Riding in India - EDIT: I survived.

[cdlxxvi]

A question to the more experienced.

I will be in Pune for a few days in July and have an idea to rent whatever is the local two-wheeled equivalent of a Fiesta to explore the city and its surroundings.

I know the traffic is lawless and my cunning plan is to just go with the flow and try not to top myself - seeing as most of the locals most of the time don't die, I think I have a fighting chance if I keep my wits about me.
On the other hand, the Indian guys at work (some of them experienced to the Himalayas-on-an-Enfield level) rather see a European on a bike in India as a corpse-in-waiting.

Anyone did that and lived to tell the tale? If it is generally survivable, any hints/tips?

[GetawayDj]

Let us know if the Honda cbfs are rust free over there please
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CBF 125 (sold), XJ 600 Diversion (sold), RF900
Renault Kangoo x2 (sold), Ford Transit x 2

[MC]

[j00pY]

I worked in Mumbai for a bit and wouldn't have dared ride a bike over there. The roads were terrible (apart from a modern suspension bridge that crossed the ocean) and it was too hot to wear any protective gear. It was crazy busy at all hours of the day on the roads but I didn't see a single accident while I was there.

[clancy]

From what I saw when I was there, I wouldn't personally. If your gonna do it, you need to ride like there are no laws or rules etc, if yiu try and use road sense you'll probably be plowed by someone driving ridiculously. Think you'd need to follow suit to survive
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KLX 300r

[Clanger]

[Clanger]

Might has right of way...so the smaller you are on the road, the more you have to be vigilant. Pune is further south than the higher density areas, so it might not be so scary on the roads down there...

Take some Knox armour. It'll be hot, and this stuff will give you the best protection. Take your own lid. The plastic things they hand out at the hire shops will not give you much confidence. Oh and make sure the horn works. The horn indicates they are coming your way. They don't want to kill you as it will affect their karma, so the horn is their way of telling you they are there, effectively.
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Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter, and those who matter won't mind - Dr. Seuss

[j00pY]

Just to add to the food advice - I said I was a vegetarian when I was out there and so didn't eat any meat at all. I think this was probably the reason that I didn't get the shits at all. Everyone else from my company who went out there came down with a terrible stomach but they ate meat and fish.

[gavbriggs]

If you are going anywhere near the call centre in Pune can you please tell them their English is shit and I want my broadband to work properly!!
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Recent bikes: Varadero 125 - Mod 2 3/2/14 - Bandit 1200 SK4

[sulphur]

The wife and I hired a moped when we were in Goa on holiday. The roads are death traps. There's no rules, no right of way, no right/wrong side of the road to drive on. It's a complete free for all.

I only had it one night, fuck that.

[331X2]

Last time working there was in Ahmedabad and if I'd stuck the job for the duration (jacked it in to see my kid grow up) I was going to buy an Enfield to ride around on. Not been to Pune but I understand it's a fairly densely populated industrial city so will be worlds away from Goa which was pretty steady in comparison to the places I worked. As mentioned, carry bribe money, coppers are bent as fuck and I assume you don't have an international driving licence. I'd be inclined to watch the roads for a day before driving/riding to try to get your head around just how bad the driving standards are, use the horn a lot and flash your lights a lot, expect to be dazzled at night as everyone drives with main beam on.

Drove a car quite a bit when I was out there due to our driver being pissed most of the time

[daemonoid]

[Teflon-Mike]

It's been near 20 years since I was there; and we had some notion to rent Vespa's. But.. it's the Indian thinking thing; sort of Mediterranean apathy ordained by the spirits of the sub-sontinent!
'Why you wanna go there? You will be You where ever you are. If you no happy where you are, you no be happy some-place else! If happy here, why go some-place else?"

We found Auto Riskshaws err... well, we found Auto-Rickshaws
Every journey an adventure! For just a few rupees!
Let the Taxi driver worry about the traffic laws and the cows and the women with amphora on their heads!
https://fbcdn-sphotos-e-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-prn2/t1.0-9/601729_595777403780514_1656857321_n.jpg
Sit back, relax, point the camera at stuff! And when they stop and tell you they 'go no further' and start pointing at their taxi-licence and some unintelligible road-sign... well, time to get out... apparently they can only operate in certain districts, and you have possibly crossed a boundary.. that or they want more money.. so get out, pay them half what they ask for, walk about a bit and find another!
Worked for us!

Decided to go up to Shimla from I think Chindegar. I was convinced to take the 'Local Bus' rather than the 'Tourist Bus'.... I asked what the difference was, and was just told, 'It cheepah!'... turned out that the difference was.... a FLOOR! Windscreen, this sort of stuff! And a route that wound up round every mountain in the foot-hills stopping at every village post-office, and took three times as long.
But hey... this is India... and sharing a seat with a woman who DID actually have chickens on her lap, sort of made my holiday!
That and a tiny little Hindu driver, hanging on a steering wheel the size of a cart-wheel, negotiating hair-pin turns, flat out, whilst chucking sliced bread through the hole where the windscreen should have been to get the monkeys to jump out of the way!

We decided after that NOT to use the return half of our 'local bus' ticket, and catch the train. This was, err, interesting. Shimla railway station is... well, for me it was like stepping back into my adolescence; I used to have to catch the train to school every day; and it was like stepping back into a little bit of old England... without the Grafitti! It was a perfect replica of a Cotswold Village station... in the shadow of Everest! Even down to the old 'British Rail' replica uniform of the Station Master who ushered us into the 'Railway Bar' to enjoy a G&T while waiting for the train...
"Have we got time? When's the drain due?"
"Train late, plentee tyme! Gee'n'Tee? nayh?"
"OK, G&T... so how long will the train be?"
"Oh! That dee-pen-dz on the workuz... "
And to cut a long story short... apparently there hadn't been a train for six years, since a land-slide had cut the line.......
Good G&T though!

