[SJD@NewDelhi]

Originally Posted by barcalad

Always a pleasure to meet someone who rides his motorcycle for passion and not for compulsion.
This thread is updated whenever we plan weekend morning rides or coffee meets at night. The planning and coordination is done on a WhatsApp group, though.

We have a R15 to a CBR650 in our group. Machines don't matter for us, the attitude and passion does! Most welcome to join in any time.

Thanks for the invite What are your next (personal) touring plans to the Himalayas?

[barcalad]

Originally Posted by SJD@NewDelhi

Thanks for the invite What are your next (personal) touring plans to the Himalayas?

I myself might not be able to make it this year, but shall try. It might even happen on impulse if I get some off time.

However, there are people from our TBHP motorcycling group who will be doing the circuit this year. They shall update this thread at the appropriate time.

[barcalad]

Given the long Holi weekend, my mind was set on doing a long ride as literally half of the NCR bikers I knew were going somewhere or the other. A ride had to be done. Not just a normal ride. Something to test the physical endurance of both me and my motorcycle.

26th March - The date was set. With my brother and his friends as my support vehicle and two other acquaintances on their bikes, we made our way to Chail, Himachal Pradesh. This location was chosen due to it's sleepy and serene nature, lack of traffic, beautiful forests and absolutely no one playing "DJ wale babu" as you got a much needed sleep in your hotel.

Started from Karol Bagh Metro at 7:15 AM due to a 45 minute delay by the other motorcyclists. Reached Chandigarh by 12:30 PM after which 2 hours were spent at relishing amazing Punjabi food and some rest. We were off for Chail by 3.

The humongous traffic that I witnessed until Solan can't be described in words. It was as if all of Delhi was heading to the hills. Saw an accident right in front of my own eyes! Nevertheless, enjoyed the twisties and didn't hesitate going a few angles more at a few places.

The road from Kandaghat was beautiful. It was a tad bumpy at some places, but was serene with barely any traffic as I had expected. Darkness engulfed us as we road through thick Pine forests with not a soul in sight. At times, it sure was creepy. Reached Chail by 7:30 PM. Slept by 11.

Woke up at 7:30 AM by the reception guy who wanted us to move our bikes as a car wanted out. Did that, had tea, enjoyed the early morning view and we were on the road back by 10:30 AM. After Karnal, the kind of traffic was again astonishing. The bike overheated and with almost a two kilometre jam ahead of me, I let it cool down for half an hour. Rode on again, and I was at Haveli (near Murthal) by 7:30 PM where I met my support car and it's occupants. Was home at 9:45 PM.

While returning, I got multiple cramps all along my body and I do have sore fingers as I type this. Perhaps a change of gloves is needed. Every bone is jarred and every muscle aches.

But it was all worth it.

Had a ride of my lifetime and enjoyed taking this beast of a machine to great altitudes where it gave the Diesels a run for their money.

Total Distance ridden : 820 kms.
Total Fuel consumed : 41 litres

[outofthebox]

It's always a pleasure to read about weekend rides in the North. Lovely pictures and well written as always.

~900Kms in two days on typical Indian roads is a bit too brutal for my old bone though. Kudos and well done!

p.s. I did a Delhi-Jim Corbett ride on my bike on the weekend. About 600Kms back n' forth and a whole lot of fun.

[barcalad]

Originally Posted by outofthebox

It's always a pleasure to read about weekend rides in the North. Lovely pictures and well written as always.

~900Kms in two days on typical Indian roads is a bit too brutal for my old bone though. Kudos and well done!

p.s. I did a Delhi-Jim Corbett ride on my bike on the weekend. About 600Kms back n' forth and a whole lot of fun.

Thank you, mate. Means a lot coming from you.

Would love to see the photos here. Since it's Corbett, after all.

[man_of_steel]

Not sure how I missed this thread till now! Great going @Barca! Glad that you are still riding to the fullest! Have taken note of all the places you guys have visited. Hoping that, someday, I will be able to hit some nice twisties along with you guys.

[barcalad]

Originally Posted by man_of_steel

Not sure how I missed this thread till now! Great going @Barca! Glad that you are still riding to the fullest! Have taken note of all the places you guys have visited. Hoping that, someday, I will be able to hit some nice twisties along with you guys.

Absolutely. North India is brutal twisty heaven, methinks. On this ride itself, I rode almost 250 kms on hilly roads with infinite curves and turns. Not to forget I had a tough time dodging morons overtaking on my lane on blind turns!

