[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Got PPF done on the bike finally, the panniers especially was starting to collect scratches from accidental boot kicks everytime i get on or off the bike. Went for UltrashieldX from The Detailing Mafia thanks to my previous good experiences with the center in Trivandrum.













Pics once back home -

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Had a short and sweet ~350kms ride over the weekend to Vaniyambadi that also brought up 7000 kms in about 4 months of ownership. The Tiger Sport has turned out to be good fun over a very wide variety of situations from city commutes to fast highway breakfast rides to long distance touring - that it is currently getting used at an average more than 50kms per day of ownership

This was also the first significant ride with a pillion and the Tiger Sport turned out to be good fun with the preload set correctly. Pillion comfort is better than my old Versys as per her comments with only one negative - High blast of air on top of the helmet with the stock windscreen. A taller windscreen or Prospec add-on, along with a top box with pillion backrest can make this an absolutely comfortable experience for pillion.

The breakfast ride machines: Was fun to watch the R1 zoom off. Also was interesting to see the four different ADVs together- 500X, Versys 650, Tiger Sport 660 and VStrom 650. Then the rarely witnessed rivalry between the Ninja 400 and the RC390. Not to mention the surprisingly fast Meteor 350

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Ride to Markonahalli Dam

Had a short and sweet breakfast ride this weekend, with BHPian KarthikK on his new Kawasaki Ninja 400. For those who missed the update - he had recently added the Ninja 400 as the 4th bike to his garage, which already included the Ninja 1000, Honda CB500X and Yamaha FZ25. Details here - http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/superb...ml#post5585133

He wanted to do a photoshoot with the bike and as has become a tradition - I tagged along with him for the shoot as well.

Filling up the tank with Shell regular, since the IndianOil XP95 bunk I frequent was not open:



There was rain overnight and a 2km stretch of road near my home which was dug up for some pipeline work turned into a slush fest. I was expecting Karthik to call and cancel the photoshoot at anytime he encounters a rain water patch, but thankfully his side of Bangalore remained dry.



Slow progress:



But soon I was on the highway and enjoying the company of some random superbikes till my meeting point with KarthikK.



KarthikK waiting patiently at the meeting place whereas I was 10 minutes late than planned, thanks to the slushfest and the traffic jam around it.



Markonahalli Dam is one of our usual photoshoot places, but when we reached there this time - it was too dirty with plastic cups and bottles left all over. Looks like it has recently become a favourite destination for local drinking parties.



Nature as beautiful as ever:



Karthik made an attempt to still do a shoot, similar to the one we had done for his Ninja 1000. But had to abandon ground.



Heading in search of a better location nearby:



Found one. Clean, green, but with no view of the water. But this should do for the day.



One shot with the Ninja 400:



The lime green Ninja 400 is a pure attention grabber. Turns quite a few eyes as I noticed today morning. Believe Karthik gets more requests for selfies with the 400 than with the 1000



While he gets going with the photoshoot, I wander off to explore the nearby roads. The entry road on top of the Dam was closed for vehicles, but a broken section of road closer to it led me to the spillway area:









Couple of shots with the Tiger Sport:



Disclaimer: The side railings were removed with the AI editor on the phone. Please don't be disappointed after reaching the place and then seeing the view is not so uncluttered.



Back at the photoshoot location, and taking rest in the shade while Karthik is still busy at work. Have to admire the dedication he puts into his ownership reports.



Much needed breakfast stop:



Back on the road after breakfast. KarthikK warning me not to overtake him



Couple of rolling shots of the Ninja 400, captured on the helmet cam:





Roads like these:



Saying our byes at Nelamangala toll. I took the scenic Haserghata route from there to home, whereas Karthik continued on to NICE road.

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Riding Gear Update

With the ISI rule for boots coming in place (By Nov 1st?) and the stocks expected to reduce, I went ahead and replaced my old Forma Adventure shoes which had served well for almost 5 years now.

Picked up Alpinestars Corozal Drystar boots as the replacement

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Break-in ride with the CB500X around north Bangalore.

The first ride after picking the bike was with my friend on his CB500X, around North Bangalore, the very next day. Although no run-in is required for a used bike, decided to ride safe and normally for this one - and roamed around the Nandi foothills - Chikballapur region.

