Bulls on Parade to Mandawa

The Mandawa Mausers

5 YEARS. Sounds like a short time. But the best times of my life was spent in these past five years. Clear shots of a cold November evening are still fresh in my mind when five complete strangers met at Leisure Valley Park, Gurgaon on their iron steeds that later borne the Bulls on Parade Motorcycle Club. Never thought on that day that we would be celebrating our 5th Anniversary in 2012. But then things have happened in these 5 years that were not foreseen.

I missed the 4th Anniversary Ride as I was pursuing trivial pleasures in UK, doing what? MBA. It was only Nishant's blog post of the Bundi Ride that provided some solace in the non-Indian land.Such instances fuel the fire even more. The 5th Anniversary Ride would be the vengeance. Enthusiasm was plenty as 13 Riders signed up for the Ride. I held back my word as there was still uncertainty of joining the Ride. Once committed, there would be no turning back. But once the ticket back to India was booked, and some family-visit plans laid, the uncertainty was fading.Then came the surety. There was also the question of the health of my Bullet as it had been lying idle for a year. But true to its nature, after battery and oil change, it started without a hitch as if it had also been yearning to hit the road.

For me, the Ride started one day earlier. On 8th November at 10:30 AM, I left my home at Ludhiana to ride 325 kms to Gurgaon. NH-1 on the Bullet. I had been craving for this feeling for more than a year. It was now that comparisons were made with travelling in UK. Sure, in UK you have access to your fantasy machines. But the riding is very mechanical. It is governed by the speed limiter which is a miserly 50 mph. As a result, the Rider is more focussed on the TomTom rather than enjoying the ride. It is in India that you get a sense of journey. Yes, we have the rash traffic, but NH-1 now offers the road space for a rider to ride peacefully in his own lane. I took my own sweet time in reaching Gurgaon.

But first, a stop had to be made at Zaheer's at Mahipalpur. When going for a Bullet Ride it is customary to visit him. However, my reasons were more to meet the person rather than the Bullet specialist. Being a member, he already knew of my arrival. No surprises there given the amount of blabbermouths in the club. Sadly, he would be missing the Anniversary Ride even after having prepared his Bullet for the same. Relationships really complicate things.

The traditional pre-Ride BBB was planned at 8 PM. My contribution was Bruichladdich Islay Single Malt Whisky, or Laaddy, as it came to be called later on. It was great to be back with the Brotherhood after a year. First persons to meet were Nishant, Dhruv, Negi and Khanna. There was another friend of Nishant on the outside who was not interested in joining us. The Royal Castle, or Vedant ki Dhaani as we prefer to call it, was going to be the venue for showmanship after a long time. I tried to communicate with a British accent showing some global experience but that fell apart soon. More people joined in now. Vikas, Francis, Vibhor, Rohan, Adit and then finally, the mastermind, Vihans with another guest, Manu Goyal. The proceedings of that night were best captured by Francis as follows:

"Kal ka BBB mast tha...13 participants plus 1 wild-card entry...Nishant ne khoob photography ki andar, apne friend ko bahar khadi karke...Vikas ne ek naya project ka bhoomi-pooja kiya kone mein...Sunny aur Chinu bandook le aaye, par Chinu ka tapancha crucial time pe chala nahin...Negi bhai ne floor naap liya...Dips paaji ne shampoo bottle se liquid gold pilaya...Ajit interval ke baad entry kiya par battery usi ne ghuma diya...Khanna bhai sab ko khush kar di, phir bhi goli usi ko laga...Shera tha villain, poore executive style main...Vibhor bhai ne haath mila liya Chinu ke dost, Manu Goyal, ke saath...Adit ne Vikas ke phone ka home-delivery almost ki...Dhruv ne sabse pehle apni whiskey nipta di...aur main yeh sab bas dekhta raha..."

Well Francis, you were not watching all this very innocently either. You must be thinking of your own program that you had planned with your Maya while we were on this Ride. Our initial plan was to complete the session by 11 pm. The mixture of men and alcohol together cannot adhere to strict timings. It was a good 2 hours past the deadline that we went to our homes. The assembling time for next day was scheduled at 5:30 AM. The catchphrase of this ride "Baatein karenge" was also created during this meet.

