BJ22 - Day 22 - Sat June 5 - Kishangadh (Ajmer) to Jaipur

BJ22 - Day 22 - Sat June 5 - Kishangadh (Ajmer) to Jaipur

7 am/12.30 pm/12.30 pm/105/23/30%/2420 /5L /30-37-39-40

A nice and easy end to a great tour

tail wind, light decline and cloud cover made for an easy ride into
Jaipur - pretty much just sat and pointed the handlebar in the right
direction - fast paced cruising - resisted temptation to just sprint
the whole way - need get a good fix on low co2 issue

excellent roads - 6 lanes and good shoulder - food and branded water
easily available

good sleep - was refreshed - kept up good food and water discipline -
had restocked the munchy bad the night before

had an evening flight booked from delhi, amongst a few other
combinations - decided to dismantale cycle and take all the parts on
the flight, except the frame, which was anyways bent - cycled to the
bus stop - booked a taxi - dismantled the cycle with the help of a
nearby cyclewallah - wrapped that up in a double bedsheeet picked up
from a shop in the city while riding in

the jaipur delhi road is a bad one - 4 lane and lot of traffic
congestion - work going on to make it 3 lane with a service road - the
road journey took a little over 5 hours with a bit of speeding up by
the driver towards the end

just landed in bangalore - temp 25 - feels like a hill station - all
paramaters fine - no aches pains bruises - feeling nice and refreshed

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BJ21 - Day 21 - Fri June 4 - Bhilwara to Kishangadh (Ajmer)

BJ21 - Day 21 - Fri June 4 - Bhilwara to Kishangadh

6 am/9 pm/9.16pm/140/12/60%/2315 /10L /30-41-41-43

a tough day and a great evening ride

slept well - refreshed - saw low air in rear tyre - pumped - went for
7km before a flat - one puncture - repaired - glass shards had
penetrated the tyre bruise - as soon as i put back the tyre, heard a
hiss - 2nd puncture - repaired - as soon as i out that back, againd
heard a hiss - changed tube with backup - as soon as i assembeled the
rear assembly, heard the deadly hiss again - 1.5 hours lost - walked
to raila 5 km away - got the rear tyre changed and and small puncture
repaired - saw a small thorn in front tyre while checking - as soon as
i took that out, the hiss started - got that also repaired - new tyres
are nylon and wide treads, so small pebbles and glass dont stick in -
finally started the ride at 11 am

absorbed heat wile sitting and doing nothing - my heat loss works the
best when cycling - could sense heat loss issue - for the next 2 hours
took bell6, electral water, low speed and frequent tea and rest breaks
- heat loss got activated just in time for the peak heat cycle - in
rajasthan its short and hard from 1.30 to 3.30 before starting to go
down - heat loss was in peak shape then and all ok

the first 90 odd km till nasirabad was strong cross wind - had to
sailboat - at times it was so strong that got the feeling that it
might sweep off - at one point had to get down and walk due to strong
cross - the wind had turned warm by 3pm, just like the gadak ride but
gadak was far hotter

the best patch was the last 35 odd km of the ajmer bypass - starting
6.30 pm - beautiful patch - temp had gone down to 37 approx - nice
sunset - arid landscape with intermittant sand - a few hilltops on
either side and front but far away - a charming feeling

thot will find acco on the bypass but didnt find anthing good - rigged
up for night ride at 7.30 - nightfall began by 7.45 and dark only by 8
- nice road - nice shoulder - medium traffic and slow moving - very
comfortable - entered city outskirts at 8 - 7km ride to city centere -
enquired about hotels - very comfortable night ride into city too -
had a very safe feeling about kishangadh - people also friendly and
and more cultured - very less staring compared to other small cities

overall have found truckers to be pretty disciplined - maintain a
steady line and speed and honk a lot - especially the very long trucks
and those carrying protruding stuff almost always honk even if safe
margin - had changed the direction of my cycle pump some ten days
back - so that the rear end is visible from behind - looks like the
back of a sten gun - found a perceptible difference in the margin
being kept by truckers - seen them change lanes also, not happening
earlier - not sure if real or imagined but have been getting a far
greater margin frm truckers - riskiest are cars - cut close,
abberrant speeds , come on to shoulder while overtaking and dont even
honk

overall flat roads - some rolling a little before nasirabad - terrain
getting more barren - more sand - difficult to find roadside shady
trees - intermittant farms - farmers seem to have bought in soil from
outside - boundries made with sand dunes, cactus trees , broken down
thorny branches

numerous dhabas - look dingy from outside but neat and clean - good
food - branded bottled water available only intermittantly -used to
stock 3-4 liters at a time

the last 70 odd kms were full of vehicle cleaning shops - small shacks
- with watert compressor - dirty shabby kids hanging arounds
soliciting truckers to stopa and get veh cleaned up - never saw so
many cleaning shops as today - all kids looked full of major enthu

saw 3 nanos with an escort vehicle - with sign painted over of the
great Indian ride - door had the map painted - seem to be doing a
circular route in central India

keep seeing lot of enfield motorcyclisy throughout the tour, with lots
of gear - like on a long road trip

had kept up a strong food and water discipline - having food every
hour - either at dhaba or from munchy bag - starting to keep one set
of packed lunch from dhaba - chana masala from afternoon didnt smell
right - threw away - had chapati and water and then chapatio and tea -
well refreshed even at ride end - ordered food immedietly at
receptionand went out to restock munchy bag for tomm

hotel aarjav palace - ac 600 - nothing fancy but neat and clean -
nice hotel folks - decent and cultured - lies on main road connecting
to highway 6km away

tomm wud be jaipur - shud be a comfortable 100 km to jaipur railway
station - expecting tail winds as road direction is west to east -
winds throughout have been fairly consisent west to east too - hope
the tyre/ tubes hold up - but enough buffer even if replacement to be
done - can also feel a bad stomach bug starting to build up - hope it
holds for a day

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BJ20 - Day 20 - Thurs June 3 - Chittaur(garh) to Bhilwara

