[100Kmphormore]

Nice to hear about your updates Karthik! May I suggest, HelmetKleen, an equally good helmet cleaner, available at Autobots Jayanagar. Somewhat pricey at 150 mL for Rs. 190 but is very good. What do you do with your earlier riding gear? Sell it? I’m considering upgrading my jacket and gloves (Rynox UrbanX/Viaterra Holeshot) a good mesh jacket, but very heavy with the chest protectors as well, but clueless what to do with the old one once the new one arrives, probably a Viaterra Spencer jacket and Grid full gauntlet gloves.

I did the same large bottle mistake with my chain lube Motul and I couldn’t carry it on my ride to Valparai just last weekend! It was a 1029 km trip and probably the first time the chain has not been lubed for so long a gap in km. You think you’re getting a good deal on Amazon but not at cost of chain life and those hard shifts on the Himalayan! Nevertheless regular maintenance of before helped in not having a bad experience.

[KarthikK]

Originally Posted by 100Kmphormore

May I suggest, HelmetKleen, an equally good helmet cleaner, available at Autobots Jayanagar. Somewhat pricey at 150 mL for Rs. 190 but is very good.

Thanks for the suggestion, I shall try it once this can of Putoline ends

What do you do with your earlier riding gear? Sell it? I’m considering upgrading my jacket and gloves (Rynox UrbanX/Viaterra Holeshot) a good mesh jacket, but very heavy with the chest protectors as well, but clueless what to do with the old one once the new one arrives, probably a Viaterra Spencer jacket and Grid full gauntlet gloves.

Normally I don’t dispose it unless it is unusable. The previous Dainese set is still in decent shape, so I plan to replace all the aged armour pads (elbow / shoulder / chest / spine / knee / hip) and keep it as a spare set for occasional use if needed. Imported Helmets older than 5 years old I usually dispose on olx for whatever I can salvage from it.

I did the same large bottle mistake with my chain lube Motul and I couldn’t carry it on my ride to Valparai just last weekend! It was a 1029 km trip and probably the first time the chain has not been lubed for so long a gap in km. You think you’re getting a good deal on Amazon but not at cost of chain life and those hard shifts on the Himalayan! Nevertheless regular maintenance of before helped in not having a bad experience.

For longer trips I do carry the chain lube, I go with a small sized can of Maxima chain wax or chain guard, which are about as small as a 500ml Bisleri water bottle and they fit anywhere (even inside my tiny 5L tankbag).

[Sebring]

I have been avoiding Vista products after a few 'not so great product purchases' from them. I'm using Motul helmet cleaner, which is superb, (and will try Putoline next, as reviews are good)

Originally Posted by 100Kmphormore

Nice to hear about your updates Karthik! May I suggest, HelmetKleen, an equally good helmet cleaner, available at Autobots Jayanagar.

[100Kmphormore]

Oh that’s surprising. Can you detail your experience with them? As to riding gear i only have bought my Raida riding pants, Raida boots and a topbox from them and all of them are in fine condition.

[Cyborg]

Originally Posted by KarthikK

We just did a few trips with the new Revit gear and I must say both my better half and me are very happy with the new sets of riding gear for the Ninja.

Hello Karthik, love reading about your bike trips. Superb photographs and detailed explanation of your experiences. Kudos to your bike maintenance, classy bike accessories and riding gear

Please review your new riding gear in detail with photographs and of course your CB500X review also as and when time permits.

Thank you.

Cheers

[neil.jericho]

Originally Posted by KarthikK

Ride to Waterfall estates, Valparai (November 2022)

This is a long overdue update on an old overnight ride done with team-bhpian friends to Indraprastha bungalow, inside Waterfall estates, Valparai around the first week of November. This place is an old Victorian era bungalow set inside a private tea estate, restored to modern standards and let out for guests to stay in and enjoy the lovely greenery around.

We were 6 totally (all stags), 5 on their bikes and 1 BHPian who decided to join by car due to some family commitments. For a surprise last minute wild card entry, CrAzY_dRiVeR decided to join with another friend's Duke 390. Since there was a car accompanying, we decided to dump the luggage in the car and I didn't carry my panniers this time

KarthikK, I am among many TBHPians who were waiting for your series of updates on this incredibly detailed thread and the simple fact is that the wait was well worth it! Your post brought back a lot of wonderful memories from our trip to Valparai. Hopefully the next time that we meet in that neck of the woods, we can ride down towards the fabulously scenic Sholayar dam view points. Here is a picture that I clicked while on my way to the Indraprastha bungalow. Not only are the views incredible but those corners are just lip smacking!

