Post trip writeup - MTBX-2 Offroading trip - March 16

[ARUN]²and their 16 Enthusiastic, Adventurous and Energetic Musketeers
I have given the above heading, I don’t know why? Just came in my mind of Danny Boyle’s Slum dog Millionaire’s musketeers who came out of their world and explored it to its new height and dimensions with free mind and energy.
Yes that’s what we did on 16^th March, 2013, coming out of our busy world to explore something new leaving concrete jungle to spend some time with Nature on Ride.
Although I had registered for this exploration, the day it was published on, I was in confused state till 12^th March, 2013, whether should I go or not .
Mind was in digital circuit state of 0 and 1
14^th March, 2013, ARUN started ringing to the registered explorers for their confirmation; I too received his call but didn’t pick as I was still not sure about myself (I have faced this kind of uncertainty for first time while making decision).
Once Heart and Mind both said YES, I started making list of those essential items I should carry with me as was required in mail + my own requirements. Collected, Packed and asked my bag to wait for another 3 days to bite the dust on RIDE. (Later, I realized, those items were not enough to buffer your body requirement to challenge the required toughness and trail ride requirements viz. missing eatable items, energetic drinks and spare tubes but this is where team management comes into picture where ones’ lacking area is covered by another member. In other words you can say it was COMPLETE TEAM EFFORT)
15^th March, 2013, picked up my bag, started for my official NIGH SHIFT. After one or max two hours of work (checking and deleting official mails, NO WORK GUYS, NO WORK), I started sleeping (what usually I do in night shifts; i.e. for me why night shifts are made of)
But that night shift, at least I did one important work of staring CLOCK to show 5:00 AM after every one or one and half hour (Better I should had put alarm on my mobile for better sleep).
Officially Shift ends at 6:30, I left at 5:00 O’clock, and leaving my organization’s NETWORK in self defensive mode (what Cisco claims about their products).
On the way (I found/saw one of my future musketeer, but at that time I had no idea because during morning time on OMR you will find lot of identical looking riders surfaced from nowhere testing their strength to well set individual targets)

Yeah this gentleman was none other than our “Ravindaran Sir” (My Apology if I have a typo here in your name)

Morning 5:30:
This is what time; it was pre-decided to find out who all will make up to the meeting point to explore something new waiting for us(I am not sure, who else had this kind of exploring experience earlier excepts our LEADS).
Here I found, few more biggies (in terms of energy stored within them) waiting for leaders to reach at spot and give us MARCH ORDERS and break THE DAWN.
Here arrive the leaders [ARUN]² with their loaded experiences and energy in their mind.
Calls started to registered members for their arrival and hired mini truck for loading our RIDERZ.
Sooner or Later all arrived and in mean time we loaded our RIDERZ on truck with few fellows to reach to a destined location from where we had to start our BRRROOOMMMIINNGG.
Rest headed to Thiruvanmiyur Bus Stand to catch the TIME matching our excitement and to kick-start our mission for what we had cooked our nights without dream so as not to miss the forthcoming pre-designed unknown TRAILS waiting for us.
Introduction: What is that?
If all are on same page of excitement, then it does not require any introduction. It will automatically come up with time having some seasoning of memorable LIVE DREAM passed with NATURE and SMILES.
We reached to Thiruporur leaving the Yawning City behind and here we are joined by another two Musketeers.
It’s time to break the fast before breaking the dawn. Yes, we all know that we have had all that what was required that day in terms of Energy and Excitement, but our Body is like Computer Programming i.e. unless you feed it with some instruction (i.e. FOOD) it will never execute the desired statement (i.e. Energy for Long Run).

Yeah, you people are assuming absolutely correct that we had Breakfast at Thiruporur before mobilizing our Knees on our Ankles resting on Pedals of our long waiting RIDERZ which had arrived here on mini truck and waiting for us in their own excitement and asking “What Next?”
Breakfast and then Tea/Coffee as per individual requirements, Payments, Collection and MISSION on MOVEMENT Started

DARE to THINK Beyond 2 OR 3 Punctures, Join IIPM(Intelligent Individuals of Puncture Management) where we have professors like [Arun]², Ravindaran, Harish and last but not least our GOWRI.

I’ll explain you on later part of below discussion:
At quarter stage of our trip, the puncture started one after another causing delay and minimizing the actual distance what we could have covered and thereby de-generating our stored energy and de-grading mental strength up to some level but here too we enjoyed the moment in one or other way. Novices like me learned how to deal with such circumstances and utilization of tools, man power and skills especially through Leads, Ravindaran Sir and all other involved team members co-ordinating and helping each other.

The moment utilized for introduction as well while all experiencing their hands on puncture skills at this IIPM.

We managed to reach half milestone (what the distance we covered and can be considered as Relaxation Point OR Splitting Point).

