Cycling Around

Ride to SavanaDurga and Manchanabele Reservior

2009-10-01T06:29:00.000-07:00

Date : Sunday ,Sep 27, 2009

The Savanadurga Rock

Group: More than 15 riders.

Sabjeewalas on the Magadi Road where I ate half Kg Tomatoes

The starting : We started at 0830 from Magadi Road - Chord Road Junction. Up to NICE road the ride was not fun. Lots of traffic and noise. Most of the times I was riding on the mud taking full benefit of my MTB.

Heading to...

On the way to Savanadurga : One of the riders was having some trouble in his bike. So he rode to Magadi, got it fixed and met us again on the turn towards Savanadurga on Magadi Road. On the way, we had breakfast and I again ate like monsters. The monolith is visible from far and the view is awesome all around the place. Lush green paddy fields and water logged at many places. We just took an idly break at Savanadurga and headed further.

I just came out of the water

The Manchanabele Dam : Now this is again a spectacular view! Blue colored water, savanadurga hill at the background, surrounded by green hills, blue sky with dense white clouds in between. Without wasting anytime, I was the first one to jump in the water. Few others rode their bike in the water itself.

Google Map has enough info for this route. Just remember the turn in front of Post Office

Return to home : Started climbing up and had a last view of the reservoir before the road turns on the other side of the hill. From Mysore road, I turned to the Nice road. I was allowed after some resistance. Riding on Nice road is fun and for the whole of 15 KM ride on it, I was having the view of the Manchanabele damn in my mind.

Ramesh with Machanabele and Savanadurga at background. He wasn't riding but was kind enough to drive his car as support vehicle at our slow speed. Many Thanks to him.

Stats:
Distance : 130 KM
Max : 52.1 KMPH
Avg : 21.0 KMPH

Bicycle ride to Bheemeshwari

2009-08-02T22:45:00.001-07:00

Date : Sunday ,August 2, 2009

The strong riders: Prashant, George, Samim and Dipankar

Group: More than 30 riders, most of them on MTB and others on road bikes.

To follow this route, upload the GPX file located at
http://reach2paresh.googlepages.com/2009-08-02_06_03.gpx
to
http://www.gpsvisualizer.com/map_input?form=google

The starting : We started at 0600 from Merida Junction aka Kanakpura Outer ring road junction. The first halt was at Kanakpura for breakfast.

Anita was more interesting in posing than the nasty truck behind her

On the Kanakpura Road: The whether was awesome while going and it was downhill most of the times. Whenever rodies used to overtake, MTBers were getting charged up.

Dipankar with his Rodie and my MTB

The Kaveri Valley : After taking the left turn from Sathanur, it was a village road which soon took shape of a very steep valley road. I was able to see Rushi in front but my chain came out once and he got disappeared. There was no one following me. This downhill was the time to take maximum out of my Trek 6000 with thick tires, suspension and disk brakes. I attained the max speed of 60 KMPH for the first time. Within minutes, Kauvery was flowing calmly on my left. Bheemeshwari was still 6 KM ahead but I saw the road bikers coming towards me. George was looking for a place to have a dip but Samim insisted to eat first and the jump in the water.

So excited!!!

The refreshing halt : We rode 500 meters ahead and reached to a village. Had tea and idlies. Soon others riders also joined us. After refilling ourselves, George took us to the Dip Point. Some of us jumped into waster, others dipped their feet and others just looked from outside. This dip in the Kauvery was the best part of the ride. Every time during a ride, I used to think of jumping in the lake or river. But this was the first time that I did it and that also in non other than the Mystic Kauvery.

Enough of camera holding, I am going in now...

The Killer return uphill : After around an hour, we started back towards Bangalore. All the downhill, where I hit 60, was waiting and smiling at me. Tried for some distance but then came off the sadle and started walking. Pushing the body out of limits was not good because I had to preserve enough energy to ride all the way back to home.

Very few guys were able to pedal their bikes, Go Rushi go...

Then I realized that if I keep on walking, I would reach home in 24 hours. So I put the bike in lowest gear and with enough patience, started pedaling again.

