What a gift?What a gift?

What a yearning? What a strife?What a learning?What a life?

What a school?What a drool?What a gift?What a gift?

What a star?What a kiss?What afar?What a miss?

What a train?What a flash?What a pain?What a clash?

What a sniggle?What a wiggle? What a gift?What a gift?

What a gun ?What a sea?What a fun? What a glee?

What a sign?What a ride? What design?What a glide?

What a gift?What a gift?

I rode alone stray for more than a score year

Galloping, cantering riders I met there, and here


All steeds white I saw, but the riders black I learnt


Some rode along, some rode upon


Some rode away my heart burnt


Riders came and riders went, none were here to stay


Some I mourned, some I wept,some I was glad went away


Alone together trotted my steed and me


Happy for what was meant to be


We sailed the seas and roamed the roads in boundless swift spree


Basked in bliss of solitude as freelancers carefree


We tasted songs and feasted on colours


Painted with words and swayed with flowers


Forever I rode my bank along the gurgling river


A faint, familiar feeling lured my gaze


Through a mirror? no a veil of misty haze


Across that river and its never ending reality


I saw an image of myself? at infinity


It wasnt me, It wasnt a he


It was me, It was a she


The steed as fair as mine


And the rider even fairer galloped in unison


The unforgiving river between, both giving and taking


Reflecting twilights crimson


Knights in white on either sideof the river of reality


Yet nestled together in the same pod like partners pea

Neverland...

And neither could he, a son of Neptune, a golden shellback.In Neverland, he waited..fought against time itself, in wait for the orange glow.Neverland..the world that he had created for her,decorated with her every wish and adorned with her every fantasy.The only thing that remained was for the spin.For her orange sceptre to burst a bright amber onto his world.And become the orange sun that shall never set.The day came when she spun and it was greater than a thousand splendid suns burst in the sky..She was born again in Neverland.He couldn't see her face,form,cavities, he didn't want to see any of that.He just felt her.Her purity had no form.She was the very ether that filled his realm like light. All that mattered to him was that his world was complete.She was there.She had brought the crowning sun and as the light whispered to the ocean in crimson tides, he saw her reflection.The only thing more pristine than herself.He reached out to the sea and touched her shadow.It dissolved into blurry ripples.He withdrew and the reflection beamed again.And he smiled, and watched the image smile back at him for the rest of eternity.

Lansdowne Ride-Never give up!

Of all the riding destinations,that continued to evade me,perhaps the most elusive one was Lansdowne.Despite its sweet sounding name(I have a thing for Brit sounding names,Mc leodganj being the other one)and its proximity,it still remained unchecked in my list.
Protocol checks done,tanked up,packed and ready.... all the previous night,the only thing that remained was withdrawing cash from ATM.That can be done enroute.That shouldn't be difficult right?Read on.
So that fine sunday morning, I set out at 0400 hrs on my minotaur with tankbag strapped and my friend following on his TBTS.We made quick progress to Meerut and stopped for chai at aound 6am.My friend complained that he didn't want to lug around the backpack and asked me if I was carrying bungee cords.I was proud of my resourcefulness and offered it to him readily.(Unforunately.)
We sped away onto the Mawana road through cantt.This must be the biker's paradise.Neat tarmac.Straight roads sans traffic garnished with splendid scenery either side.As I was losing myself, I picked up my friend blinking his headlight on my rear view.I stopped and noticed him all panicky"My bag's fallen down somewhere...." and zoooom he turned and went back.I obviously didnt have time to pour sense into him that the chances of his bag lying at the same place it fell was like a million to one.But still to ease his spirit I followed and we lost a fat two hours in treading.Mawana to meerut and back.I swiftly pulled off the hanging bungee cords from his backseat lest it should remind him of something.My disappointed friend told me that he was going back to Delhi.Like Lord Krishna I stood at the junction and told him:"You go right and two hours you'll be home.sad about your bag and more sad about missing the ride.You follow me to the left and three hours you'll be in Lansdowne probably forgetting your tiny loss and pleased for completing what you set out upon.": Saying thus I sped off knowing him well.
Soon I heard another thump join mine and we reached Lansdowne for early lunch.THe first sight of the hills was refreshing and the road from Mawana-Bijnor Najibabad-Kotdwara-Lansdowne was perfect.The only observation was we have stopped in 6 atms till now and all of them rejected my ICICI card.A helpful soul in Kotdwarar told me that I should proceed to Lansdowne and use the multiple ATM facilities it has to offer.I trusted him and went up to find only two SBI atms there and both temporarily unable to service my request.I had a SBI card but it had negative balance and I dint want to risk giving my location to the SBI stalkers.:grin:
THe 200/ in my wallet was used up for lunch.With an empty wallet and a broke friend by my side I set out to hunt for a hotel.Hotel Mayur was the only plce we got.It had a decent deluxe room for 1000/-.I asked him for his bank account so that I could get money transferred to him from Delhi.Sad.IT was a sunday.No problem.I was there till next morning I could get it transferred first thing in the morning.Sad er. Next day was Eid.Holiday:shock:My friend suggested that we ride back to delhi with the only resource we had then.fuel.I was not even considering that option.
Then as crazy as it sounds, I actually took the mobile number of the hotel owner called a friend in Delhi and had him recharge his phone for 1000rs.Again delhi bsnl recharge was not possible and I had to call up Chennai and tell a friend to top up for 1300/-All this with just one small bar of network on my airtel mobile.THe owner accepted!and I took the extra 300 as cash from him and used it for rest of journey.
The return trip next day and things we saw there are relatively less eventful and already well recorded in these forums.
The morning ride downhill was like ballet where biker and bike become one swaying in sync to the well orchestrated tune of the serpentine roads.And thus the next day we reached Delhi thankful to technology and e recharge!!
LESSONS:1) Always carry some cash in hand and in different places.Dont put all cash together.2) SBI is undoubtedly the widest atm network in the country.Put up with their indifference to customers when you visit their branch and reap the fruits of their atm service in the remotest of hills.3)BSNL can fail in Connaught place but in densest of jungles it will not fail you. 4)Tie bungee cords properly ensuring to pass it through atleast one strap in your bag5)Never give up!
p.s:Ill put up some pics asap
Cheers.Ride safe!

