Why o Why did I have to do it again? I distinctly remember deciding against this route/ride. A writeup on the experience with "Gnarls Barkley - Crazy" playing in the background... apt atmosphere I say. So here goes the rest of the sweet sufferfest with the meager photos i managed to capture with the 2MP phone cam.
The original plan was to make it a non-stop or a least stop ride and carrying enough food for the entire trip with the 2011 Apr Brevet ride buddy. However, last minute changes were inevitable and that soon changed my goal to a different kind. Finish the brevet about just over an hour to spare was the target. With the bike tune up pending, respite from work at office seemed a far cry. Managed to get the bike ready in about a couple of hours. Lights .. check, reflective vest .. check, Gatorade.. check, pump n puncture kit .. check. Managed to get about 4hrs sleep. Not really a good idea especially when a sleepless 40hrs lay ahead. This event seems to have the highest number of registrations for a 600Brevet in India with riders from Chennai Coimbatore. Met Sundar sir and his Pinarello Dogma which certainly is a beauty.
Chidu with his "Gatoride" Sport1. Yeah this is not a new brand from Decathlon but Chidu's bike frame all wrapped in Gatorade sachets. Met DeepSan with his tourer (Bianchi Volpe). The start point last year was Gymkhana gate near IISc, Yeshwantpur. This was shifted to kanakpura road so one doesn't have to dodge the city traffic the morning. Instead the route was extended by 6 miles so out and back it was 12 miles to cover up the distance between the old and the new start point.
Here's the route map of the ride.
Met Sohan and agreed to finish the ride together as this ride that would get him the SR (Super Randonneur) title. A super randonneur is awarded to the one who completes 200, 300, 400 and 600 all in the same calendar year. Riding a constant pace, eating/hydrating regularly became my priorities on this repeat ride. There's a big difference when I rode this route back in July 2012. With two of the toughest climbs at Harohalli-Jigani and Pallikonda-Palamaner and total elevation gain of about 3600 m, this is one tough route !! The bikes just loved the newly laid tarmac on kanakpura road. Vasu was waiting about 10 kms ahead of Sathnur as a manned control. Once all the riders made it through, he would be able to continue to wait at the next secret control before the Jigani climb. As Sohan, Kalpesh and I got our cards stamped it was time to gear up for a tough climb. The searing heat drained the batteries real quick. Sohan managed to capture the riders attention by giving us a lead on ice-cream parlor immediately after the climb. This worked its charm and riders were ready for the treat but had to travel a few more kms after the summit. We soon reached a small canteen and a bakery adjacent to it. I downed a couple of scoops of vanilla.
Instant energy source but not so healthy to cool down so quick which i learned in another 15kms. Parched throat, an unsound body and I was thinking of dropping off at attibele and head home. However, the superlicious curd rice with the masala butter milk at Attibele sponsored by Sohan were just what was needed to cool the engines and immediately felt better. It was Karthikeyan, Sohan and I who continued from this point on till krishnagiri. Enroute we met Chidu whose rear derailleur broke and that ended up damaging a spoke. While Rafi tried to get it converted to a single speed, it still wasn't such a good idea to continue with a broken spoke as the chances of breaking more spokes is likely in the bad stretches at palamaner. So he planned to take the bus to Bangalore from Shoolagiri while the rest of the riders prepared for the night ride. After a quick shot of cappuccino with Sohan and Karthikeyan, it was a fast downhill all the way to Krishnagiri. We agreed on planned stops after every hour to stretch and nibble on dry fruits. This worked really well and we kept going at a good speed and about 10kms before vaniyambadi tollbooth, we stopped for dinner. Had couple of plain dosas nearly twice the size that is normally served in Bangalore. Washed it down with a soda. This worked its magic till about early morning. About a km before pallikonda toll we stopped to eat. This time it was a truckers dhaba which served fried rice and turned out to be surprisingly tasty. From this point it was 25 kms to the next control and we reached in just over an hour. As we were descending on a flyover, I heard noise similar to running over a metal plate and on looking back, Karthikeyan