RIDDEN TESTED MUCH LOVED!

CBR1000RRRidden to, and ‘at’ the racetrack, for the first time in India!

NINJA 250R

October 2009www.motoroids.com

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The most comprehensive test of the most

important class of Indian bikes

THE 100CC

SHOOTOUT

Hello,The big news this month is the launch of the country’s most awaited performance

bike – the Ninja 250R. As you would expect, Motoroids were the first to bring all the updates to its readers. From reporting the launch live from the press conference to putting the first ride impressions on the web – we were at

it with full zest. Our brief stint with the bike substantiated what we had always believed – the Ninja 250 is a brilliant machine that surpasses every other mainstream production bike in India. It should hopefully open a whole new segment for various players to exploit.

On the other end of the spectrum, we have the three top-selling 100cc machines slugging it out for the crown. The new Discover 100 has single handedly pulled Bajaj out of it blues and the company now looks poised to post its best sales figures ever. It’s a product that has been designed after much planning and deliberation. We had to find out how well it fares against its closest competitors. Check out our exhaustive comparo on page xx.

This issue of Motoroids2 also features Rohit’s marathon ride from Pune to Coimbatore and further to Chennai on a CBR 1000RR. He rode the superbike all the way down south to witness the biggest motorsport event in the country in over a decade. Rohit rode the supersport bike for more than 1500km on the road, and then went on to post dozens of laps around the racetrack. For the first time after its launch the globally acclaimed supersport bike was put to such rigorous test in India.

It gives me immense pleasure to share with you the fact that Motoroids are now equipped with not only the best data logging gear, but also have the support and expertise of the best professionals to interpret that data as well. Testing Dynamics India, one of the best vehicle testing consultancies in the country is now associated with Motoroids to help us bring out the most accurate and dependable test figures to you.

Finally, the big news for the editorial crew is that the Alpha version of Motoroids’ full-fledged website has gone live. And ever since we hit the wire, the traffic has been soaring. The visibility and reach of Motoroids is increasing every passing second as we bring out the freshest news and break stories one after another.

It’s all thanks to your love and support that we are already among the top few automotive websites in the country. Expect us to soar higher!

Rev freely,

Amit Chhanganiamit@motoroids.com

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“ ”The Ninja 250R should hopefully open a whole new segment in the Indian bike market

CONTENTS

Features

Columns

First Ride

Sports

Regulars

The Haulay Haulay Bikes100cc bikes slug it out for the crown

A Blade UnsheathedHonda CBR 1000 RR

Mid-Air Fight ClubRed Bull X-Fighters

YOU, THE BIKERRide to Chanshal Pass

Green GoblinKawasaki Ninja 250R

FIM ASIAN CUP

KOLHAPUR DIRT TRACK ROUND

JAIPUR GULF DIRT TRACK CHALLENGE

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BRAKING NEWSNews with a pinch of salt

LETTERSYour bouquets and brickbats

BIKERSYou, your bikes and your moments

BIKER PERSONALITYShrikant Apte

MOTO CLUBZRoadshakers

DREAMGEARLatest gizmos

NOW PLAYINGLatest Coolest Games

ACID TESTLong term tests

TECH SPEAKMonoshock Front Suspension

CLUTCH TALESIndia’s first biking superhero

HISTORYForgotten British Marques

MEN AT WORKMotoroids behind the scenes

CRAZY, CRAZY, WORLD!!The maddest pictures on the planet

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MINDREVVIN’Amit Chhangani

THE FAT BIKERRohit Paradkar

MOTOMUSINGSMihir Gadre

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BRAKING NEWS: STOPPIE

Apart from all the light hearted joker-like behavior, what really makes Rossi such a highly regarded personality amongst his fans, is his self-deprecating sense of humour. He aptly highlighted this fact once again, at the Misano race last month by wearing a helmet that had a laughing donkey’s face on it!

Why? Well, according to Rossi, when one makes a mistake in Italy, he is regarded as a ‘donkey’. Rossi considers his crash at Indianapolis as one such glaring mistake – as his desperate attempt to go a tad faster around the track ended up handing 25 points on a silver platter to his team mate and arch rival Lorenzo. Rossi told his fans and the press, “It has been my first real mistake during this season: to regain some

time after a corner out of trajectory, I had to brake where I shouldn’t...”.