French Kiss -Vizag to Yaanam RIDE GUIDE

Tourisme à moto libère l'âme..Relax.It’s just the effect of the ‘French kiss’ on me. It simply means “Motorcycle touring liberates the soul”. Come weekends, true to the adage that ‘the best alarm is sunshine on chrome’, the riding spirit in the Vizeroys, Vizag Royals Bullet Club is awakened and we become greedy with wanderlust. When we were looking around to decide on a suitable destination, far enough to satisfy our bull ego, yet close enough to be back in time for Monday blues, we stumbled upon Yanam.

Yanam won the club’s vote, unopposed, because of the enticing fact that it belongs to the erstwhile French territory of Pondicherry(Puducherry, to be parliamentarily correct), a different state, different culture altogether against Andhra Pradesh, but still geographically was very proximate to Vizag.Yanam being situated in the Godavari delta, promised a treat to the eye, in terms of lush greenery and natural beauty. So we saddled up our bulls and set out on our ride.

We put our engines, all 350 cc of it to full use and were quick to take the NH5 from our start point the Royal Enfield Showroom, Daaba Gardens. We stopped at Annapurna Agencies, IOC outlet on the Highway to tank up and continued along NH5, crossing Old Gajuwaka Junction. It is here, that the locals appear highly disapproving of a National Highway running through their land and hence try to scare you away by zipping across the road, as if blindfolded. The kids seem to enjoy playing Dodge-the-Wheels, and most are fortunately good at it. So you might want to take it easy on the throttle in this stretch. From here, ease it out till you reach Vizag Steel City Arch on the highway itself, 24 km since you started your ride. It might appear protocol to continue along the highway towards Vijayawada and reach Kakinada en route. But that might cost you kilometres extra and you will also miss out on some breathtaking landscape. Take our advice, and swerve left from NH5, under the steel city arch. Yes, we know how you feel relieved to see an empty straight road away from the maddening highway. Let your steed canter, right towards the steel city main gate and take the last right before entering the gate. Welcome, to the Great Escape. Now you are riding parallel to NH5, still saving miles and dumbstruck by the peaceful scenery moving past you. Notice, the brown stone architecture of the Ukkunagaram Jagannath temple to your right. Enjoy the ride and don’t miss the Power grid to your left. The road now joins Achuthapuram road. Break left and ride on, beyond Achutapuram junction.(SBI ATM here might save you if you are running low on cash.) The HP petrol bunk you crossed about 5km ago on your left, is the only one on the entire stretch until you reach the highway again. So if you had left home in a hurry, this your last chance.