wasn't to be seen on the highway. As I hurriedly stopped and looked back he was instead lying on the bridging gap between the highway and the service road. Just one of the flavors of riding Brevet caught him unaware. Dozing while riding the bike is life threatening. I did experience the loss of concentration on a couple of occasions but chatting with Sohan time and again kept me going. Listening to music might be a personal choice to stay awake but trying to chat with fellow riders should help to some extent as it proves to be a welcome change from the long monotonous highway rides. There were a few scratches on the rear brake disc and Karthikeyan seemed unhurt as he quickly regained himself. I remember reading about the memory loss of few seconds when cyclists crash. This did turn out to be scary as the last thing he remembered was seeing a board which indicated 'katpadi 10 kms' and we already had travelled more than 5 since then. A quick bike inspection and we were off to Katpadi. Sriram was just entered Katpadi as we were ready to leave. We waited for Kalpesh and the group size increased to 4. Then we conveyed to Sriram that we would wait at CCD near Pallikonda. The coffee break and a power nap was just what was needed to rejuvenate the weary eyes and the saddle sore. Managed to get a power nap of 25 mins which seemed like 25secs then we were off to see Vasu at Pallikonda tollbooth. We now turned to State highway and entered Gudiyattam. The group got bigger as we were joined by SriRam from chennai. A double bonanza as it turned out to be for Sriram as he encountered two climbs in the same brevet :-D. We rode at a steady pace till we stopped at Gudiyattam for breakfast. Each of us ended up feasting on fresh hot idlis and vada with the typical andhra style 'peanut' chutney.
Another surprise awaited us at the Palamaner climbs. With the uncertainy of the ride or the rider's performance on the climbs looming about, there was mostly silence as the huffing and puffing started. As we neared the last few kms of the climb, we were covered in mist.
(Photo Courtesy - Pradeep naidu)
Making it a great time for recovery as we then entered Palamaner and headed towards Mulbagal after a short watermelon break. Sohan set the pace as I tried to pull for sometime. We kept switching as much as we could. This stretch has to be one of the worst in terms of traffic density and discipline as there is no respect for a cyclist. At the checkpost, there already was a long queue of vehicles and a bus overtakes everyone and blocks the path. Some cyclists even resorted to yelling at the cars as they tried overtaking hardly leaving any shoulder for the cyclist. A huge sigh of relief once we reached Mulbagal. We stopped at the ATM and wanted to leave the town real quick as we sure would pull a big crowd asking the same old set of questions... What .. when .. where from .. where to.. and why.
We couldn't find a good hotel so ended up feasting on coke n cakes n flavoured milk. From here it was 80 kms to the next control. It was about 12.30 at noon and we decided to get some rest. Found a house with a sitout area outside the gate where the bikes got parked under the shade. Sriram managed a 'sound' :-) sleep and karthikeyan slept leaning against a tree. Sohan tried to get some but he couldn't.
We started after half hour and kept going at 20kph. The next target was Srinivaspur and it was pretty much an uneventful ride till chikballapur. The good part was we had tailwinds to assist all the way to chikballapur which was exactly the opposite when i rode this route last year. Strong headwinds but we managed it because of Deepak. The sight of the NH certainly was so pleasing to the eyes. We took the atm slips and soon checked into Hotel Mayura for dinner. Thulped a curd rice and I was ready for the last leg of the journey. Met kalpesh and karthikeyan who soon joined us and we started at 7.45pm. Just over 3 hours and 50kms to go. The saddle sore finally were getting worse for Sohan and we managed to slow down the pace and take it easy till the finish. Devanahalli, Yelahanka then jakkur and finally Hebbal. Managed to finish at 39hrs 10mins (45 mins to spare). Target achieved. Handed over the brevet card.
Bid adieu to the rest of the riders and rode back home at a fast pace till lalbagh then settled into a cruise mode of 25. Never have i rode in bangalore at midnight especially from one corner to another with nearly the entire Bangalore asleep. What a bliss !!! More action and adventure to follow the rest of 2013 so stay tuned for updates :-)..
