BIKE RALLY TO DIGHA: Org. by- Mountain Lovers' Association, Asansol

Mountain Lovers’ Association, Asansol, (established in 1965) is one of the pioneers in the field of mountaineering and adventure sports in this region. The association will complete its 50^th year in 2015 and this year the Association is celebrating its Golden Jubilee through various programs, including treks, expeditions, rallies, camps, etc.

We have always wanted to organise a motorcycle tour. The Golden Jubilee Year celebration provided just the right opportunity to plan one. Since most of the members of this Association are more experienced mountaineers and trekkers than bikers, we didn’t want to push ourselves too hard and hence we selected a rather easy route. We decided on riding till Digha and back to Asansol, covering a distance of roughly 600 kms in two days with a rest day in between in Digha. The route would provide the opportunity to get used to a long day’s ride of 300 kms, without much of any riding challenges. This would rather serve as a preparatory ride for the much tougher rides we are planning to conduct in the days to come.

So it was decided, that the rally would start from Asansol on the 21^st of February. The team will reach Digha in about 8-9 hours covering 306 kms. 22^nd of February will be a rest day. The team will return to Asansol on the 23^rd of February. A total of 615 kms will be covered.

Rally flags and t-shirts were printed at the last moment. The T-shirts added to the enthusiasm of the riders. It was a small team of 13 heads, including 9 members of the Association and 4 others, riding 8 motorcycles. We would have been happier with more bikes, but it wasn’t too bad a number to start with. Some of the members wanted to join us desperately, but couldn’t due to personal issues.

The final list of participants:

1) Abhijit Roy                                        (Hero Honda Shine, 125 cc)

2) Purushottam Singh                            (Pillion rider)

3) Srikant Chakraborty (Me)                  (Yamaha RXG, 135 cc / Solo)

4) Himangshu Das                                 (Hero Honda Splendor, 100 cc)

5) Mousumi Roy                                    (Pillion rider)

6) Joydeep Sharma                                 (Honda Shine, 125 cc)

7) Sadananda Banerjee                          (Pillion rider)

8) Sourav Roy                                        (Hero Honda CBZ Extreme, 150 cc)

9) Suvam Agarwal                                 (Pillion rider)

10) Pinaki Mukherjee                             (Bajaj Pulsar, 150 cc)

11) Dhomu Da                                       (Pillion rider)

12) Sandip Roy                                      (Hero Honda Splendor, 125 cc/ Solo)

13) Arvind Tewari                                 (Hero Honda Passion, 110 cc / Solo)

21^st of February, 2014

On the morning of the 21^st of February, Sri. Jagadindra Ganguly (Advisor and ex- President of the Association) and other members of the Association along with the members of the press and the participating riders gathered in front of Rabindra Bhavan, Asansol. It was a beautiful morning with clear weather, bright sunshine and just the right temperature for a long day’s ride. Photos were clicked, wishes were collected and sweets distributed. The rally was flagged off by Sri. Ganguly at 09:30 hrs. It was an exciting moment for all of us. We were dying to hit the highway, which we did very shortly after negotiating the busy morning traffic of the city.

                                                        My 1997 Yamaha RXG, 135 CC

                                                            The team at BNR More, Asansol

                                                            Sri. Jagadindra Ganguly

                                                                           Flag-off Ceremony

We took a short break at near Chanda More to refill the petrol tanks and to decide on a few pointers to avoid problems during the ride. Himangshu Da was asked to lead followed by the rest of us and finally Abhijit Roy at the tail end to make sure that nobody falls behind. Phone numbers of the pillions were exchanged so that the pillions can communicate in case of any problem. The riders were not supposed to make or receive calls during the ride.

The ride started smoothly and we crossed Ranigunj, Mejia, Gangajalghati to reach a junction point at Bankura in about 1.5 hours. This particular stretch of road is a dream to ride on. This newly constructed road winds through a beautiful eucalyptus forest. Himangshu Da zoomed off at 100 kph. I couldn’t hold my temptation too, followed by Raja Da (Abhijit Roy). After a superb ride till Bankura, the team decided to have breakfast in one of the highway dhabas. Having had Roti, Sabji and chai, good enough fuel for another long ride, the team resumed the rally. The next 39 kms stretch of road from Bankura to Bishnupur wasn’t a comfortable one. The tar was almost off and the entire stretch was bumpy. We couldn’t lose time as we had anyway started late from Asansol. We had to cover this stretch at an average of 40 kph. We couldn’t go any faster, we couldn’t go any slower. The road conditions improved after Bishnupur. The highway is in great condition and runs through some thickly covered Sal forest at Garhbeta, Chandrakona Road and Salboni till Midnapur. These areas are called Jangal Mahal and was once (or still is) the core Maoist territory. Our next short break was at Midnapur.

