Operation Dr.Venky

Hello thumpers,

I was really excited and looking forward to the ride as a recruit of the club v40.I was impatiently waiting for the ride and when the day arrived that was it,after a good nights sleep ,i saddled up the bags on the bike and got buckled up with the riding gear.riding with the riding gear was a true bliss as this was the first time. i felt like an armoured knight ready to take on the roads.the day previous to the ride day[oct 30] we had met up at our usual spot 'wonderland ' for a briefing session by none other than our highly enthusiastic member Gautham.we had got our bike serviced and we were ready to ride.On 31 st october myself,maheshji and amar started off at 6.15 am from kilpauk and headed towards Saveetha college where we were to meet the other fellow riders.Gautham ,Prakash and a new recruit Roshan were eagerly waiting for us to kickstart the journey.Gautham and Prakash briefed us about the formation, the former was to lead the group and the latter was to sweep .We were informed that the ride master who has done Yelagiri ghats a dozen times will be joining us in Ranipet.He is none other than our dear friend and mentor Dominic.We kicked off from Saveetha college at 7.00 am .The roar of our bikes was reverberating into my ears which i experienced for the first time as we were cruising at 80- 90 kmph.We were a disciplined group on the road . The open highways were wonderful, constant throttling by all of us together made me feel we were from the army doing a parade.the synchronous riding by all of us was infact a magnifiient view.As we were closing Ranipet we stopped at the motel' red chilly' . we parked our bikes in a straight line which signifies we were there for each other.a gentleman even spoke to couple of riders and appreciated our effort.after the breakfast we were rearing to go ahead.we met Dominic in 15 mins. or so .Dominic took the lead .Unfortunately Prakash had a problem with his reliable standard. he could'nt go above 80 kmph but that did not deter him from riding.He had been to Himalayas and so this problem was by no means going to put him down so .Gautham became the sweep and Prakash became the ultimate sweep. hehehehe.The ride till the foothills was otherwise smooth except for 2 dogs which crossed the road in a jiffy without a warning sending chills down our spine.We stopped at the foothills and briefing by the members was enlightening. Never did i know how to take a hair pin bend correctly before joining this club.The view of the hills from down below , the riders and their machines was picturesque scene and worth mentioning.The hair pin bends were challenging but we bikers felt it was a piece of cake.Hats off to members though who zipped off in the ghats. Their professional riding skills impressed me.People on the way waved their hands at us, we felt we were on the top of the world .we regrouped at the hilltop and headed to ' La Auroville' our abode.we were welcomed by an eversmiling gentleman in the form of Mike.The bikers showed their skills at volleyball and cricket.the way we played was absolutely funny. cheering ,teasing , laughing and of course cheating was part of our show.By then we were tired and were served to a tasty and sumptious lunch.In the evening we were greeted by campfire and dinner.there was an interactive session, a Q & A session spearheaded by Dominic, a lot of dancing and needless to say arm wrestling competition which is famous amongst the bikers.We called it a day and went back to rooms with our heads in high spirits.The next day was even more beautiful and pleasant for the ride back.After breakfast we saddled up and left on a good note.the ride was a great one and we reached Dominics guest house in Ranipet.Bike restorer Shankar met us and showed us vintage bikes of yore . we were delighted to see BSA 's, sunbeam, matchless, jawas, lambrettas and our favourite RE STD 350 , made in England.We were happy to be riding a legend obtained from the British. The pick of the day was 750 cc Indian Scout which churns out raw american torque .I am sure you guys agree with it. Shankar gave us some tips about the maintenance of the bike which i am sure will be useful. We headed to punjabi dhaba for lunch following which we started on our way back to Chennai.We stopped at poonamallee bypass and gave each other a warm hug and parted ways.,I end this review on a happy note -

IT WAS BRILLIANT TO RIDE WITH LIKE MINDED PEOPLE UNDER THE BANNER WHICH BROUGHT US TOGETHER ' THE V 40' .I AM SURE V40 WILL ACHIEVE MANY MORE MILES IN THE FOLLOWING YEARS TO COMETHREE CHEERS TO CLUB V40 AND US THE 'V40 BROTHERS '

Thumping off,
Dr.Venkatesh