Bekal 1200
 |
| Western Ghats at Agumbe |
2025 Edition (1st edition of this ride)
27 February 2025 to 2 March
2025
Distance: 1,206
kilometers
Allotted time: 90 hours
Time taken: 87 hours 48
minutes
Start time: 27 February
2025, 6:00 am
Bekal 1200 (1,200
Kilometer Brevet):
The 1st edition of the Bekal 1200 was scheduled on 23 January 2025. A new 1,200-kilometre route by Bangalore Randonneurs with over 10,000 metres of elevation gain in the Western Ghats of Karnataka and Kerala along the Arabian sea coastal belt.
Route:
Equipment and Set Up:
 |
| At the start point |
Bike: Trek Emonda ALR 5
Frameset: Aluminium
Group set: Shimano 105
11 speed (50-34 at the front and 11-32 cassette at the rear)
Tires: Continental Gatorskin
Lights: Cateye Volt 300
for the front and Niterider Cherrybomb for the rear. (Used the Cateye 300
through the ride)
Top Tube Bag: Phone,
Identity card, cash, 2 cateye volt 300 batteries, 20,000 mah power bank, few
candies and 1 chamois cream pouch
Saddle Bag: Trek N Ride
Canguru Bag – Tool kit, Lube, Tire levers, puncture kit, pump, 2 spare tubes,
Cateye AMPP 400, a full set of clothes, towel, 10,000 mah and 20000 mah power
bank, spare lens, phone charger
Did not carry any
jackets as there was no rain forecast and the lowest temperature was expected
to be around 17-18 degrees centigrade
Navigation:
Device: Garmin Edge 520
+
The 1,200-kilometer
route was divided into 4 segments. There were 12 control points; having a fair
idea of the control points having seen the rider photos during the event, it
was only a matter of keeping an eye out when reaching near the location.
Weather update:
The weather forecast for the ride was tail winds to start with and it was head wind only in the last 200 kilometres of the ride, temperature during the day about 32 - 38oC, and the night time temperature in the 16 – 22oC range. No rains were forecast. It was going to be a hot ride and the nights wouldn't be too cold.
Total Time:
Plan:
Being an unsupported
ride, the requirement of getting to a drop bag location was not there. Not having trained in the past few months, this was going to be tough for me to
get through. The route was easy going for about 300 kilometres with the gradient
being mostly downhill with a tail wind the ride would effectively start at the
300-kilometre mark.
Not being fit, the
usual control to control approach was dropped. I moved to smaller 40-50
kilometre segments. Having a town every 40-50 kilometres on this route made
this easy to execute. Smaller targets were set, so the ride was only about
getting to the next city/town/village in the 40-50 kilometre mark. Get to the
420 - 440 kilometre mark in the first 24 hours and 300 kilometres in every 24
hours that followed was the target.
Sleep break: I planned to take my first sleep break at Sullia which was 700 kilometres into the ride. This was an optimistic target and I did not want to push too hard and was going to take a call on sleep based on the progress in the ride. Don’t go too hard and come to a grinding halt was the mantra. The Sullia target was set as I wanted to get to Bekal in day light and also cover a part of the 60 kilometres from Bekal to Sullia in day light.
Drop Bag Locations:
There were no drop bag locations for this ride. However, the contacts of the hotel at Surathkal and homestay at Sakleshpur had been provided by Mohan Sir in case required.
Gratitude:
Chandana –thank you for being available through-out the ride in spite of your busy schedule. Talking to me and keeping me sane and realistic through the ride. Thank you for the post-ride care.
Tanushree – my support
system back home; keeping me motivated and emotionally perked up
Mohan Subramanyam – thank
you for the opportunity to ride this event. This ride wouldn’t have been
completed if not for your guidance and timely inputs on the route, road
conditions and hotel contacts.
Rajkumar Khot and
Pritish Abraham – thank you for motivating me through the ride and tracking my
progress and keeping me in good humour and also making me believe that I would
get through the ride
RR Cycles (Madivala) – Credit for the ride goes largely to the bike for holding up during the ride,
cannot express how grateful I am to Rakesh and his staff for taking care of the
bike
Garmin – navigation
worked well. Although navigation was not very difficult on this route for me, the
unit functioned well when needed the most.