9 November 2012

It was around 5:45 AM that me and Sumit reached our traditional launchpad, Leisure Valley Park only to find Chadha paaji cruising around in a puzzled manner. He had been riding around wondering if he had misread the timings or was late in arriving. It looked like the after effects of last night otherwise we are a punctual bunch of people. I was also having the hangover, but it was nothing new to go on a ride with a hangover. Phone calls went here and there. Doegar arrived soon and was hungry. Meanwhile, early morning joggers and walkers were reaching the Leisure Valley Park and puzzled at the lineup of four Bullets. While we waited, Sumit had a tough time searching for a matchbox to light his cigarette. Chadha paaji bragged about his dry battery, Nishant got some sandwiches and juice for breakfast. Ashok never turned up. We got to leave only at 7 AM. Our bunch comprised of:

Nishant Jha with Vihans Gupta - Royal Enfield Electra - The Fat Boy with Jaanu
Sumit Vijayant Singh - Royal Enfield Standard - The Dirt Roader
Sandeep Singh Chadha - Royal Enfield Standard - The Wise One
Rohan Kaushik - Royal Enfield Classic - The Nephew
Varun Doegar - Royal Enfield Thunderbird - The 50 kph-er
Ajit Singh - Royal Enfield Machismo - The Twin
Ankit Gupta - Royal Enfield Classic - The Mechanic
Diptinder Singh Chhabra - Royal Enfield Electra- The Tourist

With a loud roar of 'JAI BoP', we set off. 8 motorcycles riding together, I had missed this feeling for a long time. The late start meant that now we had to face the heavy onslaught of traffic till Dharuhera. It also meant that we were very close to breakfast time which led to the first stop just after crossing Dharuhera.

Straightaway an order of 20 parathas with butter, chhole, curd and tea were ordered. Food tastes extra-good on Rides.

Unfortunately, I could not enjoy due to the hangover and having already thrown up once. Well-wishers suggested to have curd, a few spoons of which were downed. We had more fun with the toy pistol brought by Rohan the previous night. And then out of the blue came Chadha paaji's mindblowing analytical query, "How many cigarettes can you light with a lighter?". Everyone was stunned. His questions are always followed by a brief period of pin-drop silence and then loud roars of laughter. Nobody ever has the answer. Chadha paaji also took on the traditional duty of treasurer taking the money from everyone and noting the amount in an excel sheet printout. Perfection is his aim.

Continuing the Ride, the motorcycles took the exit from NH-8 to take the state highways towards Rewari. I have always maintained that state highways provide much more pleasurable experience than the national highways. They are very well maintained, less crowded and much more scenic on the sides. Apart from the numerous speed breakers, this road proved itself too. We were taking it lightly on this ride as the destination was located very close compared to those on previous anniversaries and up until now we were not riding very far apart too. On other rides, the distance between the first and last can stretch upto 20 kms. The next major town, Narnaul was also crossed in good time. After that, we stopped to regroup. The toy pistol provided most of the entertainment. Bananas were also consumed. We do become extra health-conscious on rides.

And now, the Haryana-Rajasthan state border was crossed. Immediately, the roads turned fantastic. Long, straight stretches bordered with red soil and miles of expanse all around. Mr. Hooda, you really must do something about the roads in your state. The construction on NH-1 is bad too.

The onwards route through Chidawa and Jhunjhunu was slowed due to numerous turns where we had to regroup. There have been cases when some brave rider takes the wrong turn and takes a few more with him for some extra miles.



Meanwhile, Doegar had trouble with his sparingly used Thunderbird. It started giving out the sound typical of a seized piston. For the rest of the journey he was confined to a max speed of 50 kph. That is another unique performance of the Royal Enfield. Even with a seized piston it can  ride on for hundreds of kms at a moderate speed.

The 20 kms stretch from Jhunjhunu to Mandawa was the only bad section we encountered during this ride. It was quite narrow and we had to frequently get off it to allow the oncoming vehicle to pass. It took only a short while to reach our destination city, Mandawa. The town was very laidback. To top it all, it was only 2 pm. Rarely have we reached our destination this early, no matter what the distance might be. To celebrate, we had kulfi from the nearby sweet shop. Chadha paaji also bought some snacks, jalebi and rasgullas, to be had at the hotel. It should be mentioned here that Doegar was the only one who did not get the kulfi, an incident that left him very cross till the next day.

It took us another 15 mins to find Hotel Shekhawati Palace. It might not sound as much but in that small town, it was a big deal. The owner, PrateekJI came out to welcome us. The hotel was full of colourful frescoes. Every room itself had its walls decorated with colourful paintings. Time would be spent very interestingly here. There was even more interesting art to come our way.

Our stomachs were growling. We needed food. But first, we needed beer. We had not stopped for beer during this ride till now. One tradition was being given a miss. But not anymore. Kingfishers were ordered along with papad.