If I'm not wrong, some from our BLR group were planning to get Leh'd this year. No updates on that end, yet.

Anyway, just haul yourself and the ride up here, man! Would ride with you guys even if I have a performance review coming up.

[barcalad]

We'll be riding to Alwar (Rajasthan) tomorrow.

Confirmed are 4, including debutant sammyboy from Bangalore.

Anyone wishing to join, please quote this post below or PM me.

[barcalad]

I rode today after more than a month today. Naturally, the desire to do a long ride overcame my desire to avoid the blazing sun and I found similar sentiments in Sammyboy and Nilesh, my two co-riders for the day.

This ride was planned way back but was postponed only for one reason - Sammyboy's imminent arrival to NCR from Bangalore, where we have conquered many miles together. He was/is/will remain my favourite partner-in-crime. Now that he was here and had settled in, I made my plea, and he agreed!

We started from Dhaula Kuan at 4:30 AM. Met Sam at Rajiv Chowk intersection on NH8 at 4:50. A bear hug to Sam followed and we were finally good to go. Hardly had we ridden for a few kilometres that I remembered that the Ninja needed refuelling and the other Duke needed to change it's tyre pressure. Stopped at a fuel station, and while I was trying to get rid of a speck of dust that had entered my left eye, they did their stuff. Once I got the thumbs up from all of them, we resumed, and off we were.

I received a call from Sam after a minute of riding - "My bike's not starting. Battery's probably gone". I'll admit, my heart sank instantly.

"Dear lord, don't let this ride get toasted."

An immediate U-Turn followed to the same fuel station and I saw poor Sam trying to plead his Ninja to start. When everything else failed, we went with the old, tried and tested way. Ask Sam to sit on his bike on 1st gear, and me (with helmet and gear on) pushed the mighty Kwacker for almost 20 feet and I yelled "RELEASE". Boom! It had started.

We resumed (thankfully) and made quick progress, dodging lots and lots of trucks. Stopped at the accident spot (of 18th October where I and 2 others crashed) and paid our customary salute. A cup of hot tea later, we were at our destination by 7:50.

It's actually amazing to note that by then, the heat had caught up to us and it was getting unbearable to spend any quality time at the lake. 20 minutes later, we were back on the saddle and on our way back. The Alwar bypass was thankfully free of traffic and we made our exit from the city smoothly.

Stopped at a restaurant 20 kms after Alwar towards Delhi for some much needed breakfast and liquid in our bodies.

Note to self : All future rides planned by me need to start way more earlier to dodge as much heat as possible.

I was in my garage by 12:30 PM. A day well spent with brilliant riders. Not to forget - vintage telepathy and coordination between all 3 of us. Moments like these that make you realise the importance of riding with tried and tested people.

Looking forward to hit the road again.

Total Distance Ridden : 300 kms

[sammyboy]

Originally Posted by barcalad

I rode today after more than a month today.

I received a call from Sam after a minute of riding - "My bike's not starting. Battery's probably gone". I'll admit, my heart sank instantly.

The Tbhp riders group in Bangalore is one of the best set of riders I have ever ridden with, in every sense of the word. Genuinely lovely people, brilliant riders, super safe; more like a family. Thats a group which will always hold a very special place in my heart.

And there too, it was Barcalad who had inducted me to that group.

It was only natural that we ride together, again

I had been itching to ride ever since I moved back from Bangalore, but the initial glitches of settling in a new location, after over a decade, meant that there were a lot of things to sort out before I could ride out.

Barca had been keeping a close check throughout the settling process and the minute I was ready, we pounced on the opportunity
So the final trio would be Barca, Nilesh and I.
Destination : Somewhere around Alwar, where exactly? I didnt know, I didnt care. That was Barca's department, i never bother, Thats how it is.


I had my first scare with the bike when it didnt start after refuelling.
Ever since I got it in 2011, its been fill it , shut it, forget it.
Yesterday, it just whirred. I knew the battery needed a change, Suhas (Added_flavour) had been warning me about this for the last year, lol.

Tak tak tak tak -- thats all i could hear on cranking the bike. I was heart broken for a minute. Was praying for it to start, didnt work.
Then i called Barca, he was back in a minute with Nilesh.

One thing we were sure of, we will not let the ride wash out; not when we had been waiting for this for quite a bit.

