BIKERS CLUB APRIL 2019 ISSUE | Page 45

MY FIRST SOLO RIDE A STORY OF PRAVEEN SAHU | NARRATED BY RAHUL MEHTA HYDERABAD cafe coffee day, I ordered cappuccino, well I was sitting on the table going through my facebook, scrolling some posts, sipping my cappuccino, was reading some posts of my rider friends.. There were so many posts and so many trips, I haven't had many trips or riding since I started riding few years back, thoughts of me hitting the road SOLO were going on in my mind but the question was where to go? I have heard about solo riding is fun and intriguing, it's like self meditation but I haven't had that experience. While I was going through some post I came across to Araku Valley, a hill station in Andhra Pradesh.. I have heard lot of stories regarding that when I was in college but never got chance to visit there. On a dark desert highway, cool wind in my hair. Warm smell of colitas, rising up through the air.. Up ahead in the distance, I saw a shimmering light.. My head grew heavy and my sight grew dim, I had to stop for the night. RE Classic 350, which I named it SHAURYA. I was standing next to my bike at parking and I could feel that Shaurya was telling me that he is ready for Araku Valley, this was very first time I had a feeling that my bike was communicating with me, strange isn't it? I kicked start Shaurya, I don't know why, although it has self start switch but my subconscious mind made me kicked started my bike. There she stood in the doorway; I heard the mission bell And I was thinking to myself 'This could be heaven or this could be hell' Then she lit up a candle and she showed me the way.. There were voices down the corridor, I thought I heard them say.. Annual day of my college fest, I was performing this song with my guitar, crowd was cheering.. This song in CCD brought back my memories of college days when I performed this song.. It was Hotel California song, which was going on in the cafe, after ages I was listing to this song, may be after my college days. I was standing at the signal with the thoughts of my college days with this song and suddenly I could hear the honking from behind and brought me back in to reality. I was riding and thinking "some memories you cannot forget." I decided then I will take a SOLO ride to Araku Valley, I almost finished my cappuccino and left for home on my bike I reached home, had dinner with my family, they could observe my lost state of mind, I didn't talk much and went to bed, colsed my eyes.