Ride Partners
Abhishek Singh – thank you for starting the ride with me and staying with me for the first 100 kilometres. Thank you for the inputs on the road conditions and the tough sections when you passed by them. Congratulations on completing the ride in under 71 hours, fantabulous ride, coming just 3 weeks after the 2,300 kilometre RAKA ride made this an astounding feat.
Challenges at Bekal 1200
1. Elevation
The route was
challenging due to the elevation being over 10,000 metres. The section from 650
kilometres till 890 kilometres was packed with a lot of elevation gain. Getting
through this in fair time would be a challenge.
2. Weather
Coastal heat is always
a challenge, however, with the summer beginning to set in, the
temperature had cranked up by a couple of degrees as compared to the actual
event. However, the night temperature was not as cold as during the event,
giving a little respite.
3. Weight
Not having drop bags,
had to carry the weight on the bike. One full set of clothes along with 2
additional power banks along with me being almost 8 kilograms over my usual
weight made this a very challenging ride
4. Logistics
All the logistics had
to be handled during the ride. Planning and carrying the right kind and amount
of food for the night ride was critical for this ride.
Concussion:
I’m walking from one injury to another. Just having made a recovery from the Achilles Tendon rupture and having gotten back on the bike, I crashed on a ride on 15 December 2024. It was a hard crash coming in terrain which I am familiar with. Crashed on a downhill, the resulting concussion took over a month to normalize. The dizziness from the concussion faded, however the confidence in descending has slumped to a low. The aches in the thigh and back are still lingering, the time on the bike has reduced drastically, the body weight has shot up alarmingly.
Ride Report:
1. Bengaluru to Madhugiri
Make
a quick start
Distance:
110 kilometres
Abhishek and I started the ride from FKCCI at 6:00 am. It was good to
have company to start with and it was a brisk start. It did not take too much
effort to get past the city and get onto the Doddaballapur road.
We had a nice chatty ride, till the 100 kilometre mark. Traffic was not
too much of a problem, other than the occasional loud honks. Passed by the
Makalidurga hill and the beautiful Gunjur lake. Didn’t realise that we had
crossed Gauribidanur, thanks to the tail wind and the chatter.
Abhishek pulled away at the 100-kilometre mark just as I was beginning
to feel the hunger pangs. In just a few minutes Abhi had disappeared from the
eye line and I was riding alone. I had planned to stop at Madhugiri for
breakfast. I inched close to Madhugiri and made a stop at a small eatery. Quick
fill of tomato bath, water and seven-up and back on the road.
 |
| Enroute Vani Vilas Sagar Dam |
2. Madhugiri to Chikkamagaluru
Well
begun doesn’t always end well
Distance: 220 kilometres Cumulative Distance: 330 kilometres
The weather was still
not very hot; still had a favorable wind, it was easy going. The first control
point came by, a quick photo stop and onwards to Sira. The heat was picking up,
but it was still easy going. Made quick progress and was at Sira soon enough.
Things took a turn on
the highway. Open roads meant that the heat was at its highest here. The mild
wind helped to cool things a little. Rolling terrain with mostly downhill
gradient, I was familiar with this road, however the heat was making it
difficult. I made it to Hiriyur and stopped for lunch. Vegetable Pulav followed
by ice cream was lunch.
 |
| Vani Vilas Sagar Backwaters |
Off the highway, it was a state highway, lesser traffic, the road alternated between being patchy and good. Passed by the Vani Vilas Sagar Dam and reached Hosadurga. With road work in progress from Hosadurga for about 10 kilometres it was watchful riding. Making it past, it was easy riding again, with the heat beginning to reduce it was getting easier to ride. Reached the control at Ajjampur, quick photo and onward to Kadur. A small break at the railway crossing and it was brisk progress to Kadur.
