Country: Australia

Language: English

Currency: Australian Dollar

Year: 2023

Distance: ~1,200 km

Route and Map:

Sydney > Charlotte Pass > Tumut > Goulburn > Sydney

Ride on: Left side

Metric System: Speed in km/h and Fuel in litres.

There is this very interesting thing in psychology called Stockholm Syndrome. Many may be familiar with it but for those who aren’t, I’ll try to explain it. Say one is kidnapped or taken hostage but they start to feel affection or sympathy towards their captors; this psychological response is referred to as Stockholm Syndrome. In simpler terms, you miss your kidnapper. Sounds strange? It does to me too. But not so much if your captor is supercharged and dons the legendary River Mark insignia on its forehead. 

Why all this psycho-babble? Well, I got a Ninja H2. Did a fair bit with it. Sold it off. But then, I started missing it. And succumbing to this ‘psychological response’, I bought one again. But before all that, a little background. The allure of Ninja H2 has been omnipresent ever since its launch. A lot of popular motorcycles are still polarizing to some extent but the Ninja H2 enjoyed what I’d call universal acclaim. It has been 8 years since it was first launched it is still just as captivating. There isn’t anything quite like it.

That is true for me as well. I have done a fair bit on the Ninja H2. Right after I rode it for the first time, I knew that I had to have it. Then came 2017 and along with it #PowerTrip360. A 20,000 km ride around Australia on a Ninja H2 accompanied by a Panigale 1299. It was a roadtrip like anything. First of all, the diverse landscape of Australia can blow anyone away. And I had the Ninja H2 all to myself on top of that. Needless to say, that was an epic roadtrip and one that made me crave the ‘chirp’ even more. 

PowerTrip360
Our Ninja H2 from #PowerTrip360 went under the knife, so to speak, to make it slightly easier to tour on. We had ErgoFit handlebars, a tank bag, a tail bag and panniers to make the Ninja H2 more touring-friendly. More importantly, in order to keep the engine safe and the performance intact over 20,000 km (with more than 1,000 km covered in a single day sometimes), we had Castrol POWER1 holding the fort.

#roadTripUnited 2021
10,000 km around a diverse country such as India? That is a lot for an engine to take. Even more so, for the supercharged beast that sat within our Ninja H2. Nothing less than Castrol POWER1 ULTIMATE and its 5-in-1 Full-Synthetic Formula could keep the engine protected and in top shape throughout this journey.

Finally, around 3 years after #PowerTrip360, I bought one here in India. It stayed with me for around 3 years and in those 1,000+ days, I rode the heck out of it. First, I rode it for more than 10,000 km around India during the #roadTripUnited2022. Then we decided to up the ante and took it to NATRAX, where I could really open its supercharged taps. It was a shame that Ninja H2 is limited to 299 km/h electronically. Without that noose around its neck, I bet it would have gone way past that. Regardless, the taste of supercharged acceleration was still there for the taking and I enjoyed that thoroughly. Then I took it to Jaisalmer to see if it would still impart the same thrill when the ambient temperature was nearly 50 degrees Celsius. Unsurprisingly, it did. 

NATRAX
At the high-speed test track of NATRAX, you ride like you wouldn’t anywhere else. The throttle pinned in top gear for km on end. And with the forced induction on our Ninja H2, everything was dialled to 11. And yet, we never saw even a hint of performance loss. That’s what Castrol POWER1 ULTIMATE will do for you.

Jaisalmer
With its 5-in-1 Full Synthetic Formula, Castrol POWER1 ULTIMATE 10W40 ensured that our Ninja H2 not only ran cooler but maintained its performance throughout the test. With the excess heat unable to wreak havoc on the engine, Castrol POWER1 ULTIMATE 10W40 ensured both protection and performance, along with the endurance that we needed for this lengthy and gruelling test.

With all that, I started to feel that I had saturated the H2. I had done nearly everything one could do with it and then some. From racetracks to Sunday rides, I felt like I had done all I could with it. With all of that in mind, I decided to let it go. It was not easy as the Ninja H2 was one of my dream motorcycles and it took a lot of work to finally get it. But then, I also knew that it was not time for someone else to live a supercharged life. Finally, I sold it off. 