                                 From Left: Abhijit Roy, Sadananda Banerjee & Me. At Bankura

                                                               The full team at Bankura

Midnapur to Belda, was another great ride, with the speedometer needle touching 100-110 kph most of the time. Except a few trucks and cars, the highway was all open and wide. This highway is one of the best highways I have ever driven or rode on. We spent about an hour having lunch in one of the roadside dhabas near Belda. The ride resumed and we soon realised that our happy time was over.

                                                                Lunch stop at Belda

                                                           
We had to leave the highway to take a shorter route to Digha, via Egra and Ramnagar. This road connects a few villages. Egra and Ramnagar are two of the more developed towns in this route. By the time we reached Egra, it was already dark. The roads….well, lets say, there was no road, there was just a way for the vehicles to move. Probably there was a road some years back, but what you get to see now, doesn’t really look like a road. So, there was no road, no street lights, only pointed rocks and pebbles jutted out of the ground. Sometimes you get to see some evidence of tar, which once made the road. The bikes moved at an average of 10-15 kph, negotiating the potholes and pointed rocks and pebbles. We pitied the tyres and suspensions. We did not know how far we needed to go as there were no milestones or road markings. We finally crossed Ramnagar, and after another 10 kms of bumpy ride, we suddenly hit a beautifully lit, wide and well tarred broadway. Bright and beautiful street lamps called tripholas lit the entire stretch of the broadway. We realised that we have finally reached Digha. This was almost like finding an oasis after being lost in a desert.

We had to wait till all the riders joined us and then the entire rally rode to Hotel Nakshatra in New Digha. Rooms were booked in advance and we checked in. We just wanted to hit the beds to comfort our aching bottoms. The hotel was prompt enough to serve what we needed the most then- a great cup of tea. We relaxed, freshened up and informed our families of our safe arrival at Digha. A delicious plate of chicken curry and roti was served for dinner. All content after a great ride and a delicious dinner, the team retired for the night.

                           

                                                    Dinner at Hotel Nakshatra, New Digha

22^nd of February, 2014.

Sourav, Purushottam, Raja Da and I had planned to wake up early to visit the sea beach and witness the sunrise. But as anticipated by all of us secretly, we woke up at around 08:30 hrs. The ‘sunrise plan’ had failed terribly, as I had thought the night before.

Everyone woke up pretty lethargic, except Joydeep Da and Raja Da. The duo got ready and headed for the beach quite hastily, while the rest of us were still sipping on our bed tea. As Joydeep Da said, he wanted to ‘survey’ the area to check out the intensity of the waves !! For the ones who are still wondering what he meant, he justed wanted to check out the pretty faces around. I guess, he was mentally back to his college days once again. Eventually we all realised that he actually was. I must mention here that he was one of the funniest guys in the entire team and his jokes and funny comments kept the whole team giggling during the tour. 

The team at New Digha sea beach

After a super breakfast of luchi- tarkari, all of us rode to New Digha sea beach. The plan was to have all the fun possible and when we reached the beach, we realised that New Digha has enough toys for fun. First thing on the list- Paragliding!!! Wow! This was the first time for everyone of us and everyone got pretty excited about it. Six of us were to paraglide and the rate was negotiated down to Rs. 400 per head. We were on… Raja Da (also known as Teni Da as he is generally the group leader and his tenias follow him around) was the first to strap on the harness. I was posted to the back of the Jeep and appointed the duty of photographing all the action from this position.

                                                                       Raja Da's take-off

                                                                             Raja Da's glide

                                                                   Raja Da, after the glide

The action started and while Raja Da was gliding gently towards the finishing end, we were all anticipating his verdict about this experience. As he came down, unstrapped the harness and walked up to the Jeep, I got the answer as I had expected, ‘fatafati, ekbaare thik holo na’ (Awesome, just one glide wasn’t enough). The others followed and I got similar responses from everybody. Finally, it was my turn.

Ecstatic Sourav after his glide

                                                                      Joydeep Da

My turn

The bulky seat harness was strapped on, the Jeep started moving. As the rope tightened with the tug of the speeding Jeep, I started to run gently with the huge round parachute catching the breeze behind me. A few steps, and I was in the air. It didn’t require much of an effort from my end. The chute gently gained altitude and within a minute I was pretty high up in the air. The view from this height was mesmerizing. I could see the lush green forest cover on my right, the beautiful blue ocean on my left and the sand beach in between for miles, dissolving into oblivion. I just closed my eyes and stretched my arms for a few moments, just to feel the freedom of flying. This should have been a pretty poetic stanza, but alas! The thick strap of the harness which supports the back, was pretty oddly placed and giving me a slight cramp on my legs. Although I was trying to make the most out of this few minutes in the air, the damn harness strap ruined the moment. But apart from that, I was feeling great, just wanted to go on for hours, but then, flying (gliding) is an adventure sport and costs a lot. So until I get my own wings, I have to keep my feet on the ground I guess. Landing was pretty soft and easy. Sadly, this Rs.400 worth of flying experience, ended too soon.

