstacles and moving aheadlike a juggernaut. Each individual enginethumping in synchronisationwith the other creates anorchestra that can make one’shair stand on its end purelybecause of exhilaration. In sucha co-ordinated group riding,although the emphasis may beon ensuring that each of theriders sees more and more of theroad ahead, the basic element isof a different kind of fun.riding together inadvertentlymakes people more harmonioustowards each other. When youride with each other you makeminor adjustments to yourriding techniques to ensure you are wellsynchronised with the fellow rider and sodo they. Somewhere it comes across as anunwritten rule to accommodate the ridingtraits and idiosyncrasies of your fellow rider.This adjustment somehow also reflects offthe bike, which makes people adjust to eachotherís behaviour, nature and tendencieseven when they arenít riding together. Infact itís often said that people who canride together gracefully often are the bestof friends and buddies. This can be highlycontributed to the biker instinct that makesone biker always make room for the other.also, the most respected and admiredrider often ends up leading the group againin an unannounced or undeclared manneras everyone makes way within the cohesivegroup. This ensures that the leader of thepack moves ahead and leads from the front.The sharing of the riding thoughts andfeelings at the end of each day makes thewhole experience much more memorableas each little details of the scenic route getsdiscussed and refreshed at the end of theride thus making an inerasable impressionfor years to come. Someone has rightlysaid if you want to go fast, ride alone butif you want to go far, seek company andride together. Group riding opens up avery different dimension of motorcyclingexperience with you discovering places,people and in the process even your ownself. So put on your helmet, gather yourbuddies and ride out together, thumpingtogether in vociferous resonance.ART OF MOTORCYCLINGOn the weekend of March13th, W+K Exp hosted atwo-day exhibition thatcelebrated The Art ofMotorcycling. Motorcycleexhibits ranged fromthe brand new Classic500 to an exotic varietyof customized Enfieldsfrom all over India. TheArt exhibits includedphotographs by renownedfine arts photographerBharat Sikka, anddigital art by the Indianart world’s rising star,Prasad Raghavan. Printsof their work wereavailable for purchase,as were beautifully styled range of limited edition T-shirts, created especially forthe occasion. There were many special mementos displayed to mark this eventand the concept of motorcycle art. To add some industrial art to the mix, masterpainters from the Royal Enfield factory in Chennai were there to demonstratetheir phenomenal tank-painting skills on the Bullet fuel tanks, an art they havepainstakingly cherished for over a decade. This was also the first art exhibitionwhere visitors could actually ride the exhibits, as there were the brand new REBullet Classic 500 motorcycles available for test rides. Additional attractionsincluded live music and cold beer, coupled with loads of fun.34 35