Bangalore-Ooty Ride

This was second longish ride for me. We started off from at Bangalore University at 7AM. Six bikes -Deep on his TB ,me on my Std, Gokul R15,Prasad TB, Kalyan with Phani Electra and ofcourse Jay on his LB 500, (he got rechristened to Bindu Rani will come to that later :). Jishnu and Nai Roast were going to starting late. So was Manas and Adrian.



The initial stretch was the Mysore highway SH17. Long four lane straights meant we could have clipped at 80+ but the cross winds made the going a little tricky. Deep did a good job of keeping the group together. After riding 70 odd kms, we stopped at Inderdhanush for Poori Sabji breakfast. It was decided that Deep would point and Bindu Rani(correction he was still Jaygay then) would sweep.



On reaching Mysore we took the bypass to Ooty. Close to Bandipur , there was 15 km stretch where the roads were littered with potholes. We enjoyed the bumpy ride, atleast I did- woke me up from the morning slumber :). We stopped for lunch at PugMark restaurant. Adrian on his RD350 was already there. Wonder how long it took it him to get there- Probably a couple of hours for 200 kms :). We had Manas, Jishnu and Nai Roast joining us there.



After a sumptuous lunch of phulkas, sabji and chicken we were on the road again. Twenty kms on and we were going through Madumalai forest. This section had some nice curves(no pun intended, what do you except in a jungle afterall amdist a horde of elephants:)). Finally after crossing the jungle, it was the hairpin bends. As we made the ascent, the temperature dropped gradually and before you knew it was the mountain air atlast. There is just something about the hills, probably its to do with the altitude and the greenery around, which is so refreshing. Been a while since I last took to the hills. Had done my class 1 in Wellington, 1990 it was. Brought a lot of nice memories gushing back. Wellington is a few kms from Conoor- swell place I must say.

Ooty was just a few kms now.Deep had organized our stay some 4kms off Ooty. The view was just something else. Do have a squint at the photographs if you can. We reached the place around 3 30. It was about 310 kms from Bangalore from my odometer. The weather was great. The spitting rain gave way to some sunshine and we had a beautiful evening ahead of us, the chilly air notwithstanding.

Must say the arrangements were great. Around eight, there was a bonfire lit where we all congregated. Jay was given the name Bindu Rani as he kept saying 'bindu' in his kannada for -thats the point. Then we had snacks followed by dinner. Great food rounded off the day.

I hit the sack early as I had to reach Bangalore in the afternoon, for which I had to make an early start the next day. Next morning at 8 we were off- Kalyan and Phani too joined in. The descent was a little tricky, given the light drizzle made the roads slippery at some places. Consequently, we went slow downhill, stopping in between to give the heated-up brakes some much needed break.

The ride back was uneventful as far as breakdowns go, thankfully. We maintained a decent pace after breakfast at Pugmark. We hit Mysore by noon. Here we split up. Was nice riding with Kalyan and Phani on the way back.

From Mysore it was steady riding, uneventful except for getting chased by the rain. Managed to elude the rain till the outskirts of Bangalore. Was back home by 4: 10 ish, a little damp, but content.

The ride was just out of this world. Great gang to ride along with. Thanks Deep and everyone else for making the ride happen. Had a blast.

PS: Snaps at http://picasaweb.google.com/atmdeo
Videos at http://www.youtube.com/user/atmdeo

The Ten Commandments of A Bulleteer

1. The heartbeat of a Bulleteer lies in the beat of the bull.
2. Riding is NOT meant to just traverse places. Its the sheer delight in riding that keeps us going for more and more. Would like to draw an analogy here -as they say for sailors its the wind in their sails,that keeps them going, for us its the thump at the back that drives us on :)
3. When it comes to taking decisions, a Bulleteer is more inclined to listen to the heart than use his grey cells ,albeit sometimes with disastrous consequences :)
4. One of the hobbies is collecting fuses and spark plugs :)
5. A Bulleteer stops by to help a stranded Bulleteer, or for that matter anyone (in this case its more out of of sympathy than empathy :)
6. A Bulleteer ALWAYS enjoys a good laugh, at times even if he/she has a flat tyre :).
7. 'Ate' nine and ten :D (couldnt think of the last four, will edit when i do)

Any suggestions for the last four slots??

PS: Today happens to be my lil bro's Birthday! Bhai if you are reading this, have a blast!
This post was long overdue. All going well have a ride to Rameshwaram coming up this weekend. Will update when i get back. Cheers!

A Good Year

Yes, that was one swell movie-Good Year. Now wouldn't it be nice if one could inherit chateaus and have the stunning Fanny Chenal waiting in the porch . Too good to be true, sigh. Well actually its been a year, a little over a year since I started blogging, so thought would do a post er commemorating the grand occasion :). Incidentally its also been a year since I started 'working'.

While somethings haven't changed, quite a few have.For one, we do have a new Wimbledon champion in Rafael Nadal dethroning the five time champion , Roger Federer in an epic final . For another, finally the government has rid itself of the leftward tilt, risking its survival nevertheless. Never mind the Left's frivolous stance on the nuclear deal, which has the potential to solve our nation's energy crisis to a large extent , our dear left comrades still hold the view that the 1962 Indo-China war was not an act of aggression on the part of China!Worse still, Chinese claims on Arunachal Pradesh have never been repudiated by these gentlemen. The question has to be asked -How are the Communists no different from the terrorists, when their allegiance is clearly towards China and not India ? Courtesy the Left, the reform process, which could have equipped us to handle the rising inflation and food crisis better, had been under the back-burner. Air India is one such one example, which badly needs a complete overhaul. It took one flight for our Aviation minister to register this fact. Everyone knows that the services of our national carrier,still grappling under the babus culture, are pathetic. With the Left no longer around to throw a spanner in the works, lets see if any corrective measures are going to be taken. Privatization with due emphasis on accountability, is one way out to save the floundering carrier.