BJ20 - Day 20 - Thurs June 3 - Chittaur(garh) to Bhilwara

10.15 am/5.45pm/6.00pm/75/14/60%/2175 /6L /35-40-41-42

a day of light rides and rest

not good sleep - got sleep early morning - didt feel rested - took a
nap break at bhilwara - started again at 4.45 - felt refreshed - tyre
air low - possible light puncture - filled air to check out- target
was bijainagar, 55 km away - was banking on light tail - wind was diag
head - low speed - wud hv become nighfall - halted at a highway hotel
20 km from bhilwara

lots of temples and mosques in and around chittaur / bhilwara

road good - cross wind / diag head

have been flat roads from udaipur onwards

tyre air gone - cycle shop nearby - got tube changed - used a new tube
from the shop - not using the backup original atas i had - the
mechanic gave a logic about valve type and showed the diff also -
moulded valve vs hand assembled - moulded better and used by farmers
to carry heavy load - not convinced but dont mind experimenting - the
bruise in the tyre seems to be having an impact - hope it holds for
another 2 days

cycling towards ajmer tomm - will take a break near arounds ajmer

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BJ19 - Day 19 - Wed June 2 - Udaipur to Chittaur(garh)

BJ19 - Day 19 - Wed June 2 - Udaipur to Chittaur(garh)

9.30 am/6.00pm/6.45 pm/115/18/50%/2095 /8L /35-39-41-43

nice and easy ride

slept till 8am - 9 hrs- like a log - at ac 30 - felt cud sleep
another 9 - decided to catch up on sleep - also the route going
forward wud be easy - flat/ decline with cross/tail - good desicion -
took an hour to get out of sleep mode after riding - but very
refreshed - made for an easy ride - might do the same tomm also

flat/ decline road - good road - 4 lanes with good shldr - rode in the
other side shldr for a little while - makes more sense and safer too -
in any case the sholdr acts as a two way lane for two wheelers

dry landscape - farms on both sides - food bottled water there -
except for karnataka and tamilnadu, branded water available
selectively or in larger towns - regular trucker type dhabas only in
rajasthan - no family dhabas - a little less cleaner than the gujrat
ones - the trucker dhabas are pretty neat and clean,as they always
are, but the small eatries in city and towns are real bad

overall the difference in prosperity levels of states is stark

wind was cross in the beg. and turned tail in2nd half - made for easy
and fast ride - wind direction seems to have changed - seems to be
south to north now - need to see if that continues tomm also

stopped at a dhaba for lunch - roto and subji - prepared from zero -
break became almost an hour - got some packed for next meal - turned
out to be a good idea - had that in a shaded structure - chatted with
the villagers - usual que

was the only one at that dhaba - delibrately chosen as such - clean
one - had a semi nap in the khatia - decent guy - seems to live with
a 5 yr kid - cute kid - was helping dad by serving - poor folks -
cloth torn - charged 50 for 2 plates of veg and 6 chapatis - shud hv
given more - had fridge - must be full of beer - all dhabas have them
- the wine shops and also the slightly bigger kirna stores on highway
have iron grillings

had restocked munchy bag with orange juice and buttermilk for
rerhydration and potass - glucose bikis - yesterday had bot half kg of
tomatoes and finished them on the way - carrying 3-4 kg extra wt due
to munchy bag, electral, petroleum jelly - but dont feel it

ralco nylons really good - didnt know there was so much specialization
in tyres for the reguar cycles - very minor wear and tear till now -
using with hard inflation - saw only a single minor bruise - hope it
holds thru for the next few days - keep cleaning regularly esp for
glass / nails - glass and pebbles make no diff - not able to cut thru
- good one from gulabchand - genetic cycle mechanics

butt abrsaion totally ok by morning - used vaseline mixed with calend
midway also - all the rest of aches and pains also ok - a strange
pain in rt index finger joint for past few days - feels like a
ligament sprain - light one - wonder how that came about

chittaur has a 7km entry - but the same route later goes and
reconnects to the highway - the fort is visible from the entry point
- really long fort - seems to have been well preserved too

hotel padmini - right near the exit point - on highway - ac 1800 -
negotd for 20% discount - on phone, before going in - for direct
approach and offseason - wonder why didnt do that for others esp the
listed ones - good place - lavish feel - good cook - made real nice
alu matar and shahi and shahi paneer - low ghee as i had requested -
the place must have 50 plus rooms - prob only one or two other folks
- thats the case for most of the places that are not right in the city

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BJ18 - Day 18 - Tue June 1 - Ratanpur to Udaipur

BJ18 - Day 18 - Tue June 1 - Ratanpur
to Udaipur

6.30 am/5.30pm/5.45 pm/120/12/70%/1980 /10L /30-39-41-43

a tough and beautiful ride - straddling the mewar hiils all through

terrain was hilly starting right from ratanpur to udaipur - all the
120km of it- the road goes right through the mewar hills - lots of
ups and downs - mini ghats all the way - fairly tough - small
hilltops though ensure that there are not very many steeps

different type of hill range - all small hilltops - almost every
hilltop has a hut at top - arid - thorny trees - nice and very dif
landscape

good road - 4 lane but with decent and well marked shldr - water and
food easy - low traffic

cross / head wind throughout

met a cyclo yatri - hindu muslim peace - on road for 6 mths -
travelled through kerala, bangalore - going to ajmer - carrying whole
household - gave some money for yatra - seemed to be enjoying the beer
being available in rajasthan - depends on alms - must be doing 30 km
per day

strange phenomenon on this patch - especially prominent in some
patches - decline and tail wind but cycle doesnt move - feels like
incline - almost as if somebody trying to hold it back - checked
cycle a few times - then realized trucks also slow - while the the
fully laden trucks from other side going up the incline and with head
wind going faster - very strange - took a video for later viewing

average food througout - relaxed on the khatia at dhabas during break
-felt like a tea shoop/ food shop almost every corner

sleep not good - tweaking around with ac - think hv got it right
hopefully - keeping temp at 30

right knee slightly strained - shud be ok by tomm - severe butt
abrasion due to intense ride - shud have used vaselind midway also -
doing strong vaseline plus calendula trtmt - should be partly ok by
tomm - the ride onwards is full plains so shud be manageable

hotel gajraj - ac 1100 - good place -marble flooring

went out in eve to buy supplies/ munchies

tomorrow towards chittoragarh - went the wrong way while choosing
hotel - will need to backtrack a few kms tomm - nh8 is not golden for
the ajmer stretch - nh76 and nh79 - udaipur to chittaoragarh to ajmer
are golden - nh8 becomes golden again from ajmer to jaipur to delhi -
increases the journey by a day - but supposed to be good roads

