She: hi.. hru & whats up..
Me: Well, there is a bicycle ride that's happening in Bangalore, I thought I will go there..
She: Oh! Ok.. But you don have a bicycle there..
Me: (grin...) I will buy a new one! :)
She: When is it?
Me: Starting Dec 25 for 7 days.
She: What 7days? and 25. You said you will be home for your Birthday! No way Vijay!
Me: No maa, not interested in celebrating one this year, I had been doing this all thro' 20+ years.
She: I'm twice the age of you and I still celebrate it. You better talk to dad...... (Enaga...)
This is where my tour started and ended. Also I got one reunion and two special people birthday's to celebrate on this time frame. But I will tell why you should go for TFN.
TFN - Tour oF Nilgiris. Its a special interest group of people who wanted to take an adventurous ride through the flora and fauna of the gorgeous Nilgiris with their bikes. (These guys address bicycles as bikes.) It would be a 910 919kms ride in 7 days, at an average 140kms per day! Its a spectacular route these people have come up with. In brief, Bangalore-Mysore-Madikeri-Sultan Bathery-Ooty-Mysore-Bangalore. If you had missed to see any of these places you just missing something beautiful. Mysore is known for its cultural heritage. Sultan Bathery would be breath taking with its greenery on God's own country. Twisting roads through the tea estates would be an amazing site to watch. Ooty! She is the Queen. A favourite destination during my college days. Imagine drinking a hot chaai (tea) standing on a mist covered road after a nice pedal. (I simply call it heaven!) Oh boy! My camera would be loving it, will I stop clicking?...
Well, that said about TFN. How can you be there in TFN? First register, lets do the talking later. Cool. Pal, I did the home work for you... You have to have your own bike, helmet, clothing, toolkit for a mechanical bug like puncture and break wire failure (its hill regions you know). Most importantly need to pay the participation fee for the organiser(s) to take of your food and accommodation for the 7 days. Its 10K for full event and 1500/900 for a stage (1 day) with/without accommodation. Also read the do's/don and T&C before signing in.
(Mom, this one for your question on safety...) Manipal Hospital will be the official medical assistance partner. They have a fully equipped Ambulance coming along with you during the ride, with sport medicine doctors for any emergency. You know TFN is crazy! Making is more crazier is Radio Indigo, the official radio partners. Yeah, I will be missing those food from Nilgiris
What makes this event more beautiful is the people who are associated with it. Its one unique gang! You should read it for yourself about these maniacs. They include tech geeks, doctors, photographers and even a 6th grade student. Now for the final bad news, the registration is closed. :) But, Still you can register and be part of TFN if someone drops out. So now all you need is passion (mixed with a pinch of craziness), love of nature and a bit of preparation.
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