Iron Butt on Iron Engines

Iron Butt on Iron Engines
By Ujjwal Dey

Destination: Nestled in the greenery of Ganpatipule village is an almost 4000 year old land mark - the Swayambhu Ganapati temple. Swayambhu refers to the naturally formed stone in the image of God (not a carved sculpture). The village got its name Ganapatipule as Ganapati is the lord of the "ganas" or army and "pule" means sand dunes, Ganapatipule is one of the "Ashta Ganapatis" (eight Ganapatis) of India and is known as "Paschim Dwar Dewata" (the Western Sentinel God).

The Iron Butt Ride: Inddiethumpers ride to Ganpatipule on 23^rd Feb 2008 and return on 24^th Feb 2008. Only one stop at Chiplun while going and one stop at Vadkal Naka while returning. Approximate total of 750 KMs

Trip Photos:
http://picasaweb.google.com/udey11/ITGanpatipule

First Published:
http://www.royalenfield.com/app/IN/trip.asp?sID=18143

Meeting Point:
Panvel, Navi Mumbai near HP petrol pump and Dutta wada pav at 6:30 AM

Group: Inddiethumpers (Royal Enfield Motorcycle Club, Mumbai)
http://inddiethumpers.com/

Saturday 23^rd Feb 2008:
I had registered with Inddiethumpers in May 2007 and this was the first ride I was invited to. The rules were clear – full face helmet, riding jackets, riding gloves, riding boots, Motorcycle ready and serviced, etc. I reached Panvel by 6:30 AM as many Bullets raced ahead of me on the same road towards the meeting point. The bikes were lined up and the senior members of Inddiethumpers inspected each and every bike for oil, electronics, leg guard, tyre pressure, speedometer, lights, helmets, riding gear, etc. All riders were documented and rated for pending membership of first time riders with Inddiethumper Club. Guri was the person incharge of the whole adventure and he was quite friendly, cheerful and jovial. Inddiethumpers group require applicants to meet at a get-together before being allowed to join them for a ride. This ride was the first time in 6 years that new riders were allowed to directly come for an overnight Trip; so lucky me.

We roared onto the road to Mumbai-Goa highway with 22 Bulls thundering together at 7:30 AM. They ride at an average speed of 80 KMPH. I am never comfortable doing that on a 2 lane highway and especially since I am recovering from an arm fracture (humerus right arm broken on Oct 2007). I kept a steady 60 to 70 KMPH and tailed the gang revving hard on the open morning road.

Soon all of them were out of sight. The Inddiethumper flag bearing Thunderbird who is supposed to be the last man was asking me if anything is wrong with my Bullet Electra (4S). I said no, why do you ask? He countered, “Why are you riding so slow?”

So you get the idea. They are very comfortable manoeuvring their Enfields at max speeds. So soon I was the last man riding a long solo trip to Chiplun – the first stop. After 200 KMs of non-stop riding through endless villages and ghats I stopped at one ghat and emptied my bladder, had a smoke, decided against photography to catch up with the group and rode on.

At Chiplun I filled up my tank at the Bharat Petroleum pump. HP petrol pump is on the opposite side of BP pump but there is always a long line there and they don’t accept credit card payment. So with tank full I rode another kilometer to the hotel where the gang was having lunch. After lot of banter and food the gang decided to move on. I had only filled up on Maaza and Lassi to save time.

Downstairs at the hotel the gang revved their mighty engines and honked as all onlookers wondered from where so many Enfields had appeared. Soon they roared ahead towards Ganpatipule.

I know my riding style and I don’t risk anything on the road. I rode at my safe speed with a maximum of 80 KMPH at open stretch roads. Rohan (Bullet named Disco) was also a leisurely paced rider and member of Inddiethumpers and he kept me company on the Ghats and till the Shiv Sagar Palace resort where we were supposed to stay in overnight. We reached at 4:30 PM.

Shiv Sagar Palace is a grand edifice with a sprawling residence and a view of the ocean from the wide balcony near their food serving tables. It has marble floors, chandeliers, paintings on walls and rooms with hot water even in the wash basin. The charges were Rs 700 per room with a capacity of 4 people and food / beverages at extra cost. Everyone put away their bags in their rooms after Guri sorted who will be in which room number.

The gang had snacks and tea and soon everyone was mingling amongst each other. I met some nice members here. Mahesh had brought a film based SLR with tripod; Hari who is a senior member and also a BARC Scientist (and a biker!!! ) told me about how he had been to Rider Mania which was way longer than this ride; Hody who is into shipping; new comers like me were Jackson with pillion Vijay who were also quite friendly. A real eye-opener for anyone who thinks Bikers are worthless or vagrants.

Mahesh, Hari, Vijay, Jackson and I rode to the beach and walked in the beautiful sunset. Mahesh clicked a few snaps at the beach with his tripod and huge flash with timer. We headed back to join the gang in their fun at Shiv Sagar Palace soon.

The new comers including me were in for a more “proper” introduction to the Inddiethumpers gang. Not ragging per se but fun and teasing.

