News

How a Ladakh ride made me book a Scram 411 instead of the Honda CB300R

22nd September 2024, 10:33 by Rahul Nagaraj

Decided to stay away from all partnership entries like Harley, Triumph, BMW which shared platforms

BHPian Harsh23122002 recently shared this with other enthusiasts:

Hello BHPians,

This is my first thread on team-bhp, really very elated and looking forward to your opinions guys.

I've been reading threads and blogs on this forum since I was a kid XD, recently I've graduated from my college, I am a Software Engineer now, and with my first month's salary, I have booked a Royal Enfield Himalayan Scram 411 .

All it took was a Ladakh road trip and the possibility of this bike getting discontinued.

My college days ended with me using my roommate's Shine in Pune.
Really not a bad bike for daily commute to my internship office, but I was radiating a 20-year-old-uncle vibe with that bike under the seat.
BAD JOKE, anyways,

I was by then gonna be a resident of Pune and needed to own a two wheeler.
Decided to stay away from all partnership entries like Harley, Triumph, BMW which shared platforms, with some established brands here as they really were not a product of original company's vision. I'd have rather gone with their Indian siblings.
It had to be something very unique, so never thought about apaches and hornets or FZs.

The one bike I had my eyes on was Honda CB300R, it had the essence of Honda, by the way it looked, by the way it was positioned, took a test ride and damn it was a very close connection to the engine, it surely wanted to be rode fast, IT IS A REAL HONDA.

~30 ps of power and 27 Nm torque with a very light 146 kg chassis is.....
FAST !!! I was getting mad for that machine.

But then came my final semester exams and whoa, I've completed my college, which ended with me planning a Bike trip in Ladakh with my 2 friends and a cousin of one of them. The route was

Srinagar to Kargil:

Himilayan 411, Cold breeze, Greens and whites and mountains , everything perfect for a great start to this trip.

The bike is surely a gem of a design. I was comfortable to handle the bike along the bad roads with a pillion for long run, I felt confident to ride it, but it is a very heavy bike for me. After a good, day long run, we reached Kargil.

Kargil to Leh:

The altitude was increasing constantly, but the roads were smooth.

The Himis we had were the BS6 ones, the older ones are said to have weak chassis and more quality issues. Leh was colder. The next day, we were ready for Khardungla pass, once the highest motorable pass.

Leh to Nubra via Khardungla pass:

The sand dunes were amazing to look at but, very tricky to ride on when in path. Nubra was where we stayed for the night.

So, this was my first every bike trip, the organisation we had gone with was Deyor. The batch was of ~35 people from each and every part of India. From Tripura, Tamil Nadu, Rajasthan, Haryana, Gujarat, MP, Bengal, Bihar, Karnataka, Andhra, Delhi and Maharashtra to list them. Our ages were quiet lower than the batch's average age including their employees and the marshal.

People were really great, the bonding was even better.

Nubra to Pangong Tso:

Our destination was still 40 mins away and we were shivering already. Somehow, we made it to Pangong. The night was fun, some drinks, music and bonfire was all it took for everyone to get up and dance, it was really very precious.

Pangong Tso to Hanle:

The Instrument Cluster is nearly a piece of art!

Sadly, Umling La was not the part of the itinerary.

Hanle to Tso Moriri:

Roads are now less asphalt and more earth. These bikes are really meant for this, it is their home turf.

Tso Moriri to Sarchu:

Views from Ghata Loops were breathtaking. The journey of the day was long, but the off-roading was longer.
We were crossing the border and entering Himachal at Sarchu, our stay for the evening.

Sarchu to Jispa and Jispa to Manali:

Crossing the state border brought us new bikes, with HP plates. The lot had a majority of 411 Himis and some handful 450 Himis and Scram 411s.
I was sharing my bike as a duel rider with my friend but they had extra bikes, so this gave me a Scram 411 for my own till Manali.

The bike was already very alluring.

The road to and away from Barcha La Pass really gave me an opportunity to know this bike, Scram 411. I found myself getting more and more attached to the machine. It really did well, I was confident enough to attack the corners, it is really something.