Kanyakumari to Kashmir with Amrutha Kashinath [#TBS Eps 25]
Traveler and Biking Enthusiast Amrutha Kashinath and Shubra Acharya hold the Limca Book of Record for the fastest journey between Kanyakumari and Kashmir on bike by two women (129 hours). On the show today, I have Amrutha Kashinath to discuss how she managed her expeditions along with a job, what goes into preparing for such long distance expeditions and how safe is it for women to travel solo in India
Important Questions from the Episode
1. How did you feel when you finished your 6 day long trip from Kanyakumari to Kashmir? (02:55)
2. How got you hooked to bike expeditions? (05:35)
3. What is so special about going on a bike? Why can’t you just take a bus or car? (08:54)
4. What kind of planning goes behind executing a long bike expedition? (10:05)
5. How long did it take you find sponsors? What was your pitch to them? (12:08)
6. Was there any point during your journey where you felt unsafe? (13:55)
7. What kind of precautions do you take to ensure safety? What to avoid? (16:12)
8. How did you manage your job and these expeditions? How did you convince your boss for leaves? (20:01)
9. How do you cut the cost of travels? (21:27)
10. How did you manage without owning a bike (26:19)
11. What kind of skills does a person need on these expeditions, apart from riding a bike? (28:25)
12. How is travelling in a group different from travelling solo? (29:20)
13. What kind of Bikers Community have you been part of? (30:25)
14. How have your expedition impacted your daily job? (33: 07)
3 Big Takeaways from the Episode
1. Sometimes opportunities come in the form of accidents – In her 1st expedition from Bangalore to Gujarat, Amrutha was supposed to be a pillion. However, when one of her group members met with an accident and there was nobody to ride the bike, Amrutha pushed herself to do it. We have all been in such situations, where we compelled do more than we think we can. For instance, when our boss goes on a long leave, or when we forced to learn a new software or when we are compelled to build a 2nd source of income to support our families. These situations are painful when they occur but in the long term, they help us uncover abilities that would have remained hidden in our usual day to day life.
2. You don’t need a lot of money to start doing what you love – Amrutha has been all her national and international expeditions without owning a bike. She either borrowed a bike or rented it out. There is generally a misconception that you need a lot of money to start doing what you love. Not really! No matter what you want to learn, ask yourself, Can you borrow the resources from someone? Or can you rent it out? Or are there platforms that offer free resources to at least help you get started?
3. Great achievements require effort and time – Amrutha and Shubra may have completed their journey from Kanyakumari to Kashmir in 129 hours but preparing for this journey took 6 to 8 months. When something seems quick and effortless, we believe it is purely due to some hidden talent and we cannot do something similar. When you recognize months of preparations and hard work behind this achievement, you see the real cost of such achievements – Efforts. The questions now is – Are you willing to put in those efforts?
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Resources mentioned in the episode