Travelling to Ladakh with its challenging terrain is an achievement in itself. Those who have braved such adventures, especially on motorcycles, know the difficulty involved. However, Professor Baala Manikandan, the first owner of an F77 bike in Chennai, achieved a remarkable feat of riding to Ladakh from Chennai. He became the first person to travel over 6500 km in just 23 days on an electric sports bike.
Baala Manikandan teaches at a private university in Tambaram where he is an assistant professor in the Department of Visual Communication. He started his journey from Chennai on May 21 and reached Leh Ladakh on June 2, taking just a little more than a week to accomplish the feat.
Baala mentioned to News18 that this electric bike has a range of 180 to 300 kilometres per charge. Even though he had the charger, he claimed that he frequently asked members of the Indian Army to assist him in charging the bike in the Jispa neighbourhood in Himachal Pradesh.
He also said that he stayed in the same hotel and the same room in Jispa where actor Ajith Kumar was staying during his trip. Subsequently, the Indian Book of Records took this achievement into account and gave him a certificate of appreciation. He said that many others might want to try this trip and he hopes that because he has achieved it, it will inspire others to do the same.
Baala became the first person from Chennai to buy an F77 bike. “I bought the bike in Bengaluru, and on April 20, I rode from Bengaluru to Chennai. I felt confident after that drive that I could handle long-distance driving the electric car,” he says.
Baala always wanted to ride to Leh and was waiting for the ideal chance. “I felt a strong desire to travel there despite not being familiar with the terrain. Through my EV travel, I also want to promote environmental responsibility and boost public awareness of carbon footprints. I wanted to help the environment and conservation as a wildlife photographer,” he added.
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