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BJ17 - Day 17 - Mon May 31 - Ahemdabad to Ratanpur

BJ17 - Day 17 - Mon May 31 - Ahemdabad to Ratanpur

6.30 am/7.15pm/7.30 pm/125/15/60%/1860 /7L /30-39-42-43

nice and pleasent rides - entered rajasthan

did two rides - with a nap break at himatnagar

nice road - 4 lane with a nice shoulder - low traffic - during the
first ride there were fields on both sides - tree lined too - but not
the shadey variety but the thorny kind - pleasent rides both ones -
road had a overall laid back feeling - one of the best patches

not good sleep last night - room hot due to not using ac - feeling
sleepy in the first ride - all other params ok - electrlyte/ potass
bal almost restored - decided to take a nap break at himatnagar -
slept from 12.30 to 3.00 - like a log - felt very refreshed

started at 3.30 - aimed for shamalji, a religious town right near the
border - temp was 46 stationary but riding temp at 42/43 - roads empty
- heat loss at peak shape - did it at a nice pace - farms becoming
less and less and landscape becoming arid -hill range towards the end
- maybe the mewar hills - stopped at shamalji - rooms available at
hotel mangalmurthy - saw the rooms - nice ones - got info that lots
of hotels there at ratanpur also and falls in rajasthan - 10 km away
so decided to go thr - feeling pretty refreshed at ride end also -
room temp without ac around 38 but feeling much more comfortable today
- if discomfort then will put on ac but keep temp at 30

overall capacity significantly up - not bothered by inclines / head
winds - incline/ head wind tech has got fairly finetuned - much
higher cruising speeds - the ralco nylons are also making a
perceptible diff - stopped at one of the amul factories and half litre
of buttermulk - only unsalted

hotel kingfisher - ac 950 - neat and clean rooms - marble flooring -
beer avlble - lots of folks from gujrat seem to come here for that
since gujrat supposed to be dry state

pretty much flat road / slight decline for first half - 2nd half was
slightly rolling - foothills kind - but overall
decline

wind remained cross / diag tail - will prefer that to a tail - good
for heat loss - tail aids speeds but seems to impair heat loss

continued with bell/ arru a few times a day - first few botls plain
and then with pinch of salt - had a botl of electral at himatnagar and
then 2 botls at ratanpur at ride end - had food immedietly

food was nothing grt today - maintained food and water discipline -
mini meal every 2 to 2.5 hrs - tea break every hour or less - water
intake at just a wee bit above exact - well stocked munchy bag with
juices, buttermilk, buscuits, energy bar,tofee - will restock again on
the way - speed not compromised as cruising speeds are higher - long
range tours will need a diff op rhythm

tomm going towards udaipur 110 km away

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BJ16 - Day 16 - Sun May 30 -Baroda to Ahemdabad

BJ16 - Day 16 - Sun May 30 -Baroda to Ahemdabad

6.00 am/4.00 pm/4.00 pm/110/14/50%/1735 /6L /30-38-41-44

nice and comfortable ride

good recovery - started early - room temp was 35 - outside temp in
morning was 30 - felt like ac - kept up a good pace througout

most of the route was just 2 lane but with a decent shoulder - first
60 km or so was tree lined - felt nice - some 35 km from ahbad
expressway started - was a nice road - low traffic - traffic picked up
near the city

tea and bikis in morning - kerosine flavoured - kerosine burps - had
nice misa pav - dal bati - uttapa and masala dosa as soon as i checked
in and kathiyawadi lasoniya batata for dinner which was not good

sensing some gap in recovery - seems mostly like nutrient imbalance -
electrolytes - had not taken any electrolytes the first ten days - no
fruits and fresh veggies too - no tomato juice/ chavanprash as in blr
- most likely to be potassium defy plus misc other things - sodium wud
have got replenished but done nothing for potass - decided to have
bananas, cucumber, tomatoes as in between snacks while riding - also
picked up chavanprash, fruit juices and buttermilk - started to have
water with a pinch of salt while riding - rounded that off with 2
botls of electral bottles in evening - planning to continue this
routine - diet will need to be more well rounded in longish tour with
special emphasis on electolyte bal due to loss in sweat and urine -
water intake keeping at near exact values and not overdoing as earlier
to contain loss due to urine

sweat non salty in morning - turned salty as soon as i started with salty water

kept the ride pace easy and at touring pace like in first week - had
started doing hard rides the second week - will keep it easy

continuying with bell and arru to aid recovery

hotel sohail palace - right on highway cum ring road - 750 - nice
place - good vfm

experimenting with not using ac - afternoon room temp at 40 -
uncomfortable - enjoy rides at 45 but lying still at 40 is
uncomfotable and not used to - might have to tweak that piece a bit

tomm will take a halt halfway between here and udaipur - could be
either side of border depending upon pace and accomodation

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BJ15 - Day 15 - Sat May 29 - Break at Baroda

BJ15 - Day 15 - Sat May 29 - Break at Baroda

a day of rest and catching up on pending items

yesterday night sleep not good - feeling hot - prespiring a lot which
was good - prespiration response seems to have got impaired with
staying in ac rooms - slept again in afternoon and good nap inspite
of heat and humidity but felt comfortable - good presp. again

in the morning bot misc items - vaseline, bandages, hand sanitizer,
etc - also restocked on homeo meds - last batch had leaked out/
evaporated - did some cycle maintce - had not done any the last time

in the eve took care of train canellations, mobile pyt, route checks
- not using the cafe here for card pyt due to sec isu - took Poulomi's
help for that

planning to rehydrate with electral end of every day - 1-3 botls
depending upon need - getting a feeling electrolyte balance likely to
be out of sync - will need to monitor

feeling good but somehow not getting a feeling of full recoup - today
night should do the trick - will come to know by tomm - planning to
take it easy and monitor parameters closely - might consider riding in
two rounds with a break in afternoon - feels good to hit the place of
halt in a refreshed state

jaisalmer plan is cancelled for this tour- those kind of roads will
need a diff tech and prep - distance coverage wud be reduced to two
thirds - might just do a rajasthan/ desert tour some time later

