I had just 2 days for this ride out of my 9 days India Trip and had to traverse almost 1000 kms in this ride so one thing was crystal clear that it would have been a Speed Ride and knowing me you all would tend to agree that speed riding comes naturally to me !!! My Motorcycling comrades would vouch for this fact…
There were 2 other confirmed riders – Bhinder & Khatri but they declined at the last moment due to some strange reasons and I was kind of expecting it & it didn’t come as any surprise to me...
So the day finally arrived…The Ride dates were 30 & 31 August 2011…
The Speed Riders were:
1. Gyan on his brand new Ceeber – Honda CBR 250
2. Che on The Mighty One
The First Solo Ride
I had never rode this long just being a Solo rider but as they say there’s always a first time so I had to do it…I just could not sleep properly as I was damn fuckin excited for this ride; finally managed a sleep of barely 2 hours but shockingly woke up really fresh at 2:45 AM and rode out of my home at sharp 3:30 AM all decked up and rode till Panipat non-stop…123 kms in 115 minutes with minimal traffic and it was lots of fun just to get back on the open roads after such a long time and I didn’t mind being Solo!!! I waited for just 5 minutes and Gyan came riding on his bright-red brand new machine with his signature smile!!! We hugged each other and started the next leg of the ride…it was just about sunrise time & traffic was still very thin…perfect recipe for 2 speed riders to blast it out!!!
Parantha Time
Just after crossing Karnal we had a brief 15 minutes encounter with the rain & I knew now that this ride would be one helluva amazing ride!!! We stopped near Ambala for a Breakfast Pit-Stop….gorged on Paneer & Aloo Paranthas with some piping hot tea and gave our respective asses a much deserved break!!! Our timing till now was perfect & we were on-track to reach Amritsar by 1 PM…
Red-Bull Therapy
As some of you know I have quit Alcohol & Smoking which means minimal breaks during my Bike Rides but still needed a break just to relax for some bit & luckily I stopped in front of a Bar cum Restaurant which had a small convenience shop outside and I spotted chilled Red Bull there & just grabbed it from the mini-RB Fridge!!! After a sleepless night and almost 350 kms on the road I deserved some Red Bull Therapy to get fresh again & ward off the sleep-demons!!! Gyan got a child KF Premium beer and we did our routine Bakchodi while enjoying our drinks!!!
Speed Thrills…
After speeding for some 470 odd kms The Mighty One had a small breakdown….we had stopped for a piss break just 25 kms before Amritsar & when we started my bike just didn’t start; Checked all the vital parts of the bike & there was no apparently visible issue; tried Dhakka-Start & that didn’t work either; called-up Zaheer & his tips also didn’t help…finally Gyan went ahead to check for a Bike Mechanic & called me that it was just 1 kms ahead…so pushed my bike and reached his shop where he checked the bike and started it but he told me to get it checked at any RE Specialist at Amritsar so that there are no further challenges…and this breakdown couldn’t had come at a worse time; the temperature was a searing 40 degrees and a humidity of almost 9o% odd and I was sweating like a pig plus feeling hot like I have never done before…living in an air-conditioned environment 24X7 in Kuwait has done this to me; I poured 2 glasses of child water over my head to get some respite…and it was such a big-big relief!
Pahunch gaye Amritsar…
Reached Amritsar with The Mighty One riding slowly for a change & we headed straight towards the Railway Station area to find an RE Specialist to check my bike…found a shop after checking with locals…the owner Sardaarji checked the bike and told us that the Tappet Rods had to be replaced as they had gone Kaput after continuous speed riding of 500-odd kms!!! Didn’t surprise me either as the way we both rode it had to end like this! He asked us to wait for an hour before he could finish his work so we decided to utilize that 1 hour in the best possible manner – by having a meal at the very-very famous Kesar da Dhaba which serves the best Vegetarian Food in Amritsar; during my 4 previous trips to the city I had never eaten at this place & my parents had also highly rated this so we had to try it out!!!
Kesar Da Dhaba pe ho gaya kalyan!!!
We ordered a Chur-Chur Parantha Thali…it comprised of Maa ki Daal, Punjabi Chhole, 2 paranthas and a bowl of fresh Boondi ka Raita…in normal circumstances 2 famished riders would have gobbled up the entire thali without any trouble but when you are in Punjab nothing is normal or routine when it comes to matter of Gastronomy…flavour of the food is directly proportional to the amount of Desi Ghee used in the cooking & I believe the cooks at this place have taken this correlation very seriously and poured ghee in all the items like there was no tomorrow!!! We somehow finished the entire meal & followed it up with a bowl of cold Phirni set in a earthen bowl which was the perfect icing on the cake after such a sumptuous meal…
Hong Kong Magic…
Picked up my bike and headed straight towards a Hotel where Gyan had stayed a month back when he dhad visited Amritsar with his wife & another couple…the hotel was funnily named HOTEL HONG KONG INN…I mean why would somebody name a hotel like this tat too in the middle of Punjab, I just couldn’t fathom that!!! But all we needed that time was a cozy bed, a clean washroom, a hot shower bath and an air-conditioned sleep and our silly-named hotel provided all of that! Both of us had a shower and then decided to sleep for some time to get fresh & ready for the evening plans…and boy did we have a sound sleep or what! We slept for some 2.5 odd hours & woke up as fresh as a daisy!!!