I reached Kadur around
7 pm and took a break at a bakery, water refill and a soft drink to top up the
energy reserves. Although it had been relatively easy riding till now, the
tiredness was beginning to hit. I had reached a couple of hours before I had expected
and was buoyant that I could make it to Chikkamagaluru for dinner.
 |
| Sunset near Ajjampur |
The route to Chikkamagaluru is rolling with a few small and steady climbs. The high of having reached Kadur early was gone as reality struck that I did not have the legs to climb. The climbs were slow, with energy reserves depleting quickly it was a struggle to stay on the saddle. The closer I got to Chikkamagaluru, the longer the climbs got. I was struggling on the climbs and the ride had only begun. The climbs were putting me on shaky ground and was making me question if I could complete this ride. Reminded myself that I was riding in 30-40 kilometres segments and not to think of the entire distance.
Making it to
Chikkamagaluru was a relief, it was dinner time, a nice serving of chicken
biriyani, chamois cream application and stocked up two packets of Oreo biscuit
and a half litre Sprite for the night. I did believe that I had the nutrition for the night covered.
3. Chikkamagaluru – Thirthahalli
Coffee
blossoms, rabbit, dogs and rolling climbs
Distance:
110 kilometres
 |
| Enroute Agumbe |
30 kilometres from Chikkamagaluru was on lonely interior roads. This was a tough section, had been told about it by the riders during the ride, Mohan Sir was keen on me riding this section and Abhi having passed by it a few hours earlier had warned me to be careful when descending near Bettadamalali estate as it was steep. The road climbed almost immediately when I exited the hotel, it was a steady gradient, didn’t feel very lonely as there was the occasional vehicle passing by. I was slow, but did not stop, made slow progress on the climbs, the descends were used for the legs to recover. As the road moved from villages to estates, the road suddenly shot up, I could see a few of the hair pin curves, keeping my head down kept grinding the pedals on the steep gradient and made it past the hair pins. Done with the steep gradient; some more rolling terrain and then came the Bettadamalali estate. It was a steep gradient descent; I spotted a rabbit which hopped its way back into the estate. The hair pins kept coming and I was getting off course warnings; stopped and confirmed that there was no other road, the thought of having to ride back up the gradient if I was off-course was unnerving. I was slow on the descent and made it to the road to Balehonnur. It was an exciting section to get through.
I made quick progress
to Balehonnur, on reaching Balehonnur I was hungry. Pushed myself to get to Smile
Café, took the photo and rode back to the junction, sat at the bus stop and gobbled
up the Oreo biscuits, Sprite and water; realized that I was very hungry and had
run through my food supplies in a jiffy and had very little water remaining. Took a few minutes to calm down and
get back on the saddle.
The section from Balehonnur
to Kuppalli passed by coffee estates. Most of the estates had coffee blossoms
and this section was filled with the fragrance from the coffee flower. The
coffee blossoms kept the mind away from the continuous rolling terrain in this
section. Passing through villages brought me back, with the dogs barking. One dog
at the beginning of the village was enough to wake up the rest of the village,
I would be escorted out with the symphony of barks.
I was on a descent and was relatively quick, I didn’t expect dogs to be chasing me when I’m on a descent, however, I could hear the panting, it was distant, which in a short while kept getting louder. I must say this one was relentless and kept getting closer, the downhill changed to a uphill and now I was going to be slow and the dog was very close, I turned around and let out a loud shout, fortunately the dog backed off. It was a relief that nothing untoward had occurred.
It was back to fragrant
air and me enjoying the bliss of being the only one on the road. Having crossed
Kuppalli and with Thirthahalli approaching, the coffee estates were done. Day
break was around the corner and it was back to thinking about the distance
covered and setting new targets.
I made a stop just
after Thirtahalli at a provision store to refill on water and ate chips to get
the energy levels up. 24 hours were done and I had covered 442 kilometres, a decent
output for the day. I had to keep this going in the next 24 hours too.
4. Thirthahalli - Bekal
Its
hoooottttt…….
Distance:
210 kilometres
 |
| Agumbe |
The road to Agumbe was wide and in good condition. The gradient was an impediment on a few occasions; however, it was largely a smooth ride. The Sun was making a rapid rise up the horizon, the heat was cranking up slowly. I was trying to make it to the Agumbe descent before it gets very hot.