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BJ14 - Day 14 - Fri May 28 - Bharuch to Baroda

BJ14 - Day 14 - Fri May 28 - Bharuch to Baroda

7.45 am/12.00 pm/12.30 pm/45/18/80%/1590 /3L /35-38-40

3.45 p/5.45 pm/6.00pm/35/20/20%/1625 /3L /41-41-43 /

a fantastic recovery ride

as expected, not fully recovered in the morning - a little funny
feeling still there - a light ride should help - kept all options
open incl backtrak on veh if yellow flags

was rehydrating with electral since the night before

first ride kept light - tail wind made easy

within the first hour realized dehydration thr - probly becos of all
sodas and electrolyte imbalance - continued with electral - felt a
little better - by around 11 pm when temp started touching 40 and
direct sun, realized that heat loss not working - yellow flags thr -
decided to take a temp halt or go back - put ac on full blast -
stopped at palej - restocked on electral - no lodge thr - continued
with full ac on - wanted to check out karnej- seemed like lodge town -
with cash at sbi atm - found a restaurant cum lodge - truckers cum
family kinds - non ac rs 250 - hotel moti mahal - room ok - was taking
belladona since the night before - continued - cold compress with
socks - tried to sleep - light sleep - but in just two or so hours
felt nice and recovered - started browsing for baroda hotels /reviews
- decided on ginger

bot ittar at the restrt shop - for destinking in public areas - small
bottles and strong fragrance

2nd ride - shade temp 40 - outside temp 43 - had felt good enough to
catch the peak of the peak heat cycle so decided to leave at 3.30
instead of 4.30 - knew that peak heat cyle steeper at the edges this
side - within the first few mins realized that recovery was near
complete - all lactic gone- all funny feeling gone - feeling fully
charged up by the sun and the heat - avg temp at 41-42 consistent peak
at 43 - fair amt of humidity - heat loss kicked in and was at peak -
picked up tune and whistled all the way to baroda - strong tail wind -
just had to sit and point - and watch the landscape and the ppl trvlg
wrapped up from head to toe - 25 km in an hr and was on outskirts -
resisted temptationto sprint and to go alittle more towards abad -
dont want to risk recovery - the navsari ride must have been around
30 - next 10 km city ride took an hr - looked around the city - lot of
cultural stuff - middle aged lady in car waved to stop - gave a
granola bar

ginger hotel - ac 2500 - washed up and had cold cofee and sandwich -
started feeling funny again sitting in the ac lounge - then it stuck
that ac not suiting me high temp rides post pune - and hindering with
heat loss mech and recovery - prespiration supressed - room windows
sealed up - reqst and got them opened - in the meantime went out for
walk and felt better - non ac room feels good - chilled cold drinks
from the room fride taste better

maintce guy for ac fixing asked if i m the cycle wallah - hv seen this
grapevine thing happen all the time - one guy find and everybody in
hotel and restrt gets to know

buffet at ginger - nothing grt - will stick to guj/kathiwadi thalis

guard at ginger from jslmr - took info shortest route via mehsana -
palanpur - only 2 lane route and many palces only single lane- lot of
padyatris this time - lot of bus and truck traffic also - very strong
south to north winds and dust storms - 1/2 lane doesnt sound appealing
- unlikely to go - will mostly continue on udaipur - ajmer - jaipur
route -

might take a full break tomm -a week now frm the last break - felling
fully charged up to go non stop - but need to take care of metabolic
imbalances - internal systems going wonky past few days - opertg
outside the nornal range - better to play safe and ride strong the
last week than risk cutting the tour short

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BJ13 - Day 13 - Thurs May 27 - Navsari to Bharuch

BJ13 - Day 13 - Thurs May 27 - Navsari to Bharuch

7.00 am/3.30 pm/3.45pm/115/14.5/70%/1545 /10L /30-35-39-42

a day of learnings and broken discipline

not fully recovered in morning - thot will do a recovery ride till
surat 45 kms - figured out that co2/lactic issue was actually low co2
due to hyperventilation due to consistent fast paced ride the day
before - significnt increase in stamina but co2 metabolism turned out
to be lagging

broke food dicipline - and paid for it later - had first meal after
2hrs - glucose bikis, a samosa and a tea - started feeling a little
better - had a litre of soda slowly to take care of co2 - immedietly
started feeling better - overdid the soda bit and consumed 5L of soda
/ cold drinks - feeling full and feeling good so didnt have any meal
throughout the ride - passed surat - continued to ankelashwar -
decided to continue to bharuch as there was tail wind and feeling good
- started to hit the wall due to food issue near bharuch - had the
remaining glucose bikis - heat loss in grt shape but used ac to reduce
calorie consumption for heat loss - found a good hotel and checked in
- didnt have food asap as per rule - major weakness happened - took a
couple of hours to recover after food - felt better only towards late
evening -

went down and had a kathiyawadi thali - not as good as the previous
kathiyawadi food

barring the food issue, the ride was an easy one with diag tail / full
tail and a strong one that too

given the wind direction i.e westerly and the upcoming route direction
till baroda, expect to have full tail/ diag tail - baroda to ahbad
could be difficult with diag head/ full head - post ahbad if wind
direction remains same then the ride all the way till jaipur/ delhi
would be easy - with a bit of climbs around udaipur around mt abu area
- keeping jslmr open types due to likely shortage of days and becos it
is not connected by a golden higway but a regular NH - will need to
recce or be prepared for abortable rides / backtracking

good roads overall today - most of the way with well marked shoulder

hotel nyayamandir - ac 800 - ok room - old rooms - hotel getting
getting renovated - new ones are really nice but not yet operational

