As I gazed down the Himalayas aboard 6E448, I could sense a proud gush of air through my lungs. Having conquered, on wheels, the passes and slopes, which were now offering such a majestic sight from top, it was but natural!
Isn't destination the sole reason for a journey?
And does it make any sense to undertake an arduous and strenuous journey when destination is equally beautiful.
484 kms on a two wheeler with a pillion - sounds so sadistic, especially when the pillion is one's wife! There are other ways to get a sore ass, body ache and coat of dirt and dust (and to get that sadistic pleasure by troubling your wife :P)
How beautiful can be a stretch of 30-40 kms, with the same view of mountains (some snow capped ones adding to your misery) staring back at you for multiple such stretches. It is like watching a bio-scope and becomes so monotonous at times. With wavy roads (if you can call the assorted gravels and boulders laid randomly on mountain edges, to plot your fall, that!) giving you the bumpiest rides and adding to your already nauseated brain.
And it is like icing on the cake when the hotels and tents you stay have some horrendously selfish guests who play loud music and dance, not giving a damn about how tired you are after your ride across mountains and valleys.
These would be exact words of a cynic who gives two hoots to your mantra of life - Riding is meditation, it is the only time when you are one with the road you are riding on. To those cynics and the sour grapes cases and also to the "someday" people, just pack your bags, shut your trap and get on the road.
With 500cc engine and at least 42Nm torque between your legs, the dirt and wind across your face and the mountain ranges with absolutely stunning visuals, you get what a yogi yearns for - Nirvana.
"The plan" was initiated by D and we had all agreed, that if it is Leh, it has to be a bull ride. Thanks to SS, who had done quite a research on the topic and modes of commute, we got enough information to materialize "the at least once in a lifetime ride". After my two previous failed attempts, I was little cynical myself whether I will ever be able to ride to Ladakh. But it was the super joshiley group of D, PP and SS who rubbed off their enthusiasm on me. With fancy names - Agents CDD, PP, SSS and BK, "the plan" started taking form and shape in March with a mail chain which had all information about itinerary, ticket booking, hotels/tents and also return via Srinagar!!
I was always fascinated by Kashmir. When I was in college, someone had mentioned that the highest motor-able road in the world is in India. My nerdinesshad made me read about that then and that is how my craving for a ride on the Manali-Leh stretch started.
Riding, like whiskey, is an acquired taste and as Mr Khosla (from the movie Khosla ka Ghosla) had said - "In cheezon ka maza dheere dheere lena chahiye, wo kahte hain na jee hold your drink". To relish this taste and to live our dream, we started from Bangalore on 26th June.
After reaching Manali the following morning (that bus ride was one vomit-inducing one), we checked in at Tourist Hotel (Rooms with independent Balcony!). I was really eager to have a look at our ride and after breakfast, SS and I started for "Hardev Motors" - these were the guys who had agreed to rent their bulls to us for the treacherous terrain of Manali-Leh highway, at a price of course. We met the owner, Sonu Rajput (which I was least interested in) and enquired about the bulls (about which I was super charged). We had to wait for sometime there as the bulls had gone for a wash. After finishing the paper work (paying the pending amount, handing over our original IDs and collecting the bullet's papers), I was pretty restless and gulped down the coffee, offered to us by the very helpful owner, to curb my eagerness. It was during the discussion about the road condition that I heard the thump and rushed out to see what can be called pristine beauty - It was the new classic 500, with customized fuel tank (22 lts capacity, as Sonu Rajput confirmed), customized carburetor and smaller exhaust. We took it for a spin on the steep street near the shop and the bull topped its looks with superlative performance. The mechanic there offered us some tips about riding on the hilly terrain and handed over the tool box (myriad spares - tubes, spark plug, headlight bulb, even a pump). We stuffed it in the luggage carrier that was affixed to the rear and set off for our hotel, feeling like proud owners of the chrome and gray bull (at least for a week).