A quick photo stop at Hotel Ganesh Grand for the CP photo and I was on
my way to make a quick descent. I had to make a stop for a few clicks at the
Agumbe view point. A sun rise view, although Agumbe is known for the sun set, the
view is breath taking in the morning also. I made a careful descent, no confidence to
make a fast descent. Having made the descent, the hunger pangs were biting, I
had to make a stop soon and get some food in. Hotel Seetanadi was close by and it
was time to make a stop.
Acidity had struck, I was struggling to eat, but was hungry. I
asked for upma, kesari bath and Mangalore Buns, I could not eat the Chutney as
it was spicy and I would feel the burn in the chest almost immediately. Had the
upma, the sweet was also difficult to eat, but I needed it to keep going.
Refilled water and started from Seetanadi hotel.
 |
| Agumbe descent |
Saddle sore had also started, I needed another round of application of chamois cream, however, if I did, I wouldn’t have chamois cream when I changed the clothes. Against better judgement, I decided to ride on and try to get to the 600-kilometre mark before another round of Chamois application.
I reached Hebri quickly. There was road work in progress after Hebri, the
gains on the descent would have to be nullified, as I had to slow down due to
road work and start the climbs without the benefit of carrying speed. Kept
telling myself to remain calm as I had sufficient time on hand and could afford
to take a little extra time here.
Reaching Manipal, it was long steep climbs and descents. Slow progress,
however, I was happy to have reached the Mangaluru highway. I expected it to
get easy from here till Surathkal. However, it was very hot, the saddle sore
worsened and I was struggling to stay on the bike. When I would sit on the saddle after being off the saddle to
pedal, The saddle would be hot, felt like sitting on a hot frying
pan. I took a break for water, juice and ice cream. Unwillingly got back on the
saddle as the clock was ticking away.
I reached Surathkal control at 1:15 pm. It was boiling. I had to make a decision, I could continue riding in the heat and tire myself out, or make the stop here, catch a couple of hours of sleep and then resume when the weather would have cooled off. It was decision time, I should have probably eaten lunch and then decided, instead the saddle sore and the heat were driving the thought process, I decided to stop. Took a room at Serenity Stays, had a shower, change of clothes, food and then tried to get some sleep. I was unable to sleep, I just spent an hour rolling around and not being able to sleep. The sleep was not working out and this was an hour wasted, not ready to waste more time, I decided to get going. I had changed clothes almost 100 kilometres before plan and also not slept, which meant there would be time wasted at night for sleep.
Bekal was 75 kilometres away, I started around 4:15 pm. The saddle
sore was bad and I was barely able to get going. I had an additional task on
hand, look out for a courier shop, I wanted to get rid of the used clothes which
would just be additional weight for the rest of the journey with no use from
it. I couldn’t find any till I exited Mangaluru. There were a couple of long
climbs near Mangaluru which took out the juice from the legs.
I crossed over into Kerala and was expecting a two-lane
highway, surprise, it a nice wide highway and the surface is smooth. The heat
had died down and it was easy riding, until I reached Mangalpady. With the
highway closed for road work, we were herded to the service road. The service
road was packed and traffic was at a standstill. It was slow progress until I
exited the town and made it back to where the highway was open.
Made it to Kasargod, I was still carrying the pack
of clothes which I did not want to carry beyond Kasargod. Went a little off-route
here searching for a courier office. Reached Kohinoor travels office and saw packages
outside the office, enquired and they said that they will send it to Bangalore,
however, the package has to be picked up from their office. Informed Chandana
that she will have to pick up the clothes, having a lighter saddle bag was a
relief, especially with a lot of climbing coming up ahead. Started the ride towards Bekal.
A couple of steep climbs to get out of Kasargod, I
was closing in on Bekal. The charging cable for the Garmin unit was not working;
stopped at a mobile accessory store and purchased a cable. Charging taken care
of, it was onwards to Bekal.
It was dark when I reached the Bekal fort, barely
any light. A quick photo for control point purposes and then another photo op
at the entrance arch before resuming the ride. Rode ahead and enquired about
availability of dinner on the interior roads, I was told that I had to have
dinner at Bekal. Went to a restaurant across the road, Parotta and chicken
curry along with grape juice for dinner.