So in typical Rossi fashion, he emphasized his mistake with the new helmet design, which is essentially a takeoff on the Rossi ‘shocked face’ helmet used in Mugello in 2008. This helmet however uses a laughing face of the Donkey from ‘Shrek’ and the ‘Doctor’ insignia was changed to the ‘Donkey’. Rossi’s two new pet British Bulldogs also appeared on the helmet wearing donkey ears to emphasize their master’s mistake further. Be it a new way to communicate with his fans or just plain humour on Rossi’s part, we just love the way he entertains us!

Donkey on two wheels!K. Rajini finishes on Podium for the Formula

The FIM formula Asia event was nothing short of an eye opener for the Indian motorsport authorities, racing teams and individual racers. Asian racers, riding substantially better equipment and possessing some serious talent, destroyed the prevailing records at the Madras race track in a jiffy. During the first day of practice and qualifying they were almost 3 seconds faster per lap than the usual Indian racers. Our riders were in shock.

There was, however one racer who faced the challenge, and astonished his counterparts from other Asian countries with his brilliant riding. K . Rajini wasn’t ready to give in without a fight. He made his intentions clear on the qualifying day itself, by raising the bar for himself and being the first Indian to drown the long-prevailing record at the MMSC racetrack. He then raced with an amazing blend of precision and aggression to challenge his rivals who were riding machinery which was decidedly superior to his. Rajini finished third on the podium, much to the pride of Indians and received a standing ovation for his first ever podium in an international race. We’re proud of you, Rajini, keep it up!

News that makes our heart skip a beat

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BRAKING NEWS: SLIDENews that’s neither here nor there

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Mahindra Two-wheelers started its innings in the gearless scooter market with the re-launch of the once KIinetic SYM Flyte. It has made a fresh effort to gain a stronger foothold in the market with the launch of two new gearless scoters christened ‘Rodeo’ and ‘Duro’. Both the scooters are powered by a common 125cc engine producing 8 bhp. The Rodeo is being positioned as a premium offering while the Duro is being offered as a no-frills and value for money commuter. The Rodeo is equipped with a host of features like telescopic suspension, low maintenance 7 AH battery, digital console, USB port, front mounted fuel filler, including 7 colors to choose from. Mahindra has priced the Rodeo at Rs. 41,299 (ex-showroom Pune) while the Duro is offered at Rs. 38,299 (ex-showroom Pune). The Duro does not come equipped with all the features that of the Rodeo.

We feel Mahindra two-wheeler has taken a step in the right direction. However, can Mahindra come out of the Kinetic legacy? Only time will tell.

Mahindra Scooters

Rumor mill was rife about the launch of the Karizma FI for quite some time now. The leaked pictures of the new bike on the internet generated a mixed response – some didn’t like the fully-faired treatment, while some others swore by it. What we were more interested in, however, were the technical enhancements made by Hero Honda to improve the performance of the bike, but seems like the boffins at HH haven’t tinkered much with the engine.

The introduction of PGM-Fi is good news though. Thanks to the new inclusion, the touring capabilities of the Karizma will now be further extended. We also like the new graphic scheme, reminiscent of one of the old special edition CBRs. However, we really expected the original performance machine of India to raise the bar higher in its latest avatar. There never has been any doubt whatsoever about the touring capabilities of the Karizma, a surprise class-leading performance product would have really swept the competition (planning their own products in the segment) off its feet though. Even with all its new features, the new Karizma is a bag of mixed beans for us. Having said all that, we still have very high regard for the Karizma, just that we would have wanted the bike which started it all to reclaim its lost crown.

No extra teeth for the original 220

BRAKING NEWS: CRASHNews that SHOULDN’T HAVE BEEN NEWS

By the time this issue of Motoroids was baked and ready for you readers, almost all the 2010 bikes had already made their appearance on the web. What you can see in the photos are some of the ’10 models like the R6, the Fazer 1000, the Fireblade and the 600RR.

The disappointment is, the bikes are almost unchanged even for 2010! This design of the R6 has been around for quite some time, albeit with a few alterations here and there. This year they claim they have tinkered with the low-end and midrange a bit to make them meatier. But the M1-inspired design that we have been expecting for quite some time now, is still not here. Same goes for the 600RR. After the ABS treatment last year, everyone expected Honda to launch a brand-new 600RR this season, which would

be more compact and on the same lines as the RC212V. But all you get is another special edition painjob, christened the ‘Leyla’.