The original plan was to make it a non-stop or a least stop ride and carrying enough food for the entire trip with the 2011 Apr Brevet ride buddy. However, last minute changes were inevitable and that soon changed my goal to a different kind. Finish the brevet about just over an hour to spare was the target. With the bike tune up pending, respite from work at office seemed a far cry. Managed to get the bike ready in about a couple of hours. Lights .. check, reflective vest .. check, Gatorade.. check, pump n puncture kit .. check. Managed to get about 4hrs sleep. Not really a good idea especially when a sleepless 40hrs lay ahead. This event seems to have the highest number of registrations for a 600Brevet in India with riders from Chennai Coimbatore. Met Sundar sir and his Pinarello Dogma which certainly is a beauty.
At the start control on Kanakpura road What a complementing billboard !!
Chidu with his "Gatoride" Sport1. Yeah this is not a new brand from Decathlon but Chidu's bike frame all wrapped in Gatorade sachets. Met DeepSan with his tourer (Bianchi Volpe). The start point last year was Gymkhana gate near IISc, Yeshwantpur. This was shifted to kanakpura road so one doesn't have to dodge the city traffic the morning. Instead the route was extended by 6 miles so out and back it was 12 miles to cover up the distance between the old and the new start point.
Here's the route map of the ride.
Met Sohan and agreed to finish the ride together as this ride that would get him the SR (Super Randonneur) title. A super randonneur is awarded to the one who completes 200, 300, 400 and 600 all in the same calendar year. Riding a constant pace, eating/hydrating regularly became my priorities on this repeat ride. There's a big difference when I rode this route back in July 2012. With two of the toughest climbs at Harohalli-Jigani and Pallikonda-Palamaner and total elevation gain of about 3600 m, this is one tough route !! The bikes just loved the newly laid tarmac on kanakpura road. Vasu was waiting about 10 kms ahead of Sathnur as a manned control. Once all the riders made it through, he would be able to continue to wait at the next secret control before the Jigani climb. As Sohan, Kalpesh and I got our cards stamped it was time to gear up for a tough climb. The searing heat drained the batteries real quick. Sohan managed to capture the riders attention by giving us a lead on ice-cream parlor immediately after the climb. This worked its charm and riders were ready for the treat but had to travel a few more kms after the summit. We soon reached a small canteen and a bakery adjacent to it. I downed a couple of scoops of vanilla.
Instant energy source but not so healthy to cool down so quick which i learned in another 15kms. Parched throat, an unsound body and I was thinking of dropping off at attibele and head home. However, the superlicious curd rice with the masala butter milk at Attibele sponsored by Sohan were just what was needed to cool the engines and immediately felt better. It was Karthikeyan, Sohan and I who continued from this point on till krishnagiri. Enroute we met Chidu whose rear derailleur broke and that ended up damaging a spoke. While Rafi tried to get it converted to a single speed, it still wasn't such a good idea to continue with a broken spoke as the chances of breaking more spokes is likely in the bad stretches at palamaner. So he planned to take the bus to Bangalore from Shoolagiri while the rest of the riders prepared for the night ride. After a quick shot of cappuccino with Sohan and Karthikeyan, it was a fast downhill all the way to Krishnagiri. We agreed on planned stops after every hour to stretch and nibble on dry fruits. This worked really well and we kept going at a good speed and about 10kms before vaniyambadi tollbooth, we stopped for dinner. Had couple of plain dosas nearly twice the size that is normally served in Bangalore. Washed it down with a soda. This worked its magic till about early morning. About a km before pallikonda toll we stopped to eat. This time it was a truckers dhaba which served fried rice and turned out to be surprisingly tasty. From this point it was 25 kms to the next control and we reached in just over an hour. As we were descending on a flyover, I heard noise similar to running over a metal plate and on looking back, Karthikeyan wasn't to be seen on the highway. As I hurriedly stopped and looked back he was instead lying on the bridging gap between the highway and the service road. Just one of the flavors of riding Brevet caught him unaware. Dozing while riding the bike is life threatening. I did experience the loss of concentration on a couple of occasions but chatting with Sohan time and again kept me going. Listening to music might be a personal choice to stay awake but trying to chat with fellow riders should help to some extent as it proves to be a welcome change from the long monotonous highway rides. There were a few scratches on the rear brake disc and Karthikeyan seemed unhurt as he quickly regained himself. I remember reading about the memory loss of few seconds when cyclists crash. This did turn out to be scary as the last thing he remembered was seeing a board which indicated 'katpadi 10 kms' and we already had travelled more than 5 since then. A quick bike inspection and we were off to Katpadi. Sriram was just entered Katpadi as we were ready to leave. We waited for Kalpesh and the group size increased to 4. Then we conveyed to Sriram that we would wait at CCD near Pallikonda. The coffee break and a power nap was just what was needed to rejuvenate the weary eyes and the saddle sore. Managed to get a power nap of 25 mins which seemed like 25secs then we were off to see Vasu at Pallikonda tollbooth. We now turned to State highway and entered Gudiyattam. The group got bigger as we were joined by SriRam from chennai. A double bonanza as it turned out to be for Sriram as he encountered two climbs in the same brevet :-D. We rode at a steady pace till we stopped at Gudiyattam for breakfast. Each of us ended up feasting on fresh hot idlis and vada with the typical andhra style 'peanut' chutney.