I started from Bekal and stopped at the first
bakery to buy food for the night. Having struggled on just 2 Oreo packets the
previous night, I bought an entire Dil Kush and not just slices. Loaded the
saddle bag and I was off to take on the interior roads in Kerala.
 |
| Bekal Fort |
Steep
gradients, no power to climb, no confidence to descend
Distance:
90 kilometres
Having reached the coast, it was now time to climb back up. After the initial easy gradients, when the gradients did hit, they were steep and they kept coming. Being in Kerala, the houses are built at the front of the property, so it did feel like I was riding in a residential area. Massive houses, some beautifully lit made it feel very safe even though the roads were lonely.
I was not powering
through the climbs, on the rare occasion that I did, I was drained and had to
take it easy for the next few kilometres. Just as I was finding it difficult to
climb, there was no confidence on the descents, I was descending relatively
slowly, making this a slow section.
A concert was on in one
of the towns, there was a lot of activity before I reached the town. Close to
midnight, but the town folk were out travelling to the concert, I had the
company of speeding two-wheelers for a few kilometers.
I exited Kerala, my
entry to Karnataka was through the Pushpagiri Forest Reserve where I was
welcomed by a steep gradient climb. The forest reserve had relatively more
vehicular movement even at that hour. A few moments of hearing the forest at
night would be disrupted by the sound of the vehicle and then of humans talking
about sighting a cycle in a forest.
The ride without stopping
for breaks was paying off, I was on course to reach Sullia by 2 am. My
struggles on the bike did not suggest this, however, I wasn’t complaining that
I was able to build a small buffer. However, knowing that I had a buffer, the
mind was weak and wanted to take a break at Sullia; eat a little, catch an hour
of sleep and then resume so that I could keep hallucinations at bay which were
beginning to play on the mind a little.
I reached Sullia and
the hunt for a place to rest began. I should have opted for a lodge, instead
wanting to make an exit in an hour, I opted instead for a temple. I parked the
bike, ate a little dil kush and headed to the temple portico to sleep. I spent
the next 35 minutes waving my hands around to keep the mosquitoes away. The
symphony of dogs had changed to a symphony by mosquitoes and I was not enjoying
it. Try as much as I did, I couldn’t sleep even though I was tired.
Giving up on the idea
of sleeping, I started from Sullia. I could barely sit on the saddle, the
saddle sore had worsened. I rode gingerly for a few kilometres, with no improvement,
I was forced to use the last sachet of chamois cream. Although it gave temporary
relief, in the next half an hour the pain was back. The terrain from Sullia to
Subramanya was relatively easier which kept the bike moving.
Having wasted time at
Sullia, it was coming back to haunt me. I had eaten into the time buffer, not
been able to sleep, the saddle sore was worse and it was costing me time on the
saddle. I needed to rest to be able to get back on the bike. I decided to take
a couple of hours off the bike at Subramanya. Check into a room, take a shower
and get some sleep which might help to get back on the bike. The risk being
that I would be losing out on a few hours of favorable weather and would have
to ride when it’s hot.
Reaching Subramanya was
a relief. Control point formality was done with the pic taken. I headed in search
of a provision store to buy Vaseline as a substitute for chamois cream. After
this the search for a hotel started. It was a frustrating search; I ended up
getting one which was the fourth hotel that I went to. I had already lost 45
minutes by the time I could get a room. A quick shower, the 1.5-hour sleep
break was shortened to 45 minutes, got ready and headed to the restaurant for
breakfast.
A couple of upma’s were
eaten with difficulty due to the acidity. It was already hot, the air conditioning barely
made any difference in the restaurant. It was going to be a tough day on the
saddle. The mileage in the 2nd 24-hour period was 300 kilometres, I was
20 kilometres short of the required mileage.
 |
| Kukke Subramanya Temple |
6. Subramanya – Banakal
Haven’t
you had breakfast?
Distance:
100 kilometres
I started the ride at
8:15 am from Subramanya. I had managed to be relatively quick to get started, I
hoped that this would help with the time further up on the road. The rolling
terrain continued, I was painfully slow on the climbs; while I waited for gravity
to do its bit on the downhills.
