[Raghu M]

A wise man once said - 'just because I like challenges, I don't go out looking for them'. I think we as automobile lovers should be wary of what we embark upon. It's great to see you back and seeing the positives of the whole trip. But, we need to understand that man and machine have their limits. Although the title of the topic looked interesting, I really felt bad for you when you mentioned that you had a flat tyre in between. I prayed to read that part where you mention that you are home.

I have immense respect for bikers. I would never take my Scooty out if the distance is more than 4 kms (you read it right -4). I can only imagine what guts you need to ride through the highways on bikes. Be it a Max 100R or a HD, at the end of the day, it has 2 wheels and the rider can go flying if he/she is hit even by a Nano. But many people do long trips on bikes knowing the risks. It is highly appreciated. But I guess, we should respect the engine and most importantly the climate when we do such trips. I avoid drives in my car during summer (March, April & May). I only plan trips once there are rains and there is greenery. I have to commend your grit here. Please be careful with the next one, am sure you will have a blast on the second one around. Good luck!

[surajram]

Kudos to having tried and figuring a safe way out.

Reading your log - seems like the fatigue due to the lack of sleep and heat must have got to you.

[PapaBravo]

Excellent Write-up Boniver !! You literally took us with you on this trip. Pardon the Hindi but this experience reminds me of a Javed Akhtar Ghazal which says - "Kyon Dare Zindagi Mein Kya Hoga Kuch Na Hoga To Tajurba Hoga"

Keep writing !!

Cheers,
Pawan

[SnS_12]

@boniver what matters is at the end you reached your destination you planned for even it meant making changes midway and rerouting back towards your house in Bangalore. These incidents and learnings at a young age are what will help build your confidence in later stages in life to tackle much harder and more difficult obstacles. From now on you can always look back to this day and despite your hardships you can proudly tell yourself I did 800 kms + in scorching heat in a single day and that too on a 2stroke and you will be always be ready for much bigger challenges.

My first bike which is a RX 135 has seen the highest mileage among all my bikes and might stay that way. The maximum distance I have ridden in a single day is to Goa from Mumbai and I have done many more memorable trips on it. Even though I don't ride as much as I used too those riding experience definitely helps and maybe someday it will ignite a spark in me to ride further distance on my other bikes.

Hope you receive your bike soon and enjoy riding it in your home town now.

P.s - Why did you change your front sprocket to a bigger one? Adding a front sprocket with an additional teeth is like adding a rear sprocket with additional three teeth and vice versa when you reduce it. A larger rear sprocket means you get more torque and can get off the line quicker but reduces your top speed.

[anandavinash]

I was intrigued by the title of the thread. Started reading it and next thing you know, was fully invested to the point that I wanted to know what happened. Great writing. It takes some effort to admit to giving up on a trip like this but clearly the adventure brought out the best of your literary abilities.

Like deepfreak15 mentioned, something tells me that this road trip between Bengaluru and Kolkata will be taken up again at some point in your life. Whether or not on a two stroke will not matter. Here's to a successful road trip sometime in the future. It will be fun to read about your successful journey too. :-)

[shrinz.vivek]

Brilliant writing. Felt like I watched a suspense thriller movie.
Good that you came back on day 1. It would have been worse if you had felt exhausted in the middle of the trip. I had experienced the same feeling when I was returning from Gulbarga to Bangalore. Even in December my head started thumping due to extreme headache and I started feeling dizzy. The gear lever broke and added to my pain. I stopped in Chitradurga, took a room and crashed for the night.
The best tip to sail through such situations is to ride with a friend. In such cases I always say "Two is company, Three is crowd... but One is lonely"

[Indraneel Bhat]

Originally Posted by boniver

May we never stop being adventurous!

A lot of people equate Motorcycling and 2-wheeler road trips with the acquisition of fancy motorcycles that sort of compels them to take up motorcycling

Motorcycling in its truest form is the usage of a motorbike to visit places and actually experiencing the air of another place in your nostrils, to be one with your surroundings and that machine you're riding. It recreates the fantasy of a warrior searching for adventure on horseback.