Stop at the Kothuru bridge, and take a minute to devour all you can, the majestic hills behind you and the sprawling fields all around. A must stop photo point for the shutterbugs among you.You are 62.5 km into the ride and your steed can use a little cooling down and check up too. From here, follow straight ahead along Line Kothuru road and when your trip meter is 73 km old, you will merge into NH5 again. Sprint past Annavaram temple, thanking God for making NH5 one of the smoothest in the country.133km into your ride, you must be hungry, tired at least. Stretch your limbs and tank up your tummy at any of the Dhabas that dot the road past Annavaram.Sai Satya Dum biriyani dhaba was our choice and did not disappoint us. The cots laid out in the open are so inviting, you might be tempted to take a quick nap. If you were losing time, like we were, resist the temptation and ride on.15 km into it, at Kathipudi junction again get ready to get off the highway and save some more time and miles. Swerve left into the single road. Enjoy the feeling of riding right through people’s houses, the best part is, they do not seem to mind it. Most of them are lost in trance, swinging to the thump, gaping at the convoy of roaring bulls going through their village. Usual sights are kids waving, men exchanging information and their perspective about the bullet, and woman giggling shyly at us, whispering secrets into each other’s ears. You can see the regard and respect in their eyes for the’ Raja Gaadi’. It feels good, it always does.

The road has some serpentine curves and you might want to take it slow, especially after dark. Not for long, until the road meets a main road. Turn right and you reach Pithapuram after your about 155km run. Thump on straight to hit a fork when your odo hits 162 and stick to the right. Leave the HP bunk to your left and reach the next junction .A right from here will take you to Samalkot, left leads to Uppada. Take neither, continue riding straight across the railway crossing into Kakinada. Your trip meter has spun 185km.Stop and pick up some Kakinada Kaja from the famous Kotiah store.It’s almost a ritual if you are passing through Kakinada.Start again along the Amalapuram pommaru route out of Kakinada and ‘breathe’ the fresh greenery on either side.The road forks and the board points left side to Yanam,8km ahead from there. But, the locals direct you to go right.Relax, its not a trap, you will discover later that Yanam has multiple entrances. And either way you’ll enter the town. We took the right road and reached the Indira Gandhi Entrance into Yanam.Rode into it for a kilometre and reached the Govt. Guest House .Home, away from home. 215.8 km away.
So the next time you have just a weekend to spare and wish to teleport to another world, a new dimension in itself, ride to Yanam.Get ready to be French kissed. Ride safe and “Garder circonscription !”(Figure that one out by yourself when you go to Yanam)

Motorcycle Nirvana

I am alone.Nothing but a patch of light ahead to follow.Nothing around,except crickets clinking and clattering.I chase the light, keep up with it.My only companion.The beat of my engine,my second heartbeat. I admit, I have revved it up many times in the past few hours.Just to beat solitude.To fake an entity,riding along with me,roaring,talking,just being there.

Look up and I find purple.Stealing the night away from black.It's there all around me.I cut through the ink, so fast, as if afraid, it were to devour me in its hue.

First Light kisses chrome. The sky wakes up,to another day.Stretching its arms lazily,slowly,out into sunshine.Reclaiming its rightful territory, from darkness.The Master's first stroke, a splash of blue on his canvas. I 'hear' the world wake up.In the lady with the water pot.In the cattle rhythmically chewing gut.In the smiles of kids, joyously waving at anything that passes by.In those eager faces, with hay strewn on the ground, looking for vehicles, praying for heavier ones. In those young men, arrogantly striding with a twig carelessly clenched between their teeth.In the radio, blaring a vaguely familiar tune, from a faraway teashop.

Another stroke on the Master's canvas.This time a bright splash of yellow.The cool breeze that rode all night with me, reluctantly brushing away, fading. The second heartbeat drowns, amidst the din of familiar sounds. More companions join me on my ride.More real (or are they?). Shadows shorten under me. The sun creeps up overhead.The yellow brightens. Faces, I see a lot of them.Everywhere, all around me. Riding with me.Each a different colour in itself.Colour, of a different kind,The kind you cannot see, just feel.Some colours intrigue me.There are others that enchant me, still others I detest, a few I cant stand. The few that I really love. Faces, join the ride and disappear along the trail. They all join and leave.But leave,they do, they must. I remember some faces, more clearly than others.They leave, as randomly as the serpentine trail ahead, no reason, no order in its sweeps and curves.

The trail, its curves,yes,it draws my attention to it.Puts me in a trance, hypnotic.As I lose myself to it, it reveals the rhythm in its randomness.
I look up to find myself, for a moment,still.The world and all its splendid landscape moving in a screen past me.I watch, merely a mute spectator, as the scene changes past me so fast.I see the trail change into a narrow path.Even quicker it morphs into a jungle, primitive and untouched. Im as afraid of it as much as I love it. I shut my eyes, open throttle and deafen myself to all the cacaphony around. Until, I hear only my heartbeat again.Both of them.