We restrained ourselves from having too much as food was essential too. After a wash-up, we headed to the terrace restaurant. It had a marvellous view of the entire town. The Mandawa Fort stood above all. It was also interesting to see lots of greenery in the town. A simple meal of dal, gutta-sabzi and aloo jeera was devoured along with 50 rotis. Chadha paaji also took out the snacks he had earlier bought.

With our stomachs full, sleep was catching up. It also had to do with the lack of it the previous night. It was decided to have a nap first before exploring the town. Except for Sumit, everyone else crashed out. It also had to do with his absence from the previous night's meet. But awake alone, in a strange land can build up frustration.



He tried to pass the time by fooling around with the different shooting modes in his camera. I woke up 2 hours later from his cry of anguish. "Yahan sone aaye ho, bc". Then started to wake the others. The Gupta brothers and Rohan wanted more sleep. It was time to go out exploring to see what the town had to offer. Unfortunately, the townsfolk thought differently. When we came out, many of the shops were closed.



Chadha paaji carefully observed that only tailoring shops were open. We checked out the entrance to the fort. Visiting the interiors would cost 250 per head which could be reimbursed inside at the bar. Visitors were not allowed after sunset. Like most Rajasthan forts, this one too was converted into a heritage hotel. More info on that later.

We also checked out the Monika Restaurant, recommended by Lonely Planet. Seeing the menu, it did not offer anything outstanding and the rates were exorbitant. It was decided to skip this place. That is what Lonely Planet does to places. Another place, Jodhpur Sweet House was checked. This came recommended by Highway On My Plate, which does not raise the price steeply. But the dish we sought, onion kachoris, would be served only at breakfast. We would return to this place in the morning.

On the way back we also looked at the other places to eat. But they all turned out to be too expensive. With nothing else to do, we returned back to the hotel and started to prepare for our main agenda - Bakchodi. Seating was arranged at the rooftop. Everyone was awake now. But first, the owner, PrateekJI took us on a guided tour of his hotel, namely the honeymoon suite. It was the most colourful room of all with paintings of a King and Queen. It was then that he drew aside some of the curtains to reveal some X-rated art. The set of paintings from right to left formed a complete story. It showed the flirting between the couple, the wedding, the first night and child delivery. Cameras were clicking furiously especially at the first night paintings.

After numerous clicks, we headed for the rooftop. Our hosts had laid out all the tables neatly along with candle lamps. Full-on drinking atmosphere. The main item of the night was Ardmore Highland Single Malt Whiskey. Sumit, Doegar and Rohan preferred to have the good ol' Old Monk instead. Nishant was having his faithful Red Bull.



Snacks were ordered. We had already ordered Lal Maas for dinner with a request that we would take our time for the drinking. The staff was most helpful and provided excellent service. We covered our main agenda extensively. Then turned the attention to Lal Maas. It did not have the typical taste, but tasted good nevertheless. Stuffing ourselves fully, we flopped down for the night, dead asleep.

10 November 2012

Today, we would be covering the main attractions told to us by PrateekJI. Ajit woke up early and went on a photo tour of the city. He found locked doors most fascinating. Our first visit was made to Jodhpur Sweet House. Unfortunately, the kachoris were not ready.



But seeing the hungry look on our faces, the owner immediately dispatched couple of people and soon, a large tin of kachoris arrived. The kachoris were nice although not fantastic enough to be recommended by HOMP. Doegar was still upset about not tasting the kulfi the previous night. He was made a promise that he could have one when we returned from the day's sightseeing. Next, we headed towards Navalgarh to Poddar haveli, 19 kms away. PrateekJI had already introduced us to the guide there, Rahul. Although there are many havelis around, Poddar haveli is the biggest and best preserved.

Doegar was worried whether he should take out his siezed Bullet or not. Chadha paaji spoke with solid reasoning that it would be better to take it out as whatever harm was going to be done, better to have it on this day rather than the day of return. Whatever Chadha paaji says, we follow.



As we headed for Navalgarh, just on the outskirts of Mandawa, the clutch cable of my Bullet broke. All those years of idling must have rusted it completely. I did not even have a spare. Nishant was besides me when this happened and he called the others back to the spot of disturbance. Sumit carried one spare inside his steel boxes, but before the help, he chose to go and have some off-roading fun on his own. Rohan also joined in.



