Bangalore to Belgaum, roughly 480 kilometers road and Bangalore-Pune Highway is one of the best highways to ride in India. Especially for speed seekers. Many motorcycle riders use this road to complete the Iron Butt certificate. But my goal was to reach Mumbai, period.
I was on wheels by 9 am soon after breakfast. The road was smooth and the first time Avvy’s speedometer reached 127 km/hr. Yes, too low for a biker but was a shift to new gear. Also, I care for my bike as I do on humans.
Often I have been asked by fellow riders, ‘What’s the highest hit?’ I reply giggling utmost 60. Nonetheless, it’s never about the speed, it’s the control you have on clutch and brake. As long as these things are in your control, speed ain’t the thing you worry about, how good you know your machine, should be a skill too.
The first time I came across windmills, before that in Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara. Ironic? No, they were three, I’m here riding solo, too cool beyond school, right!?
In Belgaum, I was expected to meet my couch host, Shivani. A rider by passion, a banker by profession.
Belgaum is a very small town and nothing much to explore. Reached late afternoon but monsoon made the cloud glooming evening. So we spent the time at home discussing travel stories & life over drinks. He had a very good collection of music as well. We went out for dinner which was typically a food court with various stalls to choose. The crowd here was mostly from a local college because of that the prices are cheap as well. The sad part was all the options were vegetarian as it was a matter of only one night. After we finished our dinner Shivani insisted me to try Irani Chai, which I never had before. Post dinner having tea is like setting an alarm from sleep. But he took me in front of the stall and the smell of the tea failed me & I had too. Surely I didn’t regret it at all.
As I mentioned earlier, that tea kept me awake. But I wasn’t guilty as my plan of action the next day wasn’t too long, Pune was just 350 kilometers. I had no strong reason to take a break at Pune but I did hear from a friend, Pune is bikers heaven in India. So I wanted to justify that. But God had his plan.
In Pune, one of the most famous IT parks in Hinjewadi, and my host also resides there, Klaudia Kubicka. She is basically from Poland. Here she was working as a Geography Teacher in an international school, Mercedes Benz International School. Because of her odd timing at school was doubting the availability. But luckily I did meet her. Not just her flat, the view, the area….perfect urban living. Not typical metro city life yet all the good lifestyle of the city and close to greenery.
After evening hangout and dinner, we decided to visit Saniwar Wada for the Ganapati pandal and it was the day before the 10th day of Visarjan (Farewell day). So obviously I didn’t want to miss the chance.
After loitering for a bit and was time to head back and rain combined, visibility from the helmet was absolute blurry. The road was good, but the speed breakers were remarkable and unusual for me. Inside the city through an unknown road was giving me a very difficult time catching up with my fellow surfer friends. But I had to speed up to keep up with my route.
Agree or not in every city you will surely find some bike commuters who consider roads are their personal property and use it for movies like stunt platform. Unfortunately, I had to face one that night which put me in a situation where I had to use my break strongly to save another bike rider in front of me. At the same time, there was a speed breaker too. You exactly know what happens if you use a hard to break on wet road. So the scenario was the speed and the speed breaker made my bike land in a hard break as I didn’t want to hit the stunt man and the other rider. I skidded my bike. My falling was like a bouncing ball that ended to the road divider. Thankfully I was wearing my helmet which protected my head from being smashed by the divider. But as we went to a local place, I wasn’t with my full gear, just casual and slip-on, my knee to ankle was in really bad shape. What I know next that I was in a hospital the first time in my life.
See, I told you my many first time happened all in a day.
I am prone to numerous accidents but those incidents never ended up in the hospital. This time I am not sure, maybe I was alone in an unknown city, tired with less rest day after day, stressed how will I make it to my new job or… Could be anything. Or maybe it is just the mind. Or at the least, I did face an accident by accident.
At midnight and solely you who has to decide the next move also clueless about whom to reach out. My couch surfing host who was worried, and why not we just met today. yet she helped me to take me to the hospital. She even got into a fight with hospital staff as they were careless to attend me initially (Another bitter fact of the healthcare system).
There was no senior doctor available at that time in the hospital. And they were trying to keep me for the day. But they don’t know I have this phobia with hospitals. “Me spending night in a hospital bed?”. I had to sign the letter that I’m leaving on my own risk and managed to get out of there within a few hours after the tests and X-ray things were tried on me. To my fortune, I was granted 2 days to my joining. But honestly, I wasn’t even in a condition to walk. I was bedridden in Pune, but not more than that. I had to leave Avvy in Pune for his checkup and went to Navi Mumbai in a car as I had to figure out my accommodation and stuff before I start my new job.
To my readers, will know the cons of traveling when you are doing the first time. I am sure there are many out who would agree with me and also have their stories to discuss. Those who are still thinking of whether to do it or not, I bet why not? I would love to hear your story too.