While there is no reason for the 2010 R1 to undergo any changes since the new model was launched only last year, we were expecting the crossplane-cranked engine to find a new home in the Fazer – ‘cause that is how it has been all this while. But alas, the Fazer gets the same old ‘07 engine and new colour schemes for 2010. The ‘blade on the other hand, gets a new ‘grilled’ heatsink on the exhaust and new colours. They claim some bits have been tinkered with inside the engine, but we are not sure if it scares the 2009 R1 in any way!

2010 bikes: Has anything changed?

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2010 Yamaha YZF-R6

2010 Honda CBR 600RR Leyla Edition

2010 Yamaha Fazer-1000

2010 CBR 1000RR

Letters

Send us your letters at letters@motoroids.com

If you wish to contribute to the magazine, in any

way by providing content, have a look at the last

page for the exact email addresses to send the

mail to.

Yet another brilliant issue of Motoroids2. Midrevvin’ really was mind revving this time, amazing way to put your views. The photo in Amit’s column is an excellent idea (kudos to the photographer), makes a lot of sense after reading the article. The inevitable has to happen. I somehow do not agree completely with Rohit, even as he celebrates the rebirth of the power era, while the whole world is facing an economic slowdown.

About the cover story, I don’t know why the R15 was not given a less heavy rider. The figures might to vary a lot, but I seriously feel the uphill ride would have been much easier on the bike (lol, no offence meant Rohit!!!). I personally like that bike a lot, so I might sound biased also. However the bike could have produced much better results with a lighter rider, the top speed run could have been closer to the 220. Overall a brilliant issue!! Excellent work guys.

Varun, Rohit was only shot on the R15. The testing for all three bikes was done by a rider who weighs 65kg

- Varun Kumar Viswanathan

Weight issues

STAR LETTER

Your bouquets and brickbats for the September issue of Motoroids2

October 2009

This is Pravin here. I read your September issue and loved it. I liked the Fastest Indian feature very much. I request you guys to carry a similar feature between New Pulsar 180 and the TVS Apache RTR 180. A feature that provides accurate information like just as provided in the Fastest Indian feature. I hope you guys will fulfill my request. Thanks in advance.

Hi Pravin. We’ve been getting a lot of requests to do the P180 vs Apache 180 feature. Seems like we’ll have to include the story in our November issue. Let’s see, we’ll try our best

- Pravin

I am the kind of person who prefers handling a spanner than bonding with the Play Station. So, I always prefered reading a paper magazine than scrolling through automotive stuff on the screen. Going through the September issue of Motoroids2 was a complete culture shock for me. The magazine massively surpassed my expectations in terms of an overall package. I take this opportunity to whole-heartedly congratulate the Motoroids team for coming up with a fantastic magazine for bikers. I hope you keep up the frank, whacky, out-of-the-box, and amazing tone of your magazine always untouched.

From hardcore to hip

180cc comparo request

- Anurag Nath a.k.a Babai

Hey guys, I really liked this month’s issue of Motoroids. Your feature on the Fastest Indian was very interesting and the inclusion of the new LB 500 in the battle did add a refreshing twist to the tale. Although the tests that the bikes were put through were very comprehensive as far as real world conditions are concerned, I would love to see how the bikes perform on a race track.

The columns by Amit, Rohit and Mihir were again a great read and so was the witty parody on Sholay. Having said that, in my personal opinion, the latter was a tad too long even for a pictorial feature and a shorter one would have perhaps better served the purpose.

Lastly, I would like to mention that you are doing a great job with your breaking news updates on Facebook as they go a long way in keeping me abreast with all the latest developments from the motorcycle industry.

Keep up your good work and all the best for your forthcoming issues.

- Sagar Sheldekar

A ‘sea’ful of praise

Before viewing your magazine on my laptop I thought reading it would be difficult owing to its PDF format. I thought it would be best to glance through it and go off to sleep. But, you guys blew me away with the content and layout of your e-mag. Hats off to you guys for your hard work and the beautiful content of the e-magazine. Thanks to you guys I had the chance of reading some very good articles after a really long time. Keep your grey cells rolling and give us bikers more of your stuff. Please include wallpapers too in the next issue. I can write to you guys appreciating your efforts for the whole night but you won’t have the time to read it. I am eagerly awaiting your next issue. Take Care.

