Riding together long distance is a great and adventurous way of symbolising and spreading the
message of unity. With this spirit in mind, a group of enthusiastic riders of
Extreme Riders Goa went on a journey to explore the nation on the eve of
Republic Day, making their way to the Statue of Unity and returning to Goa on
January 30, 2020.
Extreme Riders Goa (ERG) is a small group
of riders that rides for different causes. The riders for this ride were Khabir
Moraes, Tejas Kathane, George Sequeira and Jerryton Dias.
“We were planning the trip to Rann of
Kutch in Gujarat but our schedules could not match, we cut the trip to visiting
the Statue of Unity (SOU). We are known for our cause rides, hence we decided
to call it Unity Ride, keeping in mind the present scenario in the country. Our
message is to spread unity and harmony. What better place to ride to than the
SOU,” says Jerryton Dias, a chef on a cruise ship.
The riders left Goa at 5am for Kevadia, Gujarat. “This ride of
approximately 2200 kilometres was dedicated to Sardar Vallabhai Patel, who is
termed as the Iron Man of India, who played a leading role in the formation of
India as a united, independent nation that was once about 550 princely states,”
says Khabir Moraes, also a chef on sea.
ERG rides to various destinations in India with road safety as
their top priority. Members from different parts of Goa like Cuncolim, Ponda,
Panjim are part of ERG. “Our motto is to ride for a cause. We have done many
cause rides like Peace Ride to Kanyakumari, Anti Pollution Ride to Mundgod,
Safety Ride to Kolhapur, Anti Rape Ride to Kunkeshwar, etc. We have a total of
eight registered members in our group. We start riding early in the day, at
around 5am. This helps us avoid heavy traffic, allowing us to get back home in
time,” adds Dias.
The riders followed their schedule on time. “We met near
Banastarim bridge at 5:45am on January 25, 2020 and headed towards Belgaum via
Chorla Ghat with a rest stop in Lonavala. The next day, we left at 5am to avoid
Mumbai traffic and rode along the Ahmadabad-Mumbai highway. We reached our
destination at 5:30pm. The return journey was also planned in the same way,”
explains George Sequeira, a fitness expert and gym owner. This was the first
Goan ride dedicated exclusively to the Statue of Unity.
Speaking about the challenges of riding, Tejas Kathane, a banker
who works at Bank of Baroda as a marketing officer, says, “One of the biggest
challenges was riding in the chilly morning hours, with the lowest temperatures
in Lonavala. The other challenge was to ride on one of the busiest highways of
India, NH48, as the number of heavy vehicles like trucks and lorries was high.”
However, the highlight of our ride made up for all the hours of
riding and exhaustion. “It was beautiful to reach the 182-metre-tall majestic
SOU. High speed elevators are located inside the statue to take us up to the
view point, which is located in the chest area of the SOU at 135 metres. The
knowledge about Sardar Vallabhai Patel, the Iron Man of India, was the main
highlight of the ride,” adds Kathane.
Their future plans include a trip to Ladakh. “As professional riders, we have a Ladakh ride in mind as it’s a dream ride for all bike riders. Other than that, we want to ride to all the states in India and keep ERG’s flag flying high,” concludes Dias.