I open my eyes.The Master's been busy.Im swept into a crimson tide.The road ahead is straight.And long, really long.Seemingly flowing into the cleft between two mountains.And in this melange, I witness the Master's masterpiece. The sun is a majestic, soothing amber.Splendid, as I ride into it.I am alone.I am... the last cowboy.

VizeRoys Raid Araku Valley

Rendezvous at Enfield Showroom,Vizag at 0630hrs 01 Feb 09 was the plan.It remained just the "PLAN".Ramesh was the first to arrive at the scene,right on time,only to find it bare.Frantic, worried,he calls me up to check,afraid that the others have left already.It was his first ride with us,he would soon learn about the punctuality of the Vizag Royals :).

Kuldeep,thiagu n myself were already at Rasoi restaurant on NH5 NAD junction where the rest of the pack had to meet us at 0700hrs.We decided to have a quick snack at the restaurant as we waited. 0800hrs,just our three bullets parked together had attracted a crowd .The same questions: "whats your Mileage,?How much is it costing now?Is this the new model?"I wonder even if one of these people are ever plannin to get a bull.Anyway, I do appreciate their regard and respect for the bull.As they were caught in the trance of the three bulls shining side by side,they were woken up to the roar of the whole pack.

Sandeep,with his full riding leathers on TB,Vijay in his freeway Bike gang look,complete with his multiple gold chains and bandanna and french beard TBTS,Suman on his Mach350(yes!! he was carrying his trusted SLR camera behind him),Gandhi (with our club's livewire Jagan behind him)on his Std 350,(the bike 7 yrs older than the biker.)...Karthik was on his Electra5s, nicely modified into a machismo and a much relieved Ramesh on his red electra.Bulleticians,Ranga and Venky our friendly RE service centre mechs, were as always, riding with us. I fired my Minotaur TBTS in sync with Thiagu's twinbrother TBTS, and we were off.Kuldeep's std 350 thump seized the attention of anyone who had been spared the previous crowd.

Once we were off NH5,it was a straight smooth road.Narrow,made narrower by apsrtc buses on the opposite side.The drivers must've been either drunk, schumacher devotees,pilot training dropouts or simply blind to drive like that.We meandered through the din and regrouped on the suburbs road. The scene assumed a brown yellow tint,spectacular!With railway line to the left,and sprawling fields to the right, we stopped for breakfast. Vijay and most others were not satisfied with the food and we decided to move to another already tested outlet ahead. So we rode to the latter and had breakfast.Food, fags done ride continued to a scenic lone tree that stood inviting by the road side.We stopped and Shreekant on his TB,who had started an hour after us from the city had caught up with us there. Suman put his camera to work and some of the best pics were shot..No more stops until Araku.Safety first,Pack speed limit set at 60-70 kmph.We made good time and reached the foot hills.As we crossed the TYDA tree houses,we could hear the thump of all the pack reverberate through the valley.All cars,buses,bikes passin by wavin joyously at us.It felt good.It always does.

Swerving roads up the hills,n some spectacular movement shots by sandeeps pillion bro.And before we could realise we were there at the vizeroys rock.A small hill clearing rock where we always divert.Ramesh's,single beam crash guard had ditched him and rolled of when his bike fell to one side.Ranga waved his wand and it was clamped on in no time.My battery was running down and ES not working.I rode then on, with headlamp switched off .Next stop Haritha resort view point wher besides clicking some snaps, we met some doctors who had just been back from Leh on their car.Took some pointers from them and we were off again.It was noon already and Suman lured us into a kutcha track promising to feast, those willing, with bamboo chicken.But we learnt about the catch.The order will be ready only after three hours.... atleast.

Grumpy and hungry we rode back to Vasanth restaurant.Filled the parking lot and our stomachs and rode to the "BRIDGE." Off roaded under it and spent an hour chatting and drowsing off under the huge shady trees.I realised my tbts can double up as a very comfortable bed with the raised camber shape tank :).We had tea and rolled down the valley.Riding down hill is always more interesting than riding up.Almost near the foothill,screeeeeeeech.The vizeroys jinx of every trip, shows up in this trip.Another rear wheel problem,Sandeep is the victim.

This time.Ranga detects burnt rubber and jammed rim and removes the wheel.With ranga and venky gone to get the wheel look round again,we sat and chatted.Night fell and they returned after an hour. From then on it was fire at will,we did very good speed and regrouped at a teastall close to the city.Kuldeep thanked god and his brakes for sparing the life of the villager who incarnaed in his path suddenly... sheer suicidal tendancy.We dispersed in our own tracks from NAD junction and another exciting ride comes to an end.Looking forward to the next ride and to share it with all.Cheers.Happy Thumping.!!