Imagine a group of men climbing up Asia's second largest earthen dam clad head to toe in heavy riding gear in continuously pouring rainfall. Imagine going on a trek in wet and unstable Wayanad clay soil while wearing heavy armored jackets and knee guards biting into your legs. Imagine the sheer awesomeness of 30 odd bikes revving past you in line astern formation, all with riders in full safety gear. If this sounds crazy, read no further. If this tickles your fancy, read on, for you, my friend are attuned with the spirit of biking.
The day started for me at around 3 AM as after a fidgety sleep racked by anxiety and thrill for the day's ride I woke and got ready for the ride. Saddle Bag had been backed earlier itself and only last minute stuff remained. As per a call received at around 0415 from Swas I contacted Titus and decided to meet up at North Fort Gate Junction in Tripunithura ( My home town).
The potent for the monsoon ride was quite good as I rode down from home regaled by a light drizzle and in a spirit of things to come our dear friend Titus was late by a few minutes. Together we rode upto the IBP Pump at Edapally, the designated rendezvous from which the plan was to start at 5 AM. 5 AM passed and went and then 6 AM and so forth. Fully decked up in riding gear, a couple of us waited out for the organizers and other riders to come up. A slight electrical fault in Jayamohan brother's Pulsar and an unimaginable wrong turn by Noel Don later we finally started out at around 0745. By now the rain had steadied into a constant affair and the line of 16 odd bikes revving past in the morning air must have brought quite a sense of wonderment in passers by as evident from their slacked out jaws and constant referrals to each of ours' brightly lit head lamps.
Well designed plans had been made earlier for two teams of 8 bikes, but all came to naught as we decided to just go as a group. Even then soon two adhoc teams emerged, the 90 plussers and the 80 minussers, with yours truly in the slower group. Though it had been barely half an hour since we started riding our spirits were quite low as it was giving a true reflection of the status of our own gastric system. Our longing for food was finally addressed as the lead riders stopped at a place near Triprayar called Valapad where we all surprised a little roadside fast food joint with our remorseless hunger. Our sheer joy of smelling food was only matched by the bright twinkle in the manager's eye as he sensed a jackpot morning for his business, a guess he did not have to correct as we all tucked in mightily. Despite rains forcing some of the riders eating outside to run for cover carrying their plates, it was a good meal which energized us for the ride ahead.
Starting again in due order we continued down NH17, the Edapally - Panvel highway which soon got confusing in its route as it went through the towns of Kodungallur and Kunnamkulam. Nearing Chavakkad we decided not to go via the Ponnani route and instead follow NH17 via Kunnamkulam where I distinctly remember me being almost the last in the pack. Riding through steadily falling sheet rain my onus was far less on speed and more on just moving forward and avoid the perils of the maddeningly fast traffic on the Trichur-Calicut stretch. Fully expecting to see the lead riders waiting for us slow turtles at some joint ahead, imagine my surprise at seeing all the 90 plussers coming from my rear!! The equation was totally bonkering for me and was only solved later in the day when we analyzed some crazy traffic snafus at Kunnamkulam which took the 90 plussers on an unnecessary detour.
After regrouping in the middle of the highway in the streams of water we finally set off. The further ride upto Calicut was more or less uneventful except for a point after Kuttipuram where I had to stop and rest for a while owing to a developing cramp in my right thigh. The knee guard I put over my jeans and under my rain pants was really constricting free movements and me and Titus who graciously agreed to wait for me carried on with the ride. Our lunch stop had been at Calicut, through some stretches of rides of which I have barely any recollection due to the pain in my leg. At the NH17 Bypass junction at Calicut we stopped for lunch and met up with the remaining Kerala xbhp'ians like Sreejith Krishnan and Vineeth. After a mediocre lunch and duly refreshed we set out for our final stop for the day, Sultan Bathery in Wayanad. Riding in formation again, we xBHP'ians wove our way in and out through the various speed breakers and traffic on the Calicut bypass road to finally get onto the Wayanad road. The roads went immediately narrower but degraded not at all in terms of tarmac quality. It was a delightful stretch of groovy twisties and stretches of straight to get the revs high. As we neared the town of Adivaram the looming peaks of the Thamarassery Churam (Pass) started intimidating me. I had not had much experience in Ghat roads except for short stretches in the Vazachal - Valparai so imagine my excitement as I reached the first of nine hair pin curves on this mountain pass made legendary in the anecdotes of a late comedian of malayalam movies, Kuthiravattam Pappu. The roads were severely cratered, at certain instances I really feared for my tyres as the rubble and exposed rocks were sharp to tear huge chunks out of the rubber. Thanks to the Almighty nothing spoiled our fun. Resting for a moment after the ninth hair pin we took some pictures and resumed our ride. The ride henceforth was again eventful as we negotiated the comparatively milder twisties of Vythiri, Kalpetta and Meenangadi on the approaches to Sultan Bathery. As dusk started approaching our various aches and sores started being more evident but before dusk we reached Sultan Bathery and after a short snafu on my part for being over reliant on Google Maps we finally reached our halt camp for the G2G, Issac's Hotel Regency. Getting off the bike had been hard but the beds in the room were extremely soft and comfy. After a sumptuous meal where we utilized the utmost and almost bankrupted the hotel for the buffet we went to sleep with the memories of the ride tantalisingly fresh in our mind and hopes and expectations for the next day's ride teasing us away from sleep. Our fellow xBHP'ians from Coimbatore had arrived and riders from Bangalore were expected in the morning. Thanks to the resourcefulness of ever wise Lijok, our nerves were smoothed by generous measures of the Royal Uncle's Medicine and Mallya's Finest.
Thus ended day one of the Inter State Get ToGether, Wayanad a day of much frustrations and ultimately much joy for me, a novice group rider.
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