Satnam Waaheguru…
The next & the most important part of the ride was visiting The Golden Temple…for the first time I was visiting it during a weekday & was greeted by a much less noisy & crowded Golden Temple which is a rarity; had an amazing Darshan & spent some peaceful moments at the side of the Sarovar reminiscing about the past & thanking God about all the good things he has given me in life…this place takes me somewhere else & I just cant describe what kinds feelings & emotions go through my mind…words fail me in describing the divinity of this place & I am sure all of you would agree to the state of mind I was in at that particular time!!!
Surjit da Jaadoo…
No Amritsar Trip is complete without a gorge at Surjit Food Plaza situated at Nehru Complex, Lawrence Road & we had to be there to feast on the slurping Non-Vegetarian delights….we gorged on Tandoori Chicken, Amritsari Fish Fry & Chicken Seekh Kebab with some crisp & hot Tandoori Rotis…all the while we were eating we went on endlessly with our oohs & aahs….vividly describing the sheer good taste of the food & simultaneously filling up our tummy!!! We finished our meal with Child Pista Milk at Novelty Sweets Shop which is right across the road & the Pista Milk is nothing short of being divine!!!
Bedtime Tales…
Gyan picked up a beer on the way but by the time we reached the hotel his tummy refused anything to be loaded after the sumptuous meal we had just enjoyed so both of us decided to call it a day & surrender ourselves to the sleep gods!!! It was another first; at sharp 11 PM in the night both of us were sound asleep!!!
Nayi Subah – Nayi Shuruaat…
We left our hotel at 6:30 AM & after reaching the Golden Temple I had a snaan at the Sarovar, paid our respects to the God Almighty & headed straight towards Kulwantian De Nan !!! Perfect follow-up after a divine dip!!! This place serves the most amazing Amritsari Nan- we enjoyed Paneer, Gobhi & Aloo Nan with the Chhole ki Sabzi & finished our breakfast with piping hot Special Chai!!! Went straight to the hotel, picked up our stuff, paid the bill, packed our stuff onto the bikes & left from Amritsar at sharp 8:45 AM…another 500 kms on the roads were waiting for us & we were absolutely ready to go!!!
Dumping Time!!!
As all of you know that how much I love dumping in the open during my bike rides & I had to continue this love affair during this ride as well…after creating enough pressure in my body I stopped for a much-needed open-dump & enjoyed it wholeheartedly…it was very sunny, I found some shade below a tree & provided some natural & fresh fertilizer to the soil!!!
I want Wings!!!
Luckily I stopped opposite the same Bar cum Restaurant where we enjoyed our drinks a day back…Gyan decided to enjoy his beer which he had bought in Amritsar & I picked up 2 cans of Red Bull…one for the road ahead…and Gyan’s chakna was some fresh Salad!!! No namkeen this time though…I started the next leg of the ride all refreshed & with some wings…
Puran Singh da Dhaba da Jaadoo
This Ride was all about good food & we wanted to finish the gastronomical experience with another high…last but not the least the POA was lunch @ Puran Singh da Dhaba which is another world-famous Dhaba…there are some 5-6 versions of the Dhaba & we didn’t waste any effort to find the original one as we stopped at the first one which was right next to a theka and was a Government-Approved Drinking Place to boot…ordered Keema Kaleji & Mutton Curry with Gyan enjoying child Carlsberg & me sipping on some child Slice!!! Once again the food was laced with loads of dripping Desi Ghee but we didn’t mind it one single bit & cleaned off everything which was on offer!!!
Rain Therapy…
Left PSDD full upto the brim & the next stop was a forced one…it started to rain heavily & we had to get our rain-gear out…it was a short spell of heavy rain which subsided in some 10 minutes & resulted in some reduced speed due to the wet roads…finally reached Panipat where I bid farewell Gyan & thanked him for another amazing ride alongside him….
Well-Done Che!!!
I reached home at sharp 6:30 PM after a well-spent 39 hours trip out of which I was riding for 20 hours….was on the road for almost 1000 kms….enjoyed some of the most amazing food on this Heaven Earth….visited the most divine place on the planet…dumped in the open…and some amazing memories with Gyan…I couldn’t have asked more from God!!! Another special part of this ride was that this was Gyan’s first ride with his new Ceeber & most importantly he didn’t have a single fall during this ride for which he is notoriously famous in our Motorcycling Domain!!!
My Next Ride would be in November 2011….My club BoP’s 4th Anniversary Ride to a destination in Rajasthan and that ride would be my last ride as a bachelor ads I am getting married on 18th November 2011…there’s no other way to celebrate the last few days of my bachelorhood than to ride along with my BoP Comrades on the pristine roads of Rajasthan…
Che would be back on the road again…
Till then ride safe & have safe sex…
Hasta la Victoria Siempre & Jai BoP…
