KOCHI: A trip to Ladakh, the highest motorable road in the country at 18,600ft, is a dream for many. Hundreds have successfully traversed the rough terrain on off-road vehicles and motorbikes. But how about doing the same on an electric motorcycle? Allen Sebastian, a 26-year-old Kochiite, is planning to find out.
Allen is on a mission to become the country’s first person to ride an electric motorcycle from Kochi to Ladakh. The youngster, a vlogger by profession, wants to explore the highest terrain and promote the use of clean energy as an alternative fuel.
Allen is all set to explore the high roads on his Ather 450x, an electric bike that has a 3,300W motor and a mileage of 85km on a single charge. “Going on road trips is a passion for me and it has taken me to many places in the country,” said Allen for whom conquering the highlands of Ladakh has always been on the top of the wish-list. However, instead of just going on a road trip, he wanted to do something that would benefit the environment.
That’s when he thought about promoting green energy as an alternative fuel. “I thought why not go on the trip on an electric bike,” said Allen who plans to travel to Manali and then to Ladakh. “This is something that no one has ever done. I know that it is a tough ride, but I am sure I will be able to reach the top station,” he said. Allen plans to start his journey by the end of this month. Since the vehicle will take a minimum of four hours to get fully charged, Allen is planning to reach the destination in 20 days.
“Since my vehicle can run around 80 km on a single charge, I can only cover around 200 km per day. So I plan to reach Manali within 20 to 22 days and complete the whole trip in two months,” he said. However, the biggest challenge before him is the lack of charging stations on the stretch. “This will be the biggest challenge that I am going to face throughout the journey. If there are no charging stations, I will have to convince people along the road to provide the charging points. Another problem is the sparse townships between Manali and Ladakh. So I will be at the mercy of the local people,” he added.