Hi Abrar. Thanks for your appreiation. Our website www.motoroids.com is up and running. Now you can download the wallpapers from there. We will try to include the link to the hottest wallpapers in our future issues though. Thanks for the suggestion!

- Abrar Sayed

Pleasant surprise

Niranjan Skoda and his friend Nagaraj did a 1900km road trip from July 30 to August 6 on a Unicorn. Here are some of the pictures from the trip.

Team Renegade Devils is a Pune based bike stunting club. The club sent us pictures of their members performing various stunts on thier bikes. Clock wise from top left: Mayank Gundesha side skitching on the Pulsar, Thomson Biju’s stoppie on the FZ-16, Sahil Takidar does a stoppie on his custom painted Dio, Thomson burns some rubber on the FZ, Sahil pops another stoppie, Neerav Pasrija performing a

wheelie on his Scooty, the team at their weekend ride to Lavasa, Sagar’s stoppies on the Pulsar, and lastly Sagar’s wheelie on the Activa.

BIKERSShare with the world your great adventures on your bike. Send us your pictures along with a small description at bikers@motoroids.com

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The much awaited Ninja has finally hit the roads. The sticker price of Rs 3 lakh for the globally acclaimed 250 twin may have subdued the enthusiasm of some of

its prospective buyers a bit, but the aspiration value is still very much there. While the high sticker price would probably make the Ninja inaccessible to most of the young speedsters, there’s no denying that its launch will have far reaching effects on the 220+cc class bike market in India. The Ninja, even with the hefty bike tag is sure to bring a shift in the Indian performance bikes market. The R15 initiated it all, but even with its erstwhile unparalleled capabilities around the racetrack, it left its road users (especially the ones of the hefty variety) a little disappointed. With its lack of mid-range grunt, puny size and a very slight advantage in terms of top speed over its big-bore rivals, it wasn’t an outright winner on the road. The Ninja is going to change that as it’s substantially quicker, faster and more accomplished than any of the other sub-litre class bikes available in the country today. The baby Kwacker represents a biking tool that represents the next level in every perceptible department related to bikes in the country.

While there’s no doubting the abilities of the Ninja, we still think Bajaj could have managed to price the Kwacker at a substantially lower point. Bajaj’s reason for the pricing is that the Ninja offers a substantial upgrade over the prevailing sub 1-lakh rupee bikes and fills the 1-10lakh rupee void with aplomb. While what they say is essentially correct, the difference between 1 and 10 is too huge to justify a slot-in at any point. How many customers would actually want to shell out thrice the money for the extra performance is something that needs to be seen. Bajaj plan

Don’t crib about the Ninja’s price, as there is a bright side to the story too...

Columnsto sell 1000 units for the first year, and the number doesn’t look unattainable. However, a lower price tag would have lured in a much larger chunk of customers. That said, this is the first time any manufacturer has ventured in the 250cc category with a truly world class product, offering a massive advantage over other mainstream performance machines. The response of the customers, for the first time in the country should bring out the real figures about the volumes in that market. And that in turn will decide how rigorously the rest of the manufactures go ahead with their respective 250cc projects.

Even though the price looks like a deterrent, I would still hope and pray that the Ninja sells in healthy numbers. If Bajaj attain, or preferably surpass their expected sales number, the phenomenon will give the remaining players in the market some food for thought. If a 250cc hi-performance parallel twin machine can sell for 3 lakh rupees in decent numbers, then the chances for a reasonably potent 250cc single to sell for half the price are much higher in India. It’s all about the numbers really, and the Ninja should reveal the mystery that has been responsible for the stagnation of the Indian performance biking for ages now.

There’s also one very important fact that most of us have been overlooking. There isn’t a worthy competitor to the Ninja 250 across the world. Honda and Yamaha have realized the fact lately and their engineers are burning midnight oil these days trying to bring out a rival soon enough and capitalize on the segment where Kawasaki has a clear monopoly. The success of the Ninja in India will mean that these manufacturers won’t think much before bringing their respective new 250s to country. Hopefully these bikes would be better, and cheaper than the Ninja.

Moral of the story is – let’s all of us pray for the Ninja’s success rather than cribbing about its price. Start asking you friends, brothers and enemies to buy one today if you want to see more such machines hitting our shores.