We retired to our rooms after dinner. Vegetarian thali costs Rs 120 per person and Non-Vegetarian thali costs Rs 150 per person. Hari, Vijay and some others decided to make it to the temple in the morning. Guri had decided that all will leave at 9:30 AM for Mumbai. So I too decided for the Temple trip to be done early morning by 7 AM.

Sunday 24^th Feb 2008:
Hari woke me up at 6:20 AM and we freshened up to ride to Lord Ganesha’s abode a kilometer down the road. Hari has a 2005 fully loaded Electra 4s and I rode pillion with him. I was shit scared at the ease and confidence (AND SPEED) with which he was cornering the Bullet to reach the temple. We parked near the pristine beach and we got coconuts, sweets, incense, flowers, etc to offer to the deity. Sunday was “Sankashti” day and we had the good fortune to be able to be there to see AshtaVinayak on this auspicious day. We prayed and I prayed solely for a safe return knowing I will be alone and far behind LOLz. I asked the priest if even the Temple photography is banned. He said that outside the temple we can take photos but not inside and definitely not of the deity. So I clicked a few of the temple premises on my Nikon D40x DSLR for posterity. At the entrance there is a giant mouse, the vehicle of elephant headed Lord Ganesha and people whispered their wishes into the mouse’s ears so he could pass them on to the Lord.

We had breakfast near the temple and I clicked a few photos of the beach in daylight. There were camels and horses and stray dogs all enjoying the morning sun.

We rode back to the hotel and everyone shelled out their tab for the night and Boss Guri settled the bill. Now everyone gathered their Royal Enfields in front of the palace for a group photo session. Overnight another few veteran Inddiethumpers had reached the destination. So we had around 26 Enfields and 37 Riders. After the snaps and Mahesh’s triod/timer pro photography we roared on towards Mumbai with the first stop decided as Vadkal Naka. I was the tail-end of course. My tank was full again when I reached the same Chiplun BP petrol pump. This time at every 100 odd KMS I stopped, smoked, splashed water on the face and eyes, stretched my legs & back and rode on. Soon I caught up with the gang at a village where there was a dead donkey on the middle of the road.

I asked the gang what happened and came to know that a newcomer to the ride was speeding his Bullet with pillion through the village roads and banged into the stray donkey. The donkey died on the spot. The Bullet rotated on the road breaking its headlight, taillight and leg guards. The riders flew off their bikes and had no major injury; miraculously saved by maybe God / Ganesha. The Bullet was kick started to life again. No major damage, the handle was steady, so were the wheels and no oil or petrol leaking. Now that’s a Bullet – Made Like a Gun (though I would suggest not to hunt donkeys with it; LOLz).

Soon I passed them while they checked everything and then they caught up and thundered ahead. They stopped another 100 KMs ahead at the Ghats to check a Bullet’s carburetor while I passed them on my leisurely pace. On NH17 past the Ghats I was able to keep a steady 80 KMPH on the long stretches and kept riding till Vadkal Naka where some of the gang had reached and were to have their lunch. I told them of my decision to skip lunch again and keep riding to Panvel meeting point to avoid delays due to my cruising riding style. I reached Panvel by 5:30 PM and the whole gang was still at Vadkal Naka. Soon we all moved on to our homes and the ride was without any major incident or accident as for such a large group this was a very well-done Trip.

While those experienced thumpers took about 5 and a half hours to travel one way, I took a 7 hour ride with non-stop saddling for 3 continuous hours.

While many may not consider my riding to be successful, this trip boosted my confidence since it was my first trip in 4 months due to the arm fracture and I was on the Highway after a long time.

Three Cheers to the organisers at Inddiethumpers !!!

Author: http://www.ujjwaldey.com/

Back on the saddle – off the roads

After more than 3 months not having the feel of my black beauty I finally got the OK from my orthopaedic surgeon to get on my bike yesterday. Of course parents won’t hear a word of me riding till like eternity. But today I started the thumper and made a 3 KM trip, got it refueled and checked the air pressure on the tyres. Everything is smooth thanks to a friendly mechanic who used to ride it for me once or twice every week to keep it in running condition.

Lot of dust on it. I will get it serviced and polished soon. It feels great. No known pressure on my right arm. It was intimidating at first for me to get on 2 wheels and back on traffic infected streets. But hell, I never will stop doing what I love to do.

I won’t commute to office on my bike like before. Still have to get the feel of a 2 wheeler with so much power back into my veins. It’s just my discretion getting the better part of my valour. Of course parents bickering over my neck doesn’t help boost confidence either.

Anyways, I am mighty proud to be able to get back on my Bullet. Hope Biker God’s show more such mercy upon this weary soul.

Buddy Holly

Don’t you love the sound of the 60’s. I love the Beatles songs, those 2.5 to 3.5 minutes Rock songs that keep you wanting for more. I think that’s where the magic is, hook, line and sinker, you fall for the catchy beat and remain hungry for more. Everyone has their favourite Beatles track and anyone who doesn’t like The Beatles are probably not in their right minds anyways. But we all know about them so we won’t review them.