Was surprised to see the bike being more compact than the 500X, which is globally acknowledged to be a convenient allrounder package.

First sighting - Some pictures at the meetup point:









Few pictures of the Tiger Sport at Nandi basehills:





The CB500X and Tiger Sport 660 together:

Night ride CB500X and Harley Fatboy

The same week we had a short night ride towards the airport with a Harley Fatboy for company as well:

Breakfast ride with friends

First ride with the gang, a short breakfast ride to the Krishnagiri for breakfast and Attibele for Gudbud ice cream in the morning

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Breakfast ride with the two CB500X

Joined for a breakfast ride with KarthikK on his CB500X and my friend on his! Good company then - to go and eat woodfire idli prepared in a traditional old shop.

Waiting at the meet-up point:





A small photoshoot with the three red bikes:













KarthikK with his CB500X. Where is the ownership report, Karthik?



The breakfast:

[Red Liner]

Congrats. Woodfired idli looks the deal. DM me the location so the whole of Bangalore influencers don't land up there and destroy it lol.

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Originally Posted by Red Liner

Congrats. Woodfired idli looks the deal. DM me the location so the whole of Bangalore influencers don't land up there and destroy it lol.

This has already happened.

The guy was telling about how his place is getting too popular after the visit of a popular food vlogger - with reviews dropping because many don't like the old shop ambience and the long wait because of this crowd.

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Breakfast ride - Markonahalli Dam

Early June - I went for a short 200km breakfast ride to Markonahalli Dam. Joined my friends- BHPian ebmrajesh on his Ninja 1000, our friend Maha on his (very familiar) Versys 650 and KarthikK and his wife on the Ninja 1000. Karthik was on a longer weekend ride and only joined us for the breakfast leg as he usually does.





















Some pictures from the breakfast place.







Exchanging bikes for the return leg - Me on the Versys 650 (after such a long time... ), Rajesh on the Tiger Sport 660 and Maha on the Ninja 1000.



Karthik continued his onward journey for the extended weekend. More details can be had on his ownership thread



Rajesh's N1k fell victim to some large nail, or we suspect some leftover screws from.road markers. Getting that sorted took about two hours and turned out to be a royal pain even though the tyre shop was just 200meters from the place we got stuck, thanks to being on two sides of the barricade.

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

One more from the old timeline... 18th June this time!

Breakfast ride - Krishnagiri circuit

This was a Sunday ride starting through Sarjapur road and coming back via Hosur Road, with breakfast and ice cream to go! KarthikK joined with his Yamaha FZ25 this time around, ebmrajesh with his KTM 390 Adventure, my friend on his Honda CB500X, another of our friend on this Royal Enfield Meteor 350.

Nice location for a photoshoot, it dry and sandy here in the summer and Karthik calls it the Tamil Rajasthan. Was green this time around:



Our bikes at the location:



A closer look:



The 390 Adventure standing tall with its aftermarket screen:



The humble Tiger Sport 660 next to it:



The Honda CB500X



Meteor 350:



KarthikK posing with his Yamaha FZ25:



KarthikK has riding gear specific to each vehicle. Checkout his Yamaha riding gear for the FZ25. Looking cool



Another angle from the same pose:



One last group shot before we move on:



Excellent back roads for company. This particular stretch was looking so good, we stopped for a small photo break again



The bikes together:



The KTM 390 Adventure looks business. Menacing and ready to pounce:



CB500X is designed as laid back as it rides:



The Yamaha FZ25:



Meteor 350 was surprisingly fast on this ride, it changed my perspective frankly. RE surely is doing a nice job with all their recent launches!



The Tiger Sport looking comparable to the 390! I quite love the packaging from Triumph to make this so easy to handle, despite the larger motor.



One last look at the beautiful road and the group of bikes before we call it a day:



Breakfast was from two places. Dosa from one of our usual stops and ice cream from another. Yummy way to end a nice little morning ride.

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Jumping back to the current timeline:


The Tiger Sport 660 crossed 10k kms on the odo today.

Since I took delivery when at 2,288 kms on the odo - 7,712 kms have been under my ownership of 148 days, at an average of 52 kms per day.

Came up during a wonderful day ride to Chikmagalur today - with good friends, good weather, good food and good amount of fun.