Mindrevvin’ AMIT CHHANGANI

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This is the first time any manufacturer has ventured in the 250cc category with a truly world class product

It’s been about two years now since I started visiting Indian motorsport events regularly. During these visits I have interacted with a whole bunch of racers

and organizers. I agree, two years is hardly a span to boast about; especially when I share the media space with some renowned journalists and publications from around the nation that have been active in this field for over a decade. But still, it has been long enough for me to have a fair idea of where Indian motorsport is heading and what are the hurdles that we need to cross.

As I mentioned last month, biking in India is undergoing a rebirth of sorts and motorsport is no exception. The strongest evidence comes in the form of the prestigious FIM Asian GP which had India on its 2009 season calendar. A sad incident, however, that I witnessed during this event was the launch of a new formula car from a renowned motorsports player. A new competitor machine for a brand new series next year is a positive step forward, but what pained my heart was the presence of a ‘cricketer’ to launch the car. Is our country so devoid of talented racers that a cricketer who almost

Cricket has destroyed almost every other sport in India and it’s now gunning for motorsports. Who is to blame really?

Where are the Underbones!

stalled the car while initiating his drive, is needed for the launch of a race car? Why not Karthikeyan or Karun? Why not one of the brand’s own team racers?

Cricket has destroyed almost every other sport in the country. And believe me, it’s not the game that I blame, I’m a fan myself. But it’s you and me, the viewers, that I blame. We have given this game so much importance that every corporate house with deep pockets is after cricket for publicity. Had we bothered to glance at some other sports and tried to find out whether we liked them, we would probably have had more than one nationally followed sport. Thanks to our obsession with cricket, even our national game has been relegated to the sidelines. One can only imagine what chance a relatively even less popular sport like motor racing holds in such a scenario.

Our local racers have a lot of talent, but still, save for Rajini’s podium finish it was a disaster for the rest of the Indian pack at the FIM Asian GP. I would largely blame it to their unwillingness to take risks on the limit. But its not the racers who are entirely at fault. A lack of sponsorship means they have limited resources, and second-grade machinery, which in turn means they cannot go all guns blazing lest they lose even what they have. Sponsors, on the other hand look for more than just talent. They want mileage. Unless there is a significant chunk of audience for Indian Motorsports, corporate houses won’t come forward with their support. While cricket will give them millions of views, Indian motorsport won’t provide even a hundredth of the visibility. And the reason is our unwillingness to give motorsport even a remote chance. We Indians simply refuse to look beyond the Sachins and Darvids of this world. Rossis and Lorenzos in some rare cases.

Consider this to be my sincere plea friends. I am not asking you to give up watching cricket or any other sport. But I urge you to take genuine interest in Indian motorsport. Turn our racers into worthy celebrities. Talk about them on your favorite social networking sites, forums, biker clubs and wherever else you can. Let us show our support for the sport that probably requires the most amount of courage. Let’s make India a significant name on the international racing scene. Please.

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Yamaha Nouvo 135 TVS Neo 110 Honda Wave 110 PGM-Fi

Underbones’ a.k.a ‘step-thrus’ are generally quite popular in developing countries around the world, especially in South-East Asia. But the whole concept never really

caught on in India. Step-thrus essentially are a much better bet

compared to scooters, especially for a country full of broken roads, like ours. Step-thrus, in principle, are nothing but saree-friendly alternatives of motorcycles. They have bigger wheels and shock absorbers compared to scooters, and yet have underseat storage like the Scooty. The ladies, no doubt will become huge fans. So then why don’t we have a single one available for sale in India? Honda, Yamaha, Suzuki and even our very own TVS make and sell them outside the country. Apart from Hero Honda (Street) and Kinetic (K4S), no manufacturer has ventured into this segment in the recent past. So maybe it’s the lack of a decent product that has kept our nation away from the Underbones. Remember? Even the scooter segment was dying before Honda came up with the Activa.

If you happen to visit, say Saigon, you can see the streets filled to the brim with people riding these machines irrespective of their age, sex, caste or creed. Even men, old, young or middle-aged, seem to prefer these things to bikes, without any embarrassment. Maybe the problem is with the typical Indian mentality, in India even school-going boys won’t touch a ‘ladies cycle’.

But times are changing; young boys today have embraced the unisex bicycles. College going teens have

‘

embraced the Activas and Dios. I’m sure that they will love a racy underbone, especially in Repsol colours. Middle aged men are already swallowing their egos and ditching their bikes for automatic scooters, even they might be willing candidates.