What you did, is what true motorcycling is about - "Have a motor on 2 wheels? Will travel"
It's not a failure in my books. It's a "to be tried again".....

@boniver - I wish you many more years of safe riding!!! All the best!!!

[car-go]

Originally Posted by boniver

College was over, for good, and I had to get back home. Booked a train ticket this time, since I had to carry my motorcycle with me. Figured I'd put it on the train, chill in the AC for a day, and reach home without any hiccups. How wrong I was!

I wonder how right you were in taking that decision and trying it out first hand. And sharing your experience is a real daring and honest act all together. Lots to learn from this for all of us/ others. Thank you.

The next time you plan, especially on a two wheeler (sorry for a bout of gyan, as it rains outside) - try to sleep and rest at nights and take enough breaks in hot afternoons. Neither the Sun God at its helm is amicable to riders, nor you can replace a night's sleep with any other relaxation technique

[kovilkalai]

One of the nicest trip reports I have read on these pages. I am positive that you will complete this trip in winter. Once the road trip bug bites you, it won't let go.

[aveoman19]

It is a brave thing to take a 2 stroke bike and do an unplanned trip! Next time, prepare well in advance and please don't deviate too much from your plan. This is a lesson. Not failure. Keep riding

[livetodrive]

Boniver, going through your write up, the only thing came to my mind...

Where the mind is without fear and the head is held high
Where knowledge is free
Where the world has not been broken up into fragments
By narrow domestic walls
Where words come out from the depth of truth
Where tireless striving stretches its arms towards perfection
Where the clear stream of reason has not lost its way
Into the dreary desert sand of dead habit
Where the mind is led forward by thee
Into ever-widening thought and action
Into that heaven of freedom, my Father, let my country awake.

– Rabindranath Thakur

[Horizon85]

Reminds me of my own college days. I once took an unplanned bike trip from Pune to Mumbai in rains. Although my distance was very short, I faced the harsh weather.

Like other have said, these experiences teach you a lot about life and give you some confidence in yourself too.

I am glad that you took the right decision in those circumstances. The thing with bike road trips is that they need a lot of planning and a few dry runs too. I have learnt this the way you did, and I hope that you will remember this episode as a good thing.

I still use that bike and love it a lot.

[Mile_Breaker]

At the end what mattered is that you were safe Boniver ! I feel even with the 100 cc bike one would have made the entire journey but few things went against you. Most importantly you were not well rested. Usually our mind in anticipation of such a journey gets excited and rest or sleep is quite an important factor. What I understood from your log that the day before your journey was a long one with no rest. Probably that caused the stress during journey. Loneliness is another factor over such a long trip. If you had a co-rider with you, you could have chatted through the miles. During my hostel days in the late nineties, two of my friends went from Jaipur to Delhi, 250 Kms, in a much abused Luna moped that hardly crossed 40 KMPH. Finally, keeping all the factors in mind (100cc, riding alone, heat etc) the trip could have been planned a bit more cautiously. Like travel only during certain hours, list down stoppages and hotels etc because eventually you had travelled 800 kms that day equivalent to Kolkata to Varanasi which is no mean feat ! It shows what you are capable of and more. I am hoping that very soon we will see you undertake another road trip and would get to read another intriguing travelogue!

[funkykar]

All that you lacked was experience of long rides. The mental conditioning requires also was a bit missing. Thats the maon reason the weather conditions overwhelmed you. That said, if you ever try this expedition again, trust me, you will complete with ease. Now, noone has to tell you how to prepare for such an expedition. You will do exactly everything needed automatically

[black.beauty]

I was tensed reading this and relieved after you reached home. You sure would accomplish this as you said, you're young and have many more years in you. Who knows, I might be reading another article titled, A Successful Road Trip on 2 Strokes!, soon.