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Chikmagalur Cheesecake Ride

Did a ~570kms, 13 hour ride yesterday to Chikmagalur and back. The plan started with ebmrajesh proposing a ride to Coffee barn cafe in Chikmagalur to try their sumptuous cheesecakes - but soon got clubbed with Bisagnimutt view point visit as well. Five bikes joined in for the ride - ebmrajesh on his KTM 390 Adventure, shaikhmimran on his Suzuki VStrom 650, our friends Senthil on his Royal Enfield Meteor 350 and Maha on a very familiar Kawasaki Versys 650.

The route:



The bike was extremely dirty and had dried slush from the last outing. I couldn't get it washed over the week and hence cleaned the underbody and the chain before the ride. Prepped:



At the meeting point. Four of the bikes arrived on time, and then we received message from shaikhmimran that he just started from home - so we proceeded towards the breakfast point. Initial plan was to stop at Paakashala, 60 kms from the meeting point - but since the weekend crowd was too much and we could cover some distance before the traffic picks up - we decided to push the breakfast point to Empire restaurant before Hassan.



At Empire, Hassan. They have ample parking space and outdoor seating (which will become a boon later on in the day!). We helped ourselves with mini tiffins, Kesari, coffee and tea, while waiting for Imran to join us.



Imran arrived 20 minutes later and helped himself to some breakfast. Meanwhile, we also called KarthikK who was on another of his weekend adventures, to find out he was just ahead of us on the route. Details should be out in his thread soon.



Another angle of the bikes, thanks to Maha:



Coffee Barn cafe was 2 hours away and we encountered some weekend traffic in Chikmagalur.



Nice beautiful place at the entrance of a coffee plantation. I see this becoming quite a good success with the instagram crowd, if not already. A couple was seen posing in front of the washroom, of all places!



Main reason for the visit - Cheesecakes. Each of us ordered one! Rajesh has called them up a day before to ensure they would be adequate stock by the time we reached the place.



Some days they serve a coffee flavoured version, but today it was not to be



A curious visitor. Oh wait, we are the actual visitors to his place.



Back to the cheesecake - I felt they were nice and not very artificial or sugar loaded in taste but not really extraordinary. Others swear by the coffee flavoured one



Our bikes parked outside the Barn. Rajesh getting ready to roll out with his 390 ADV



Back, back, back... hit the kerb and bam! Our man lost balance, happily jumped off the bike and started giggling. "Did you capture it?" was his first response before even attempting to lift the bike. Cheap KTM spares, I tell ya



We roll out and within a few kms they stop for a small photoshoot. I'm missing because..



I stopped a km ahead to click this...



And this... The 10k kms mark on the odometer. As mentioned in the earlier post, only 7712 has been under my ownership.



Meanwhile, they do a small photoshoot. Here is shaikhmimran with his Suzuki VStrom 650



ebmrajesh with his KTM 390 Adventure



The Royal Enfield Meteor 350:



And Maha's good old Kawasaki Versys 650, which was once my black panther.



I soon join them at the location



A picture of all the bikes together:



This section was the highlight of the day. Excellent roads, beautiful weather and nice twisties. Had my footpeg scrape on one occasion and would have been scary - except I could see Imran handling it with grace up ahead.



Good fun despite the rain - these Michelin Road5s are absolutely brilliant and I sure might pay up the premium for these when changing the tyres next.



Bisagnimutt view point on a long weekend turned out to be a bad decision. Traffic piled up kms together, tourists parking their vehicles haphazardly, newbie drivers who have no clue on negotiating curves and bravehearts who think wrongside is their might. We finally turned around at the halfway point after wasting an hour for nothing.



Half an hour more to get back away from the traffic jam, in pouring rain. Finally able to get a breather. Atleast the weather and the views all around were lovely



Maha still has his spirits high!



A very dirty bike after all the rain. Morning prep be damned!



We headed back to Empire Hassan for a late lunch. Although it was already 4pm, we could get some biryani, chicken and paneer dishes for lunch.



The outdoor seating arrangement at Empire is a boon for bikers. We came in soaking wet and didn't want to go inside anyways. Lunch time was over and the crowds had left, so we could occupy a table for the gear.