I just wished that he did not break his own clutch cable. That would force us to go back to the hotel to find another spare. Luckily he did not and I won the cable. Since, it was the spare of a Standard, it left some room for more play which made gear-shifting difficult. I would be riding with this glitch till the end of the ride. The others were also very helpful in fixing my Bullet. While I changed the cable, they completely ignored me. They were getting their pics clicked in Gangnam style.

After the fix, we quickly reached Poddar haveli. It had three courtyards.



Our guide, Rahul walked us through the diwan-e-khaas and all the museums. They held great knowledge on forts and palaces of Rajasthan, different castes, their dresses, turbans and art. The most fascinating bit was a photo of the goddesses, Laxmi, Saraswati and Kali together depicting Generator, Operator and Destroyer, or GOD.



We spent above an hour exploring the haveli. It was really well maintained and preserved a vast amount of history for its size.

Rahul recommended the Ganpati Restaurant for lunch. It is best to go with the local's recommendations when in a strange land. We have followed this path in every ride. We treated Rahul and his friend also at the restaurant for providing an excellent tour.

The next destination was Dundlod fort. It would come in the way to Mandawa. Sumit, Doegar and I reached early. The others had crossed the turn towards the Fort and were waiting one turn ahead for us. We called them to take the route to the Fort. This fort has also been converted into a heritage hotel. But unlike others, it is not opened to visitors. The Fort offered interesting packages including horse riding all the way to Jaisalmer with the provision of desert camps. Alas, not affordable for us.

We took our customary formation pics here, without and with the Bullets.

The next item on the day's agenda was apparent. We needed beer. Since, Vihans was riding as pillion with Nishant, the task of carrying the crate of beer became his responsibility. We planned on having this at the baoli close to Mandawa. When we reached the place and located the right spot, Nishant and Vihans were found missing. It was only too possible that they had missed the turn towards Mandawa and had travelled on to Jhunjhunu. We had to wait while they took their 24 kms detour to finally land back at the baoli. Our navigation skills are legendary. We were cross at being left thirsty in the desert sun. But, a blessing in disguise was that they had discovered a better route for the return. However, it provides little solace to thirsty souls. We sat down under one stone structure and resorted to "Baatein Karenge". Desert lands, stone architecture and beer, an unbeatable combo.

The sun was starting to set now. This tickled the lenses of the SLR men. We had to get moving. Mandawa Fort was the only main sight left to visit. But first, a visit to the kulfi shop for Doegar. Chadha paaji and Vihans opted out of seeing the Fort and left for the hotel. The rest of us reached the Fort and bought the visitor tickets. We were provided with a guide. The guides always find it difficult to give a proper tour to us restless people. It is difficult to get this group assembled and stay quiet. Still, I admire the humble nature of such people as they keep smiling and give you respect.

The Fort was divided into two marking the territories of the two inheritors. One prince had it converted into a heritage hotel. The other still had a barren look. The guide told us that the flags in each section indicated whether the princes were present in the palace or not. He took us to the rooftop where the photographers got busy setting their tripods up. Furious clicks followed as everyone went into burst mode for the sunset. Apart from swimsuit models, I guess it is only the sun that gets maximum exposure (pun intended) shots.

When it grew quiet again after the click-rage, we were shown one of the rooms of the hotel. Luxury, of the sort where you would not like to bring a wife. Next, we were guided through the lawns and swimming pool of the hotel. The high rent seemed justified for the room, but not for the rest of the hotel. For the same price, other heritage hotels offered greater value.

It was now time to redeem the entry fees. And what better way than Beer. Tuborgs this time. The dark night was lit by soothing yellow lamps. With beer in hand, one can easily unwind a month of grinding.



I really do not envy the guests staying at such places. For one, all the ones that we saw were quite aged indicating the splurge of retirement income. Another reason is that they arrive in hordes in large vehicles. If you do not experience the journey, you have not travelled. You are just teleported from one location to another.

Since, Nishant needed to depart early the next morning owing to office requirements, we left early for our council meeting back at our hotel. Moreover, he was missing Vihans greatly. The treat for this night was Wild Turkey Bourbon. Nishant and I had been hunting for this brand for years. Every Hollywood movie you see, the protagonist, especially of the military nature, is taking a shot of Wild Turkey. It had aroused our curiosity for a long time and we would be finally getting a swig of it. Well, I would be taking the shots as Nishant does not drink anymore. Still, that did not stop him from striking a pose with the trophy.



Sumit was still interested in his Old Monk. I dont blame him. Having tasted all over, Old Monk is still unbeatable. The Pride of Solan and Mohan Meakin Distilleries.

