Motorbike Journeys through India between 2001 and 2024: An attempt to understand land and people. By: “Captain Hans Herbert Berg“
Personal:
My name is Hans Herbert Berg. I am German, 67 years old, and a retired Senior Captain of the German Air Force. I’m not a career officer but came up through the ranks. In 1976, after completing my vocational training as an Industrial Mechanic, I was drafted to serve my term in the military, as all young men in Germany had to in those days. Thus, on January 1st, 1977, I began my journey in the GAF with the usual 3-Month Basic Training. Following that, I was posted with a Flying Unit (Reconnaissance Wing 52) and cross-trained to become an Aircraft Mechanic. Providing further details of my career would extend this introduction excessively. However, instead of serving my 15-month term, I signed a time contract which later led to a lifetime career. In 1986, the Air Force selected me to become an Officer, and I was sent to Technical College, followed by Officers Course, Management Course, and many more educational trainings. Promoted to 2nd Lieutenant in April 1990, I embarked on my higher career as an Organizational Officer in the Air Force Headquarters Org Department. Subsequently, I held several other assignments, and for the last two of my service years, I oversaw Maintenance in a Depot Level Maintenance Facility for the PA200 Tornado Tactical Bomber. On February 29th, 2012, after 35 years and 2 months of service, I retired at the age of 55, as per AF Regulations.
Tours:
Between December 1998 and February 2024, I undertook a total of 17 journeys through India. Thirteen of these journeys, starting in 2001, were on Enfield’s rented from Lalli Mobike Adventures in Karol Bagh, Delhi. It was “Mr. Wooli” who recommended Mr. Inder Mohan Singh Rana’s business to me. So, in October 2001, I entered the premises of Lalli’s place for the first time. Please find attached a cost statistic of my journeys. In 2008, 2013, and 2015, I had my nephew Maximilian (Max) with me. In all these years until now, I got my Motorbikes from Lalli. Almost none of these tours went without technical problems one or the other. Most problems were caused by the bad road conditions or normal wear and tear. The great thing in India is that one is never left alone. An exception perhaps is when one is away from civilization in the higher regions of the Himalayas. However, since I’m not fond of the mountains, this is not of any concern to me. I have never been farther north than Shimla. I prefer the “easy” roads in the plains. Naming all the places and cities I have been to in all these years would be too much to list here. However, the best thing of any journey is when at the end, one is safely back in Delhi. In 2001, there were almost none of the 4 or 6 lane roads of today, not to speak of any expressways. Within the last 20 or more years, the National Highway Net has been tremendously improved. Although many roads, especially inside urban areas, are still in a very bad state of repair. The negative aspect of it is that very often a NH is repaired and/or extended to 4 or 6 lanes and then declared as Expressway, and finally, 2-wheelers, 3-wheelers, tractors, etc. are not allowed anymore on these roads. Subsequently, overland Motorbiking through India becomes a nuisance and will not be an enjoyable mode of travel in the future, as far as traveling in the lowlands is concerned. Sometimes I was quite upset about this development and decided that my 2023/24 journey was my last motorbike tour in India. Besides that, I’m getting too old for that type of adventure.
Experiences:
Travel experiences depend on the type of traveler one is. For myself, I can say that I’m an individual traveler and that I’m interested in the History, Architecture, and colonial past of a country. As far as such subjects are concerned, India must show an enormously rich heritage, besides the countless number of places of worship of the many religions. To discover all that and get in touch with the local people, I decided that going around on a Motorbike is the best way to do so. First, it is to say that towards a foreign tourist, the people of India are always friendly and helpful. At least, that’s my experience. Whenever I had problems, there were always local people to help. Anyway, the above statement will apply mostly outside the Tourist Hotspots. In places like Agra, Jaipur, Udaipur, and so forth within the tourist zones, people are mainly interested in extracting money from a Tourist. But this is the same the world over, and none is to blame for it. Outside these places, people are friendly and interested in the person. I have been asked so often about my name, my country, my family, and so on. In exchange, I learned a lot about their life circumstances. More than once, I have been invited to a chai and a little conversation about life in general. From my recent journey, just one Episode: On my way from Mysore to Coimbatore, my Navigation Device suddenly failed. I stopped at the roadside in a town whose name I forgot to look at the problem when I was approached by an elderly Gentleman. He invited me to a nearby private school. As it turned out, he was a retired Medical Doctor (Dentist), over 70 years old, and the Co-Founder and Secretary of that school. He showed me around. The school premises were spotlessly clean, the whole school compound quite big with sport facilities, and the classrooms equipped with most modern big TV Screens instead of the usual chalkboards. Parents had to pay a yearly fee of 50.000, – Rupees per child. We had a nice conversation over a chai and biscuits. I was also invited for lunch but had politely to refuse because I wanted to reach Coimbatore before it got dark, and besides, it had begun just lightly to rain. So, I excused myself and drove on. However, even India is changing fast. Within the last 20 or more years, not only the population has grown from 1 billion in 2001 to more than 1.4 billion now (more than 140 crore) but with it the middle class, which earns enough money not only to make a better living but also to afford an in-land holiday. The disadvantage of this development is that the tourist hot spots are very crowded now. While, for example, 10 or more years ago, to visit a National Park was an easy thing to do, nowadays such an undertaking requires thorough planning some months ahead, as the Parks are overrun by people, and the authorities have raised the entry fee and limited the number of people for daily entry to protect the Park environment and the wildlife.
To conclude my little report on Motorbike travel experiences, I will share another episode of my recent journey: On my way from Calangute (Goa) to Kolhapur, I chose not to use the narrow and often bad roads through the West Ghats but to go towards Hubli-Dharwar and then catch the 6-lane MH 48 towards Kolhapur. Just when I had arrived at the access road to NH 48, a loud cracking noise indicated that the drive chain had ruptured. There I was, standing at the roadside and thinking about what to do. But as I mentioned before, one is in India.
A short while later, a man on a motorbike stopped and asked what the problem was. He took out his mobile and called an RE Workshop. Unfortunately, he was told that it would take hours before anyone could attend to my problem. Next, another man approached who told me to bring a mechanic from a nearby garage. So, he did. The first man left. Meanwhile, a few people had approached, and all discussed in the local language what could be done. The second man returned with a mechanic who declared that a roadside repair wasn’t possible. That much I knew myself. A young man approached me and said that he was a member of the local Motorbike Club and offered to take me to a workshop. That was done the Indian way. I got on the bike, and he followed me on his bike behind, pushing me with his foot from time to time forward through the traffic for the next 7 kilometres to the workshop. There another member of that club appeared and explained to the workshop personnel what needed to be done. Pramod and Ragu, as I later learned their names, were very helpful. An hour and a half later, all the repair work was done, and I was able to continue my journey to Kolhapur. Ragu gave me a patch of his club as a gift. People just help whenever possible and do not worry about the time they invest in such an event, nor do they ask for money. That is one of the things I highly appreciate about India.