Our
“Red Head” motivation lasted for about an hour or so. The Sun was at its peak,
but the cold winds were playing their part very well. Despite applying sun’s
cream frequently, we could feel the sun burn on our face. The path became a bit
difficult, as the roads were broken and the curves were steep. My head ache was
a bit tolerable, which was overruled by the dry grey mountains and the perfect
blue sky. Dhyani tried all his best to keep the ride as smooth as possible but
the path was completely broken, with bumps and small pebbles spilled perfectly
all over the place. This gave us a back ache but when it was unavoidable, I
requested Dhyani to stop the bike in some safe area. We were crossing over some
mountain, and when my thighs became numb, I asked Dhyani to stop the bike
immediately and take some rest. I really needed a small walk to get the blood flow
back to my thighs. Siddhu and Ujjwal were following us and after 10 min or so,
even they joined us. The place where we were standing was not as steep as we
faced earlier. It was a flat long mountain with deadly curves. We could see the
road, about a kilometer in one stretch, and follow up on two or three curves
where they join in with the neighbor mountain road.
Standing on the edge of the road, we could see the road going down the mountain, and continuing on our way further. There were a few bikers whom we saw overtaking us on that mountain, and suddenly, when we were about to get back on our bike, we heard a crashing sound. It was those bikers who were trying to take a shortcut and run on the mountain hill, instead of taking the actual road. Frankly speaking, it was kind of funny, looking at some grown old men, on a bike and falling down on a hill, which could be easily avoided, if they would have taken the ROAD.
“Zindagi ke 10 second bacha ken a jaane kya ukhaadna chahte the wo log” was the first thought that came to my mind. Anyways, we ran to the accidental area and tried to help them. Luckily none of them was hurt severely, only a few scratches on their hand. Just a few minutes later, a big group of bikers came up. There were around 5, 6 bikes and a four wheeler. All men came up and inquired about the accident, when suddenly a fat guy, a bit small in height came up and shouted, “Benchod!! Chutiye ho kya. Dimag kharab hai tumara jo tum pahaad me chad gaye” and the moment we heard this, we backed off. It seemed that it was kind of a private issue. After a few minutes of scolding, that short guy came to Siddhu and thanked us for our help. He was really pissed by the act his friends tried, and he told them to go and sit in the car and let other people ride the bike. The accident seemed to be a small one, but looking at the bigger picture, these guys could have been fallen off the mountain if there was a few more seconds of acceleration or if the bike went out of control. Anyways, a major accident was avoided. All is well, that ends well.
After a small talk, the short guy asked us about our rest of the crew. We all looked at each other, confused, or proud, we murmured “There are just four of us”. I feel, this statement gave him a little SHOCK, as he couldn't believed us and kept looking at us as if we are some kind of alien asking him questions about Einstein’s theory of relativity. He was quiet for a few seconds, and after a long pause, he said, “tum pagal ho. Tume pata bhi hai tum kahan aaye ho aur kahan ja rahe ho? Ye LADAKH hai bhai, pata kia tha iss jagah ke baare me, ya aise hi aagaye byke utha ke. You are supposed to have a back up, and that’s why people carry a four wheeler with them, in which there will be mechanic and some bike parts, jo ke kharab hote hi hai and toot te hi hai iss raaste me. Socho, yahan tumari byke kharab ho gayi, ya clutch plate ya break toot gaye, to kya karoge? Socha tha ye. Yahan door door tak koi nahi milega. Thoda bahut adventure hona chhahiye, jawan log ho, but ITNA.”
We were all dumbstruck, looking at each other, thinking all the negative things that could have happen to us or could happen to us. The guy was actually correct, what if our bike broke, what if our breaks or gear box or any other thing dysfunctions. What if there is a major accident. All of a sudden all negative thoughts covered our mind, which made us speechless. Then suddenly, Siddhu asked, “do you mind if we could join you guys in your group”. His main idea was if anything happens, at least these guys have a mechanic. The short guys agreed and told us to follow them. The moment we started, Siddhu looked at me, smiled and said, “ho gaya kaand. Marr jaati apni, ye sab socha to tha but itnaa detail me nahi. Chalo, isi ke saath lag jaate hai, kuch hua to madad to mill hi jayegi”. So there was no other choice for us, but to follow them. We have travelled so much, faced so much, now no turning back. “Jo bhi hoga, dekhi jayegi”
Standing on the edge of the road, we could see the road going down the mountain, and continuing on our way further. There were a few bikers whom we saw overtaking us on that mountain, and suddenly, when we were about to get back on our bike, we heard a crashing sound. It was those bikers who were trying to take a shortcut and run on the mountain hill, instead of taking the actual road. Frankly speaking, it was kind of funny, looking at some grown old men, on a bike and falling down on a hill, which could be easily avoided, if they would have taken the ROAD.
“Zindagi ke 10 second bacha ken a jaane kya ukhaadna chahte the wo log” was the first thought that came to my mind. Anyways, we ran to the accidental area and tried to help them. Luckily none of them was hurt severely, only a few scratches on their hand. Just a few minutes later, a big group of bikers came up. There were around 5, 6 bikes and a four wheeler. All men came up and inquired about the accident, when suddenly a fat guy, a bit small in height came up and shouted, “Benchod!! Chutiye ho kya. Dimag kharab hai tumara jo tum pahaad me chad gaye” and the moment we heard this, we backed off. It seemed that it was kind of a private issue. After a few minutes of scolding, that short guy came to Siddhu and thanked us for our help. He was really pissed by the act his friends tried, and he told them to go and sit in the car and let other people ride the bike. The accident seemed to be a small one, but looking at the bigger picture, these guys could have been fallen off the mountain if there was a few more seconds of acceleration or if the bike went out of control. Anyways, a major accident was avoided. All is well, that ends well.
After a small talk, the short guy asked us about our rest of the crew. We all looked at each other, confused, or proud, we murmured “There are just four of us”. I feel, this statement gave him a little SHOCK, as he couldn't believed us and kept looking at us as if we are some kind of alien asking him questions about Einstein’s theory of relativity. He was quiet for a few seconds, and after a long pause, he said, “tum pagal ho. Tume pata bhi hai tum kahan aaye ho aur kahan ja rahe ho? Ye LADAKH hai bhai, pata kia tha iss jagah ke baare me, ya aise hi aagaye byke utha ke. You are supposed to have a back up, and that’s why people carry a four wheeler with them, in which there will be mechanic and some bike parts, jo ke kharab hote hi hai and toot te hi hai iss raaste me. Socho, yahan tumari byke kharab ho gayi, ya clutch plate ya break toot gaye, to kya karoge? Socha tha ye. Yahan door door tak koi nahi milega. Thoda bahut adventure hona chhahiye, jawan log ho, but ITNA.”
We were all dumbstruck, looking at each other, thinking all the negative things that could have happen to us or could happen to us. The guy was actually correct, what if our bike broke, what if our breaks or gear box or any other thing dysfunctions. What if there is a major accident. All of a sudden all negative thoughts covered our mind, which made us speechless. Then suddenly, Siddhu asked, “do you mind if we could join you guys in your group”. His main idea was if anything happens, at least these guys have a mechanic. The short guys agreed and told us to follow them. The moment we started, Siddhu looked at me, smiled and said, “ho gaya kaand. Marr jaati apni, ye sab socha to tha but itnaa detail me nahi. Chalo, isi ke saath lag jaate hai, kuch hua to madad to mill hi jayegi”. So there was no other choice for us, but to follow them. We have travelled so much, faced so much, now no turning back. “Jo bhi hoga, dekhi jayegi”