Manufacturers seem to have felt the pulse. Yamaha has been gauging the customer’s response to the Nuovo, at the factory showrooms since last year, while the TVS Neo has already been caught undergoing testing in the country. Who knows the first underbone in a long time might just hit the showrooms within the next 6 months.

October 2009

Words Photography Rohit Paradkar Eshan Shetty

Are the good times finally rolling with Kawasaki’s re-entry? Let’s find out…

Green Goblin

After its first appearance in India at the 2008 Auto Expo, it’s taken the Ninja 250R over 22 months to finally go on sale in our part of the world. Was it

worth the entire wait? Is it worth the Rs 3lakh price tag it carries? Well, frankly it’s too early to comment. Nevertheless, we did manage to get a taste of what the Bajaj-Kawasaki have on offer in a ride of the bike around Bajaj Auto’s Chakan test track. Let’s take a look at the oily bits then…

The Ninja 250R’s design was completely revamped in 2008 after almost two decades to cater to the new generation of bikers. The new bike was designed to follow familial cues with the bigger Kwackers of the 2007-08 generation. And it’s worked! Like the stubby headlight for example, which takes its design cues from the ‘08 Z1000, gives the bike a smart front fascia. The side fairing has hints of the 2007-08 ZX-6R with its chiseled lines and cuts. The taillight ironically is reminiscent of the ’08 Fireblade. But there is a lot more storage space under the rear seat of the 250R as compared to the other bikes I mentioned above. The fit and finish looks phenomenal but only the test of time will tell how long this attribute will hold up against the wee-bit of tarmac scattered around our country. The Ninja 250R, especially in the corporate green, looks downright stunning – with the meaty matte-black exhaust muffler, a stout stance and proportionate dimensions right from the tip of the visor to contact patch on the rear tyre. From the time we saw it, we wanted to ride it!

Frankly, the bike’s exhaust note disappointed us all and I’ll bluntly badge it similar to that of the Pulsar 150. It doesn’t sound like a two-

01. You won’t need a straight road as long as this one to reach the Ninja’s claimed 160 km/h top speed. The little Kwacker is rev happy and will get you to the top zone pretty quickly.

02. Thanks to its generous proportions, tucking down isn’t a cramped exercise on the 250R

03. The Ninja’s handling needs some getting-used-to...

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01. ...before you can really start throwing your weight around in the corners.

02. The long rear fender comes in handy during rainy rides and is an easy removal if you decide to visit the race track

03. The mandatory saree guard is designed astonishingly well and does not hurt the eye in any way

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into-one exhaust at all! The cat-cons however haven’t stopped the Ninja from claiming phenomenal acceleration and top speed figures as compared to any other sub-litre class bike available in the country today. Even with my 110 kilo frame, the bike had no problems hitting a 160 km/h on the speedo. Amit on the other hand managed a slightly higher but quicker top speed. By the time we had slung our legs around one of the test mules, they had already undergone a lot of caning from our other journo friends, thus leaving the test bike with screwed up clutch plates and a rather faint central groove on the rear tyres. We are hence not very convinced about the performance we could extract. On a better day, we believe a bike with a better clutches will definitely see it race to 160 km/h true. The bike is in fact so smooth that you will not believe it’s a 250cc machine. The only thing smoother than the parallel twin engine is the Ninja’s power delivery – which at no range on the rev counter, returned an unnerving power surge, thus letting you open the throttle mid-corner.

Handling wise, the Ninja felt stiffer around the corners as compared to the other track tool – the YZF-R15. But we believe that it’s just a matter of getting used to before you can cane the bike to shave off the lap times further. At 172 kgs, it’s definitely seems like a heavy bike to lug around as compared to the other Indian bikes in the 150cc-250cc slot. But similar to most sports bikes, you won’t feel all the weight once you get rolling, hence throwing the bike around corners isn’t much of an issue. But should you still lose the line, the brakes have a strong bite to prevent you from getting into a panic situation. To cement your confidence further, the stock rubber has an excellent grip

The 250R’s swingarm is meaty and coupled with the loading-link suspension, the setup makes for an unbelivingly stable line through the fastest of corners. The 250R employs a petal disc at the rear...

...as well as the front, much like its elder Ninja siblings. These brakes offer a phenomenal bite, inspiring further confidence. The front employs convention 37mm telescopic forks and a lightweight alloy wheel.

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and good profile choice at 110/70 and 130/70 for front and rear respectively.

