Full throttle

If you ask Rohit Aggarwal about his hobbies, high up on the list, besides his love for old jazz classics, is biking. He says, “I am a big biking enthusiast and look forward to my biking trips. I also enjoy trekking and hiking and rush to the mountains for quick getaways and these trips keep me rejuvenated.”  Of course, he doesn’t go forth on the adventurous trail alone. He is part of a biker group called The Rewinders. Aggarwal's brother introduced him to this group three years ago and pretty soon, he was a regular. Frequently planning biking trips with this group, he has managed to cover ground in Bhutan, Tibet, Sikkim and Spiti Valley.

His most memorable trip has been the one he made with the group to Spiti Valley. He narrates, “When biking through Spiti Valley one has to pass the Kunzum Pass at a height of 4,550 metres. The Himalayan Car Rally was in progess at the time and our entire group was stuck on that height for four hours. This incident threw our entire schedule off track and we were stuck without any food and water and also were running terribly low on oxygen. But we managed to arrange for essentials and continued with our trip.”

Adventure biking is definitely dangerous and that is not an isolated incident for Aggarwal. Though he is definitely more careful now. “There was an incident when I overestimated my skills and was thrown off in what could have been a near fatal incident. From that day on, I decided to keep my head on my shoulders and be open to learning from my fellow bikers.”

A proud owner of a 500cc Enfield Bullet and a 800cc Triumph Tiger, Aggarwal maintains that biking is, for him, a great way to unwind. He says, “Biking is my way of relaxing and catching up with my friends although I hate to admit  that I have struggled to make time for the last 10 months.” That said, he has already planned a way to catch up on lost time. He excitedly claims, “I have decided to recharge my batteries and have been planned a trip with the group across South India in February.”  What else is on the agenda for the adventurer? “Another trip down south from Goa to Kerala is on my bucket list,” he reveals.