Along with another one for lunch, topped up with some nice conversations:



Had a good run from Hassan to Nelamangala, with evening twilight making it the best time to do fast highway cruising.



Though it was already 6:30pm when we reached the last toll point and bid each other bye. The board is apt - The Tiger sure does have an unmatched legacy



Back home by 8pm with ~570 kms on the odo. The Tiger Sport will be restricted to commute duties this month as I have a tight work schedule coming up. Back to the old timelines till then...

[100Kmphormore]

The Tiger Sport looking comparable to the 390! I quite love the packaging from Triumph to make this so easy to handle, despite the larger motor.

I agree, the sleeker 660 and 850, though pricey, handle extremely well. The 800 was good too but like a Himalayan. You could feel the weight.

The Meteor managed to keep up with these bikes? With its power and brakes, I could only push it to 100 kmph, after which it’s outright wheezing. Gets vibey after that.

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Originally Posted by 100Kmphormore

I agree, the sleeker 660 and 850, though pricey, handle extremely well. The 800 was good too but like a Himalayan. You could feel the weight.

The Meteor managed to keep up with these bikes? With its power and brakes, I could only push it to 100 kmph, after which it’s outright wheezing. Gets vibey after that.

Him⁩ riding that Meteor is a true eye opener for me. We even joke that he got a prototype motor

He is able to maintain 120kmph though it takes longer than the big bikes to get there. Never realized the new 350s can carry this much of highway speed! I used to think the comfortable speeds were still around 90kmph.

I haven't ridden the new J series 350 bikes - so no comments to add there. Will try the Bullet soon mostly, just out of curiosity.

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Breakfast ride to Maralwadi Dam

Back to the old timeline once again, this time to the 25th of June 2023. Friends tell me I'm confusing the hell out of the few readers here by jumping timelines But anyways, there is still quite a lot of backlog for me to document - so likely I'll myself pull my hair out with these timeline jumps when reading this after a few years. Looking forward to suggestions if any.

Ok, so back to June 25th - this date also marked one year since I parted ways with the Versys 650. Glad my break from biking didnt turn out as long as i originally intended!

Four bikes joined the breakfast ride this time, shaikhmimran with his Suzuki VStrom 650, ebmrajesh on his KTM 390 Adventure and our friend Maha on his Kawasaki Versys 650. KarthikK is conspicuous by his absence because he decided to become a carguy for the weekend and crash a Beemer party.

At the meeting point- 5:30AM, Nice Road Kanakapura Exit.


The location - Maralwadi Dam, an hours ride on Kanakapura Road. We reached there before sunrise hoping to catch a glimpse:



This is a small Dam built across the river Arkavathy, a tributary of the river Kaveri.



Two other local bikers were the only souls around, and they were good company as well, suggesting us routes to explore nearby:



This Dam predates Independence and is also surrounded by beautiful vistas all around.



The narrow path leading to the dam:



We had some interesting discussions for an hour while waiting for the sunrise, but that luck was not to be. Sunrise happened behind the clouds. The other two bikers had even set a time-lapse video capture, but in vain.



Some photoshoot fun:



Meanwhile I was trying to put my Galaxy S22 Ultra to some zoom use. Since the others were iPhone users, I didn't get similar pics of myself riding out. Lol!

Maha with the Versys 650 riding out in style:







Followed by shaikhmimran on the VStrom 650:







And ebmrajesh on the KTM 390 Adventure:





The two boys we met suggested us a different route than what Google maps suggested and it turned out to be a blessing. Fantastic roads and nice semi forest scenery to match:



All the bikes assembled for a quick photoshoot:

















One group pic before riding off: All flavours of midsize ADVs present for the ride, if only KarthikK had joined with the Honda CB500X too!



ebmrajesh had to meet some friend at Hosur, so the rest of us carried on towards Attibele via the TVS Road. Here we are posing outside of the TVS factory, just because I was glad to have the three ADVs in this segment join together for a ride the first time.









It's stunning how remarkably different these three machines are to ride, a direct comparison just because of the form factor and pricing doesn't do justice IMHO.

Anyways, more on that in future posts. Thanks for reading... Next update would most likely be one more from the old timeline, this time a long one - Bangalore to Trivandrum and back.