Kings Raid III - Maravanthe Beach Ride

Guest Post
Author: Meghana

Does the heading sound like something from the history books? Well, no. This is the name of a ride to a beach destination, led by Sreedhar Kacchu from BJYMC.

After completing successful rides to Kudla (Mangalore) and Goa in 2015, this time the kings were all set for their 3rd Raid. Maravanthe is the name of a small village and a beach near Kundapura in coastal Karnataka. I had heard that this beach runs on one side of the road (NH17) and on the other side is the Suparnika river, which makes it popular and is one of a kind. To behold this eye-catching view, I decided to join this Kings Raid!

We assembled at 5am on Tumkur road during mid March for briefing and direction handouts. Post which, the bikes took off at 5.30am. I, along with two ladies Chaitra (Krishna's wife), Shruthi (Bharat Venkatesh's wife) and their son Anirudh were a part of the sweep team with Krishna as our chauffeur while Bharat Singh and Bharat Venkatesh were the sweep riders! It is always a pleasure to ride on a highway and NH48 not only offers a widespread road but also beautiful scenery alongside. 

After riding for about 100 kms, we stopped at Mayura hotel for breakfast, one of the good hotels on the highway. The bikers also refilled their tanks to roar all the way to our destination. The weather got hotter and hotter as the day passed by, so we stopped at a coffee shop for a quick break just before entering the Agumbe ghat. The team decided to cut short on number of breaks so that we reach the resort by lunch time. Agumbe has number of breath-taking hair-pin bends and the roads are also in good condition. After few minutes, we (sweep car) could not see any bikes that were ahead of us. I said to myself, may be the roads have compensated to the hot sun that these bikers just ripped off our sight. 

Aerial view of Agumbe ghat and the mountain range

Finally, without any challenges or breakdowns, all the bikes covered 400+ kms with ease and we reached our destination i.e. Vits Pratham Resort by 3.45pm. Tired, happy, exhausted, excited, everyone dispersed to their rooms and to the dining hall. I always wanted to try riding a Jawa bike and after several attempts of pestering Manu, I got a chance to ride his bike, but making him as my pillion. Loved that royal feeling of riding a Jawa for the first time ever!

The fun began when the team huddled in the evening after a short relaxation. Kacchu initiated the most common and well known game 'Antakshari'. Needless to say how entertaining this game will be, but this time it was different. It became a game of singing and laughing, b'cos 'TAKE IT' was born right here!

While we were busy singing, there was some roaring in the background. Yes, it was the group of boys coming from Mysore, Coorg and Mangalore lead by PC and Shawn Fernandez! They were welcomed with whistles, hugs, smiles and then the 'take it' antakshari continued till midnight!

Father and son shaking a leg, Krishna and Chaitra, Bharat family (Shruthi & Anirudh

Day 2

After breakfast, goodies were handed out and we set out to Maravanthe beach which was about 35-45 mins away from the resort. On the way, we enjoyed the scenic view of coconut and palm fields though the weather was unfavorable.

I was stunned at the first sight of this beach. I could see nothing but clear sky, blue water, fine sand and no humans at all for at least 180 degree! Yes, the beach is unlike any others and has many dangerous whirlpools, hence people refrain from getting into the water. It was far more stunning than I had imagined.

The team at Maravanthe beach, Karnataka

We spent sometime gazing around and started back after a group pic was taken by our own photographer Sachin Shetty, who came from Mangalore. There was a lot more in store for the day such as water amusement rides, games, music and dance. Post lunch, everyone jumped into the swimming pool. Competition games such as pushing the bike, riding with one hand, off roading etc were also played. I had a great time watching the team enthusiastically participating in all these games while I was playing with my camera!!

Games that were played and the winners. Yes, take a 2nd look at the trophy please!

Sachin, who is a cinematographer by profession, delighted everyone by clicking the pics in all possible way. Portraits, couple pics, sitting on the bike, beside the bike, what not!

Sachin's photo shoot with our local heroes

 The resort also had a big stage, which was another boon for us. The team organised for a music system to make it a perfect DJ night. But before that, it was time to give away the trophies. Amrit did the honors and Muthappa, Nehal, Vivek and Birosh were the winners of the games that were held, while Ashwith Kumar grabbed the trophy for being the most disciplined rider/ biker.

These trophies have great respect among the rides since they are not just bought off the shelf but custom made. BJYMC's very own Jose Martin and his wife Beenu collects discarded Jawa and Yezdi bike parts from mechanics and designs them. So this time, we had a clutch plate supported by 2 wheel spokes mounted on the outer ring of the ball bearing which in turn was fitted on a Jawa piston. While the clutch plate and wheel spokes hold the award details, the piston (aluminum) and fly wheel (metal) are fitted together such that fly wheel can be rotated. Not at all a simple thing. Kudos to Jose and Beenu for their efforts and extraordinary idea!! :-)

Like always, we had new comers who introduced themselves and shared their thoughts & experience to be a part of BJYMC. There was a couple with 2 kids on a holiday who were also introduced and later joined and partied with us. Old, new, Kannada, English, Tamil, Hindi all type of songs were played and if I remember correctly, we danced from 8 pm to 12.30 am NON-STOP!! 

I was walking back to my room and one of the staffs there said, "Goodnight Mam, neevyellaru chennagi enjoy maadri, Nimma istu dodda group nodi tumba kushi aithu"!! 