Originally Posted by KarthikK

In my last and final update, we decided to update our riding gear since the first set was ageing at year 5 for both my better half and me. I went for a textile set AND a mesh set of riding gear (which I plan to switch between depending on the weather), while my wife went for a single set with semi-mesh-textile jacket and pants. The helmets obviously had to be imported through friends and relatives, due to the ban on imported helmet sales in the country. This time almost every piece of riding gear is from Revit.

Along with your pending ride updates, CB500X thread creation and 2 mega rides thread creation, I think we should also look forward to your upcoming updates on the Riding Gear and Helmets threads

Based on your positive initial feedback, Im inching closer and closer to joining Axe77 and you in the Revit Sand 4 jacket owners club!

[100Kmphormore]

Originally Posted by neil.jericho

Here is a picture that I clicked while on my way to the Indraprastha bungalow. Not only are the views incredible but those corners are just lip smacking!

Where was that Neil? They wouldnt allow me past the dam gate. I completely agree, it looks superb! Even when approaching from the previous 3 km. Had been there last Sunday, between the broken patches and my nearly worn out rear tyre on my Himalayan, was able to do some gradual corners, though some hairpins and the road patches upset the front end and washed it out.

[Shobhitsaxena]

The bike pics in this post are lusty to say the least. This evolved dream coming true makes me dreamy and potentially excited to upgrade to a 1 litre bike soon (unplanned and financially unviable).

[KarthikK]

Originally Posted by Cyborg

Hello Karthik, love reading about your bike trips. Superb photographs and detailed explanation of your experiences. Kudos to your bike maintenance, classy bike accessories and riding gear

Please review your new riding gear in detail with photographs and of course your CB500X review also as and when time permits.

Thank you for your kind words Cyborg sir
I shall definitely make an effort to post my views on the riding gear on the gear thread, and the CB500X review needs to happen soon too, hopefully when we get a break from travel.

Originally Posted by neil.jericho

KarthikK, I am among many TBHPians who were waiting for your series of updates on this incredibly detailed thread and the simple fact is that the wait was well worth it! Your post brought back a lot of wonderful memories from our trip to Valparai. Hopefully the next time that we meet in that neck of the woods, we can ride down towards the fabulously scenic Sholayar dam view points. Here is a picture that I clicked while on my way to the Indraprastha bungalow. Not only are the views incredible but those corners are just lip smacking!

That was an amazing picture and we should definitely attack some more corners during our next visit there, lol!

Along with your pending ride updates, CB500X thread creation and 2 mega rides thread creation, I think we should also look forward to your upcoming updates on the Riding Gear and Helmets threads

Based on your positive initial feedback, Im inching closer and closer to joining Axe77 and you in the Revit Sand 4 jacket owners club!

The backlog has built up too much already, lol! I’ll definitely try to clear it out over the following weeks.

Do consider the Revit Sand 4 H2O. It is a fantastic all-weather touring jacket and a nice investment which will last many years of touring.

Originally Posted by Shobhitsaxena

The bike pics in this post are lusty to say the least. This evolved dream coming true makes me dreamy and potentially excited to upgrade to a 1 litre bike soon (unplanned and financially unviable).

Thank you for your kind words Shobhitsaxena! I sincerely hope you get to realize your dream soon and share your experiences with all of us very soon

[KarthikK]

Weekend ride to Lakerose Resort, Karapuzha Dam Backwaters, Wayanad, Kerala (February 2023)

The Ninja hadn't had a chance to hit the highway for a proper trip in December or January, thanks the CB500X hogging a 15-day ride to western India in December and a few car trips in January denying the chance to be able to use the Ninja for those, so February had to be the compensatory month for the Ninja.

This was a regular weekend ride for us just to take a break from the usual city life. For a change from mountains, rivers and beaches, this time we decided to hit Karapuzha dam backwaters, southwest of Sultan Bathery in Wayanad, Kerala. The agenda was to just relax for 2 nights and 3 days in LakeRose resort, Wayanad. The resort is situated right at the periphery of the dam, so the views were very good anyway. We were going here for the second time after a year, and this time we decided to try their Private pool villa for one night, and an Aerial view room for another night. Their food, service levels and location were all top notch as always and the staff went out of the way to ensure we had a good time.

BHPians and fellow riders ebmrajesh and csentil decided to join us till Mysore (which was our breakfast point) and they then rode back to Bangalore after breakfast, while the better half and I continued onward to Kerala.