overall gujrat very religious - lots of larg temples and maths on the
way - nearly all restaurants have a small temple like areas

overall more prosperous also - very few of the dark, dingy truckers
kind of dhabas as in mah / kar / tn - truckers dhabas of the standard
of family restaurants - neat and clean - and the family restaurants
pretty classy

tomm will keep as a recovery ride - maybe till baroda - 80 kms - try
and start early and end early so that in top shape for the baroda
ahbad patch - might also consider a break day either at bharuch or
baroda or midway - will take a call tomorrow - dont think complete
recovery by tomm but dont forsee that as a constraint as long as
food/water discipline maintained

overall the ride till belgaum seemed to be an incline with mostly
cross winds / head winds and 1.5X of kanyakumari - while post belgaum
seemed to be an overall decline with combination of cross and tail
winds and similar or easier than kanyakunari - however the blr to
kanyakumari road has by far been the best till now with all 6 laning
over and well marked shoulders almost all the way

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BJ12 - Day 12 - Wed May 26 - Manor to Navsari

BJ12 - Day 12 - Wed May 26 - Manor to Navsari

6.30 am/5.30 pm/5.45pm/160/18.8/50%/1430 /16L /30-35-39-42

fast paced ride

feeling in top shape - last day good sleep helped - fully recovered in
morning - fast paced throughout the day - valsad was the destination
but came at 2 - continued to chikhali 25 km - came at 3.30 - continued
to navsari - 28 km - halted thr - fastest ever cruising till chikhali
- aerobic firing within 30 mins of start - compared to 2-3 hrs the
past week - due to good recovery - should have halted at chikhali -
navsari stretch very slow - felt funny - seems like co2/acid imbalance
due to prolonged fast pace

heat loss at peak - afternoon temp 39 avg - didnt feel a thing - near
watery sweat right since beginning - drank lots of water

low cross wind till valsad - valsad to chikhali was tail wind - esp
the last 15 km - due to change of route direction - didnt have to do
anything
- cycle went on its own - till chikhali was the easiest and the
fastest paced ride / crusing ever

another day of good food - vada pav in morning - tamata pe eedo at
hotel ahura - bhareli baingan kathyiwasi style - mcdonald - masala
uttapa with potato mixed - ended just now with a kathiyadi thali with
surti undhiyi, sev tamata, alu plak and nice sweet and spicy kadhi -
lots of good food places on the way - most serve alcohol - decent
places too - good places to hv a chilled beer at some othjer time -
will probably put on weight

hotel supreme - super dlx ac room - just 850 - grt value for money - new hotel

roads better in gujrat - 6 lanes and being concerted to 4 lane it
seems from all the work going on - irb doing all of it in todays
stretch - at a massive scale

keeping destination open for tomm depending upon co2/acid balance recovery

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BJ11 - Day 11 - Tue May 25 - Panvel to Manor - part 2

Nice garden at rear - grt view of farmlands and hills nearby - got a
hammock - blogged lying on hammock with a nice strong breeze

rehydrating every day with a couple of glasses of lime and soda -
feels grt after a ride

going for dinner - will try another gujrati dish - the hotel owner
seems to be parsi / bohri

On 5/25/10, Amar Harolikar <amarharolikar@gmail.com> wrote:
> BJ11 - Day 11 - Tue May 25 - Panvel to Manor
>
> 7.0 am/4.0 pm/4.30pm/125/17/50%/1270 /12L /35-37-39-42
>
> nice fast paced ride
>
> overall a decline - with low wind / tail wind
>
> day of good food - morn sample pav and vada at a homely ladies shop
> little before thane - then fulka and lasuni alo at a kathyiawadi dhaba
> - for free - appreciative of yatra - said didnt charge for yatris -
> gave a tip to stay overnight at kathiyawadi dhaba - next meal at ride
> end at hotel vegas - bajra roti and baingan bharta
>
> panvel to thane was a crowded ride - couldnt recognize - new stations
> at koparkhairane etc - new bldgs - city has expanded - road wider -
> belly of flyovers cleaner
>
> passed via thane talav pali - connected to ghorbunder road - new one -
> like an express way
>
> nh8 is not as nice as nh4 - shoulder not there or not marked at most
> places - but adequately wide - overall ok - need to focus a little
> more due to no shldr - kathiyawadi guys said gujrat patch is far
> better
>
> tail / diag tail most of way - overall decline esp after nallasopara
> - seemed like a slight incline till then - easy ride - new nylon
> tyres with full inflation working out grt - makes for an easier ride
>
> foot palm rt leg issue much better - vaseline on butt/ groin as safety
>
> humid all the way till ghorbunder - then humidity started coming down
> fast - temp comfortable - intermittantly it was direct burning heat -
> peak at 42 - was 35 at 6.30 am and 40 by 10 - therafter remained betwn
> 38-40 on avg - heat loss in top shape - sweat v.low salt right since
> morn
>
> was planning to go till kasakhurd, but had misjudged distance -
> decided to halt at manor - planng to ride end by 4.30 going fwd as far
> as possible - tomorrow maybe valsad depending on terrain and timings
>
> start early - sleep all ok - but getting up early morning diff - shud
> hv trained for it
>
> hotel vegas - ac 1500 - nice place - hot water - lots of lodged/
> hotels in manor compared to apparant size of place
>
> --
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>

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BJ11 - Day 11 - Tue May 25 - Panvel to Manor

