Sachin Wadhwani

“Looking back on my early days riding, or even now, I wonder at times why I love to ride? For me, I think it’s been many reasons. The most important being that I’m alone. I love being alone. I don’t ever remember a moment in my life when I’ve felt lonely. It’s just me and my complete focus on the road ahead. The bike seems to be working on its own. It’s hard to explain. I guess muscle memory takes over. No other mundane thoughts enter my head. It sounds stressful for someone who doesn’t ride, but to a rider, it’s so relaxing and satisfying. ADV riding adds a bonus to this. An ADV bike takes you to places where many vehicles don’t go. The views are stunning, and the locations are virgin.” – Sachin Wadhwani

“To be honest, motorcycling started even before my teens as a way to impress the ladies. I would beg the automatic scooter owners around my home to let me ride their scooters on the streets where I knew there wouldn’t be any cops around. By the time I was sixteen, I had to move to a geared motorcycle. That was when I realized riding a scooter was seen as being too soft by those same ladies. Back then, I was helping my dad at his menswear retail store during my summer holidays, and one of the store salesmen had a TVS Ind-Suzuki 125cc, a joint venture between TVS India and Suzuki Japan. At that point in my life, it was an absolute beast, and since I was the boss’s son, I was given full access. He taught me the delicate art of letting go of the clutch and using the accelerator simultaneously and when to change gears and to look for the neutral green light. I remember learning how the gears on the bike were one down and four up. I had no idea I’d be hooked for life.”

But even after learning to ride Sachin actually wouldn’t have a bike of his own for more than a decade. “I’d always borrow, or try to borrow, one from my friends for the weekend. The reasons were both financial and emotional. Initially, I didn’t have enough money and later when I had the money my parents were horrified at the thought. Parents hate motorcycles, and for a good reason, I don’t blame them. I am glad I bought mine much later at the ripe age of thirty. When I had a mature head on my shoulders, or so I thought.”

With ADV riding it’s often the case that one rider’s adventure can be another’s morning commute. Indeed that’s the case for Sachin since his playground is one of the most alluring destinations in the world for ADV seeking travelers and overlanders. “India is a massive country. According to Google, it’s the seventh largest country in the world. To see most of that, I knew I would need a comfortable bike to ride. A sports bike or a dirt bike wouldn’t serve the purpose. In many aspects, India is also still in the developing phase, and although the road network is one of the largest in the world, the quality of the tarmac isn’t always the best. Add to that the brutal monsoon which takes its toll on the road conditions. For a sportbike or any ordinary tourer that’s a nightmare, for an ADV bike, it’s pure riding bliss.”

“We in India are extremely lucky. We are blessed with the Himalayan Mountains, a long coastline, flat plains in central India, salt flats, jungles and vast deserts all within our borders. We’ve also had long distance tourers, on their small single-cylinder Royal Enfield bikes, riding the length and breadth of the country for decades. Pioneers with the true spirit of adventure who have ridden alone where no human on a motorcycle would dare venture and have come back to tell the story. So yes although we do have a great culture of exploring on two wheels, the idea of adventure on a big ADV bike is still very new for us here. I live in Mumbai, it’s a big city, one of the biggest and ‘baddest’ in India, if not the world. Most of us in the city watch someone like Chris Birch on YouTube and go and buy a BMW GS and expect to be on an adventure the next moment. It’s not that simple. These bikes can be a handful, and without the right guidance and experience, things become real scary real fast. However, there are the ones who have gradually graduated to ADV bikes and who won’t let even city life get in the way. They are the ones that are always ready to head out. I’ve been fortunate to meet some of them, and we’ve had some memorable rides together.”

“The heart and soul of India reside in its villages and small towns and access to these destinations are through broken tarmac and gravel roads. These roads are perfect for my bike and almost always devoid of any traffic. You might only see an odd bicycle or a farm tractor now and then. I love visiting these little towns to camp or stay with villagers in their humble homes and enjoy meals of vegetables and fruits grown in their backyard, savor the clean air, clean river water and spend time with un-polluted minds who have no clue and no interest in city life and urbanization.”