This was followed by another fun filled ride- the Banana Ride. A few of us were made to board a motor-raft which tugged another inflated raft, shaped like a banana. Raja Da, Pinaki Da, Arvind, Sourav, Subham and Purushottam were on the Banana. The motor boat sped up to almost 2.5 kms into the sea, took a few rounds, tugging the Banana and its riders with it and then took a sudden sharp turn, overturning the Banana and the Banana Riders along with it. Well, that what the Banana Ride is all about. Since I was in the motor-raft, I was sitting and watching this entire action. The Banana Riders, were all floating with the aid of their life-jackets, gasping to catch up on their breaths and laughing at the same time- a pretty amazing feeling that must have been, I guess. The Banana Riders were actually having great fun. They were then picked up (rather hurled up) on the motor-raft and then brought back to the beach. The ‘million dollar sight’ in this entire episode was to see Joydeep Da, weighing approximately 110 kgs presently, pulled up by holding the shoulder straps of the life-vest and thrown on the raft’s floor like a baby whale. Although he wasn’t one of the Banana Riders, he had jumped into the water just for the experience and got helpless when he couldn’t climb back into the raft. Hence, the baby-whale episode. Unfortunately we had to leave our cameras back at the beach; this hilarious event went undocumented- a great loss for sure.

We were back in the hotel pretty late for lunch and a delicious serving of parshe’r jhol, alu posto, dal and rice contented our hungry stomachs. After a much desired afternoon nap, the team headed to Old Digha to visit the beach and the local market. Back at the hotel, dinner was served pretty late. We wanted to retire early that night and start our return journey by 0700 hrs the next morning.

                                             Getting the bike cleaned up for next day's ride

23^rd February 2014

Everyone was ready by 07:45 hrs and after a few quick snaps and handshakes with the hotel staff, we started our return rally at 08:05 hrs. We had decided to take a detour via Jaleshwar (Odisha) to avoid the bad roads we had encountered during our ride to Digha. Fortunately, this road turned out to be a lot better and the rural landscape of coastal Odisha quite enchanting. It reminded of our Coastal Trek from Chandipur to Digha in 2012 when we had stayed overnight at similar coastal villages of Odisha.

With the usual rest and refreshment stops, the ride was superb and most of the riders seemed to be a little eager to reach back Asansol; everybody was enjoying the excellent open highway and even Joydeep Da- the slowest of all the riders was averaging at around 90-100 kph.

All the bikes, except Joydeep Da (with Sadananda Banerjee, his pillion) reached Punjabi More (Ranigunj) by 16:30 hrs. We had been waiting for Joydeep for almost 45 minutes when we got to know that Joydeep Da has had an accident near Mejia. Although a minor one, he right leg was injured. He reached Punjabi More in about 15 more minutes and we all headed back to Asansol where Rana Da, a senior member of our team was waiting to receive us. As we entered Asansol, Rana Da welcomed us all very warmly. The rally then headed back to the Mountain Lovers’ Association office where our beloved Jaga Da (Jagadindra Ganguly), Suprakash Da and Bishu Da were waiting to receive us. A very warm welcome was received from them with hot beguni and tea as a welcome treat.

Three days of superb long ride and great fun came to an end. The riders are already gearing up for the next ride to Sikkim in October 2014. I had been enthralled by the joy of motorcycling ever since my college days in Bangalore and had always wanted to share the same joy with the fellow members of my mountaineering club. After this great ride, I hope I won’t be at a dearth of riding partners anymore.

Before I conclude this blog, I must mention how relieved I am after completing this rally successfully on my 17 year old beauty- my beloved Yamaha RXG. Ever since I bought this bike in April 2012, I had been waiting to test this bike on a long ride. Everybody who heard about my plans with this bike, either laughed at me or didn’t take me seriously. I refrained from wasting my words in explaining the potential of these rugged bikes. I had been desperately waiting to complete this ride and now that it is done, I guess I have answered all their doubts. The bike performed superbly during this ride, even at a speed of 120 kph, the bike had a superb grip on the road. The ride was smooth with no unwanted noise or vibrations. I was amazed when I calculated the mileage- an average of 49 kmpl !! I had always been lucky with automobiles. So, I am back home a very happy man! 

Cheers.