BJ11 - Day 11 - Tue May 25 - Panvel to Manor

7.0 am/4.0 pm/4.30pm/125/17/50%/1270 /12L /35-37-39-42

nice fast paced ride

overall a decline - with low wind / tail wind

day of good food - morn sample pav and vada at a homely ladies shop
little before thane - then fulka and lasuni alo at a kathyiawadi dhaba
- for free - appreciative of yatra - said didnt charge for yatris -
gave a tip to stay overnight at kathiyawadi dhaba - next meal at ride
end at hotel vegas - bajra roti and baingan bharta

panvel to thane was a crowded ride - couldnt recognize - new stations
at koparkhairane etc - new bldgs - city has expanded - road wider -
belly of flyovers cleaner

passed via thane talav pali - connected to ghorbunder road - new one -
like an express way

nh8 is not as nice as nh4 - shoulder not there or not marked at most
places - but adequately wide - overall ok - need to focus a little
more due to no shldr - kathiyawadi guys said gujrat patch is far
better

tail / diag tail most of way - overall decline esp after nallasopara
- seemed like a slight incline till then - easy ride - new nylon
tyres with full inflation working out grt - makes for an easier ride

foot palm rt leg issue much better - vaseline on butt/ groin as safety

humid all the way till ghorbunder - then humidity started coming down
fast - temp comfortable - intermittantly it was direct burning heat -
peak at 42 - was 35 at 6.30 am and 40 by 10 - therafter remained betwn
38-40 on avg - heat loss in top shape - sweat v.low salt right since
morn

was planning to go till kasakhurd, but had misjudged distance -
decided to halt at manor - planng to ride end by 4.30 going fwd as far
as possible - tomorrow maybe valsad depending on terrain and timings

start early - sleep all ok - but getting up early morning diff - shud
hv trained for it

hotel vegas - ac 1500 - nice place - hot water - lots of lodged/
hotels in manor compared to apparant size of place

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BJ10 - Day 10 - Mon May 24 - Pune to Panvel

BJ10 - Day 10 - Mon May 24 - Pune to Panvel

7.45 am/5.30 pm/6.15pm/130/16.5/40%/1145

easy ride - easier than pune one

overall descent 20% - small inclines / hill tops on the way

felt good to know the way about a big city and how to connect to the highway

having quick meals every 2 hrs or so - need to keep that discipline
for a comfortable ride

new tyres really smooth - can feel the diff - also kept it fully
inflated - new threads helped on rough patches / rubble - should have
got tyre / tube changed bef only - pune mechanics grt - a 10 yr old
kid fixed up my cycle - got the chain adj rigt at first shot - a
little tricky given the frame out - the guy didnt take extra money -
even the mechanic who fixed up the hande today morning didnt take the
extra money

restarted keeping a tube as backup - fully inflated tyres and heat -
tube bust possible

the golden highway from satara onwards not as nice as the one in
karnataka - small shoulder - lot of rubble there - but still
comfortable and nothing like the 63 - need to see how the #8 is

descent till kamshet - kamshet to lonavala seemed like an ascent - the
khopil ghat descent is a long and steep one - and is the expressway
itself - super fast descent - small tunnel on the way - no need for
night rig - probably 200 mts

lonavala was a plesent 35-37 - khopoli was direct heat - peak at 41 -
heat loss was in top shape - didnt feel anything - lots of water -
sweat low salt in morning and by end of ride was near zero salt -
panvel humid

peak heat cycle changing - quick up and quick down

wind direction west to east - consistenty from blr - so when road
direction becomes west wind becomes a head wind - other wise cross -
got used to wind - slows speed but helps cool down

glove lost on way - jamun lady pointed that tucked in side

dal roti dhaba charged 50 rs - probably diff rate for diff ppl

stopped at a shady bar for water - didnt realize - made a quick exit -
guy appreciative - gave free watermelon

all previous aches / pains ok - rt leg lat pl fac pain there though -
slight one - need to fix and work on foot position - was more careful
today with the foot position - slight abrasion starting to happen on
groin side - vaseline helped

roamed around in panvel town after check in - cant recognize from
previous bombay cycling trips - bustling town - lots of wholesellers
-very few eating joints / hotels compared to size of city

panchavati hotel - ac room - 1100 - ok types - a little dingy feel -
lodge converted to hotel

tomorrow will cross bombay and pick up #8 near bhayander - will need
to halt near gujrat border

leave early hopefully - so that eve is relaxed and time to roam around

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BJ9 - Day 9 - Sun May 23 - Satara to Pune

BJ9 - Day 9 - Sun May 23 - Satara to Pune

8.00 am/5.30 pm/7.45pm/125/16.5/60%/1015

nice easy ride

overall low wind - overall decline 10%

temp 40 by 1 - peak 43 - normal peak heat cycle - but drop faster
starting 3.30 - dry burning heat - heat loss sub par initially due to
improper rehydration day before - but picked up little later

near the end katraj ghat - small and easy incline - followed by a long
decline which continued right till swargate

had another puncture in morning - near pachwad village - got it
repaired - got both tyre tube replaced with ralco's tube and nylon
tyre- gulabchand closed but their son - rattan - gave ref of a
mechanic

hotel woodland - 2500

went to king burger and some burgers parcelled

felt funny cycling into pune - from highway

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BJ8 - Day 8 - Sat May 22 -Kolhapur to Satara

BJ8 - Day 8 - Sat May 22 -Kolhapur to Satara

7.30 am/7.15 pm/7.45pm/125/14.5/60%/890

easy enough ride - good steady robust cruising - long breaks took up time

had nice poha at hotel for bfast - good tea also - last day had lots
of mutton /tambda rassa

rolling terrain - overall decline 10% - cross wind all the way -
sailboated - 2.5 km fairly steep incline at end followed by a long
decline straight into city

puncture - old one got bigger - patch didnt work - went to village
nearby to get tube changed - need to reconsider backup tube - need to
lighten up even more

kashil village - nice folks - felt comfortable even with their ques -
good mechanic

misal pav for meal one - after that a meal every 3 hrs - last few hrs
on glucose bikis

fast paced towards end to ensure city before dark - got before dark -
nice bustling city

all aches pains ok - crotch stuff healed -wrist and butt - didnt feel
anything after ride end - next level of adaptn setting in - knee fine

hotel maharaja residency - non ac - 1500 - got hot water for the first time

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BJ7 - Day 7 - Fri May 21 - Break at Kolhapur

