Biker treads untrodden path in the Valley

April 28, 2015 12:00 am | Updated 05:50 am IST - GURGAON:

Gurgaon, India, April 12: Biker Anuj Goswami return from kashmir, in Gurgaon, India, April 12, 2015. Photo by Manoj Kumar

Gurgaon, India, April 12: Biker Anuj Goswami return from kashmir, in Gurgaon, India, April 12, 2015. Photo by Manoj Kumar

Winner of a bravery award as a child, a national champion in aero modelling and a poet, Anuj Goswami describes himself as a “passionate” person who loves to pursue his hobbies and interests. And it was this passion for biking that took him to the Line of Control at Tithwal in Jammu & Kashmir, passing through Sadhna Pass (a 9,967-foot-high snow mountain pass) which connects the Indo-Pak border with the Valley riding 2,430 km on a motorcycle alone.

Mr. Goswami, a resident of DLF Phase-V here, claims that he is the world’s first professional biker to achieve the feat and may soon find his name find entry into the Limca Book of Records.

“It’s one life, make it large, live in glory, die with pride, but no regrets” is my motto in life. Earlier, I have been on eight more motorcycle expeditions, but none was challenging and arduous as this one. I searched online for a route never travelled before on a two-wheeler and stumbled upon this route to Tithwal in Kupwara district,” said Mr. Goswami, sharing the details of his expedition with The Hindu .

“Tithwal is not recommended to motorcycle riders between December to April due to heavy snow, avalanches and frequent landslides in Sadhna pass. So I first trained and educated myself to survive under extreme cold conditions by watching 10 movies themed on snow. I also created a Whats App SOS group including a doctor, a motorcycle mechanic, four professional riders and couple of friends. The group also had a businessman friend who assured he would get me rescued in case of an emergency,” said Mr. Goswami.

It was a 27-day-long, self-funded motorcycle expedition that started from Gurgaon on February 28 and concluded on March 26. Of the total journey, more than 1,400 km of terrain was mountainous. During the expedition, Mr. Goswami remained stuck in snow for 18 days, faced 18 landslides, nine snow slides, heavy rains, windstorm, three snow avalanches, and braved temperature ranging between 10 to -12 degree.

Anuj Goswami’s passion for biking took him to the LoC at Tithwal in J&K

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