Riding to God’s Own Country
AS I RAISE MY HAND to say goodbye to mom, she fades into my right rear-view mirror. Maybe, all that she said to herself: ride safe, my child, come back soon! This is the story of my solo ride from Mumbai to God’s Own Country: Kerala. My family has always supported my motorcycle riding regardless of the distance. This time, however, the concern was not the distance but the way I had planned my trip. On 5 May, I left Mumbai for Pune where I had a few office meetings scheduled. The next day around 3.00 am I found myself doing a speed of 80 km/h on NH 48. At a constant pace of threedigit speed, I enjoyed the dawn. A look towards my left and I was greeted by one of the best sunrises in my life: lush green fields and the orange ball peeping from behind the clouds.
Later I took the NH 52 from Dharwad that connects to the NH 66 coastal road. This was one of the best parts. I literally forgot that I had an MRF Rev-C1 on my rear and two packed bags strapped behind on a sporty bike. My RC was goading me on to do what it’s meant to do. It was two hours of continuous bliss. I took some rest at Gokarna after covering a distance of 596 km in 462 minutes (7.7 hours).
You get a breathtaking view of Maravanthe beach on NH 66, with the Arabian Sea on the right and, on the left, the famous backwaters. This was Mother Nature at her best! After struggling with the 40-km/h speed limit of Kerala, I finally fetched up at Kannur at about 9.00 pm.
It was an unforgettable experience to wear a munda (lungi) and to attend a Malayali wedding in Kerala. The next day I set out for a bit of sightseeing. I must recommend a visit to the Parassinikkadavu Snake Park, Parassinikkadavu Temple and St Angelo Fort. You will agree that God did put in an extra bit of love while creating Kerala.
My return ride commenced at 3.00 am on 9 May. I experienced a bit of early monsoon showers which I actually enjoyed. I had a midday break at the same place at Gokarna. I kept to the usual road and, having ridden via Pune, reached home in Navi Mumbai by 9.00 pm.
For a track-focused bike like my KTM RC 390 I managed to cover a total distance of 1,200 km in 18 hours. A big thumbs-up to the bike for it didn’t give me any trouble throughout this journey.