BJ7 - Day 7 - Fri May 21 - Break at Kolhapur

productive break

took day off in kpur - lost licence issue - had decided to think abt
it on morn - remembered in morn that kittur guy taking licence -
decided to go there - also take care of other misc stuff

hired car for day - went to kittur - licence there - tipped

interesting driver - 30 beedi story - construction story - punj lloyd
- police story - materials course chennai - dumper - 120 wheels -
moving villagers on highway - villagers buying dumper stuff -cement
vs. Dambar rd - hill cutting

calendula - cycle spares - and misc other items - got hair cut - got
both side pouches stiched (urgent basis - urgent fee)

all the usual aches etc got ok

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BJ6 - Day 6 - Thurs May 20 - Kittur to Kohlapur

BJ6 - Thurs May 20 - Kittur to Kohlapur

6.00 am/8.45 pm/9.15pm/170/13.5/60%/765

nice long ride

subdued temp throughout due to a bit of cloud cover - sub 35 till 12
and between 35 to 40 thereafter

fair amt of incline till belgaum - with strong head winds - at one
point had to walk for a km or so - steep incline + strong head winds -
even walking was an effort

post belgaum it was an overall decline - rolling terrain - winds
remained strong throughout - but now they rotated between head - diag
head - cross - for half an hour it was a tail wind - was able to pick
up a bit of speed post belgaum

starting to get used to head winds and ride intensity

meal every 2 -3 hrs - last couple of hours did on glucose biscuits

intense ride due to rolling terrain and strong winds - sailboated mostly

can feel some strain on knees and palm of foot - intermittent sharp
pain in left foot lat pl fc - seems bone / tendon kind - gets ok with
change of posture will need to monitor

got dark by the time i reached kolhaur - had rigged myself up for night ride

sweat significantly non salty compared to bangalore rides /
kanyakumari - adaptation response
kicking in - took a long time - had stopped taking electrolytes since
the chennai ride

heat - fluid - electrolyte balance in grt shape - ride intensity a new variable

hotel sony palace - 1100 ac room - nice room

had a chicken thali at rasika palace nearby - good stuff

figured that i had lost my licence - need to call the previous hotels
- and also double check if photo debit card will work for flight -

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BJ5 - Day 5 - Wed May 19 - Gadag to Kittur

BJ5 - Wed May 19 - Gadag to Kittur

6.15 am/6.15 pm/6.15pm/125/12.5/50%/595

nice and comfortable ride

great roads - strong head winds througouht - speed reduced to a crawl
- never cycled so much with such consistent head winds - felt nice
since in the first half it was cool - had to sailboat most of the way
- need to keep at easy levels for the first half of the tour to avoid
risking an injury and for the adaptation response to be fully in place

subdued temp - cloud cover throughout - had rained the night before -
went up to 35 by 1 - peak at 38 - remained 35-38 second half -fist
half was sub 30 - pleasent

having food every 2-3 hours

nh63 till hubli was nice and low traffic - got lost in hubli trying to
connect to golden4 - landed up on sh63 - went to dharwad via that -
eta dharwad 3.15

was thinking of halting at dharwad since belgaum still 100 km away -
decided to first see the connecting route to nh4 - was a 7 km descent
- not too enthused to make that ascent back - decided to halt at
kittur - largish town as per the atlas i picked up at hubli - missing
my escorts maps where i can clearly gauge acco availibility from the
city lettering

the golden4 was as beautiful as ever - rode till kittur 25 km away on
the shoulder as usual

had taken the ease of cycling on the golden quads as granted -
realized the value only after experiencing the wild west highways

was running short on water - but skipped the first few shops just
becos they were on a decline, and when i was picking speed - time for
food also, but skipped many of the places becos they were not exactly
right - the golden quads spoil you -

mentally less taxing too - the wild west ones need immense focus and
concentration compared to goldens - like debugging an automated
reporting code written by somebody else - goldens are like no
brainers comparitively speaking

the last food stop owner suggested this hotel - hotel gajraj - ac 800
- neat and clean room

could hv gone the 40 odd km to belgaum but would have got dark

bot a lots of soda, water, nimbuz for rehydration - but realized wont
need so much - the sugar in homeo pills in the sack had melted in
yesterday's heat

beginning of ride the pain in that one inch crotch area had gottten
worse - on verge of becoming a wound - used vaseline laced with
calendula - adjusted the seat angle down - caused the pressure to trfr
to wrist and knees - was a little worried - but by end of ride the
knee and wrist held up well and the sore had nearly healed - will need
to monitor knee/wrist for a for a few days - slight strain on left
foot lat. Pl. Fac. - getting better with coorg oil and change in foot
position - seems like a minor one - not a constraint - the other minor
aches and strains have also healed up with the coorg oil - zero butt
pain even with the local seat cover - the extra fat deposits of the
past few months + training with the seat cover seem to be helping

low stock of calendula Q - had not checked the bot before leaving -
might need to take a break in one of the larger cities to pick up
these kind of essentials and also get the cycle fixed - maybe in pune
- lets see

feeling pretty strong - capacity up by atleast 30%

overall till now the ride has been 1.5x tough compared to kanyakumari
- combo of inclines / rollling and head winds - had expected to be
around 1.25x due to inclines but had no idea of wind - all the long
distance speed rides in peak heat in bangalore, with full tour gear,
helping

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BJ4 - Day 4 : Change of route

Changed route - old route was via bijapur - solapur - aurangabad -
indore - ratlam - udaipur onwards

new route - wil stick to the nice golded quad highways - nh4 to bombay
and then nh8 to udaipur via ahemadabad

didnt realize that the non golden highways could be so bad - primarily
from cycling point of view - most of the long rides have been on
golden quads - new experience

the old highways quality seem to range from average to bad - no
shoulder - poor facilities on the way - water issue - heavy truck
traffic on arterial highways - used to wonder where are all the trucks
which are supposed to carry the significant portion of the country's
cargo - found out now- only small villages on the way - surprisingly
found most of the truck driving fairly disiplined - two types of honks
- gentle reminder vs. Get out of the way - from a hundred or so mts
away - anyways dont need that since have gotten used to it - cardinal
rules never of highway cycling never fails

have got spoilt with the golden - 2 to 3 lane each side - wide
shoulder for cycling - plenty food and botteled water - police patrols
- NHAI patrols - largish cities on the way - emergency phone booths -
dunno if they work though - hospitals - comparitively far lesser truck
trafic - maybe due to tolls but lot of commuter traffic - i find that
more unpredictable though - they almost seem to be made for cycling

decided to connect to go on to hubli and connect on to nh4

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BJ4 - Day 4 - May 18th - Chitradurd to Gadag