Sachin’s choice of motorcycle is firmly cemented with the winged brand. “Honda Motorcycles and Scooters India brought in a batch of seventy-five 2017 Africa Twin DCT and gave their existing Honda big bike owners, I was riding the CB 1000, the first chance to book them. I didn’t hesitate. I love Honda, and I knew I wanted to venture into territory away from main roads and highways. Away from trucks, cars, signals, traffic, traffic police, and dumb pedestrians. When Honda announced the AT for India, I spent hours and weeks reading up, watching videos and reviews of what this bike is all about. I knew I wanted one. I knew this bike would take me places. Even though the DCT was frowned upon by many pundits, I was ready to try something new, to take the plunge.”

“The bike has been perfect from day one. I haven’t changed very much on it. For comfort, I changed the foot pegs to wider ones and moved the handlebar backward by half an inch since I have shorter forearms than most people. When I was up on the pegs, the handlebar felt a bit far, and I didn’t want to get bar raisers. I also raised the seat to maximum height setting. This helped me to look further afield in both traffic and light off-road when I’m seated and don’t want to be standing on the pegs.” For protection, Sachin fitted a set of Givi upper and lower crash bars while Barkbuster hand guards protect the hands. “I swear by these choices. They’ve saved my bike and my fingers from severe damage more than once.” The wheels have been fitted with an Outex tubeless kit, but Sachin still carries a set of tubes with him in case of a bent rim. “On the Africa Twin, my natural choice would be a 60/40 or a 50/50 dual sport tire. My first choice has and will always be Metzeler; I love them.” The front fender has been fitted with a Rugged Roads fender kit while a Swegotech Forkshield updraft deflector has remedied the AT’s annoying updraft defect.

Also fitted from Givi are their luggage racks. “For long rides, I rely on the Rigg Gear Sierra soft luggage system. I chose it because I wanted a soft set up so damage would be minimal when I drop the bike. I don’t want to crack a side case or break the support rack. Soft panniers are also lighter, and with the AT already weighing in over 496 lb / 225 kg, every bit counts. I also wanted something that would be hi-visibility, and Rigg Gear has an excellent, bright yellow option which I chose. It’s awesome. I’ve had one drop, one slide, and once the right pannier hit a stationary vehicle at a reasonable speed and the damage was negligible. I can’t imagine getting away with that on a hard set-up. I also use the Rigg Gear tank bag which is perfectly shaped for the AT tank.”

“My first long ride on a motorcycle that didn’t belong to me was in Bhutan. Sending my Africa Twin to Bhutan was prohibitively expensive, and I didn’t have the luxury of time to ride there. So the idea was to land in the capital city Paro and rent Royal Enfield Himalayans. I must admit I was a bit proud of riding and owning an Africa Twin and I kept thinking this Royal Enfield is going to be a can of trash. I thought I wouldn’t enjoy the ride. It would be underpowered, unreliable, etc. Even while preparing to leave I was still rolling my eyes and thinking I wish I had my AT. Now Bhutan is an amazing place. It’s a country and culture that has to be seen to be believed. Let’s just say that the Monarchy and administration have put in special effort to keep western ideas of capitalism and consumerism away and has done so successfully. The people are friendly, and there are lots of gravel or off-road routes to explore, all surrounded by mountains. So needless to say, the views are spectacular. By lunchtime, on day one I wasn’t even thinking about the Himalayan or my AT. By the end of the second day, I realized it’s not the bike, it’s the ride. Enjoy the route, the views, the food and the people you meet of the place you’re riding in. Even if I’d been on a 100cc scooter, I would have had fun in Bhutan. Pick a great location to ride and enjoy. Everything else is secondary. This realization helped me in getting over my unwarranted pride of owning an AT and made me realize I was just lucky to be able to enjoy what many people do not or cannot.”

For more on Sachin’s adventures follow his Instagram page.

All copyright Sachin Wadhwani.