I know it was damn tough...

The Beering End : Finally, I was able to complete the steep section of the uphill and reached the Kanakpura road. Roadies were waiting there at a tea stall. Filled stomach with biscuits and curd rice and started back to Bangalore. Anand asked to wait at Metro so that we can have a mug of beer before leaving for home. The taste of beer was different today due to the satisfaction of crossing 200KM mark in a day.

Lets celebrate!!!

Stats:
Distance : 201 KM
Max : 60 KMPH
Avg : 22.1 KMPH

Bangalore Bicycle Championship: The off road trail ride

2009-08-02T22:31:00.000-07:00

http://www.bangalorebicyclechampionships.com had its third event as an off road trail ride event and I took part this time. It was a loop of 5 KMs and there were 5 laps. That made it a ride of 25 KM. More than 70 rides were present.

George in the middle came first. Geurge in red shirt, came second and Prashant in blue helmet came third.

That is me in action

My time was around 11 minutes and 25 seconds for a lap. The complete details of the timing were not available due to some issues

All the pics belongs to Mahesh Srinivas. Complete Collection : http://www.flickr.com/photos/purpwaltz/sets/72157621712722189/

Sarjapur Off Road Biking

2009-07-23T11:48:00.000-07:00

Date : Sunday, July 19, 2009

Riders got lost, lets wait for them

Group : More than 22 riders...

The perfect all-night-long party spot

Starting : The meeting point was the Sarjapur Junction at the Outer Ring road at 0600 hours. Many of us were late and we had to wait for them. Finally we started 0625 hours. Later I got call from others that they are still on the way. Might be they rode alone....

Sukhi, you are the leader

The countryside : Soon we were at the lush green country side. Because of the large group, the queue of rides were quite long. We had idlies at the regular place at Gunjur village and then again got disappeared in the woods. Came across a beautiful spot for picnic. There was hut, a pond and lots of lotus on it.

The lotus and the one-pic-please people

The series of falls : Abhin, was the man of falls that day. He got around 5 falls and 2 flats. The last fall was major and he got badly hit. he was brave enough to ride till Decathlon Store, which was our end point for the ride:

A village guy helping Abhin after his fall at the jump

Stats :
Distance : 54 KM
Max : 44 KMPH
Avg : 18.2 KMPH

Sarjapur Trail Ride, Bangalore

2009-07-11T23:19:00.000-07:00

Date : Sunday, July 12, 2009

Group :Ravi, Anand, Neera, Nitin, Rajat, Fareed, Priyesh, Francis, Baalu, many others and me.

Fixing the flats

Starting : I forgot my gloves and without them riding a trail would be difficult. Hecne, I moved back after riding for 2 KMs. Because of this I got late but was lucky enough to catch the other riders before they disappeared.

The Ride : The ride was good and the good weather was an added advantage. It was not much ride when one of us got a flat. Others checked their bikes and one by one, four bikes were having flats. A good break was taken there. After that Ravi leaded us to an Idly shop where all of us took breakfast.

So many flats?

We faced many dead ends today. Moving further, we passed around a lake and there were many rare birds around that area. One of them was really huge. There were also lots of skeletons lying around. One of us suggested to carry it with him to his home as a token of today's ride.

Flower Nursery and the breeding of the Cat Fish

Return : We reached to Decathlon Store on the Sarjapur Road. Got recharged there and also looked at the new arrivals. I will definitely visit there once I have spare money.

To follow this trail upload the GPX file located at http://reach2paresh.googlepages.com/2009-07-12_06_34.gpx
to
http://www.gpsvisualizer.com/map_input?form=google

Stats:
Distance : 51 KM
Max Speed : 44.6 KMPH
Avg Speed : 19 KMPH

Hesaraghatta Lake

2009-06-06T09:00:00.000-07:00

Flying Neera followed by others

Resting in the peace

Date : Saturday, June 06, 2009

Group : Amy, Nitin, Sumeet, Neera, others, and me

Starting : As usual, we started late from cubbon park. Neera joined us from IISc. Amy was leading us but was not sure of the directions. Asked many people and finally we were on the Hesaraghatta road. We were looking for some village roads but not everybody was ready to do the experimentation. The road was in good condition and lead us to the Hesaraghatta Village. After having breakfast there, we rode towards lake which is not far off.