The closer I got to
Dharmastala the steeper the climbs were. I made a stop for lime soda and was
back on the saddle. It was very hot now, while the canopy was doing its bit, it
was getting very tough to be on the saddle. The mind was constantly asking for
breaks, controlling the thoughts was the tough part on this ride.
I took the turn onto
interior roads after reaching Dharmasthala. A couple of kilometres and stopped
at a small outlet, saw a freezer and asked for an ice cream. One ice cream was
not enough, I was into my 4th ice cream when the lady at the store
enquired in surprise “Haven’t you had breakfast?” A feeble “I have” was
followed by me devouring the ice cream. I was gobbling them even though I knew
that in 20 kilometres I would stop again for lunch before starting the Charmadi
climb.
The road was not good
for a couple of kilometres; when the road improved it was very steep rolling
terrain. Just a small distance, but it was sufficient to drain all the ice
creams which I had eaten. Made it to the highway and then it was the road work
section to reach Charmadi. A stop for lunch and a small power nap and I was
going to have to tackle the Charmadi climb in the afternoon heat.
It was a slow climb, averaging 5 kmph. When I did get momentary canopy cover, the speed would improve to about 7 kmph, it was a grind to make it to the top. This was particularly difficult mentally with the distance coming down very slowly, keeping myself on the saddle was difficult. One kilometre at a time, with frequent breaks I was at the half way point. Another ice cream and water break, with the gradient easing up, riding was easier. The vendors who gave me water and ice cream were kind enough to give the water and ice cream and said that I could pay if i wanted to when I get to a network area.
 |
| Charmadi Viewpoint |
The second half of the climb was better, with the gradient easing up every now and then, it was easier on the legs and on the mind. Although not the best that I've seen the Charmadi ghat, the view of the valley was clear and good. Making it to the top was a relief, moreover the tough gradients were mostly done, it was now about getting past Kodagu and it would be flattish terrain after that.
Having made it past the Charmadi climb, it was downhill to Kottigehara. The sight of the shops was sufficient for me to stop, the temptation to eat Neer Dosa was too much to resist. I had a plate of Neer Dosa and a couple of Coconut water’s before resuming.
7. Banakal – Sakleshpur
The legs are back…or so
I thought
Distance:
50 kilometres
 |
| Charmadi |
The heat had dropped, I seemed to find a little extra juice in the legs, starting to ride at a fair click. I was trying to make time; however, it dawned on me that I would be stuck in a location where food wouldn’t be available at dinner time. Thanks to Mohan Sir, for sharing the number of the Brindavan Home Stay, I called and made arrangements for dinner and a couple of hours of sleep at the home stay.
The slow pace had meant that I would have to spend another night on the
road. I was trying to ride as quickly as possible, however, the quicker I rode
the more fuel I was burning and ended up being hungry. Had to stop for juice
and chips at a store in Hanbal before resuming the ride.
It was a relatively easy ride to get to the Sakleshpur highway except
for one steep gradient section. The remaining were mostly downhill gradient;
reached the highway, rode carefully as there was road work in progress and got
off the highway towards Kodlipet.
This is a known section of the route; however, the mind plays tricks
when tired. I went past the bridge on the downhill and then made the climb
towards the home stay, only to see that it was dark at the top of the curve,
ok, I still have to go further, I haven’t reached the home stay, keep calm keep
riding. I went further and 10 minutes later realized that I had overshot the home
stay. Do I have to go back?? I had to turn back and made by way back, all the
way chiding myself for having missed the homestay.
I reached at 9:00 pm, was famished. I headed for dinner, had a good
and simple dinner, I asked for 2 egg rolls to be packed (they packed 3 which came in handy) and headed to sleep. If
I could get a proper rest, the saddle sore might get better, the shower will definitely
help relax the aches and pains.
I overslept by about 15 minutes, was woken up by Chandana’s call and
then started a quick preparation for the exit. It was cold at the homestay,
needed to get out and start riding, if not the mind will prefer the cozy
environs of the home stay.
I made up my mind to get going, quickly got out and made my way up the
slope and hopped onto the bike and got started.