Day 3

If you are having a good time, you don't realize how time flies. Our 3 day vacation was over before we knew it and it was time for us to pack our bags. After breakfast and group pics, those heading towards Bangalore said their goodbyes, marked the event on postcards and left around 10AM.

Meghana on a Jawa, Krishna with the sweep car and the 3 heroines!

Visiting agumbe is truly incomplete if we do not see the rainfall and we had this blissful experience on our way back. It rained all through the ghat section as we enjoyed the scenery listening to songs in the car.

Yet another ride, yet another experience. I wholeheartedly thank BJYMC, Amrit & Sreedhar for this opportunity. I was part of Gandhikota Ride, Malnad Dairies 3 abd Kings Raid III making this my third ride for the year with BJYMC. Wish to be part of more rides and at least some as a biker too!

This raid might not be from any history books, but now it will surely be remembered in the history of BJYMC.

#TheKings #BeautifulLadies #MePrincess #SweepRiders #LeadKacchu #LoadsofLUV #ThankUEVERYONE #TAKEIT!!

Pushing the limits - Bangalore to Goa and back

Guess the headline says it all. When you have been riding one of these classic Jawa's or Yezdi's for so many years, you sometimes wonder how far can you actually push these machines. Remember, the youngest of the lot, the Yezdi Roadking was last manufactured in 1996. So that make it at least 19 years old.

So, a few of us from BJYMC lead by Sreedhar Kacchu got together and decided to test the limits of our bikes and our butts :) And so, the Goa plan was formed with the ride titled 'Kings Raid Goa'. The plan was simple, start early morning and ride as far as possible before breaking for breakfast. Enter the western ghats before stopping for lunch and reach Baga (Goa) before night fall.

Route from Bangalore to Baga, Goa

12 handpicked riders came together with their well oiled machines and began the ride at 5.30am on 12th Nov'15. The team consistently rode till Sira (120kms) which was the designated stop for breakfast and meeting point for the Mysore riders. However, the Mysore boys were delayed due to rains and rerouted towards Shimoga and Karwar to save time. Hence, we decided to ride beyond Sira and stopped for breakfast at a quiet restaurant (Hotel Amar) to gorge on hot idlis and vadas. One of the very few restaurants right beside the highway.

Coffee Day regrouping at Shiggaon, NH4

By 8.30am, we were ready to get back on the saddle and rode past Hiriyur, Chitradurga, Davangere, Haveri and stopped at Cafe Coffee Day by the highway at Shiggaon by 11.45am. The total distance covered till then was 360 kms. After a 30 min break, the group was back on the road to cross Hubli bypass toward Dharwad and finally got off the expressway to enter the Alnavar - Ponda road.
Lunch was at Hill View Hotel after Naaglaavi about 12 kms off the highway. All 12 bikes were running like a charm.

From here on, the ride got interesting on the single lane highway cutting across the majestic western ghats but also hampering our pace. The road beyond Ramnagar deteriorated for about 20 kms till we crossed into Goa at Mollem at around 4.30pm. The first batch of riders cross into Panjim by 7 and reached our homestay in Baga Arpora (Christos) by 7.30 pm with the last batch coming in by 7.45pm. A new milestone was achieved that night as all 12 bikes had covered a total distance of 640 kms from Bangalore in 14 hours without any breakdown whatsoever.

Full of energy, we were greeted by the Mangalore riders (Mangalore Jawa Yezdi Motorcycle Club) who had covered about 400kms. After settling down, we kept our ears peeled to hear the thump of two more bikes belonging to our Mysore team of PC and Vow. The last two riders rolled in at 8pm successfully covering a distance of 660 kms from Mysore to Baga via Arsikere, Shimago, Honnavar, Karwar, Mudgaon and Panjim.

Christos' pet boxer Matrix

Day 2 was reserved for some team games (Lemon and Spoon race on bikes and Slow bike race) at the homestay followed by vocal entertainment by our talented rider Shawn from Mangalore. Our evening was spent at the popular and crowded Baga beach followed by dinner at Anjuna.

Sunset view from Anjuna Beach

After a good night's sleep, the entire contingent was keen to explore the beach destination and headed out to the northern most part of the state. Our destination was Terekhol Fort, next to Keri Beach which is now a private hotel. Access to the fort is via a river crossing after Keri Beach on a large ferry and a short ride up the hill. On our return, we stopped at the beautiful Ashwem beach before heading to Anand Restaurant for lunch and Cafe Lilliput in Anjuna to catch the sunset.

Enroute to Keri Beach

View of Keri Beach from Terekhol Fort

Before we knew it, our holiday had come to an end and it was time for us to head back. Sunday morning started with simple breakfast and trophy presentation to the most deserving riders and winners of contests. After a brief presentation and group picture, we loaded our bikes and began our journey back to Bangalore by 9.30 am. After regrouping in Dharwad bypass road, we stopped for lunch at Kamat on the outskirts of Hubli by 2.15pm.

As the sun began to set, our pace remained consistent with all bikes running in their prime and munching miles by the minute. The backup crew did a splendid job in sweeping behind the last two bikes till we stopped for dinner at yet another Kamat hotel near Tumkur. After waving our goodbye's, we all split to head home with the first lot arriving at their destination by 10pm and the last batch by midnite. Overall, one hell of an experience.



Quick facts:
Total distance covered: 1370 kms
Average fuel consumed: 40 - 45 liters + oil
Average speed: 80 kmph
Time taken Blr - Goa: 14 hours
Time take Goa - Blr: 12.5 - 14 hours
Breakdowns: Couple of minor issues, but all bikes were road worthy