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HIGH ALTITUDE GONE RIGHT
I first began to get my confidence up and begin to trust the bike on the second descent of Kardung La, the highest motorable pass in the world (5300m+). We were heading back to Leh after a couple of days in the Nubra Valley. On the first descent, the northern side, I found myself just wanting to get off the damn mountain. I have this weird manic response to high altitude where I basically find myself have delusions of being superman. I have all these angry, aggressive, powerful visions of fixing all these problems, f***ing up people who are giving me the s***s in my life currently and generally ruling the world. It's great. Kind of like being drunk but way way better with much higher chances of success.
Anyway, so that's how I grew some and basically just dropped off the side of the mountain during my first descent of Kardung La. At first I was being responsible and considerate sticking with the lads as they gingerly inched their way down, but then I just got sick of it and ripped off ahead. The style of riding is like treating the bike as a sled. It's actually surprisingly easy to control the bike in the dirt and gravel/metal and it was damp which makes it less slippery than dry dusty stuff on a hard base. The brakes performed very well with only a little fade in the back one, I always used them both at once and sat right at the front of the saddle, legs grabbing the tank firmly so I had this point as well from which to steer the bike.
Anyway I was in the zone this first time, not really conscious of my riding or the sudden burst of capability I felt. All I knew was I wanted to get down to the bottom again and was just riding like that. It was a great feeling to just slam down the mountain.
The second time, descending southwards back to Leh this time, I did it more consciously. I had the same superhero feeling but slightly muted probably as I was getting used to the effect of the altitude. Maybe I get this feeling because my body's reacting to the lack of oxygen and just opening up a secret reserve I've never known I had to help get me out of this dangerous situation. I wasn't riding with the slower, inexperienced Indian lads this time but the Kiwis. I soon passed them all and rode off ahead. Not because I was racing but just because I felt most comfortable at that pace. It's 14km from the pass to South Pullu and I got there 5 minutes before the next guys, one who races vintage of road bikes and another who used to race off road a number of years ago. We weren't competing and they're not tough competition but I was still pleased that my comfortable speed put me comfortably ahead of them. It was nice to have a feeling of mastery in what was a relatively technical descent for my skill level. It was actually really enjoyable just to smash the bike down the mountain, beeping past cars, whizzing past other riders making them look like they were first timers and generally testing the limit. I think my time in the Tenere in Turkey certainly helped, especially given I did some ks on wet dirt there and that bike has a much higher centre of gravity.
Dare I say it, I actually felt I could trust the Enfield more than the Tenere off road! This might just be the altitude courage and extra experience though - I know I was itching to try out a proper dirt bike on those roads and would love to go back with one for a comparison.
HIGH ALTITUDE GONE WRONG
Riding in high altitude was not always a positive, confident experience for me. On the way to Sarchu from Moriri Tso we were just going slowly in a group along the dirt track next to the lake. Suddenly I found myself feeling totally detached from my body. I was hallucinating, feeling as though I was positioned just behind my head and shoulders, still looking forward where the bike was going. It was unnerving, seeing the bike moving along but having no feeling of control whatsoever. It felt like it lasted a few seconds, who knows. I considered stopping but thought I'd see if I could carry on. The feeling never came back but it showed that sleeping in the high altitude Sarchu camp (4500m) had an effect on me.
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