8. Sakleshpur – Saaligrama
Beautiful night sky and
a dog chase
Distance:
110 kilometres
It was 00:00 am when I started from Sakleshpur. The legs were feeling better after the rest, the saddle sore was bad, it took a while on the saddle for the pain to subside. It was just me on the road and the night sky. I kept looking up at the night sky at frequent intervals to catch a quick glimpse of the star lit sky. Not the most star lit sky that I’ve seen, but it was definitely one of the densest that I had seen on this ride.
There was the odd car which would pass by, one car stopped and gave me
fair warning about the presence of wild life on the roads; with the advent of
summer the wild life tends to wander out of the forest, into the estates in search of food. I
acknowledged the warning and said that I was familiar with the terrain and
would be watchful, thanked them for the information and kept riding ahead.
Every village that I passed, I was welcomed by the cyclists’ friends who gave me an escort till I exited the village. The dogs were creating a din and waking up the village. If the dogs got too close, I would shout and they kept their distance.
It was a very enjoyable ride till I got past Shanivarsanthe other than the odd dog orchestra. It had been very surreal passing through the estates and listening to the sound of the Cicada's. The flapping of wings of the birds and wondering how large its wing span would be.
On the way to Somwarpet, I had reached the top of a climb and as the gradient went downwards,
the speed was picking up, I noticed a couple of dogs on the outside of my eye.
Being downhill I didn’t expect them to chase as I would pass them quickly. But
this was different, both the dogs chased, one on my left and one on my right. A
shout at the dog at the right and it backed off. The one on the left was
relentless. It was rather close; my throat ran dry from shouting but this dog
was not giving up. The increase in speed did not throw the dog off. Changed a few gears and increased the pace to get a little
breathing space from the fangs which were getting pretty close, kind of like feeling
the breath of the dog on my legs. It was a chase which lasted about 500-600 metres before the dog backed off, some encounters are strange as they throw water on
whatever understanding we have of the animals. This was one of those nights
when it was tough to take as the saddle sore aggravated, the chase had left me
drained rather than awake which is the usual case at night.
It took a while to shake off the incident and get back to enjoying
being the only person on the road. It was not a very cold night; however, I was
feeling hungry every 90 minutes spent on the road. The Egg rolls which I had
packed from the Brindavan home stay came in handy to take care of the hunger.
With a few kilometres remaining to Somwarpet, I was drowsy and was looking for
a bus stop to sleep. I found a stop; switched off the lights and made myself
comfortable. I put my head down; and then there was single “woof”. That was
enough to wake up all the dogs around. There was an orchestra which started, my
plans to sleep were done, get back on the bike and keep riding. It took a while
to find another stop without any dogs around. When I did find one, it was a
little late, I was in that mid-zone, where I would take time to go to sleep, as
I had a small buffer, I decided to rest.
The restart was very difficult, the body had become rigid; getting back
pedaling was tough. Every stop was now going to have to be taken only if its
necessary, as re-starting was becoming very difficult.
Having made it past Somwarpet, it was downhill gradient, a risky
proposition when drowsy. Made it downhill with a lot of concentration which
left me drained by the time I reached the outskirts of Kudige. I opted to stop
and catch a small power nap.
A small power nap later I re-started. Pulled up in front of Deluxe
hotel, quick photo, last egg roll opened and back on the bike; ate while I rode
the bike.
The road was wider, the gradient was milder, riding was relatively
easier. I rode with the target of making it to the 1,000-kilometre mark within
75 hours before stopping for breakfast. An achievable target which kept me
going. The minute I touched the 1,000-kilometre mark, the mind was done, I had
to stop for breakfast. Stopped at a restaurant just after Saligrama.
9. Saligrama – Nagamangala
Didn’t
start well, but ended very well
Distance:
90 kilometres
 |
| Dry fruit chikki |
It was getting hotter and the head wind was also getting stronger with every passing minute. The longer I sat at the restaurant to recover my strength, the more I had to expend as the conditions were worsening. I started from Saligrama and made slow progress. It was an open highway, with no shade, the combination of heat and headwind was very potent. It was not long before I stopped at a bakery for water refill which became an ice cream stop. As the ice cream melted the heat meter was cranking up; the clock was ticking away as well. I had to get back and keep chipping away at the distance.