Here our team found the source of energy boosters in the form of Wells storing coolness within itself and testing the courage of few members to touch the depth and overcoming the fear pinching within.
Here GOWRI leads to show the path how to raise your-self while jumping into depth of unknown via measuring the distance between steps with MATRIX(mathematical not movie) and encouraging others to leave their fear outside THE WELL and ENJOY THE MOMENT.
“Enjoyed”, I asked to one of my fellow. “NO REGERET”, He replied.
I was feeling jealous (Please don’t consider it JEALOUS) with these gents as I was missing the opportunity to seal such enjoyable moment. No Probs, here I got the opportunity to turn my jealousy into vacuum of happiness by overcoming the “THE FEAR” within me.

THE FEAR: Although I know bit of swimming both in flowing as well still water, but my mind was not allowing putting the Team into any array of disappointment or trouble.
Leaping into the faith into team members, I decided to enjoy the moment with “No Regret” proverb to return back to the city.
Done! Put off the clothes, forwarded step to steps heading downwards challenging me to measure its depth associating helping hands of Gowri and one more friend waiting/floating for me to have fun with water( as per Peter WATER=”Danger Within”).

Beamed head into water and THEY followed me to hang me on other side of WALL. Deep Breath and Laugh of Enjoyment with two caring eyes always looking at me for RETURN
Relaxed for moment and leaped back to steps with my little experience and Helping Hands of Friends
While coming out of the relax mode, we faced the first puncture of second part of journey and our experts started implementing their hard skills (soft skill are for official/interview purposes) on those soft tubes.
Here Leads and members decided to split a part.

While working on one, I found one culprit (natural dead spine) sitting/hugging on my tyres spreading his sharp arms and piercing the tyre. I hope it was waiting for me saying, “Let see your puncture repairing skills”.
Here IIPM comes into picture.
While Professors like ARUN K and RAVINDARAN Sir was busy on operating the first one, I as novice student, removed the spine from my tyre and felt life(oxygen/air) coming out of tyre from two points.
Having finished the preliminary diagnosis on first one, the professors came to see my patient and initiated the operation via removing the tube. After detecting the leakage points, they put patch on wounded area of tube and handed over the patient to me to stich the (i.e. tap the patched area gently). Being novice student, I followed their instruction to tap it gently but with STONE found nearby instead of tapping tool.

Hurray, I succeeded in converting two patched punctures into 10 (may be 12 to 14, Ravindaran or Gowri Sir can give exact figure). (That is why IIPM header was inserted in above function)
Now we had two options: 1) Either to repair all or 2) Replace the tube with new one (which second batch didn’t had)
For 1^st option, Ravindaran Sir, started marking all invisible spots. Here comes GOWRI into picture for finishing his PhD (Doctorate in Puncture at IIPM) who till was busy in finalizing the first project of puncture.
Lead Professor(Arun K) decided to catch up the 1^st batch to see if they have spare books (tube) for replacement, and thanks to new comers having one to rescue us from delayed situation.

In meantime, GOWRI was finishing his research with Ravindaran Sir in marking the potholes in tube and while doing so they decided to do initial test by immersing into water in nearby pond to specifically locate the bubble points, but as soon as they did the bubbles burst only making them laugh loudly on their research.
Now it was decided among both (partly I too was included) to bring adjacent holes in one zone and patch the zones in multiple parts. It was complicated but they were enough skilled to pass through this test.
Here the lead arrives with spare tube, my bike brought back to life but with some limbos mismatch.
Gowri was still holding up his research on tube and time being we all got ready. To avoid delay, we left IIPM in mid-semester to pursue the trail course with much required pace to match the time and strength left with us.
Here You Go……..
We, Second Batch, started our trace for impression of the trail left behind by First One. Missing the trail leading us to unknown direction, then getting back to the point where we lost the last trailing point.

This web of trail guaranteed us to test our stamina, mental strength while drying out our last drop of water in all’s bottles as well in the body. While lost in the search of trail, we were kept on finding some real images of country in terms of humanity (I was bit unlucky to capture those images in my camera as still I don’t have professional cam mind-set to have those beautiful images when on run) offering us water while Sun was challenging us to move forward emitting heat at its peak. I was struggling a bit as after puncture repair work, the alignment of my tyres were causing slowness of my ride toward end of journey, but this was time where it require mental strength more than physical strength.
After having long enough trail through picturesque passage, we decided to exit back to TAR road leading us to Mahabalipuram (some 8-10 km ahead of destination). Took a break and started towards the end point of our Journey of Musketeers at Mahabalipuram.
Here, First batch were waiting for us after having refreshment/relaxation of their part.
Had Lunch, relaxed for a while, loaded THE RIDERZ back to truck with some fellows and headed back to our (…..) CITY making us to wait for next TRIP MAIL on google group
Later while reviewing the images captured by FRIENDS, I was smiling to see the sleeping images of fellows on the truck and kept on smiling plus those enduring mails from other corners still keep those trails in my mind and heart.