WHAT YOU SEEK...

...is seeking you. The KTM 390 Adventure is finally here after making us wait for what seemed like an eternity. But is this what we were actually looking for?

- ABHISHEK WAIRAGDE

ALLOYS. LOW SUSPENSION TRAVEL. Tall seat. Touring rubber. After the KTM 390 Adventure was unveiled, I spent quite a lot of time on social media trying to justify why all this wouldn’t matter in the end. The hype is real. The 390 Adventure’s launch is one of the biggest events of this decade for Indian motorcycling. Probably as significant as the Bajaj Pulsar (calm down Abhishek - Ed). And that is why I was a bundle of nerves driving down to 19 Degree North; one of the more demanding off-road adventure parks in the western part of the country. My palms were sweaty, knees were weak and arms were definitely heavier than dhai kilo as we reached (seriously Abhishek, calm down - Ed).

I make it a point to never read reviews or ask the opinion of other journalists before riding/driving something for myself, but curiosity killed the cat. Chatting with the guys who had ridden it before me saw my worst nightmares come true.

“It’s disappointing”. “Total fail. Does not work on many counts, especially off-road.”

“It’s good but nothing exceptional.”

That’s it. This is going to be a wet dream for the troll army, I thought to myself. But this is what happens when you’re kept hanging on for so long, your expectations are already sky-high. Were my colleagues right? And have I been wrong all along?