An OTR in God's own country!

The man behind the scenes: Shibu aka Jeep Captain.

We (Jeevan, Thomas, Shibu, Nanda, Anil, Rajith and Roy from BBC and other friends) had a great time at the event. Thank you Shibu for taking the pain to put everything in place.
Shibu and Anil in Shiyas' Bolero (quite a performer and lives upto the name) started off by around 4 in the morning towing away the CJ3B (JC's new found love) home. Thomas, Nanda and Rajith in his Major took off by 7 in the morning. Think they caught up JC and Anil somewhere close to Mysore.

The Stinger leading the convoy

I hopped on to Roy's bolero with a friend of his. We were late to start off, but it was fun. Roy, your friend Ajith is an interesting chap. Ajith is an old timer with Bullets, BSAs and the Himalayan rides. He will soon join our tribe officially.

We all met up at Meppadi (Shibu's farm is situated there - on the Chembra peak.
( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chembra_Peak). While we waited for the Captain to arrive, we met quite some serious jeepers: Benny and his mechanic Shashiettan along with the acclaimed "Road Dog" owner Jeep George. Those who follow team-bhp/jeep thrills would probably know him. He has hand built a mm540 with independent suspension (coil springs/multi link). Pretty knowledgeable folks. While most of us were high on the 4 H mode lead by none other than our Thomachan, other were busy checking out Rajith's spotlessly clean engine bay. Now, Wayanad is a jeep country and people around would have got thinking we were nuts!


Jeep George's MM540 and Benny's red CJ340.


In the meanwhile, JC and Anil arrived in the MM550. It was like the arrival of a star! All of us were waiting for the man behind all of it to turn up. He is one actually!
Later Shibu told me that the 550 had just been driven back from TVS kochi after some works. Parked Roy's Bolero at the end of the tarmac, and we hopped onto the 550. The drive to the farm house proved to be a good recce for the next day's OTR.
Shibu's estate care taker Maamachan had arranged some nice Kappa and Meencurry for the entire group. Roys' home made beef and pork curry went well with the whole thing. Bonfire, booze, good food, foggy night with a trail of the most capable 4x4 machines around at disposal. wow that was it!


Roy and friend decided to take Shibu's CJ3B for the next day's event. The forest/estate in infested with everything except elephants. We reached the hotel and dashed off after a couple of drinks. Thomas was apparently love lorn over someone. Guess who? The Di turbo.

Woke up the next day to see all the jeeps neatly washed up by the hotel folks. Loved the way the Major looked. Made a stop at the local "Chaaya Kada" to have tea. The guy was hell bend on us having the "podi chayaa" even though we insisted on having a normal one. Speak of mallu's attitude inside Kerala ! Go out of the state and they can be the sweetest people to be around !
Reached the venue in time and there it was. The Thar. Looked good and the specs/drive train/suspension have been debated on t-bhp to death. Something me and Thomas noticed was how the Cat Con screwed up Ground clearance and the placement of the wiper stalk. It was a honour to talk to Mr. Behram Dhabhar. He was so kind to answer all our silly questions despite of being a person of that stature. M&M had organized the whole event really well. The service vehicles carried all the spares, which I came to know from Nanda later on, that it was not the case at Chickmangalur OTR.


The Di Turbo man in deep conversation with Mr. Behram Dhabhar.


It was an exotic sight to see the lawn filled with jeeps of all kind. MM540, 550s, 500Ds, CJ3Bs, Bolero, Majors, Marshals, Invaders and a lone Kaiser (Cj5). The Kaiser was like a hot mistress. Everyone around went gaga over it and wanted to pose with it (that included me too). The tee-shirts, caps and the stickers were distributed and then the flag off happened.

Here's Roy posing with the Kaiser.

Other dignitaries at the venue.

The Thar. A CJ How can I miss the Bolero.. The smart M&M Service team. Our 5x4 Major, pilot Rajith and navigator Nanda for your eyes wonlee!

Briefing and Flag-Off we go! We had to drive some 20 odd kms on the highway. We soon reach the 1st trail. It was supposed to be slushy with some nice incline.The entrance looked quite un-assuming with cardamom plantations on both sides. There was one green mm540 with a free flow exhast which sounded good but was smoking like hell. It was like that pesticide smoking machine. This thing broke down every now and then and we had to push it in the slush to start (some issue with the alternator). There was this brand new 4x4 Scorpio vlx in the group. I wouldn't take a 14L vehicle for an OTR, but then oh boy, the driver knew his stuff. A 4x4 Bolero (the black one) had broke the foot steps and the wheel arch, but not a single scratch on this thing. We were just the ones ahead of the Bolero most of the time. Every time the driver floored, I loved the XD3P whine.