Too much space for politics i guess. On a personal front, the last year has been nothing short of a roller coaster ride as the earlier posts would have told you. From dragging myself to office on weekends to doing longish group rides to making the semifinals of a corporate tennis tournament and then losing it , its been quite a year.

Cheers!

A Few Good Men

In Wellington , for us Fauji kids having just learnt to ride the bicycle , words like 'Manekshaw Marg' , meant another lane, another 'little world' to be explored on our little bicycles(I say little because I have a 'not-so-little' set of wheels now ;)). Vaguely, but nevertheless fondly remember the pentagon shaped, white washed landmark reading in red the 'Manekshaw Marg'.We would merrily ride down down the undulating slope and then puff uphill till we could go no further. That was sometime back.

With the news of passing of Field Marshall Sam Manekshaw trickling in, couldnt help feeling a little somber. If at all you didnt know, a quick glance at the Times paper would tell you that he was the chief architect of our glorious '71 victory over Pakistan. For a man who was the first ever Field Marshall, you would have thought this should have been the frontline news in the television media. Instead, just a mention was made . More' important' was ofcourse the match between India and Bangladesh, or what did a certain actress wear at a certain function. Even though a state funeral was arranged, our Defence Minster found reasons to not attend the great man's funeral. We are talking about a man here who orchestrated the nation's finest hour-1971 war. Why, he took 18 bullets from an LMG in the stomach and told the doctor -' i was kicked by a mule'. That was in the Second world war. His unparalleled skill in strategm in synergizing the army, the airforce and the navy was the decisive factor in our routing the Pakistanis inside two weeks. Just before retiring in '73, he was given the rank of Field Marshall. Post retirement he settled down in Wellington.
The general was truly the nation's soldier. This is saluting him and all the martyrs of this nation.

Restive in Bangalore

" Move you , ******. The signal has turned green", the motorist bellows at the car in front, amidst a lot of honking. The poor old man at the wheel can't get his car started. Happens all the time dont you think. Too often actually.There is a feeling gaining ground that we as a society have got less and less considerate of others. What with the tight schedules that everyone seems to be on , such incidents are not suprising. You and I would have probably done no different from what the motorist did, maybe would have got in a few more colourful expletives :)

Things are no different elsewhere -be it the microcosm of a train, or at the workplace. How many of us actually engage in a conversation with the person sitting adjacent? You would think as neighbours things would be different, but no. Infact there are people,who have never spoken to those in staying in the same apartment!

Just when you mutter to yourself- it's a cold, indifferent world, you would be surprised how quickly you can be proven wrong. Just the other day I had a blown fuse on my Bullet, courtesy some 'great' work done by the mechanic(turned out that a wire was getting grounded). Luckily I did have a replacement and started to change the fuse when a guy stopped by to help -had to be another Bulleter ofcourse :). I politely declined his help as I had a spare. But such gestures do tell you that all is not wrong with this society. Anyway went back to work feeling surprisingly lighter and I hardly honked that day!

Hmm...

Gee...Its been long. Too long i know. Its getting ten in the night and its raining outside-more of a steady drizzle now and here I am in office sitting at my desk waiting for the rain to abate. Reason enough to do something useful at work ;).

So what I do write about. Things are so different these days since I moved from Hyd.Its been close to six months and time has just slipped by. Life here in Bangalore is ..whats the word ...frenetic! Mornings start at six in the morning with the tennis and by the time I am back from work its almost time to hit the bed. Miss the laid back city of Hyd, but Bangalore has a charm of its own. The maddening traffic notwithstanding. Whether its the juicewalas beside the footpath(get plenty of them here and they are good trust me) . A walk down the streets at Cunningham Road with the wind in your face takes you back to the Queen's, literally(actually there is a Queen's road nearby) . The old yellowish British lamps illuminating the driveways of the scattered houses does have a distinct aura of its own. Somehow get the feeling, most of the cities are losing out on their identity with the mall culture permeating through.

Speaking of identity, must confess( for the umpteenth time, I know) am absolutely in love with the thump of my RE. Went out on a longish ride with the RTMC-that is the Bangalore bullet club better known as Rolling Thunder Motorcycle Club. Went to this place called Anthargange close to Kolar Town,about 70 kms from city. It was one swell experience, 40 bulls roaring on the highway. The countryside was a pleasant change from the chaos that reigns in Bangalore. Will try and upload some snaps.

(Now, I can barely hear the rain pattering on the window) Time to sign out :)

Cheers!!

Living a dream

First of all, a very happy new year folks! Gee, its been close to a couple of months since the last post. A lot can happen in two months, right. Um well yes and no. Yes because it is the turn of the year :). No, because I am still clinging on to my job, thankfully.

For someone who is not egregiously gregarious or for that matter, never even having sampled a beer, this sprawling city can be quite a bore if you are all by yourself. In that aspect I am lucky to have some company with me. When I say company, I mean my Bullet ofcourse!(nothing on you, my dear roomies). Must say, riding a Bullet is a dream come true. Even, office is not such a dreaded destination anymore.

Weekends is usually the time to catch up on tennis,weather permitting. And oh yes, time to work on my culinary skills. My roomates(both can cook) are desperately trying to get me to cook. Well all I can say is a new year does bring hope :).