[Red Liner]

Originally Posted by tharian

Wow.. Hats off to you for riding solo that distance in the heat wave and the determination.

I avoid rides in the summer, but last month I did something impromptu and realized I better stick to planned rides as that is when I got a taste of the 40c+ heat on the road.
My wife and kid was heading to Chennai by the early morning train and I had planned on a day ride towards Hogenakkal and instead ended up surprising them in Chennai.

Thankfully, I had mixed Electral in my Camelbak and carried some snicker bars and I guess that is what saved the day for me.

Curious to know how the bike performed on the trip. On my Interceptor, my inner thighs were roast every time the ambient temperature was high.

Originally Posted by Rshreyansh

Beautiful write-up, loved every bit of it. Crisp and engaging at the same time.
The exhaustion from riding in heat is real, but you certainly know when not to push the limits.

Do share some thoughts on how the 390's engine fared throughout the ride. Looking forward to the rest of the travelogue. Ride safe

Well, I am not going to say that everything went hunky dory. At Hyderabad while sitting in the hotel, I got so frustrated already that I was actually wondering if I should turn back to Bangalore and put the bike on a train to Delhi.

I have noticed that its always on the first day of a long ride like this that my mind plays the biggest tricks and tries to stonewall all my plans. I have already seen this happening a few times now and have understood the pattern. Next time, I should be better prepared to not listen to the mind.

After this, I ensured that I packaged my riding days into segments of the day where I would complete a certain number of kms. I made sure the mind did not think further into the future and come up with doomsday scenarios beyond that segment. In a way, I broke down what I had to do over 6 days into half day segments and went into attack mode. Then I rewarded myself with a nice experience at a nice place to stay for the night.

These are life lessons for me, which I hope will apply to every "difficult" thing I take up to achieve.

The speeds I kept on the 390 adventure was a constant 90-100-110 and never more. I like to ride constantly at a reasonable speed, as opposed to flying like a maniac and stopping for an hour after that. This ensures:

1. I spend more time on the road riding and covering distances
2. Since speeds are low, I am more alert, and my reaction time is better to adversities
3. I get to enjoy the scenery, watch people, do some background thinking, sing songs, listen to good music - you get the drift
4. The bike doesn't feel stressed out. Everything lasts longer - brakes, chain, tyres, and engine oil. So does petrol. I averaged about 33-35 kmpl throughout the journey.
5. Further I keep my daily distances realistic at 500-600k MAX. I start after dawn and end before sunset. Period - no discussion.

The bike performed well - and I think if you apply the above points - any bike will perform well under these circumstances. Its when we begin pushing our own limits that we begin to want to upgrade, more power, etc. Honestly, ofcourse I would love a bigger more comfortable bike - but I think I would do similar speeds and cover the same distances. The body doesn't lie.

[behindthewheel]

Excellent travelogue Red Liner. A good mix of humor and life lessons.

Really love the fact that you believe in living the journey and not riding endless from point A to B. Keep Riding Keep Enjoying

[kvamshi04]

Originally Posted by Red Liner

The ride didn't end here. But this log certainly does. Thanks for joining me. And don't ever ride out in a heatwave.

Hats off to you, for undertaking this adventure.
In May-2018, I rode from Hyderabad to Coorg, via Bengaluru and Mysuru. A 5 days trip in the blazing heat, didn't kill my riding enthusiasm. But has killed my appetite for bike rides in summer.

Looks like, you will remember this adventure forever!! Next time, if you undertake anything like this via Hyderabad count me in !!!

[sukhbirST]

Loved reading your great ride. Strong grit and determination is written all over. Riding in this extreme summer is not for the faint hearted. Good luck and many more to ride/drive.

[Raghu M]

Man, I generally do not read every word of huge travelogues because the pictures do the talking. Not that people out there do not make it engaging as well. It's just saving some time during work. But your write up was read every word, literally. First, your topic title was interesting. My thoughts after I read the title - which fool in the world would make such a journey in May and in India?' of course I was scratching my head. Once I started reading, your madness made total sense. Also, I guess I gained some confidence of doing a trip to the North in my car sometime in Aug. There is only one friend who was willing to do the trip along with me and I was wondering how could two people travel for 15 days in a car. You are my inspiration!

[forty6]

Hey, instead of having lassi, have chhach/buttermilk it is better for summers. Lassi is heavier and induces sleep and contrary to popular opinion isn’t better at this. Also, have onions. Chhaach and onions, sure shot thing to beat the heat.

[adityadeva]

Nice write up, I rode with you literally. It's a wonderful insight to staying out, avoiding oyos et al. It's a wonderful trip down the lane. Hoping to see more from you.

[adisan]

Originally Posted by Red Liner

I was actually wondering if I should turn back to Bangalore and put the bike on a train to Delhi.

Is it that you are relocating and chose to ride rather than get the bike transported? It takes quite a bit of courage to undertake such a ride in heatwave conditions!
Thanks for sharing the lessons learnt and information on diet, Oyo etc.

Originally Posted by Red Liner

...had booked at Oyo like most unsuspecting folks. On arrival, their check ins were canceled, and they were asked to pay 500-1000 bucks more over the Oyo rate if they wanted the room. This is also apparently very common practice.

Have experienced rude behaviour from Oyo staff after booking their properties a couple of times. Disheartening to know that this seems to be the case across several of their properties.
Their customer care was not very supportive, either.

[TheHelix0202]

Loved the wit and dry humor in this thread. Thanks for the useful tips as well!

[shady]

I was enjoying your thread on the north east India trip and out comes another one. It's a delight reading your travelogues with the humor. I've tried the wet t shirt trick while cycling along coastal Karnataka it works a bit longer while cycling.

[finneyp]

It was daring of you to ride a bike solo all the way from B'lore to Himachal during a hot summer!
Nice interesting narration of the trip!

PS: Are you Venkat who owned a Palio before?

[JaiHanuman]

Eagerly awaiting the rest of your write-up of the trip!!!

[Red Liner]

Originally Posted by JaiHanuman

Eagerly awaiting the rest of your write-up of the trip!!!

https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/trave...himalayas.html (Dual Sporting around the highest mountains in the world | Ladakh Himalayas)