Once upon a time, a navigator went missing!

One of that numerous smoker episodes. We wondered if the 540 ran on coolant/brake oil rather than diesel.

It was another 20 or so odd kilometer drive to trail 2. We were back on the smooth rubberized NH. Now I know why 4x4 enthusiasts avoid tarmac like plaque. JC and Anil caught up with us somewhere. Man, the 550 has an amazing road presence. The drive was too slow and the marshals wouldn't allow us to pass them. Reassuringly, they were waiting for the rest to join the convoy. That's when I took note of Stinger and its addictive exhaust note. It overtook the entire convoy quite non-chalantly like an mad elephant on musk over a dose of Red bull.

We were greeted by a steep climb at the entrance. From a distance, we saw the Thar jumping up the hillock like a Kangaroo with a rocket bolted on to its belly. As we proceeded, we were greeted by grasslands. When others were busy calculating the approach and departure angles, JC for the kind of extreme off roader he is, wasn't contend with the challenges thrown up that he started uprooting trees and huge boulders. He let loose the devil in him followed by Benny and company and I was busy clicking away. I guess, that was the moment of enlightenment. I too need a 4X4.

The grasslands and the tiger on prowl !
Say cheese !

#bbc2leh

This incident happened on the third day of our Bangalore-Leh trip.

After two days and nearly 1500 kilometers of driving through rain and bad roads, our jeep was liberally coated with a mud. I love it that way! After driving for over an hour in Rajasthan, and seeing all the colorful vehicles and people, we too were bitten by the color bug. So, like last time, we stopped to buy (what I will call) pompoms and scarves for the jeep. We bought a pair of pompoms and scarves from one of the many stalls on the highway, but we soon felt that we needed more. So we stopped again at a shop creatively named Radium in Bhilwara on NH79. This was run by a two brothers (lets call them Radium 1 and Radium 2) who had one shop each.

Pompoms and scarves

Radium 1 sold the scarves to Chandu and Thomas. While we were fixing the scarves, we noticed that the truck behind us was being decorated with stickers. We were all in a wacky mood and decided then and there on a "trip sticker." We decided to go with our Twitter hash tag, #bbc2leh. Radium 1 was standing there when this was happening and we asked him for a quote. He quoted 150 rupees and we agreed. As Radium 1's PC was down, we went to Radium 2's shop.

The Radium Lab was equipped with a PC and a large-format sticker cutter. The operator was a quick teenager who used keyboard shortcuts for everything. He was so quick, that the sticker was ready in less than 10 minutes.

Radium lab

Sticker being designed

Sticker being pasted

The "look"

We loved the entire experience and so did the Radium crew.

BBC on Government Duty

This incident happened on the first day of our journey in Nipani, a small town on NH4.

We had lunch in Belgaum and discovered that our fuel talk was almost empty. So we decided to stop at the first fuel station. We reached a fuel station within minutes and I drove in confidently. I was mildly surprised when the attendant informed me that they had run of fuel. I didn’t waste time and drove on. However, when the same story was repeated at the next fuel station, belonging to another company, I got suspicious. I walked up to the manager and demanded an explanation. He feigned ignorance and told me that they hadn’t received any supply that day. I knew that he was bluffing, and when I offered to pay his price, he refused. I drove on to the next fuel station. Here we had some luck. The attendant agreed to fill 10 liters of diesel. We now realized that something was wrong and that these chaps were hoarding fuel. We were very low on fuel now. The attendant however was a helpful chap. After all, he was not hoarding the fuel - his boss was. He pointed us to an Indian Oil fuel station down the road.

We switched off the aircon and began cruising down the road. We were losing time, but we didn’t have a choice. We almost drove past the fuel station as it was a small, decrepit little place about 500 meters from the highway. I took the service lane to get to it.
The fuel station in Nipani

When we asked for fuel, the attendant told us that it would take time as diesel had just arrived and the bunker was being filled. Sure enough, there was a fuel truck in the compound, but it wasn’t filling anything! I wasn’t too convinced and I confronted the manager. He had a different story. According to him, the pump was under repair and he wasn't sure whether it would work that day. When I told him about the shortage of fuel on the highway he looked surprised. Then, he suddenly seemed to notice the letters BBC on our t-shirts. All three of us were wearing BBC t-shirts and I had my SLR out. So he cautiously asked us who we were. Suddenly a bulb flashed in my head! I told him that we were a team of travelers who had been hired by the Ministry of Commerce to travel from Bangalore to Leh and compile report on the economic situation of the country. I also told him that I had just spoken to my friends in ED (Enforcement Directorate) and that they were looking into the problem of fuel shortage on NH4. By now, Chandu had contacted her father in Delhi, and we knew that the fuel stations were hoarding fuel due to the imminent price hike. This brought about a sudden change in the man. The ED is often in the news due to its raids pertaining to economic offences.