Nishant retired early as he needed to wake up early. The rest of us tried to discuss what time should we leave next morning. No specific time was reached. Instead, I was conked out and slept while in seating position. The others went ahead to do Gangnam style, although all one could hear were sounds of clapping slippers that woke me up. It is interesting to see how a stupid dance action can become an international rage. It can be attributed to only one thing - Luck. It was clear that we would wake up at our own convinient time.

11 December 2012

Sleep broke with the sound of a Bullet starting, loudly. It was 7:30 am. I suspect, Nishant was deliberately revving it too much to wake the others up. Still, it took another hour for the rest to get up. And another to get ready. After the final clicks with PrateekJI, we set off on the return journey.

20 kms later, we stopped at Jhunjhunu. Our Vihans hails from that place and needed to visit the family temple. He took a good 45 minutes inside. Must be a deep desired wish. Surprisingly, his brother did not go inside the temple. We discussed for a while whether to have breakfast there only or some distance ahead. It was decided, or so it was thought that breakfast would be at the sweet vendors at Chidawa we had crossed during the down-journey. Rohan had Ankit as pillion and they were leading. The rest of us were all close together. Just near Chidawa, we noticed a signboard indicating the direction towards Delhi and we took it. A good 25 kms later, we reached Bhiwani district. This was not the way we had came. This route led to Jhajjar, a road to be avoided. Google maps were used to find the route towards NH-8. Meanwhile, Rohan and Ankit were waiting at Chidawa. When they finally reached us, Rohan and Vihans went on a hilarious account of Rohan's aunt.

The route towards Mahendragarh was excellent. Smooth asphalt. It was time to rev my Bullet too as I had been trailing Doegar for a long time now. A couple of fantastic curves were also encountered, the footrest-grinding types. Suddenly, out of the blue came ravines. Mountain curves get riders very horny. It seemed a blessing to have taken this route. We named it the Manali Road.

We stopped for lunch at Mahendragarh. Food was missed the whole of the morning. Sumit's Bullet gave some trouble here. It refused to start. It looked like the sort of trouble the Bullet would give if you ignore it for too long and do not give it enough affection. They do act so much like girls. Give them the time to cool off. So, after we had hogged on kadhai paneer and dal makhani and a good amount of rotis, Sumit went to check on his Bullet again. Sure enough, it started. You can abuse the Bullet, but just dont ignore. The Bullet takes its revenge in cold blood.

During lunch, everyone had laid out their plans of return. Each one had to go someplace else. It was decided that we would stop for one last break just before NH-8 for a beer and then move our separate ways. Crossing Rewari was a pain. Traffic had increased and some riders took different turns. But we did stop for beer after reaching NH-8 and crossing Dharuhera.



We had avoided some major jams at Dharuhera by arriving early. Rohan, Ankit, Vihans and me were the only ones interseted in tasting some. Ajit changed his pants so that he would not give the impression of coming from a ride. Some personal reasons. The riders who had someplace else to go left early. They were Sumit, Chadha paaji, Doegar and Ajit.

We said goodbyes to each other hoping to meet again soon for another ride. I do feel for our non-Bullet riders at this point who are unable to join for an Anniversary Ride. I justify to myself in the belief that compromising on one rule would lead to compromising on other rules as well and that would lead to chaos.

It looked like a smooth sailing from here on, but did not turn out that way. Only a short distance away came miles of traffic. I had great trouble navigating it through the sides with my misplaying clutch. Thankfully, there was only one such instance. Manesar was crossed easily. While crossing Gurgaon, I was surprised to see Sumit overtaking. I learnt later that his Bullet had stopped again near the jammed area. So, in effect, all of us were near the Leisure Valley Park at the same time. The goodbye tradition was followed after all. Happy 5th Anniversary.

This ride was over. However, I still had miles to go. Some 220 of them. I joined up with Nilu to ride till Gyan's place at Panipat. We picked up two bottles of Old Monk from Delhi border and took a leisurely ride. A post-ride session is essential for complete rest and Gyan's place has proven to be one of the best venues. However, things are very different now following his marriage. So, instead of sprawling on the floor, we were sitting at the dining table and food was much more delicious. I had missed their company for a long time. The next day, both of them rode along to drop me to Ludhiana. I was glad for this company else I would have been riding alone, which is quite boring.

5 Years since Bulls On Parade was formed. Rides are very few now. A stimulus package is required in the club. I request the other members to be more active in riding. There is no dearth of places left to explore in this country. I just hope we keep this hunger for exploration alive for years to come. Here's looking forward to celebrate the 6th Anniversary in 2013 with much more grandeur.

JAI BoP !!!