The 21/365 is a challenge ride wherein the rider has to visit 21 dealerships/showrooms in 365
days. I asked my wife, Marina, if she would like to join me on the K2K (Kashmir
to Kanyakumari) and 21/365 ride. Without a moment’s hesitation said that she
would go anywhere with me. We planned that I would ride with fellow Harley
rider Onkar and other riders who had already started the 21/365 challenge and
Marina would join me in Amritsar, help me complete the 21/365 challenge, while
also both doing the K2K challenge.
The
21/365 ride
If you enjoyed reading this article, you can help support our journalism by adding OHeraldo as a preferred source.
I left Goa with Onkar. The first stamping
was done in Kolhapur, followed by Surat, Ahmedabad, Jaipur and Delhi. At Delhi,
I split from Onkar and drove with the Red Fort Chapter- Delhi riders for
Amritsar, where Marina had already flown to. We attended the NHR at Amritsar.
We visited the Golden temple, Jallianwala Bagh and tasted Punjabi food. We also
went to the Attari border, where we witnessed the Beating Retreat. We rode solo
towards Srinagar to start the K2K quest.
K2K
Quest
We were totally unprepared for the
conditions in Kashmir. We had earlier planned to ride 550 km or till 5pm,
whichever came first. As we entered Jammu, the GPS went offline and we were
riding blind, relying on the signboard and local information. The roads from
Jammu to Srinagar were very challenging as the roads were washed away due to
the regular avalanches and were winding with plenty of twists and turns due to
the mountainous terrain. The deep ravines and gorges were very frightening as
they were not barricaded.
The entire road from Lakhanpur (Jammu side) was being patrolled
with heavily armed paratroopers right up to Srinagar. We crossed the Jawahar
Tunnel into the Kashmir side late evening and it started drizzling, the rain
making road judgement difficult. Luckily enough, I was following a local rider
and let his taillights lead the way. By the time we entered heavily fortified
Srinagar, my hands were frozen. We were suddenly followed by a bunch of cars,
which was a frightening experience. We sought refuge at a petrol pump, before
checking into the first decent hotel that we came across.
The next morning, we went to the Dal Lake and as we were
clicking selfies, a paratrooper saw the Goan bike registration and asked which
part of Goa we were from. I replied Margao and asked him where he was from. He
said he was from Karwar. Then we had a small chat with him in Konkani. He
advised us to leave as soon as possible as the situation was tense and
volatile. We left Kashmir and after a long and tiring day, made our stop at
Pathankot, where we checked in for the night. As internet and phone services
were restored, I contacted the Goa chapter manger and informed him that our K2K
challenge had begun.
From Pathankot onwards, our ride was smooth and incident free.
We stamped the 21/365 passport at the dealer en-route Chandigarh, Indore,
Nagpur, Hyderabad, Vijayawada and Madras. We stuck to our original plan of
riding 550kms or till 5pm, whatever came first.
We took a break at Vailankanni for a day, attended mass and
prayed for a trouble-free ride back home. We resumed our ride, taking a detour
to Rameswaram and luckily got to see the train passing over the sea bridge. We
completed the K2K when we arrived at Kanyakumari, clocking a total of 4430 kms
from Kashmir to Kanyakumari.
We resumed the 21/365 challenge, riding through Trivandrum,
Kochi and Calicut. The leg was one of the most tiring and harrowing rides we
had covered. Heavy traffic, hot and humid weather and single lanes made us
break journey very often. We were on seventh heaven when we entered Coimbatore.
My final stamping of 21/365 was done in Bangalore. We were welcomed home by the
HOG family and our son, Rahul, who was home alone during our ride. We would
like to thank Kaushik Goa Chapter Manager and Rohit Mehta for constant support
and encouragement.
Goa
Harley Davidson has official declared us the first Goan couple to complete the
K2K challenge on a Harley Davidson.
