Day 2

Today was the ayodhya verdict and this made me to put off all my plans. I was not worried about any riots or any such things but the sheer volume of security personnels on the road made me thing twice and also the chances of petrol bunk and other utilities made me decide to stay in Karunya and call off the rest of my trip. Also me in my riding gear and cramster saddlebag I'm bound to be stopped at most of check posts. The main problem is C5 has a range of 375km at best. Now that's a bummer considering most of the C5 customers are tourers. Surely we need atlleast 25litre capacity fuel tank so that we can cover 600+ km in one go. First I wanted to clean my bull. Took her to siruvani watercrossing and cleaned her up. Anyways wanted to make the best of the situation of decided to go for a ride to siruvani dam. Normally this is off limit to public. Luckily one of the engineers was present at forest department office. I begged and pleaded to give me permit and after half hour of begging they allowed me provided I leave my camera behind. I was so excited because the ride is 18km through pristine forest with teak trees on both sides. The ride was better than expected. Came back collected my camera and went to siruvani falls and spent couple of hours there enjoying the ice cold pure water. FYI siruvani water is one of the world's best naturally available water. Now you know whats the fuss is all about. Tomorrow I'm riding back to chennai.

Day 1

The initial plan was to start 3 in the morning but the sleep got the better of me. I missed the alarm. Woke up at 4 and I hit the road at 4.30. With the 3 hids lighting up the road I felt like I was riding at noon. Took the best route and it was the bangalore highway. Maintained a steady pace of 80kmph. The bull feels at home at this pace, cruising along with a third of the throttle. didn't want to stress the machine or me. Reached vellore in 2 hours with the sun cracking up the dark sky in the rear view mirrors. Had a tea break with the onlookers staring at me because of the riding gear and a loaded bike. Reached krishnagiri by 8:30 and decided to top my bull up. I had used about 9 litres of fuel. So the average was 31kmpl. I decided to take the route via mettur. Boy that was a good choice. The roads were great and scenic with greenery on both sides. Reached coimbatore at 2 pm. On my way I felt a burning sensation on my leg. When I checked it was a bee which stung me through my jeans at 80kmph. grr.... Checked into a lodge near Karunya and off I went to meet by lecturers. Man felt so good to be back after 5 years. Later met a couple of friends and had a long chit chat with some ice cold beer. Now its time to get some sleep.

Preparation for the ride.

In another 5 hrs I'll be starting my longest motorcycle ride ever. I have been wanting to do this for a very long time. Since I couldn't get anyone who was free during this time to join me I decided to do this solo. So this makes it all the more special. I started preparing my ride for this ride for the past one week. I serviced the bike and checked everything is in order. Since RE Classic 500 EFI is a new vehicle in this market the spares are a bit difficult to find.

Following are the things which I'm carrying for this ride.

1. Spare accelerator and clutch cables.
2. Spare front and rear tire tubes.
3. Jerry can with about 100km worth of petrol.
4. 1 bungee net and 2 bungee cords.
5. Cramster colt saddle bags since I have a up-swept exhaust.
6. All original documents.
7. AGV helmet.
8. First Gear riding jacket and gloves.
9. Sketchers shoes.
10. WD-40 spray and Motul chain lube.
11. And of-course my camera. (Olympus SP 570UZ)

Even though I feel that I'm prepared I am little nervous. But I'm sure this nervousness will go once I hit the road.

I'm looking forward for an exciting trip.

Chennai-Siruvani-Ooty-Bangalore-Chennai

========================================================================
Chennai -375km - Mettur - 180km - Siruvani: (600 Approx)
========================================================================
Start Date & Time: 29-September-2010, Wednesday Time: 0400 hrs

Driving directions from Chennai to Karunya University
National Highway 47
528 km 8 hours 42 mins

A. Chennai, Tamil Nadu
204 km – about 3 hours 20 mins
B. Vaniyambadi, Tamil Nadu
89.8 km – about 1 hour 18 mins
C. Thoppur, Tamil Nadu
37.9 km – about 43 mins
D. Mettur, Tamil Nadu
172 km – about 2 hours 58 mins
E. Karunya University,Tamil Nadu 641 114

End Date & Time: 29-September-2010, Wednesday Time: 1400 hrs
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=======================================================================
Siruvani - 115Km - Ooty (125 Approx)
=======================================================================
Start Date & Time: 30-September-2010, Thursday Time: 1400 hrs