I was looking out for more such music. The celebration of youth and love of the 60’s and I found it. It existed even before the 60’s – Buddy Holly.

From the Wiki:
Although his success lasted only a year and a half before his death in an airplane crash, Holly is described by critic Bruce Eder as "the single most influential creative force in early rock & roll." His works and innovations were copied by his contemporaries and later musicians, notably The Beatles and The Rolling Stones, and exerted a profound influence on popular music.

Here let us look into:
Buddy Holly – The Original Master Tapes

This is a gem of a collection of 20 best songs of Buddy Holly. There are many wonderful love songs here.

My favourites are:
“Everyday” where the Lover is certain of finding his true love and “It’s so easy” (to fall in love) where the sucker is celebrating falling head over heels in love.

Other Rock n Roll numbers include the recognizable “Peggy Sue”, the swinging “Rock around with Ollie Vee”, the upbeat lover singing about what you been missing in “Oh Boy”. Also delightful is “That’ll be the Day” where the lover convinces his girl about his love, “Not fade away” swinging upbeat song with the bop bops, “Rave On” reminding me of Elvis no less, the very breezy beachside like “Heartbeat” transporting to the surf and bikinis with its unique strings, and it all ends with the very emotional vocals in “True Love Ways”.

This is a collector’s item if not an essential lesson in Rock n Roll. It only goes understated what the genius of Buddy Holly could have achieved if he had a longer career though the spirited life burnt in furious glory and still shines.

5 stars out of 5

Lyrics to Everyday

Bruce Springsteen

Devils and Dust is my favourite album from the Boss. Each and every song is beautiful and the words are poetry. If you ever want to get The Boss's CD - pick this one over any of his albums. There are many good Love Songs (if you can call it that) - such as "All the Way Home" where the protagonist sings in a bar to a girl that he is still available if she is interested - reminding me of "Dancin' in the Dark" only more positive. Other such Lovers are in "Maria's Bed", "Long Time Comin' " and the upbeat "All I'm Thinkin' About".

Every song here is meticulous piece of Art.

The 2007 album titled MAGIC is also quite good and he has some good stuff here.

From Rolling Stones magazine

Like “Born in the U.S.A.,” “Gypsy Biker” is the sober homecoming of a war veteran with images of anxious preparation (“We pulled your cycle out of the garage/And polished up the chrome”) and wasted effort (“The speculators made their money on the blood you shed”). Except this time, the soldier is returning in a coffin, and the devastated singer is numb with grief, mourning over lines of cocaine.

LYRICS to Gypsy Biker

My favourite in this album is the upbeat Rocking "Radio Nowhere" but there are many good stuff here.

Does not top Devils and Dust which I treasure - thats Classic material - incredibly good - reminding me of Bob Dylan.

Many people in America and my biker friends there have turned their back to Springsteen - since he clearly does not support War and is not in the good books of Conservatives who are clearly the majority mindset of the Americans.

Listen to it as the best Rock Music instead of getting into political rhetoric and you will enjoy it very much.


Devils and Dust: 5 stars out of 5
Magic: 4 stars out of 5

My Biker Angel

My Biker Angel is a bitch, a total low down dirty sprite, a demimondaine of all my demons, and she loves me to death – well I appreciate it even if I can’t reciprocate the wild passion always; at least not right now.

I have said to various friends and it is true; I had the most awful 2007. Things aren’t looking any better so far this year. The reason, I am sure lies in the dark Nox heart of my Biker Angel.

You see she takes good care of me. But there is a catch. I have to be on my 2 wheels. There is no other way she will have me. The thumper beats to her heartbeat. The fumes are her warm breath. Her eyes light up the darkest highways. She moseies up as smooth as grease. And this Highwayman is now off his saddle.

Curse of 2007:
1. Cold and fever
2. Skin allergy and rashes
3. Typhoid
4. Bronchitis
5. Fractured right hand
6. Cough and cold again

These 6 have haunted my body and soul for every month of 2007.

My Biker Angel is not cold and cruel. She just likes to prod me with a branding iron. All these instances I was not on my iron horse.

Whenever I am on my motorcycle, I cruise away at bumper to bumper traffic, deadly highways, steep mountains, unknown territory. Nothing harms me, the Biker Angel pillion guiding me through doom and gloom. I have had accidents on the road. My bike has been crushed and screwed but all I have is scratches or tossed hair. I get away with minimum damage while anyone else looses limb or teeth or more. But the Biker Angel loves me, so I get right on top and ride away; yes the bike still runs after all that abuse.

But the moment I am separated from this iron horse, the Biker Angel abandons me so completely, securing the wooing of some bastard biker somewhere else. Well all is fair in Love and War. And now, that I can’t ride a motorcycle since past 3 months and can’t for another few months, she has forsaken this Lover forever.

I know, just know it deep in my broken heart that if I can get back on the saddle, back on the highway, back to being a wayfarer, I will invoke her passions. All I can do is wait. Waiting infinitely for a miracle in the absence of my Biker Angel.