18 BHP to 1 HP

Once upon a time, not so very long long ago, I used to ride a 18 Brake horsepower motorcycle - the Royal Enfield Thunderbird 350cc. I too used to be a biker boy. Once upon a time...


Work is just under a kilometer away from home, and so I have been walking to work. The best part of the walk is around 100 m before work. There is this garrage, and the mechanic happens to repair and sell old motorcycles. So everyday, before and after work, I salivate, drool, ogle at these bikes. Recently I've seen this bike with a side car, and well... I've just been drooling some more, and missing my motorcycle some more.

The past one week has seen some exceptionally pleasant weather - the road side daffodils have bloomed, the walkways are flush with yellow, and I am told Mainau is ready to explode with colors; the sky is blue - sky blue, like Bangalore during February; the biker boys are out with their bikes; and the hem lines... hmm... have gone UP - God I love spring!

Last weekend I spent my time ruminating about life, quarter life crisis??. Anyways, I was thinking that when I have the time - I have no bike, nor the means to acquire one over-night, and when I had no time (or acted as if I have no time) - I had a kickass bike. What-a-strange no?? Either I could keep thinking... ahem ahem.. brooding, or I could do something about the shit-u-a-shan... It is a no brainer, that by the time I convert my Indian Drivers License, and save up enough money for a bike, it will be the end of the biking season in Europe. And I am not daft enough to ride during winters - no sir, I am crazy, but not that insane. So what's the other option?

If I have learnt anything about myself, then it is that I have an incurable affliction. I must be able to travel when ever I please, and I don't mean a train ride or a car ride. I must be in charge of the vehicle - and I must feel the wind in my hair*, bugs in my nose, and the pebbles hitting my legs. These are the small pleasures of life which I have missed in the past 6 weeks. Perhaps another hobby could keep me interested? I've tried cooking, and i've given stained glass a shot. I like them both, but I'd rather eat than cook, and stained glass is hard work. I don't enjoy doing it, but the end result is something which makes me feel proud. So I am back to square one.

You see these gazillion number of people cycling around in Konstanz. And a decent new bicycle costs upwards of €400 - and remember what it costs in India?? This is insane!!! I am not sure I want to buy one, especially if I am not going to live here long enough - so I have rented one. (pssst... this is the bhp to human power** i.e. 1 HP)

I have gotten my hand on a rental bike for three days for €25. A lake, the Bodensee - 300 kms to circumnavigate through 3 countries - presents itself as a very tasty route. I need no visa. What else could I ask for? But the last time I peddled was in 1999 - ten years ago! Can I do 300 kms in 3 days? Questions, questions, questions!!! Heck, I haven't even made hotel reservations - and it is a long Easter vacation! All the best to me!

* Always ride a bike i.e. motorcycle with a helmet. Always!
** thanks to jishnu for the analogy.

18 BHP to 1 HP