However, the IRC Road Warrior tyres are meant for street use and are not track oriented like the R15’s rubber. But since we rode the bike only around the Bajaj test track, it’s difficult to comment on the bike as well as the tyre’s street performance. The quarter litre cubic capacity will definitely give the Ninja an upper hand in terms of quick roll-ons. But apart from that, we would also want to test the Ninja’s heat-management capabilities in crowded traffic conditions when we do our full blown test soon. Kawasaki claims that the position of the radiator fans has been changed for optimized cooling in the 2010 model, which should surely help in our conditions, but how much? That needs to be seen.

Moving onto the bike’s comfort, let me sum it up this way – the Ninja 250R’s 1/3rd market share in the US constitutes of females; which means that the bike has a lower seating (790mm), easily reachable handlebars and not-so-high footpegs. What this results in, is a very comfortable handlebar-seat-peg equation for riders of almost all sizes. As far as riders of different ‘shapes’ go, well my round shape didn’t have any problem, thanks to the paunch-friendly, compact fuel tank. Speaking of comfort, the Indian Ninja’s own comfort zone lies on the open highways; where its top whack, straight line stability and comfortable seating take centre seat. The high handlebars shouldn’t make it a cumbersome ride for long distance sport touring stints. But with only 17-litre worth of fuel capacity you’ll have to keep a close check on the range and calculate your fuel stops accordingly – for there is no fuel guage - all you get is a reserve warning light on the console. Since Bajaj has made no claims regarding the range or the fuel efficiency figures, we’ll have to wait till we can test

The yesteryear Kwackers had a fuel filler lid similar to our own Pulsars. But the 250R’s unit is an evolution of the design

These clocks are look like they came from your grandpa’s old GPX250. Wait, wasn’t that the 250R’s predecessor until a while back?

The tail looks beautiful and so do those mirrors. Unlike other entry-level sports bikes, these mirrors are actually usable!

No pass switch! Because you don’t need to flash lights anymore. The Ninja employs a daytime-runnning-light (DRL) instead

The green rear seat and black cowling are the dress code for the 2010 model and come to India without any change in specification

The stubby headlight borrows its desing from the Kawasaki Z1000, thus imparting an agressively smart stance to the baby Ninja

Yes, its the conventional kill swtich that you’ll find on most international models, and not the inverted kind of the Pulsar

No storage space in here! Apart from a tool kit that manages to crouch in, there’s pretty much nothing else you can store here

Like its elder siblings, the 250R’s side stand employs a switch that will not let the bike crank up unless the stand is pushed up

Acceleration

Testing Consultants

Roll-ons 2nd gear

3.82s 2.44s 3.08s

0-60km/h 3.6s

30-60 60-80 80-100

Roll-ons 4th gear

0-100km/h 8.3s

30-60 60-80 80-100

2.74s 1.95s 2.79s

30-60 60-80 80-100

Roll-ons 3rd gear

5.34s 3.22s 3.65s

this attribute ourselves. So is the baby-Ninja worth

the wait? Yes! In fact, the presence of a true blue quarter litre motorcycle was overdue in our country and the 250R has filled up that void. And it’s not some age old technology that is being licensed by some local manufacturer to earn a quick buck but instead a bike that is on par with its international counterparts. From my point of view it is one of the best sports learner motorcycles that one can buy in the country today. But is it worth the sticker price Kawasaki-Bajaj have decided for it? Well, we’ll have to wait for the extensive test to find that out….

October 2009

There is no denying that the Ninja 250R has lived up to its promise of delivering unparalleled performance to the bikers of this country. Superbikes aside, the Ninja is by far the best performing, the best looking and the dynamically the most

accomplished machine in the country today. The angular, sharp, fully faired styling makes sure that you’ll witness people picking up their dropped jaws wherever you go. In lime green, the bike is nothing short of a visual festival. Unlike the R15, which pioneered the genre of full-faired bikes in the country, the Ninja doesn’t look slim or puny from any quarters. It’s a well-proportioned aggressive looking super sport bike that’ll easily pass as a superbike to the untrained eye.