Breakfast at the elegant Royal Orchid Metropole hotel, Mysore. While the ambience was excellent, the food was nothing to write home about. The buffet spread was lacking in variety as well as taste.



Outdoor seating was there too, but we preferred to sit indoors on a cold winter morning



ebmrajesh and his spanking new KTM Adventure 390 striking a pose in front of the heritage building



Group shot of the 3 bikes and riders before we went our separate ways



The Ninja with full load departs towards Wayanad



We stopped for a break at Cafe coffee day, Gundlupet before the Bandipur - Muthanga forest road began



The better half takes a moment to stretch while we wait for a rather long queue of vehicles to clear up at the Karnataka - Kerala forest checkpost border.



And I use those moments to shoot the Ninja and the surrounding forest scenes









In spanking new riding gear head to toe



We reached the resort by noon, almost an hour ahead of schedule. Thankfully there was no offroading to be done to enter the resort premises. There was a concrete ramp directly next to the tar road



The resort staff were kind enough to give us a nice parking spot under shelter



Goofing around while we waited for our room to get ready for check-in, thanks to the Ninja's pace making us reach ahead of intended time



The pool villa was set overlooking the backwaters of Karapuzha dam, so it was a very picturesque sight indeed



The interiors were very cozy and well-designed too





The private pool was set off a ledge at the back of the villa, directly overlooking the backwaters of the massive lake



Splendid view of nature whilst cooling off in the summer afternoon heat!



Caramel custard to go with the view, anyone?



Some of the best holidays are those spent doing nothing!



In the evening, we took a stroll from the resort to the actual dam entrance. There wasn't much to see there. It was overflowing with tourists and buses full of children from what might have been a school trip, so we just took a few snaps of the flower zones inside the park before heading back to the resort.







We spent the rest of the evening strolling around the property. Some snaps from the garden and pathways inside the resort:









After an early dinner, we retired to enjoy the refreshing pool water again one more time before calling it a day

[KarthikK]

Weekend ride to Lakerose Resort, Karapuzha Dam Backwaters, Wayanad, Kerala (February 2023) continued...

We woke up to an unusually foggy morning, the entire place was covered in mist and it was very gloomy too, much to our surprise



Looks like a lot of dew had condensed on the ground too



Timepass pictures overlooking the lake



Taking a stroll around the resort in the morning











The main infinity pool set along the lake circumference





Breakfast at the restaurant had a good view as well. The entire restaurant had a glass wall



We moved in to the aerial view room later during the day for the second night of our stay. This room was housed in the main resort building but we got a higher elevation view of the lake and the property. Differently themed interiors as well





There was a lovely private balcony with a view of the lake. It was great to sit with some hot chai and pakoras here in the evening.



This was the view from the balcony



Fried ice cream anyone?



The mist didn't clear up until early afternoon



It was another relaxing, uneventful day albeit in a different room this time. I tried to capture a view at night from the balcony



The following morning, I tried my hand at shooting the Ninja with the splendid background of the lake for our memories



And another one!



Soon it was time to pack up and leave. Here is a departing picture in front of the resort.



Another departing picture, this time with the riders



We started around noon from the resort and made our way through the Muthanga - Bandipur forests again.



Taking a break along the newly constructed Mysore expressway before we did a non-stop journey to home





While the entire expressway was constructed well and is ready for use, it will be a bummer that bikers will not be allowed to use this expressway once it is formally opened with toll plazas operating. Another problem with the expressway is at the entrance of Bangalore, there were a few funnel points where returning traffic got clogged for 2-3 km and this added almost 30 minutes to the overall travel time, somewhat defeating the purpose of an expressway. Hope they sort out the hiccups soon and ensure the travel times do not suffer due to poor planning / implementation.

This trip was a rather short one, so we just clocked a little over 550 km totally.


Anyway, with that short report and photo dump my small 'travelogue' comes to an end. I'll be back with another trip report soon. Thanks for reading!

[Axe77]

Originally Posted by KarthikK

In my last and final update, we decided to update our riding gear since the first set was ageing at year 5 for both my better half and me. I went for a textile set AND a mesh set of riding gear (which I plan to switch between depending on the weather) …

This time almost every piece of riding gear is from Revit. Thanks to BHPian neil.jericho for the countless discussions on the riding gear suggestions before I finalized my set.

I somehow missed this excellent riding gear update but we’ve clearly aligned on a LOT of the riding gear decisions:

1. I recently upgraded my 5 year old Held gear as well. I too decided to go with a two jacket combination - one full set textile combined with one pure mesh jacket. The textile is all season but I expect the Eclipse will be excellent for very hot weather riding as well as a great choice for in city use. I will very likely complement this further with a cooling vest before the peak summer months hit.