Breathtaking view of the lake

The Lake : The place is gorgeous and the lovely weather multiplied the beauty. We went off road and took the bikes on the lake. Water was present only at the limited portion and rest of the land was covered by lush, soft and green grass till horizon. Soon there was chopper flying over us. May it was on a scheduled session.

The Chopper over us

Neera and Nitin on the Banyan Tree

The place around : Mesmerized by the greenery and the cool weather, everybody wanted to ride more. Hence, we moved further. On the road side, there was a huge Banyan tree. Neera and Nitin did not waste time to climb over it.

The yahoo maps with my GPS pointed to a return. After reaching there we came to know that it was only a trail and not any road.

To follow this route, upload the GPX file located at
http://reach2paresh.googlepages.com/2009-06-06_06_19.gpx
to
http://www.gpsvisualizer.com/map_input?form=google

The return : We took the village road for some distance which met the mail road after some time. Stopped once to have coconut and jack fruit and returned. I was not in mood to take the Tumkur road again which is full of heavy vehicles throwing smoke at face and honking on head. So I decided to take another road. GPS again helped me out and I found a good road to return back.

My Rating : To put it in simple words, The place is awesome! It is perfect place to camp over night and have fun in group. From biking point of view, it becomes good only after coming to less crowded roads. We did not take the village road and the initial ride on the Tumkur road was bad due to heavy traffic.

Stats :
Distance : 87 KM
Max Speed : 51.2 KMPH
Avg : 18.2 KMPH

Nandi Hills Downhill Trail Ride, Nandi Hill, Bangalore, India

2009-05-31T19:14:00.000-07:00

Nelly on his coconut Jump.

Date : Sunday, May 31, 2009

Preparation before the ride

Group : Modi, Nelly, Samim, Sree, Vivek, Pradeep, George, Joshine, few others and me.

Reached the top, about to ride down...

Starting : I started from my home at Koramangala at 0530 to the Jaksandara bus stand. The plan was to take the Airport Volvo bus till the Airport turn on NH-7. The plan worked. The driver and the conductor happily allowed me to carry my bike in the bus. I think there is no hard core rule for boarding volvo with your bike. Just start crying for this. If the bus is crowed then there is less chance. But on a Sunday early morning, the bus was having lots of free space.

George on the Rock

To the trail starting point : Got down at the Airport Junction at NH-7 and rode from there till Karahalli Cross (better known as Idly Point). On the ride, Samim overtook me on this Specialized Road Bike. I had Idly-Vada here and rode till the Mirza Circle on the Road to the Nandi top.

Vivek after the fall

On the Trail : It was a perfect and tough test for (a first timer like) me. I am not listing down any leanings or tips here because one has to keep in mind all the tips that are available on web and you-tube for mountain biking. I was slow because one minor mistake would have taken me to free fly and the directly to hell. The ride was great and I enjoyed it, without any fall. For second time, Nelly and others helped me to load my bike in the car to again go to up hill at the starting point of trail. We started again. Thigh muscles were keeping the body above the saddle and working as a suspension. Fingers were braking all the time. Brain was trying to concentrate on the trail. This is where I was not up to the mark. I was feeling hungry and my stomach my tickling me. This disturbed my concentration and I fell down. Thanks to my cheap knee pads because of which I just got a minor scratch in spite of falling on the rock.

To follow this trail, upload the GPX file located at
http://reach2paresh.googlepages.com/2009-05-31_10_32.gpx
to
http://www.gpsvisualizer.com/map_input?form=google

This was the time I noticed the functioning of unconscious mind. I am always conscious to not to apply front brake in down-hill. But when I fell my fingers pressed the right brake levers on their own. Nelly explained this behaviour. I (and most of the people) are right handed. So the unconscious mind uses that hand/fingers under emergency. Thus my plan is to switch left level to front and right level to rear brakes.