Another surprise awaited us at the Palamaner climbs. With the uncertainy of the ride or the rider's performance on the climbs looming about, there was mostly silence as the huffing and puffing started. As we neared the last few kms of the climb, we were covered in mist.
Making it a great time for recovery as we then entered Palamaner and headed towards Mulbagal after a short watermelon break. Sohan set the pace as I tried to pull for sometime. We kept switching as much as we could. This stretch has to be one of the worst in terms of traffic density and discipline as there is no respect for a cyclist. At the checkpost, there already was a long queue of vehicles and a bus overtakes everyone and blocks the path. Some cyclists even resorted to yelling at the cars as they tried overtaking hardly leaving any shoulder for the cyclist. A huge sigh of relief once we reached Mulbagal. We stopped at the ATM and wanted to leave the town real quick as we sure would pull a big crowd asking the same old set of questions... What .. when .. where from .. where to.. and why.
We couldn't find a good hotel so ended up feasting on coke n cakes n flavoured milk. From here it was 80 kms to the next control. It was about 12.30 at noon and we decided to get some rest. Found a house with a sitout area outside the gate where the bikes got parked under the shade. Sriram managed a 'sound' :-) sleep and karthikeyan slept leaning against a tree. Sohan tried to get some but he couldn't.
We started after half hour and kept going at 20kph. The next target was Srinivaspur and it was pretty much an uneventful ride till chikballapur. The good part was we had tailwinds to assist all the way to chikballapur which was exactly the opposite when i rode this route last year. Strong headwinds but we managed it because of Deepak. The sight of the NH certainly was so pleasing to the eyes. We took the atm slips and soon checked into Hotel Mayura for dinner. Thulped a curd rice and I was ready for the last leg of the journey. Met kalpesh and karthikeyan who soon joined us and we started at 7.45pm. Just over 3 hours and 50kms to go. The saddle sore finally were getting worse for Sohan and we managed to slow down the pace and take it easy till the finish. Devanahalli, Yelahanka then jakkur and finally Hebbal. Managed to finish at 39hrs 10mins (45 mins to spare). Target achieved. Handed over the brevet card.
At the finish control IISc gate near MS Ramaiah college.
Bid adieu to the rest of the riders and rode back home at a fast pace till lalbagh then settled into a cruise mode of 25. Never have i rode in bangalore at midnight especially from one corner to another with nearly the entire Bangalore asleep. What a bliss !!! More action and adventure to follow the rest of 2013 so stay tuned for updates :-)..
Every time I read about a brevet, I have the same awe and respect for the riders who ride such long distances. Well done, Gana!
ReplyDeleteAn excellent write up Gana.......
ReplyDeleteCongrats on your achivement and Good read and it was awesome riding spirited 600k with you...enjoyed your company (all riders as well) right from start to finish
ReplyDeleteVery well written Ganapathy.Congrats.
ReplyDeleteSomeone,somewere,wishes to be YOU-:)
thank you for posting my Pinerallo Dogma-2.
Best Regards,
Sundar.
Thank you all. Happy to share the experience :-). Hope to log more miles with the same enthu..
ReplyDeleteWhile reading I feel like I am riding with you....Gongrats.. to you and your co-riders...
ReplyDelete
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