2. I too have opted for Revit for both - the Sand 4 H2O full set and in my case, I opted for the cheaper Eclipse over the Airwave. Small collateral benefit is that the add on purchase Seesoft back protector can be shared between the two jackets.

3. I also have the same ARAI RX 7V model albeit a bit by coincidence since I bought the only thing I could get my hands on - a well used piece for an upcoming track day at that time. Having said that, when its time to exchange this (its already very well used) I’ll likely opt for something a step down and quieter like the Quantic most likely or possibly the Shoei NXR2 (/RF 1400).

4. Alpinestar SMX6 V2 - again - purchased for track day but they’ve become my city and short sunday ride boots with my default adventure / touring boots being the Alpinestar Toucans.

Nice to see some likeminded gear decisions there. Always reassuring to seeone’s gear related choices validated by fellow riders.

[KarthikK]

Originally Posted by Axe77

I somehow missed this excellent riding gear update but we’ve clearly aligned on a LOT of the riding gear decisions:

1. I recently upgraded my 5 year old Held gear as well. I too decided to go with a two jacket combination - one full set textile combined with one pure mesh jacket. The textile is all season but I expect the Eclipse will be excellent for very hot weather riding as well as a great choice for in city use. I will very likely complement this further with a cooling vest before the peak summer months hit.

Great choice and what a funny coincidence that we both ended up with exactly the same jacket and pant models (well almost)

2. I too have opted for Revit for both - the Sand 4 H2O full set and in my case, I opted for the cheaper Eclipse over the Airwave. Small collateral benefit is that the add on purchase Seesoft back protector can be shared between the two jackets.

The only benefit I saw with the Airwave 3 was it has a chest armour slot while the Eclipse doesn't. I generally prefer picking up separate armour sets for every jacket rather than swapping the same armour between the two, simply because I don't trust myself to be gentle enough with those delicate, snug-fitting armour pockets and might end up tearing them by applying too much force accidentally (has happened in the past)

3. I also have the same ARAI RX 7V model albeit a bit by coincidence since I bought the only thing I could get my hands on - a well used piece for an upcoming track day at that time. Having said that, when its time to exchange this (its already very well used) I’ll likely opt for something a step down and quieter like the Quantic most likely or possibly the Shoei NXR2 (/RF 1400).

Great to hear your long term feedback on the same. For the Ninja I used to use (2019-22) the Shoei RF1200 (predecessor of the RF1400 / Z8) which was definitely quieter at triple digit speeds, but ergonomics-wise the Arai RX7V feels more comfortable especially around the ears area over a long day of riding. I now use the Shoei on the CB500X 'Avatar' with Alpinestars gear on that bike.

4. Alpinestar SMX6 V2 - again - purchased for track day but they’ve become my city and short sunday ride boots with my default adventure / touring boots being the Alpinestar Toucans.

I used to have the Dainese Torque D1 Out Goretex sport touring boots prior to the Alpinestars SMX6v2, and those were amazing boots as well. Sadly Dainese is currently not operating in Bangalore, and I haven't been able to import their boots so I went with the A* option.

Looks like a same pinch again, lol! I too use the Toucan boots for my CB500X gear. On that bike, my riding gear set is:
Bell MX9 MIPS Adventure helmet / Shoei RF1200
Alpinestars T-Jaws V3 / Alpinestars T-Stunt Air textile jackets
Alpinestars Ramjet touring pants
Alpinestars SP2v2 and SP8v3 gloves, SP8v3 due to replace the ageing SP2v2.
Alpinestars Toucan and Forma adv boots. Toucan is for touring and Forma I wear for short rides

Wouldn't be surprised if some more similarities come out, lol! These are doing absolutely fine and I am happy with this set's longevity and comfort despite constant use/abuse. Maybe in another 2-3 years I will be due to replace the CB500X set as well

Nice to see some likeminded gear decisions there. Always reassuring to seeone’s gear related choices validated by fellow riders.

Likewise, always happy to learn from the experiences of stalwarts like yourself who have been using these models of riding gear for longer durations and in varied circumstances / weather conditions. Thanks for sharing!

[nyt2090]

Thanks for the thread and great photos. Been a while since I've gone for long rides. After reading, this I'm getting thoughts

[KarthikK]

Originally Posted by nyt2090

Thanks for the thread and great photos. Been a while since I've gone for long rides. After reading, this I'm getting thoughts

Thanks for the kind words, hope you get to do your long rides soon and update some nice pictures for us to enjoy viewing