At Idly Point after the first round of downhill

After coming down second time, I had tomato rice at the Idly junction and then rode back to my home. I was expecting rain but only got the motor bike smoke.

Me on the trail...

My rating : It is not-so-easy trail and if you are not confident enough then should not try it. There were many first timers also so doing it should not be that tough also. Keeping the low speed is ok and getting down the saddle at tough points is no shame.

Its not just about serious riders. Fathers with their kids can also have a lot of fun

The cop seems to be in thinking mode, no wonder, anyone would be

Stats:
Distance : 100 KM
Max : 53 KMPH
Avg : 20.9 KMPH

Note : All the photographs belong to Modi : http://www.flickr.com/photos/modi-kumar/sets/72157619105052774/

Off Sarjapur Road, 11APR09

2009-04-11T00:48:00.000-07:00

Date : Saturday, 11 April, 2009

At sunrise, Ravi, Peeyush and Abhi

Group : Abhi, Gautam, Jhon, Kalyan, Peeyush, Ravi, me

A good but not great place for some action

Starting: We started from Sarjapur Junction at 0605. Soon we were on the back side of Ecospace Tech Park and Intel Campus. Took a sharp turn towards east from there to avoid all the urban waste. The trail ahead was having lots of loose mud. Every component of the bike along with my shoes and socks were full of dust.

The complete route.
To follow this trail, upload the GPX file located at

http://reach2paresh.googlepages.com/2009-04-11_06_02.gpx
to
http://www.gpsvisualizer.com/map_input?form=google

Further, we crossed the Railway line and then there were a lot of trees having unripened mangoes.

Guys enjoying mangoes on the trees

The lost fellow: We moved ahead but did not see Gautam following us. Abhi called him and came to know that he had some issues with his rear derailleur wire. We rode back and Ravi fixed the wire.

Peeyush posing and others waiting for Gautum

The falt tire : Every time one has to get a flat tire and this was Peeyush's turn. Soon after we started from the same place of breakfat, Peeyush noticed that the front tire has gone flat. We were on main road and there was a shop in front of us to fix that. But Peeyush got a denial from there. May be that guy just fixes the thick tires of trucks or buses.

Fixing the flat

The Jump site: We reached a place that was having good humps to have long and high jumps. Doing many to and fro rounds was an exciting experience.

Location : http://www.wikimapia.org/#lat=12.9004331&lon=77.7324343&z=15&l=0&m=h&v=2

Learnings:
** Both the tires should land at the same time.
** And that depends on how you leave the land.
** Push the handle and when the suspension is decompressing, pull it up and fly off.

The same breakfast point

The fall: Every time someone has to fall and this time was for Ravi. He took a jump and lost balance in the air. The result was a crash landing. After cleaning the mud, Abhi applied the spray on the wounds. Ravi was not very comfortable after that and headed to his home from Sarjapur Road. I hope, he does not get serious injuries.

Ravi confused to go further or not

We trailed further and then dispersed.

My Rating:
Goods:
The jump site was awesome.
The trail was mostly off road.

Not-so-good:
The initial loose muddy part.
Comparatively short ride.

Abhi smiling at ...

Stats:
Distance : 54 KM (For Sarjapur Junction : 40 KM)
Avg Speed : 17.8 KMPH
Max Speed : 36.5 KMPH

Off Sarjapur Road, Bangalore

2009-04-04T10:00:00.000-07:00

Date : Saturday, 04 April, 2009

Me on my Trek 6000 during sunrise. Image by Anand

Group : Anand, Ravi and me.

Ravi near the old Banyan tree with thousands of huge bats

Starting : We started from Sarjapur Junctions at Outer Ring Road at 0600. Few others were also supposed to join but after waiting for sometime, we decided to move on.

This is not a trail

The Ride: Ravi was having experience to lead us and he did the job very well. We took a left from the main road and after a short stretch of streets, dirt trail was under the bike. We crossed the Railway track and beyond that I have no idea where were we. Most of the times, I was just following Ravi because this was my first off road ride. But this does not mean that Ravi was knowing the way. :) Many times there were narrow trails which are used by village people.