Stockholm Syndrome. I was missing it. The howl, the chirps, the absolute brutality; I was missing it. But I also knew that it was pointless to get one in India again. And that is when it struck me. I decided to get one in Australia. It would not only be used to explore the vast Australian continent but other countries as well. By doing all of that, I’d be able to explore new horizons with the H2. So, I flew to Australia, got an H2 in Sydney and immediately set out for a new adventure! 

Our prior experience dictates that when it comes to taking care of a supercharged inline-4, we need not look further than the Castrol POWER1 ULTIMATE 10W40.

Before I tell you a few things about this little trip with my new Ninja H2, I’d like to tell you that I was not alone on this adventure. Jaysn of JS Films India was with me as well. He also owns an H2 in India and has done a lot of touring on it. Moreover, he has been with xBhp since #roadTripUnited. So when I asked him if he’d like to come along for the ride, he agreed. So, we both reached Sydney, I picked up my Ninja H2 and then, we set out to pick up a motorcycle for Jaysn to ride.

We settled on the new Indian FTR 1200. With its tyres changed and geometry played with just a tad, the FTR 1200 has become a motorcycle that can be the envy of some of the best two-wheelers around. Within a few km, Jaysn was already in love with the FTR and we both set out to explore what the mountains in Australia had to offer.

We started our journey from Sydney and decided to witness Mount Kosciuszko in all its glory, Australia’s highest mountain. We first went to Charlotte Pass from where Mount Kosciuszko is visible. I went there around the end of April which is almost the onset of winter but not winter per se. Moreover, Australia is so beautiful. It has such beautiful views as the road simply keeps going. 

Tested in Iceland and tested in Rajasthan, we knew that for our Ninja H2 ride in Australia, Castrol POWER1 ULTIMATE had to be the one powering it.

The next day, we finally found some snow at Tumut. Again, a beautiful ride, with great scenery and the occasional wild horses; it rarely gets more beautiful than that! On the third day, we stopped in Goulburn and also got to visit the Big Merino statue. Exploring the area some more, we decided to head back to Sydney. That said, this is just the beginning of some epic adventures that the future holds. So stay tuned because there is a whole lot more to come.

Castrol POWER1 ULTIMATE 10W40’s 5-in-1 Full-Synthetic Formula ensures optimum performance in the most testing conditions and in the most demanding of engines. And it rarely gets more demanding than the supercharged inline-4 of the Ninja H2. Despite us trying our best to break it down in continuous 300 km/h runs on NATRAX or in near-50 degrees Celsius of the Thar Desert, Castrol POWER1 ULTIMATE has prevailed everywhere.
Ever since my very first trip around India (maybe even before), I have trusted only Castrol POWER1 to take care of all my motorcycles. From the Fireblade to the R1 to the Hayabusa and finally, the H2. And everything in between. Now, with Castrol POWER1 ULTIMATE, my faith has been reaffirmed even further. I have ridden my Ninja H2 in all kinds of conditions. And trust me, even in perfect conditions, the Ninja H2’s supercharged inline-4 is a handful. 4 cylinders revving at high RPMs displacing a litre of detonation mix plus the added heat from the supercharger; you can imagine the kind of carnage that goes on inside that engine. Despite that, my H2’s engine has always remained smooth, cool, and full of pep, thanks to Castrol POWER1 ULTIMATE and its 5-in-1 Full-Synthetic Formula. With all that experience, Castrol POWER1 ULTIMATE was my go-to for this roadtrip on my new Ninja H2.

Jasminder Singh also known as JS Films has been associated with xBhp for a long time. From a web designer to an ace YouTuber, he is an avid biker who has covered every nook and corner of the country on some very special motorcycles. He has been a part of a fair few of our pan-India roadtrips. He also owns an H2 so it was only natural that he accompanied us as we got another.
Check out his YouTube channel here.