[New.Novice]

Phew, I am finally here. I wasn’t sure that this day would come given this was my fourth attempt to get a membership here. I thought there was something which Moderators were able to see and I was not. I thought it is an occasional adrenaline rush which make me attempt gain membership here where as I am probably not what you a call a “Petrol head”. But it was getting difficult resisting a membership given I spend so many hours here (and quite a lot of them are paid ones, hope you know what I mean. Gee).

I am not very good at introducing myself, so let me attempt it in a simple (however lengthy) manner. I will try to start from the point where I thought I probably got hooked to love of machines and the progress from there in my life had an automobile to accompany.

Given my dad served in Military Engineering Services, we were fairly transferred across India and most often than not smaller towns where we have a Cantt. Fortunately, by the time I crossed my adolescence, it became stable and I could very well be termed a Jhansi Boy. Yes you got it right, the “Khoob ladi mardani who to Jhansi Wali Rani thi” fame Jhansi.

This is where I drove my first motorized thing which was called TVS XT. Whoa, what a machine. Believe you in me when I say I carried a cricket kit and 5 boys on that machine quite often, to and fro our cricketing ground. Wish I had a pic to show you how. That got snatched off me when once (sometime around 1995) I along with a couple of friends were riding that moped to a departmental store at a gas station in the outskirts of the town. This store was heard to have stocked the than not-yet-officially-launched Coke cans. We wanted to be amongst the first ones to have one and were riding through a main road when a traffic police constable flagged us down. In a split second decision we came out with a story of Pinku’s (one of us riding on that TVS) mother being hospitalized in the medical college further ahead on that road. He showed mercy in not fining us (without D/L, riding three etc.) and not even taking the moped with them to be only delivered to our parents. But what he did was worse than that, how I wish he had fined us, threw us in jail, sued us for murder. Instead, he made us do which still send shivers down our spines (all three of us), he made us ”murga ” in that busy place called District Bus Stand for full 5 minutes. I still rate that as one of the biggest insult thrown my way and trust me three of us did not venture out of our homes for many days after that. What with Pankaj Bhaiya’s (the third person riding my TVS on that fateful day) father driving down at the same moment on that road and spotting us, red faced, doing the act in full public view of a 1000 odd people. But yeah, we lived. And now that is one of the most remembered incident whenever we old timers get together, and the most cherished one too. So much for nostalgia I say .

Having given away my right to drive that moped, the next vehicle I officially got to ride was Yamaha YBX sometime close to dawn of new millennium. This one was bought by my elder brother who also graduated to work with Military Engineering Services. I guess this was the second vehicle rolled out by Yamaha in Indian markets after their immensely popular and stellar of a bike called Yamaha Rx100. I was in love with this Yamaha Rx100 bike. My uncle, who was working in Jabalpur, once had to send his Yamaha Rx100 to Jhansi and I played so many tricks to convince him that why it is not a good idea to send that bike over by some other means of transport but someone riding it. I successfully managed to play him, and he in return made my parents agree and thus this became my first long drive. I drove that thing over 400 kilometers in a dash, solo, and I was about 18 then. Man, never ever in my life can I forget that experience. Stories you tend to tell your friends and colleagues over week end bar-be-que’s and later to your grand son’s. This one is mine.

Coming back to Yamaha YBX, I guess this is where downfall of Yamaha started. This YBX was a disappointment if I speak less. And thats why it came to me while he moved on to bigger better things. We still haven’t sold it as my brother is emotionally attached to it, that being his very first buy. Anyways, I grew older with the bike with both of us (me and the bike) trying to remain relevant to our lives and of those who meant to us or we meant for theirs. I am not sure about the bike I think I, to an extent, succeeded. However, in the process I parted with the bike and the town both and ended up in Delhi.

On 1st January 2004 I bought first automobile of my life. This was a Maruti 800 AC. A car which I don’t think I am going to part with ever. It has seen me turning from a boy (okay call it late 20ts Boy ) to a man. From a free soul to a father of two. It has taken me places I never thought I will go. And it did all of this with a panache. Never failed me once. The bruises that she suffered were more of my faults than hers. And this was the time when I got introduced to this forum called team-bhp. Though the decision to buy the car was over, I remained glued on to this forum. In came spells when I did not mange to come here for long but the occasional stints continued. In the mean while, as all who truly care for you, my Maruti also had to be accommodative and give space for a bigger car for a bigger family. And thus came a Ford Fiesta Zxi Petrol in my life not long ago. The story of her buy is an interesting one, I plan to put it in a different thread soon.

If you are still here, thank you for reading a rather long introductory note. I am not sure if this will qualify as a Introductory note at all, but, I thought let me write what comes to mind.

So, here you’ve got a new member who is in no way an automobile expert (the ID should be warning enough) but who definitely wish to make most of what is available. You may see this 30 something guy pitching in the Travelogues the most, though, he should and he shall add his 2 cents any where and everywhere they can be worth of half of that.

Kudos for having such a wonderful platform, let’s have fun.


Alok Shrivastava

[ghodlur]

Welcome Alok to the BHP family.

BTE a nice writeup. Hope to see more of such posts from you in the coming days.

Are you still holding on to M-800, Any plans to change/modify?

[Fordmanchau]

Hey Alok,
Wonderful introduction. Have a good stay here. Hope to get to see lots of new travelogue from you and yes, do put up your fiesta ownership thread.

[The Wolf]

Welcome aboard mate...have a wonderful stay here!

[New.Novice]

[quote=ghodlur;2007299]Welcome Alok to the BHP family.

Dear ghdolur, thanks for commenting. You are the first one so you shall go down the history too as I love to tell stories and my stories about team-bhp will always have a mention of you .

I do have this Maruti and I do drive it often too. No mods yet, and maintained very well. No I dont plan to sell it. I may shift it to my father's place when Parking her becomes an issue here.

I often dream of an Outlander (some times its fortuner that appears) a Beamer and a VW Polo parked in my garrage. Even in those dreams, this cute little 800 findts its place, parked close by cuddling all others.

Dear Fordmanchau and The Wolf, honored to have you on my pages.

[Judemayne]

Dear Alok,

Welcome and a very well said intro!! I am a retd Colonel and fully understand you moving all over the Country. Though i bought my first car in '85 i started to drive in '74, Surprise, surprise I am also a newbie like you on this page.

Welcome aboard-happy revving ahead!!

Col J H Mayne

[ghodlur]

Woah, Alok. I guess I skipped the Ford Fiesta thing. Good to know that you too are a Fiestian like me. Same variant too. Do participate in the Fiesta discussion threads too.

[New.Novice]

Col. Mayne, but isn't it beautiful to go all these places all over the country? And thanks for commenting here.

ghodlur - Yes, I am a fiestian too now and the itch to be able to comment on those Fiesta pages was one reason I wanted to be a member. I am geared up and you shall soon me in action.