Short break under the tree

There was no rule or map which was guiding us. We met few dead ends but then coming back was not at all a pain. Once, we reached at a place where we were covered by jungle on the three sides. Ravi suggested to cross it and we followed him. This was a good one.

Having idly as breakfast

Few pics from a place to have some good actions:

The Fall: I was following Ravi. There was sharp left turn required to escape a ninety degree fall. I did the the very common mistake. I was looking at the point where I was not supposed to go. The same old human mind played its role and I landed up side down with my bike on me. Got a small scratch on left knee and then a lot of flies on it. These flies got disappointed when I applied antiseptic spray on the scar.

The flat tire: Anand got a flat tire again. This happened with him two of the last three rides. Not sure what is happening with his bike. We thought that pumping some air into the tire will help us for few miles. But he again did a very common mistake. He did not support the valve while pumping the air. Result? The tube got a cut near the valve. I was having a spare tube which is used. I hope, he does not forget it and returns a new tube to me. :)

The Culprit

How happy he is after fixing the tire

Finally, after covering all the unknown trails, we were on sarjapur road. While returning, we stopped at the new Decathalon Store. Sharath escorted us in the store and I am really happy to see such a place in India where such a good variety of sports and trekking gears is available at a reasonable price. We also got a test ride of Rockrider 6.

Break along the Rose Garden

Then we dispersed to our homes. The ride was awesome and many thanks to Ravi.

Stats:
Total Distance: 59 KM
Max Speed: 50.7 KMPH
Avg Speed: 18 KMPH

Ride to Nandi Hills, Bangalore, India

2009-03-22T21:33:00.000-07:00

Date: Sunday, March 22, 2009.

Me in red shirt along with ChosZang. Pic taken by another friend who visited Nandi on Motorbike

Group: We were around 30 riders all from Bangalore biker club. Few of them were on road bikes and others were on MTBs. few others drove their SUVs to Hebbal or Nandi Hill turn and joined from there.

Starting: I started from NGV, Koramangala at 0530. Reached Trinity Circle at 0545 and waited there for 10 minutes for other 3 riders. After reaching Columbia Asia Hospital at Hebbal, I again waited for 45 minutes for others to come.

The way: Around 20 of us started from there. Road bikes were fast and disappeared in a minutes. MTB riders were riding according to their own pace. After reaching Nandi Hill turn on the NH-7, I noticed that all other rides were having breakfast. I had Bananas and Tiger biscuits. Later I came to know that the breakfast was very delicious. Not sure why, but the food on road sides always tastes good. :)

From there I started and stopped at the base of Nandi Hill. I bought water from there and stretched my body. I had never been to Nandi Hill before. So not even knowing what was there in front of me.

The climb : I put my Trek 6000 in appropriate gear and started. It was 7 KMs of that deadly climb. I had nothing in my mind except one thing, that I am not going to give up. Breathing deeply and not loosing the momentum was the key. But soon, the roads were getting more steep and all such keys stopped working. It was very tough for me to convince my mind and then my body for moving ahead. Each and every 100m was looking like a huge pain.

Then happened a strange experience. There was a car full of crazy guys. They had music on at high volume and shouting aloud. I noticed them and thought that this must a group of friends having fun. But then the car passed me throwing a lot of water on my face. It hit hard to me. The car was descending down at least 60-70 KMPH. I was already struggling and added to that was this sharp pain on my face. I was not able to see anything because of water on my glasses. But stopping was out of question. If I had stopped and lost the momentum, it would have been very tough to start again. I continued... and with in 2-3 minutes that ridiculous act of those insane guys helped me. Due to the water my body became cool and I was happy for that finally. The only wish is, next time they throw the water in a gentle manner. :)

Moving ahead, I realized that I cannot move anymore now. I stopped and filled my stomach with one packet of Tiger biscuits. Drank half a liter of water. Just at this time, I saw road bikers were coming down. Looking at them was another confidence boost up. I started again. The ride was very tough ahead. I had never pushed my mind that much in the whole of my life. Then I noticed the 1 KM mile stone. I was so exhausted that every 100m was a pain for me. Doing 10 such 100m was out of question. After around 200m I almost gave up. But then I saw the gate for Nandi. This was another boost up for me. I stood on the pedals and used whatever I was left in my ass. Finally, reached Nandi and joined other three riders who were waiting for me.