Driving directions Siruvani to Ooty
115 km 3 hours

A. Karunya University, Tamil Nadu 641 114
115 km – about 2 hours 18 mins
B. Ooty, Tamil Nadu

End Date & Time: 30-September-2010, Thursday Time: 1700 hrs
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=======================================================================
Ooty - 263km - Bangalore (300 Approx)
=======================================================================
Start Date & Time: 1-October-2010, Friday Time: 1400 hrs

Driving directions Ooty to Maruthi Mandir, Bengaluru, Karnataka
SH 17
263 km 4 hours 57 mins

A. Ooty, Tamil Nadu
126 km – about 2 hours 19 mins
B. Mysore, Karnataka 570001
137 km – about 2 hours 38 mins
C. Maruthi Mandir, Vijaynagar, Bengaluru, Karnataka

End Date & Time: 1-October-2010, Friday Time: 2000 hrs

----------------------------------------------------------------------

=======================================================================
Bangalore - Chennai (400 Approx)
=======================================================================
Start Date & Time: 2-October-2010, Saturday Time: 1500 hrs

Driving directions from Bangalore to Chennai, Tamil Nadu
National Highway 4/NH 4 and SH 113
352 km 5 hours 45 mins

A. Bengaluru, Karnataka 560001
40.5 km – about 44 mins
B. Hosur, Tamil Nadu
175 km – about 2 hours 36 mins
C. Vellore, Tamil Nadu 632001
137 km – about 2 hours 25 mins
D. Chennai, Tamil Nadu

End Date & Time: 2-October-2010, Saturday Time: 2100 hrs
----------------------------------------------------------------------

======================================================================
Summary:
======================================================================

Total Distance: 1425km + 200km misc = 1625km
Bike kmpl: 25
Average Fuel Consumption (Litres): 65
Average Fuel Cost (Rs): 57

Total Expected Fuel Cost: 4000
Accomodation: 1 night at Siruvani + 1 night at Ooty (500/- per night) = 1000
Food & Water & Misc: 4 days x 500/- per day = 2000/-
Procurring bike spares: Tyre tubes, clutch and accelerator cables etc = 1000/-
Others: 1000/-

Total Cash required in-hand: 9000/-
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Royal Enfield Classic 500 review

“Selfism” is a term which can be only realized and not explained. I realized it when I took delivery of my Classic 500 (Black) after waiting for six months. Since that I have ridden over 600 in the span of 10 days including a Pondicherry trip which is about 300Km up and down from Chennai. Here is my first impression.

Style:
There is only one word for it. “Classic”. On my trip along ECR I was so busy waving back at people that I found it difficult to concentrate on the road. I even got a wave from a guy who was riding a Honda CBR. The Classic looks great with the single saddle seat and the huge fenders not only keeps water/dirt out but also adds charm. The overall height is little low coz of the 18” wheels but the overall appearance is impeccable.

Engine:
This is the new UCE technology from RE. My initial feel was the engine was modern and more responsive. RE has adopted this engine so as to minimize the no. of moving parts and there by improving performance. The produces around 27BHP and 42NM of torque. Even after a 300km ride there was not even a single drop of oil. Surprise!!!!...

Performance:
The bike weighs around 190kg which is about 40kg more than your average bike. Yet it is no slouch. Classic 500 is one of the fastest accelerating Indian bikes. The bikes come good when you are in 4th/5th gears. The torque is amazing. 40-80kmph is the strongest region in this bike. You can cruise all day at 80-90kmph without breaking a sweat.

Handling:
The angle of the OEM bars puts a little strain on your shoulders. One thing you could do is tilt it towards your side. Trust me it is much more comfortable. There are has been a lot of flaks thrown at the zappers. Personally, I loved it. It looks good and it performance nicely. At least in Chennai. The heat makes the zappers to soften up and stick to the tarmac. It performed equally well in the rains. Probably MRF didn’t do much of cold weather testing and people in colder parts of India finds the zappers a handful. Softer after market tyres is always an option.

Mileage:
Lets face it people who spend 1.5L for 500cc bike will be very happy if they get 25kmpl. This is no “Hoodibaba”. Oh my previous bike was Bajaj Caliber 115 and it returned 60kmpl. :-o