The attendant, who was within earshot, wasted no time in "repairing" the pump. By now we had two more vehicles in the station. We let one of them fill up first. The gracious owner let us have as much fuel as we wanted. He even gave us details about himself and the fuel station. This station, he explained, was a rural one and was frequented by the villagers, mill owners, and bitumen trucks. In addition to this, he owned a small bitumen business and his family owned a large fuel station in Nipani town.

Fuel pump being "repaired"

We finally get diesel

I listened to him patiently, paid for the fuel, and left. Once we were back on the highway, we had a good laugh. ED comes under the ministry of finance and doesn't deal with these issues.
Moral of the story - Never wait for the tank to go empty to tank up.

Button Up Your Shirt, Jackass!

This incident happened on the second day of our Bangalore-Leh trip.

We exited the expressway and hit NH 8. The highway was crowded due to traffic snarls created by the road widening work. Within minutes of hitting the highway, we were stopped by traffic cops. They were stopping all out-of-state vehicles and checking their papers. They asked us for Thomas' drivers license and the vehicle's emmission certificate. We produced both and they let us go. The same was repeated at least three times and each time we were allowed to go without a hitch. Just when I thought that we had exited the city, an officer with a posse of constables stopped us. This chap looked more like a goon. The top two buttons of his shirt were undone and he was unshaven. One of the constables flagged us down and this chap (let's call him Jackass) swaggered up to us. He, like the others before him, demanded Thomas' drivers license. When convinced of its authenticity, he demanded the emission certificate. He looked quite disappointed when even that turned out to be authentic. Then, he told Thomas that we needed to pay a fine of 200 rupees and then moved to the front of the vehicle with the emission cetrificate in his hand.

I realized that this chap needed some special treatment. I got out of the vehicle and very firmly, demanded that he hand back the certificate. He did so immediately, but no sooner had he done that that he began commenting about the fact that we were violating local laws by not having a yellow strip on the side of both headlamps. I told him that we had been intercepted by three other teams and that none of them had pointed it out. He and I both realized that he was just bluffing and looking for a way to make some easy money. I then drew up to him, looked him straight in the eye, and very firmly ordered him to button up his shirt. That completely took him by surprise. Before he could recover, I gave him a stern lecture about harassing the public and that he had no business stopping us. I then changed my posture. Half sitting on the bonnet with one foot on the bumper, I gave him a dressing down. By the time I finished, he had already given up on us and left looking like a jackal that has just lost its meal. He left saying, "I'm letting you go because you are travelling with your family". What the..!!!

During the entire incident, both Thomas and Chandu tried to appear very serious, but were very amused.

Moral of the story - Understand your rights and learn the rules. Never let cops bully you.

BBC2Leh - Day 3, Udaipur to Delhi

We started day three all relaxed and refreshed. We slept well and woke up late. We had an east-facing room and the sun was streaming in when I awoke. We were ready in no time and Chandu ordered breakfast while Thomas and I loaded the jeep. Breakfast, like dinner, was sumptuous. We had a leisurely breakfast and started off at 9:00 AM.

The resort is conveniently located on NH 76 that goes to Chittaurghar. We stopped at the first gas station that we spotted and filled diesel. We didn’t want a repeat of the fuel crisis scenario. The roads were very good and we were soon cruising at at a steady 100 kmph. Except for a few bumpy spots, the road was very smooth.

Excellent roads in Rajastan

We stopped to take pictures, decorate the jeep, and even design our own trip sticker. You can read more about our trip sticker in my blog #bbc2leh.

The rest of the drive was uneventful and smooth until we entered Haryana. The traffic got progressively worse. Things eased up a bit after we entered the India Gate area. After meeting Rajiv, and having dinner with my in-laws, we reached Indirapuram at 12:30 AM.

Route Details

Take NH 76 to Chittaurgarh.

At Chittaurgar, switch to NH79 that goes to Ajmer.

DO NOT enter Ajmer, but continue towards Kishangarh.

At Kishangarh, switch to NH8. This will take you to Delhi via. Jaipur and Gurgaon.

In Rajastan, NH8 is a crowded 2-lane highway. NH79 is a fast 4-lane highway with a toll gate. Truckers generally avoid this.