For many of his life as a child and a scholar, Tejas G R dreamt of turning into an IT skilled.
“My desires have been easy; creating content material and travelling was by no means part of my life,” he emphasises.
However someplace alongside the best way whereas travelling between his dwelling in Mangaluru and Bengaluru faculty on his bike, he discovered his calling.
“I liked being on the street and people experiences laid the muse of my ardour,” he shares in a dialog with The Higher India.
At the moment, balancing his full-time job as an engineer and a journey influencer with over 60,000 followers on Instagram, he has travelled over 497 cities alongside together with his spouse on his bike, overlaying 60,000 km on the street.
Travelling turned my ardour
Raised in Karnataka, Tejas shares how his love for biking and travelling started.
“It began again in faculty when YouTube was new. I’d watch a variety of journey movies and make small journeys close to my faculty with mates. That was the start of my many travels,” he shares.
“After faculty, I moved to Bengaluru and began working within the IT sector. My first job was with ITC, and that’s after I began travelling extra significantly,” he says.
However, journey running a blog was by no means part of his plan.
“In faculty, I simply wished to grow to be an IT skilled. However then the COVID-19 pandemic hit, and we set to work from dwelling. My girlfriend (now spouse) and I began taking small journeys round Managluru when the restrictions eased up,” he shares.
On the time, Tejas already had a YouTube channel the place he did some moto-vlogging.
“In the course of the COVID-19 pandemic, we determined to focus extra on creating content material, dedicating a few hours every day to filming and modifying. It wasn’t a deliberate journey to turning into content material creators; it simply occurred as we saved making movies and a few of them went viral,” he says.
Speaking about how he manages travelling together with his full-time job, he says, “It’s very difficult, however we handle by prioritising journey over different actions. Each my spouse and I’ve versatile jobs that enable us to work from wherever. We’ve supportive managers, which makes it simpler to get time-off when wanted.”
He provides, “After we’re travelling, we get up early, discover the place, after which begin working round 11 am. We work till about 6pm, take small breaks in between, after which spend an hour or so modifying movies at evening. It’s all about prioritising journey and profiting from our time.”
The couple has travelled to most states in India.
“Our preliminary aim was to cowl ten states in a 12 months. Lately, we went from Mangaluru to Srinagar. We’ve coated virtually all of the central states, taking a few month to discover every,” he says.
He says, “We’ve coated most states aside from 5 within the Northeast and the Western Ghats. General, we’ve coated practically all of the states on our bike aside from just a few areas.”
Issues to remember whereas travelling on a motorcycle
1. Carry bike necessities:
“For lengthy travels on the bike, I be certain that I carry all vital spare components and instruments for emergencies. My bike is a mid-range mannequin, so I’ve a package helpful with gadgets I can use for fundamental repairs,” he says.
The package features a mini transportable pump that works on batteries, spare tubes and instruments to take away the tube, spark plugs, additional wire, tape, and fuses.
2. Be wild and free!
Following your instincts and exploring all the pieces that comes your manner is how Tejas likes to journey.
“We primarily use Google Maps for planning our routes. We select a place to begin and an endpoint, then search for important landmarks or locations of curiosity alongside the best way. As an example, when travelling to Kashmir, we included stops at important websites just like the 23 Temples in Madhya Pradesh and the Grand Canyon of India in Rajasthan,” he says.
3. Save value by budgeting:
Budgeting for long-distance bike journeys entails main bills like gas, meals, and lodging.
“Gas prices are fastened, however we save on meals and lodging. We’ve stayed in finances accommodations for as little as ₹400, although this isn’t at all times appropriate when travelling with my associate. We desire reserving Airbnb for safer and typically cheaper choices,” he says.
“For meals, we keep away from high-end eating places, choosing native eateries as a substitute. We additionally carry bread and peanut butter for breakfasts and typically cook dinner in Airbnbs which helps save on meals bills.”
4. Don’t push your self, benefit from the journey!
Using for lengthy hours might be taxing however in line with Tejas, it turns into simple with each journey.
“Bodily, we don’t comply with a strict health routine however sometimes hit the fitness center. Our our bodies have tailored to lengthy rides, making biking extra comfy than lengthy automotive journeys. The reference to our bike has developed over time, making long-distance rides manageable,” he says.
5. Three Magic Phrases: Plan, Plan & Plan!
For anybody planning their first long-distance bike journey, thorough planning is crucial.
“Begin with shorter distances, overlaying 200-300 km per day, and steadily improve as you grow to be extra comfy. Take into account the street situations and climate, particularly in hilly areas. Investing in a using class might be useful, instructing you deal with numerous terrains and sudden conditions,” he says.
Guide your lodging forward of time. “We guide lodging by means of platforms like MMT, Reserving.com, and Airbnb, and typically collaborate with properties if they’ve authorized for a partnership,” he says.
5. What to not do on lengthy travels
Widespread errors new bike travellers make embrace underestimating the significance of preparation.
“For instance, he says, throughout a visit from Mangaluru to Bengaluru, I had a puncture however no spare components. Carrying important spare components is essential. One other lesson was throughout our Ladakh journey, the place we underestimated the altitude and suffered from extreme altitude illness. Correct analysis and preparation for such situations are important.”
General, balancing work and journey requires dedication, planning, and prioritising, however the experiences and recollections make all of it worthwhile, he says.
(Edited by Padmashree Pande; All Photos Credit score: Tejas)