Yes, I have heard that one should not push start a FI bike but at that moment I really did not care. It was an instant decision, lets push and see.

A push from Ayush and bingo, I was never so happy to see a bike start as I was then.

After that it was us and the road, Ayush and I rode together after almost a year, probably took less than a second for the connection to get established.
Nilesh and I rode together for the first time but within the first few kms, we were all synched up.

The destination was lovely, but what was lovelier was the company and a chance to be on the road again with it.

Look forward to more great rides and meeting the rest of the NCR group.

[Snehal Sekhar]

Originally Posted by barcalad

This ride was planned way back but was postponed only for one reason - Sammyboy's imminent arrival to NCR from Bangalore, where we have conquered many miles together. He was/is/will remain my favourite partner-in-crime. Now that he was here and had settled in, I made my plea, and he agreed!

So Barca, you at last got Sammy to ride with you guys. I'm sure he must have been desperate to get on to the highway and strut his stuff after all the brutal office commute he does everyday.
There is no denying the fact that Sammy was the highlight on most of our rides that we did in Bangalore and the entire gang was sad to seem him go.

Originally Posted by sammyboy

The Tbhp riders group in Bangalore is one of the best set of riders I have ever ridden with, in every sense of the word. Genuinely lovely people, brilliant riders, super safe; more like a family.

So at last you've made your debut with the Delhi riding group eh Sammy? And thanks for those kind words of the Bangalore group man. We sure were like one big family and we spent more time discussing everything under the sun except where the next ride was to. We surely are going to miss your wit and humour on our rides man.

Cheers and ride safe guys!

[barcalad]

Originally Posted by Snehal Sekhar

We sure were like one big family and we spent more time discussing everything under the sun except where the next ride was to.

You know, this is a thoroughly true statement. I never had shortage of like-minded people to ride with or people ditching rides at the 11th hour in Bangalore. That's perhaps what I miss the most. Everyone there, and I mean everyone, is a man of their word and synonymous with the word 'passionate'.

I was lucky and you are lucky to ride with these bunch. Sammyboy's arrival is nothing but immense relief and joy to me. An old friend's here.

Now, who's shifting next to NCR?

[kaushik60]

Originally Posted by barcalad

Now, who's shifting next to NCR?

Hey guys, I just did
I'm basically from Mysore and shifted to Noida recently. It seems like a great place - though the one major grouse I have with NCR is that there aren't hills close enough for quick daily rides. Nothing like a twisty hilly ride to soothe a troubled mind! Having stayed in Pune (Lavasa/Amby/umpteen other hills FTW!) and Mysore/Bangalore (which has quite a long list), I feel really sad when all I see around NCR in a 200 km radius is plains, plains and more plains.

Or am I wrong? Please suggest good places for short one day rides around NCR (~400-500 km round trip). Hilly terrain preferred, but beggers cant be choosers. Also, do let me know if you guys are planning something on a Sunday. Would love to join!

Cheers!

[barcalad]

Originally Posted by kaushik60

Hey guys, I just did

Or am I wrong? Please suggest good places for short one day rides around NCR (~400-500 km round trip). Hilly terrain preferred, but beggers cant be choosers. Also, do let me know if you guys are planning something on a Sunday. Would love to join!

Cheers!

Welcome to the land of retarded road etiquette and 47 degrees, mate!

There are some really good destinations around. For proper hill riding, you need to ride at least 4 hours Northwards. Other than that, there are lakes, forts, more lakes and more forts. What is Nandi Hills to Bangalore is GFR Road for Delhi. What is Kolar CCD for Bangalore is Yamuna Expressway First Toll for Delhi. Not only in terms of distance, but in terms of crowd as well. If you know what I mean.

For starters, do some short rides to Murthal or Garmukhteshwar or Neemrana. Get to know the traffic and road dynamics because it is completely opposite of what we see once we leave city limits in Bangalore or even in the city itself. It took me a couple of hundred kilometres before I got to know the roads and traffic versions here well enough to do solo rides and choose long-distance destinations.

We have a WhatsApp group exclusively for TeamBHP NCR Motorcyclists. You could join that to meet the rest of the group and be in the loop for various meets/rides. PM me your phone number and I'll do the needful.

[kaushik60]

Originally Posted by barcalad

Welcome to the land of retarded road etiquette and 47 degrees, mate!

Thanks! Will PM my number. Look forward to meeting you folks soon.