Bikes & Beaches at Covelong Classic 2023 with Jawa Yezdi Motorcycles

The festival

Surfing is an adventure sport, and our country is less involved with it compared to other sports like cricket or hockey. But the world is changing, and so is the way people perceive surfing in India. This sport is all about balance, vision, and skills – things that are also needed on motorcycles. This is why the festival organisers had a series of workshops that revolved around these aspects of surfing. I had been looking forward to strengthening my knees, and to my luck, there was a workshop for that as well. A lot of people were lined up to attend parkour and dance workshops too. While I can't move my hip at dance lessons, I did learn the basics of parkour. 

The Covelong Classic 2023 was a well-laid-out festival. Other than fitness and surfing, the festival also had some great music and food, making my experiences extra special. The music line-up was great, especially the ones on Sunday, and the food stalls were so good that I had to leave my 'Don't eat outside food' attitude back in the hotel. 

The surfing lessons

I'll be frank – I can't swim. I have always wanted to learn this life-saving skill, but I end up putting it off each time. Did that mean I didn’t go surfing? Hell no! The trainers were transparent with the instructions - I don't need to know how to swim to learn surfing at Kovalam, purely because we weren't going deep into the sea.  The lessons started with the basics – handling a surfboard and getting on it. Then, the various hand signals used in case someone falls off the board were shown.

 A few technical terms were also used, which I forgot within a few minutes. After these basics, we were trained to get on the surfboard. While the initial bit did look quite intimidating, there were ways to mount the board quickly. The trainer asked us to practice these a few times before we could catch some waves. 

Five – that's the number of my failed attempts. But the sixth time I got it right, and I got it right really well. The transition was smooth, but my body positioning could have been better. The pictures suggest that I'm no longer a noob at surfing. 

The motorcycles

I chose to ride the Yezdi Adventure simply because I love it off-road and it is a competent motorcycle. So, when I was told there would be a ride on the East Coast Road, I booked my bike many days prior and was glad I did. The ride to Mahabalipuram is smooth, fast, and straight. There are barely any turns or traffic, which means all of us were sitting at higher revs most of the time. That is also when you realise that the overall NVH of the OBD2-compliant Adventure has improved considerably. The harshness from the engine has significantly decreased, which is bound to enhance general fatigue during long-distance rides.  

The East Coast Road also has access to some beautiful beaches. The moment I spotted one, I left the group and started towards it. But little did I know the route was filled with sand. It looked like a struggle, but thanks to the Adventure’s stable front and excellent stand-up egos, I rode through the sand section without the need to stop. When I reached the beach, I was astounded by its beauty. A couple of selfies later, I decided to ride the Adventure through the waves – something I have never done before. I managed to ride on the water and the beach multiple times, and that experience increased my respect for the Adventure so much more. The low-down torque on that engine, stable front, good weight distribution, and ergonomics made my beach adventure extremely fun and adventurous. I wanted to spend more time with the Adventure, but I had to head back to the hotel due to time constraints.

Conclusion

The two days at Covelong Classic 2023 made me realise a few things. A motorcycle gathering doesn't have to be all about riders coming together, grabbing a beer, and jamming to rock music. It can also be about coming together and learning a new sport or skill – be it fitness or dance. It could also have a platform that pushes an underrated sport so much that it gets national and international attention. The Covelong Classic 2023 indeed has my heart, and I would love to return next year and learn surfing professionally.