So I hailed a Taxi.... To take us to Chinedegar.... About 120 miles or something, which did raise a few eye-brows, but what the heck; Crazy ghurna, want to waste all his muneee... I cant remember what they charged us now, but it was less than a Stage-coach ticket from Coventry to Heathrow, which is about half as far! DID have to stop and change taxi at a couple of county boarders, where their taxi licence ran out, but still... more adventure!

And I got the distinct impression that Indian Taxi-Drivers are a sort of 'mafia'. You want good exchange rate on your Eenglish Pounds? They will get it you. You want good place to eeet? They will get it you. You want clean hotel? They will get it you. You ill? Need Doctor? They will get it you! Useful people to know, it seemed.

The notion of renting Vespas, like many notions disappeared in a hail of "No-no-no-no-no! What Yew Wa-ant is to...' advice that usually ended up with some-ones third cousins brother in-laws second son has a Jeeeeep... he tayk yooo. He happeee take you!

Its India. You may as well try and punt a bullock up the Gangees as make plans in India; the tide of humanity will take you where it will...
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Current Bikes:'Honda VF1000F' ;'CB750F2N' ;'CB125TD ( 6 3 of em!)'; 'Montesa Cota 248'. Learner FAQ's:= 'U want to Ride a Motorbike! Where Do U start?'

[mudcow007]

i've been to Goa & Kerala a few times an hired 125 & 175s

if you crash an damage someone elses car/ house just offer cash (to the police )

fuel is normally sold t the side of the road from 2ltr coke bottles filled with petrol.

it maybe different in different parts of India...

[R_Josh]

Your number one safety device is your horn.

Careful not to hand out any charity to begging children. If you do happen to make the mistake; run for your life as there will be a horde of children after you asking for money.
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Current Bike: Honda CBR 125R R-C SUPER sports (SOLD)
Excuse my brevity

[deadwolf]

If you do end up going on two wheels and subsequently buy the farm, there's always the off chance that you might end up deified as some kind of motorcycle saint, if that's any consolation.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Om_Banna
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Motorsapien Art

[daemonoid]

[Amber Phoenix]

I did a month in India for Honeymoon. Travelled a lot, Bangalore, Mysore, Ooty, Coimbatore, Kochin, then up to Pune and Mumbai. Squeezed too much in really, too much time travelling, hence having to miss Goa out.

Roads are Chaos, didn't ride, but took plenty of cabs and rickshaws. Definitely need to keep your wits about you.

I had no hassle eating the meat/fish. Wife got a bad belly though. Pune is a lovely city actually. Note, everyone washes hands on entering a cafe, before you sit down and eat. Be wary of tap water, check seals on bottles, imported drink is extortionate, posher places like to doll your food out between all on table, don't forget Malaria meds and do tip!

Do check out the old Buddhist/Hindu caves on either side of the big highway between Pune and Mumbai, well worth a day trip. We treated ourselves to the Meridian Hotel in Pune, super nice, but all cabs multiplied fares by 10 as soon as you mentioned you were going there... We would just tell them the train station opposite then walk the last 5 mins... Still got a good suit I had tailed in one of the shops of MG Rd.

https://www.bikechatforums.com/download.php?id=93091
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Beginner Biker Adventures Blog
Yamaha FZ6 S2 2007

[nelmo]

[Yaka]

dont ride a bike there,

its not the other bikers, cows in the middle of the road, cars and ricksaws , its the lunatics that drive the the trucks, we were zooming down a motorwar near mumbai when our taxi skidded and almost flipped over when taking emergency action. we missed one of 2 trucks heading the wrong way down the motor full pelt, the coppers didn't give a flying fuck that people were nearly killed.

oh and another time there was lunatic sales man that would do Alan Sugar proud, he had cig stand tied to his head and was walking in the middle of the motorway selling cigs. common thing according to the driver who stopped and got some fags for himself


and if you do decide to taxi it every where, careful which taxi you take, often they pull over for other fares, not un common to see shit loads of people squeezed into a cab and i really do mean squeezed in.
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Current Bike : 2008 Varadero XL125
mod 1: passed 16/02/2015
mod 2: passed 19/02/2015

[Clanger]

[AngelGrinder]

I was in Pune recently for a few weeks, and it was definately one of the calmer cities for driving in India, but that is compared to other parts of India, it's by no means an easy cruise!

I did see companys that would hire a Royal Enfield for about £60 a month, but still, I personally wouldn't risk it out there unless I really had to. The drivers are so cheap, in Bangalore I had a driver in a brand new VW passat drive me and a friend around for about 8hours and it was £16, and this was from a 5 star hotel.

Rickshaws are even cheaper, and generally had no issues, and are great fun!

Food is normally great, really easy to be vegetarian in India if you so desire. As mentioned above, always check water bottle caps, they do like to refill them.

If you can't get decent water, stick to beer as it will be cleaner!
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Currently Riding - 2002 Aprilia RSV1000 Mille

[daemonoid]

[cdlxxvi]

Many thanks for all the information - I think I will decide on the spot, having watched the traffic for a day or two to exactly how bonkers it is and finding out if a rental bike can be had reasonably cheaply.

[daemonoid]