Downhill Ride: Riding down was a great fun. While climbing above, I was thinking that why people do this tiring ride again and again? I had the answer now. I was able to touch 50 KMPH, which is highest for me. The return journey was not that easy because the sun was high in the sky. But I did not stop. Finally, reached back to home at 1345.

Stats:
Max Speed: 50 KMPH
Av speed: 21
Distance: 134 KM

============================================================
Nandi Hills - II

Date : Saturday, 18 April, 2009

Group : Alone

Whats next : It rained Friday night and I thought it would be good to ride in this weather. But today morning, the sky was crystal clear. I was riding on NH-7 and saw the sun rising. Even at that time the intensity was high. I was feeling hunger and decided to go to Nandi Hill turn on the NH-7, where idly is available as breakfast. But there was nothing today and thus I had to ride further to eat something. After reaching the Nandi Hill base, I thought if I have come so far, let go up then. :)

I met another road biker and two guys on their MTBs. The MTBikers were looking very tired and I saw them dragging the bike up when I was coming downhill.

The good part this time is, my max and avg speeds are better than the last time. :)

Stats:
Max Speed: 56.5 KMPH
Av speed: 22.9
Distance: 134 KM

Ride to Yogavana Hills, Bangalore, India

2009-03-14T09:49:00.000-07:00

Yogavana Hills:

For Pic (These are not mine):
http://picasaweb.google.com/prashantgy/YogavanaHill#
http://www.flickr.com/photos/31390098@N03/
http://picasaweb.google.com/deeprb/TourDeYogavana?feat=directlink

A total of 12-15 bikers decided to ride to Yogavana Hills on Saturday, 14 March '09.

I met Peeyush at Airtel Office, near HDFC Bank at 0545 on 20090314. Then we waited for CPK for 10 minutes. But there were few issues. CPK's friend, Manish was waiting for him on the other entrance of Bosch and his bike was having less pressure in the front tire. All the attempts of filling up the tire were waste. All four of us rode till Jayanagar and it was already 0640. The meeting time at Merida Junction was 0630. Then CPK asked me and Peeyush to leave. We started and reached Merida Junction but No one was there. I tried calling Prashant but he did not pick up the call. Assuming that we would be able to catch other rides, we started to ride on the Kanakpura road.

This is where I and Peeyush met others in the group.
http://www.wikimapia.org/#lat=12.8218444&lon=77.5144887&z=18&l=0&m=h&v=2

This was my first ride, so I introduced my self to all other. After waiting for some 5 minutes, we started.

This is where Prashant fell off from his bike.
http://www.wikimapia.org/#lat=12.7968249&lon=77.5055784&z=18&l=0&m=h&v=2

He was trying to take pic of others while riding. The road was in turn and he did not notice a pot hole. It was good that he was not badly hurt, his camera was safe and no big vehicle was coming from behind.

This is where, Anand got a flat tire.
http://www.wikimapia.org/#lat=12.76564&lon=77.4876881&z=18&l=0&m=h&v=2

Peeyush and Chos tried to fix it but there were many punctures. At this point, Pradeeep and Ashish also joined us. Pradeep had an extra tube which was used finally.

This is the right turn that we took:
http://www.wikimapia.org/#lat=12.7592884&lon=77.4860144&z=18&l=0&m=h&v=2

Another Point on the route:
http://www.wikimapia.org/#lat=12.7619253&lon=77.4699801&z=18&l=0&m=h&v=2

The route is straight and not the right turn
http://www.wikimapia.org/#lat=12.7621503&lon=77.4631459&z=18&l=0&m=h&v=2

Took the left on the rocky way uphill:
http://www.wikimapia.org/#lat=12.760293&lon=77.4612093&z=18&l=0&m=h&v=2

Destination:
http://www.wikimapia.org/#lat=12.7576613&lon=77.4605173&z=18&l=0&m=h&v=2