Biking lore has it that there is no
greater joy than bombing down a long road with a strong wind whistling in your
ears, trees and open countryside flashing by and the strong steady beat of your
machine keeping time to your heartbeat. I had read about it, heard about it and
also watched versions of it in films and on TV. But it is rightly said that
till you do it yourself, you can’t understand what the big deal is all about.
I’ve owned a RE Thunderbird 350 for
just over 3 years now and have ridden it in and around town quite a bit. This
also included 3 “short” rides of about 70-80 km (2 with my bhai - S’s brother
to Manor and Vashind respectively and a few rides with the Enfielder’s riding
group and friends). These rides gave me a taste of what it was to really get
out there and ride hard. This post was written about one such ride with the
Enfielder’s in Dec 2016. Yes, it is a late post but people who know me also
know how I can be with finishing posts that I start.
At that point, I jumped at the chance
of a much longer ride (as compared to other rides I had been on till then),
again with the Enfielder’s, to Jawhar / Mokhada; this one would roughly be about
120-130 kms each way so in effect more than double the distance as compared to
any of my previous rides.
The ride was to happen on Dec 24th
2016, the day before Christmas and hence a lesser turnout was expected. I
reached the meeting point at 5.15 am and over the next hour and a half, more
and more riders joined in taking the count of bikes to 19. Since this was to be
an “open” ride, there were a few non-RE bikes including a Harley, a KTM, a
Honda and another Honda Unicorn. While waiting for everyone, most of us were
giving each other’s bikes the usual once over, checking out the modifications
made as well as aesthetic changes that made each RE so unique in character and
if I may use the word, personality. A riding group is great example of
homogeneity in diversity and the Enfielder’s are no exception; caste, creed,
gender, age, profession and background all take the backseat and all riders
come together with a single-minded love for riding. The camaraderie is simply
amazing to experience and I feel privileged to be part of this band of brothers
and sisters.
The ride began post a briefing by the
group lead where he laid down the ground rules while riding. On longer rides
with a large group of bikers, it is essential that everyone is in sync. This is
not only to ensure the safety of each and every rider but also to maintain the
high standards and the spirit of teamwork embodied by the group. At 7 am, we set
out along NH – 8 towards Virar in single file with the leader leading the pack.
The speed picked up once we crossed the China Creek bridge as the rising sun
made its presence felt from our right. It was a cold morning and none of the
protective gear we had on including riding jackets, gloves, balaclavas and
helmets could keep the chill from creeping into our arms and legs. Not that
this dampened our enthusiasm in any way!
The sight of all the bikes in a
perfect single file thundering their way along a good road is poetry in motion
and only experiencing it can make one understand the thrill that a biker feels
when on one such ride. Along the way, we passed many small towns on both sides
of the highway and without fail, heads turned in unison to see us ride past,
wistful smiles on the faces of the teenaged boys and the younger men. Before
long we were approaching the Toll naka after Virar and there was a massive
traffic snarl on the opposite side with huge trucks and buses blocking the
entire entry towards Mumbai. This had led to traffic also spilling over to the
wrong side (our side) and the right most lane was a long line of trucks and
left most a long line of cars coming from the wrong side. The overall effect
was a choke up so bad that it was difficult to even manoeuvre our bikes
through. After a while, using the small gaps in between the larger vehicles,
the bikes managed their way out of the mess onto a relatively clear area. In
the process, I had my right side rear-view mirror cracked when a truck brushed
past it.
After a short break on clearing the
obstacle, we resumed our ride and very soon we were crossing the Manor flyover
and taking a right off the highway. The road we were on now was good and
undulating with lot of sharp curves and ascending continuously. Both sides we
could only see well tended fields stretching away and bordered by mountains on
one side. Riding here was extremely enjoyable but at the same time we had to
keep both eyes on the road given the sudden twists and turns and the quick moving
occasional traffic from the opposite side.
Biking, like many other pursuits that
involve concentration, grows on you gradually until it finally becomes muscle
memory. Your bike becomes an extension of your body and responds immediately to
the smallest of actions on your part, reflexively or otherwise. This is when
your mind is clear and there no idle thoughts to distract you from your primary
objective of riding. Your responses are instant and come without any conscious
effort from your side. It is this state that every rider worth his ilk craves
for and when in it, lives a truly transcendental moment.
After a lovely ride of about 60 km on
this road, we reached a small eatery on the outskirts on Jawhar village. We
downed breakfast ravenously (nothing like a long ride to whet appeties). Hunger pangs satisfied, we rode
through Jawhar village and then onto a narrow winding road leading downhill.
This road was pretty much broken down and the loose gravel and stones made the
going even tougher. Having said that, the view in places was spectacular though
we had to keep our eyes on the road for the most part. A ride of about 20-25
minutes brought us to our destination, a tiny hamlet.
After spending some time there, we
set out for the journey back home, again in single file just as we came. We
stopped at Jawhar while a few of us went to replenish their fuel tanks and then
rode back the way we had come. Luckily, by then the traffic had cleared up and
the ride back was smooth all the way upto China Creek with us being able to
ride at a consistent speed of 80-90 km all the way. I reached home for a late lunch
with my heart full of what I had seen and experienced during the ride. Given my
experience of the rides that followed this one, I can safely say that riding is
here to stay!! Maybe someday I will ride in the Himalayas after all.... mid life crisis or not....
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