Purely out of interest because of the size of this place, is there anyone else travelling India at present on two wheels and if so, where are you and where you heading..???

Mez and Mark
(riding Hero hunks, currently in Shiliguri about to sample Dewali as it unfolds..!!)

I'm in Nepal now but will be heading to India in three weeks to buy a bike and spent about 5 or 6 months riding around the country. I'll be starting in Delhi.

Hi Planethopper,

What date you land in Delhi and the amount of money you have planned to shell out on the bike? also what bike are you planning to buy??

Cheers,
Rohan

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Cheers
Rohan - Loving Indian Enfields

please rıde carefully ın ındıa,ıve been rıdeıng for many years now but the only place ı had an accıdent was northern ındıa travel slowly as the ındıan have no mınd on the road ,scarred for lıfe now ı stıll travel on the roads there but wıth much more cautıon take good care all!

Well, I figured since I'll be in India then I should buy a Royal Enfield. I know there's far better bikes available but an Enfield in India just seams to be the way to go. They are very cheap and not a bad bike. I've looked at them online and the prices are around $1500 for a new one, great deal!! Hey Itsmerohan, do you have any suggestions? Hey Charlie675, thanks for the warning, I'll be very careful.

Charlie,

I would beg to differ with your rather lose comment that - Indians have no mind on road.

For the benefit of all in thi sforum. Let me remind you guys every country comes with it's own set of typical driving styles and traffic conditions and that too change sveral times over in within the country itself. So generalizing and passing lose comments is not a good thing or right thing to do.

For the northern part of the country - I have been riding for more tham a Decade and 6 years on the bullet, one must stick to your side of the road and use the disk and drum brake combination effectively and wisely. Also the right tire pressure and bike conditions play a vital role in the experience.

Please note - Thousands of tourists take to Indian roads each year and gfo back smiling. But precautions are always better...

Cheers

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Cheers
Rohan - Loving Indian Enfields

I can surely be of help to you - the $ 1500 you are quoting will fetch you a good bike but it will be old. The new bikes in the market are around $ 2500 and more.

Most of the Online sales are done by fixing the older bikes and doing some make shift arrangements and these last only a few hundred kilometers and then the trouble starts, ultimately you might end up spending around $ 500 more on the repairs and getting the bike fixed. So beware and use some knowledge to judge the machine you will buy.

Note - Royal enfileds are pretty brittle in nature and have a tendency to fail if not properlt maintained... I have been on tours with guys who got the bikes from Delhi and then the whole breaking and repair business starts...

Cheers

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Cheers
Rohan - Loving Indian Enfields

What bike are you riding and how many guys are you?

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Cheers
Rohan - Loving Indian Enfields

Hi Rohan:

Although I concede that Charlie could have perhaps been more circumspect in how he worded his warning, I don't think he meant any malice, and I do think that the general gist of what he wrote was both correct and well-intentioned.

I visited your city this summer on a business trip. It was my first visit to your country and I was fascinated, absolutely charmed by your country and I cannot wait to get a month of time off from work, buy a moto in India, and then ride around for a month. All that notwithstanding, I was quite horrified with the general driving practices in New Delhi - and I'm not a neophyte to travel, I've lived and worked in Africa for close to 20 years, and ridden over 100,000 km through just about all the countries in Western, Central, and Eastern Europe.

It is true that 'each country has it's own driving style', but I think it is fair to say that the sheer density of traffic in major Indian cities, and the enormous variety of vehicles (especially cargo vehicles!) is something that you would not see anywhere else in the world. Add into that the general selfishness of the drivers (in the literal sense of the word), and you have a combination of risks that will initially be almost overwhelming for someone who is used to riding or driving in a more regulated environment.

By way of illustration, India has 16.8 traffic fatalities per 100,000 citizens per year, Canada has 9.2. But... I suspect that the percentage of citizens who own vehicles in Canada is likely significantly higher than the percentage of citizens who own vehicles in India. Do the math...

Michael

hehe your more likely to get run down by a tourist on a moped at the hotspots but yes charlie we should all take care I think this is a given.
You learn to drive defensive no night driving and keep the klms/day down
It is a lesson of patience not survival

the experıence of my accıdent ın ındıa on the grant trunk road headıng too varanası
ıs just a note of cautıon for anybody else experıencıng ındıa by bıke yes ıt ıs a faboulous place to rıde but there are real dangers .as ın any country but more so ındıa.just travelıng overland now back too ındıa on the bıke but ı know to slow down when ı get there. love your rıdıng ıam loveıng mıne!

Bon voyage and Please come back again. Do not hesitate to call me once you plan a trip to India next time.

I will be more than happy to share with you some of the experiece that might make the trips in my country much more safer and trouble free.


Do Drop a line next you plan a visit..

Take Care

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Cheers
Rohan - Loving Indian Enfields

send me your number and ıll look you up ın dehlı when ı get there
just got the ındıan vıas ın ankara turkey so ıam headıng your way