Epic solo ride to Spiti - the beginning

I was always at home behind the wheels of a 4 wheeler, until I wanted to push the boundaries a tad harder and being fighting fit (I run marathons) I felt I was ready to take on the world in a sportsbike, no less! So what if it weighted in at a puny 150 cc and so my foray into the world of 2 wheels started http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/motorb...ngle-seat.html (Flies like a butterfly, stings like a bee! My Yamaha R15S, now with a single seat) Having chosen this hobby fairly late in life and skipped the mandatory Pulsars, boxers, Splendors etc to opt for a sportsbike at the get go (even though the R15 is a fantastic motorcycle to start learning on and now with the single rider friendly seat back, is also pillion friendly and rider happy) I approached this methodically and ensured that I had all the mandatory riding gear in place. In due course, I also became part of one of the riding groups in Bangalore, incidentally one where being a TBHP member is a prerequisite. The group is known as TBBB with the members being as proficient in bakar on Whatsapp as they are passionate about biking My riding skills improved as I rode with guys who have been riding for decades and have graduated from small bikes to big bad ones. Did a few overnighters with them and also did a long solo ride from Bangalore to Goa to test my confidence and temperament. All of this started to whet my appetite to do something which pushes the boundaries. I have been planning to do a roadtrip to Ladakh for the last two years which kept getting thwarted for one reason or the other. The plan was to initially drive my K10 up there and I was determined that I would do it this year no matter what. While the initial plan was to still drive, given that now I had the bike, I started tinkering with the idea of riding my motorcycle up. I was skeptical however as anybody who has owned the R15 or ridden one would know that the last thing its known for riding comfort. I was apprehensive even while buying it as was not sure how my shoulders and wrists would take the punishment of the aggressive riding position, the stiff suspension and the narrow, bench like seat. Thankfully, over a period of time and after the initial agony, I got used to the riding position and enjoyed the supreme confidence the motorcycle provides even to a rookie rider like me. However, we are talking about a journey of a few thousand kms over many days. I did not want to truck the bike up to Delhi or Chandigarh; felt that it diluted the challenge of doing a solo trip to the Himalayas and this would also give me an excuse to explore the 'central highway', sparsely populated with little traffic. A number of developments kept me occupied in the run up to the trip and we were already in September with time fast running out to do a trip to Ladakh, given that Rohtang passshuts down by October. At one point, I almost put the trip on hold and do a long east india trip culminating in Bhutan/Sikkim. I could not take out more than a maximum of 10 days and anything less than 3 weeks does not do justice to Ladakh. It was finally down to my impulsive nature, perhaps something would trigger the restless soul in me to kickstart the comatose trip at the last moment. It did and also proved to be my undoing which almost cost me my life Trip to Spiti enters the equation. This option was largely unknown to me as Ladakh dominates the discourse on exotic destinations. Reading through travelogues on websites like team bhp  proved most helpful and gave me an indepth insight of what to expect. I had alre made a rough plan to Leh to which this one was added. I decided to postpone the final decision until after Delhi as I knew it would be a helluva trip to make it to Delhi alone riding the baby R. As a last resort, in case I ran out of steam by Agra, I decided that I would ride up to Corbett as a face saver and come back. Got the bike serviced with the oil replaced and the fluids topped up. Also bought a spare clutch cable and a bottle of Yamalube for topups. The V2 and S comes with a spare throttle cable already attached. Was glad to learn that the brake pads still had enough life left in them. Bought myself a magnetic tank bag from NH4 motorheads and decided to use a gymbag strapped to the pillion seat by bungee cords. Had already decided to travel as light as possible with just a change of clothes in addition to a small P&S camera, my trusty Nexus tablet to be used as a navigation device and a powerbank. Also crammed a swiss army knife, screwdrivers and small torch into the tankbag.