Back on a hot saddle, gloves were off since there were blisters on the palm, the hoods were sticky, moving the palm to change the position on the handle bar was painful, felt like the skin was getting peeled at one point.
I made a stop before Krishnarajpete for watermelon. I had to request the vendor for a couple of crates to be placed so that I could sit and eat. The heat was radiating off the road; I didn't have the luxury of trying to wait out the heat, had to get back on the saddle. Conversation about the ride at the fruit stall with a local helped to take the mind off the pains of the ride.
Passed by Krishnarajpete and back on the highway. In a few kilometres the navigation showed that I had to get off the highway and went
towards a forest. The rough surface and light shade with an elevation gain made
me wonder why the route was away from a smooth surface. Am I on the right route? No harm in confirming, checked Bike Gpx and Ride with GPS, both showing that I am on the right route. The shade and rough
surface on this route were not sufficient to compensate for the additional rolling
resistance.
“This is going to be as painful as I allow this be” and the
“longer I take, the more painful, it will get”, so put in some effort and keep
chipping away at the distance was ringing in my mind. I made it to the top and
along with it the road surface changed. The road surface which Abhi had
referred to as a “runway” had arrived and I was zipping towards Nagamangala. It
was so good that there was barely any pedaling to be done and given the
tiredness, I was falling asleep at the handle. A couple of wobbles and I was up
and about, I reached Nagamangala and pulled up in front of Prakash Sweets.
Guru welcomed me and chatted up about the ride. He gave me a couple of
tasty and nutritious Dry Fruit chikkis which I gobbled up with glee. A water
refill and some chatty moments later I started from Nagamangala.
Being comfortably placed on the time front, I opted to stop at the outskirts of Nagamangala for curd rice and water melon juice. It was more to do with trying to wait out the heat than the food and juice as I was better placed on the time front now.
10. Nagamangala - Bengaluru
The
home run in traffic
Distance:
116 kilometres
This is an easy ride
back to Bengaluru. The only deterrent being the traffic. It was heavy traffic,
which allowed me my room on the left lane and did not impede me, however, the continuous swishing traffic noise was irritating. The legs were much better on the highway,
seemed to find an extra gear as I inched closer to the finish.
I reached Nelamangala
and was welcomed by a traffic jam. There was a long line of vehicle lights at a
standstill. The service lane had relatively lesser traffic, quickly lifted the
cycle onto the service lane and rode on the service lane. It was confusing to
ride on the service lane with traffic being on the opposite lane I didn’t know
where to ride the cycle, a few attempts were made before settling on the left
side of the right lane.
 |
| With the beautiful Bekal 1200 momento |
This was a tough one,
being under-prepared for the ride, this ride was done by drawing more on the
mental aspect of the ride than the physical one. The ride started much better
than I had expected however, things began to go down as soon as the elevation
started after Kadur (from the 300-kilometre mark).
I was apprehensive
about riding alone at night in remote terrain, however, it was a superb
experience on all 3 nights (except for one dog chase). The fragrant roads from
Chikkamagaluru to Koppa due to the coffee blossoms will remain with me for a
long time, the steep gradients in Kerala, the Charmadi climb is scorching heat,
the difference that shade makes in scorching heat on ride performance, the
surreal ride in Kodagu at night with a beautiful night sky, the struggles with
saddle sore, the guilt free binging on ice cream because of the heat, finishing
in time will all be pleasant memories for this ride.
The obvious take back
that I have to get back to regular riding to minimize the struggles is well
known. The saddle sore is bad at the end of this one. However, I do feel that I
have come out of this experience mentally stronger.
Conclusion:
The 1st
edition of the Bekal 1200 is completed. I had the opportunity to see this ride
from both the sides, that it, being a volunteer and also riding it. It was
tough ride, it had it’s good and bad moments, managed to come out of this ride
and complete it in time. Lot of work to do to get ready for the next ride, hope
to stay injury free and make improvements on the riding front.
Two quotes which got me
through this ride and also felt apt for this ride were:
“It’s not about
performing on your good days, but making it through on your bad days” – Premier League
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