BJ4 - Day 4 - Chitradurd to Gadag

7.30 am/5 pm/5.30pm/100/13.3/60%

nice ride

planned to go to hubli - decided to halt at gadag - 50 km before hubli
- late start + initial traffic + puncture + slow speed due to heat

overall 5% incline - gentle rolls - medium head winds

temp reached 40 by 1pm - 45 by 2pm - remained 43-45 till end of ride -
warm head winds in afternoon

late start - disturbed sleep

first 30 km took 3 hrs due to bad roads and heavy truck + commuter
traffic - mostly riding off road

meal 1 at 8.30 - upma - nice

puncture + valve fail at 9.30 - took 45 mins to get back - tube and
inner tyre has lots of scrapes and gashes + rim slightly out - due to
the rough ride the day before - will need to fix next day or two

koppal at 30 km - then onwards till end of ride good road - single
lane for each side - but near zero traffic - nice ride - felt good to
cycle on tarred road

meal 2 at 10.30 - poha - bad

just a one or two shops with botteled water throughout the last 70 km
- and only one with branded at lakundi - did the route with low water
but lots of cold drinks - cold drink doesnt feel too good - used
unbranded water - tried to forget the TERI report on undesirable
contents

meal 3 at 12.30 - dal rice - nice dal - spicy

meal 4 at 3 - upma at roadside place - bad

from 1.30 onwards till end of ride was high heat - peak heat as usual
from 2.30 onwards but seemed to last longer - probably becos of warm
winda - warm winds after 1 - comfotable with heat but had to slow
down due to water issue - didnt have to use ac

gadag a surprisingly large town - had a bit of local culture to it -
tumker mostly a trasport hub - chitradurg had a nice cultural feel -
hospet a pure truckers town - felt like wild west - very rough feel -
zero culture

hotel shivani - right next to highway - 800 + tax - neat - ac slow -
nice overall

meal 5 at 6 at hotel - good dal rice

rehydrating with lime and soda - onion flavoured - must be the knife

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BJ3 - Day 3 - Chitradurga to Hospet

BJ3 - Chitradurga to Hospet

7.30 am/6.30 pm/7.30pm/140/15/60%

a little toughish ride - due to inclins and water shortage -
especially the last part

- NH13 this patch is pretty bad - single lane - one for each side - no
shoulder - only truck traffic - potholed road - very diff from the
golden quads

95 km -20% incline - gentle rolling / 45 km - 10% decline

meal 1 9 am - fried rice - tea -flavour of used tea leaves and kerosine stove

temp 30 till 9 am - 35 at 10 - no cloud cover - 40 at 2.30 and -
remained that level for long- peak at 42 - 36 at 6 pm

strong cross wind the first 50 - diag head the next 30 - full head the
next 40 - nil the last piece - sailboat tech for most

thru the hills first 50 km
scenic road - few shops - desolate- sourrounded by hills and greenry -
lots of north indian dhabas - meal 2 at one of them at 11.30 - dal and
roti - very nice - truckers curious - trucker happy to get call from
ashok leyland - beautiful lang

next 45 a litle barren but a light decline -used momentum riding to gain time

hardly any shops in this 95 km and only one shop selling bottled water
- very desolate road - but with lots of north dhaba - good that i had
started with 3.5 L water

next 25 from khudilgi even more desolate - not a single shop or dhaba
- running out of water and hungry as delayed food - first shop had no
bot wat or cold drink - local cold drink - need to carry water
purification stuff - had tea + bisc

next shop had cold drink - lots of drunk guys around - and getting
curious - quick exit

last 25 odd km had lots of shops - but no branded bot water and only a
few had branded cold drkl - but all of them had beer and all filled
with drunks - last patch was a bad one - ppl on road drunk and those
driving also drunk and driving like maniacs - and road was like
village road - broken and potholed

figured latet that grampanchayat elections and supposed to be dry day

hotel priyadarshini from lonely planed - ac room 1000 + tax - very neat and nice

first 50 km was the best part - had left a little late - sleep issue -
truck traffic - cardinal rule of highway cycling helpd

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BJ2 - 16th May - Tumkur to Chitradurga

BJ2 - 16th May - Tumkur to Chitradurga

6 am/4.30 pm/5.30pm/135/14/50%

comfortable ride - overall 7% incline - was doing 20 kmph initially -
but slowed down as slight strain on knee - need to keep the first week
as warm up

20 km - 4% inc / 40 km - 2% dec/ 60 km - 5% inc / near the end 5 km of
steady 25% inc

temp was cool in general - cloud cover till 1.30 - temp ranged from 24
to 35 during that time - peak heat at 42 after that - felt a little
recharged after the cool weather in the first half - cool breeze also

slight palm strain - put a padding

can feel the beginnings of butt pain - will use vaseline and reinforce
with seat / butt padding if needed - holding pretty well given that
its a thin seat cover -the extra fat deposits over the past few months
seem to have helped - anyways, had trained with the same seat cover

had alu paratha for breakfast - parceled from last day - meal 2 at
9.30 near Sira - khushka (sort of fried rice) with daal both steaming
hot - meal 3 at 12.30 near hiriyur - same thing but with an additional
chicken gravy - both cost rs 10 and had more rice than - could eat -
meal 4 after check in - masala dosa - ok types

took an hour to find hotel - got room in aishwarya fort non ac - rs
575 - very neat and clean

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Day 1 - 15th May - Bangalore to Tumkur

BJ1 - 15th may - blr to tumkur
8 am/3 pm/3.45pm/95/13/40%
sri krishna deluxe - ac - 1600

easy ride - first 50 km till UB factory bad traffic - after that ok
with 4 lane highway and a broad shoulder

toe pain due to uric acid - took homeo + lots of water - got better in a few hrs

room has ac but no current - getting hot

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