Get astride and the Ninja will make you aware of its power advantage right from the word go. The ascent of the speedo needle to the ton-mark is easy, and the bike will accelerate swiftly to the 140km/h after which the thrust gets a little subdued. Stay right there though, and you’ll soon see the tacho needle hovering around the 13k

mark and the speedo indicating 160km/h. Unlike most other Indian bikes which pant and puff to cross the 130km/h mark, the Ninja can happily cruise at 140km/h provided you have the space on the road. The low-end torque isn’t particularly strong, but doesn’t give you a reason to complain either. The bike starts pulling after 3000rpm, but mid-range is where the spunk really is. After 8000rpm, the 250R really gets into its element and the tacho needle travels quickly to the 12000rpm mark, after which the revs again take some time building up.

Around the racetrack the Ninja shines with its sure-footedness and poise. The sporty suspension setup allows you to throw the Ninja around with disdain, the brakes provide brilliant bite and feedback, the rubber provides ample grip to lean hard and there is enough power at hand to make a fast exit after the apex. The Ninja is probably not as rider friendly from the word go as the R15 owing to its heavier weight and sportier stance, and takes slightly more time before it turns into

one of your limbs, but once you get acquainted with it, it’s as accurate a point-and-shoot tool as one requires to keep improving his time with every passing lap.

While we love the visuals and the riding experience of the Ninja, we do have some grouses. Price is one, but then enough has been said about that aspect. There isn’t a fuel gauge on the bike, which means if my brother steals it and parks it back after a 100km ride, I’ll be stranded in the middle of nowhere on my Sunday morning ride to the hills. The exhaust note doesn’t do justice to the speed to the bike. One wants to listen to some sweet music that gets louder as the speed increases. The Ninja is too muffled. It’s fantastically smooth too, so there are no vibes either to make up for the lack of sound. Not that it’s always a bad thing, but for some it just may be.

All in all, the Ninja has the goods. Buy it if you have the money, and make some poorer souls like ours envious. We just wish we had some more money to spare.

Editor’s Take

Words Photography Mihir Gadre Eshan Shetty

Country’s best lightweight contenders come together for a three

way battle

TheHaulay Haulay Bikes!

01. Mr. Pradeep Mukharjee Age: 32Profession: Marketing executive. Has a dominating wife

02. Mr. Amit Singh Rathore Age: 38Profession: Self employed political goon

03. Mr. Mihir DixitAge: 29Profession: Software engineer. Saving up for a new car

This story is about three prospective first time bike owners, Mr. Mukharjee, Mr. Rathore and Mr. Deshpande. On the left is poor Mr. Pradeep Mukharjee, a marketing executive, who was ordered

by his wife to pick up ‘few things’ from Big Bazaar, on his way home from the office. His ancient Bajaj Priya has given up on

him yet again. He desperately needs a new bike. At the centre is Amit Singh Rathore, a free spirit. Moved to the city a year back, owns a small business that is picking up rather well, and parties hard every night until the bars shut down. He wanted to buy a Karizma or at least a Pulsar. But thanks to the recessionary times doesn’t have the cash for anything above

45k. On the right is Mr. Mihir Dixit, just graduated and works (not really, he is on bench) in a big software company. He is fed-up of waiting for company bus and has a fat pay packet. He can easily afford a bigger bike. But he doesn’t really have any inkling towards performance. He just wants a bike that will be completely hassle-free to own and run, just an

October 2009

19

interim solution until he can afford a car.Motoroids being deeply concerned about

these three lost souls, decided to help them chose the right set of wheels. We tested the bikes extensively on the traffic logged and pothole strewn streets of the city for a week. And then to push things to their limits; we took them out for a spin (a rather long one, 200 kms.) on the worst possible roads to inflict a months worth of wear and tear on them in a single day.

Design and Engineering100cc bikes still make up for about 65% of

the bikes sold in our country. So what you see here are the ‘bells and whistles’ variants of the ‘bread and butter’ models. All three of them sport a neat little fairing and full size stickering jobs, both of which have become indispensible in this segment. But the similarities end there. The “New Generation” Splendor as Hero Honda likes to call it doesn’t strike the right chord, when

it comes to looks. It looks okay from the front, but the stickering is a bit too much and the disproportionately huge tail-lamp isn’t exactly in accord with the bike’s porportions. The Discover is a bit too curvy for my liking. It tends to polarize opinion, people either like it or they don’t, but one thing’s for sure it looks more distinct than any other 100cc bike on sale today and has a good recall value. TVS has been successful at making the Star City look big. It has been styled

so as not to offend anyone and if it weren’t for the rather tasteful ‘leaping horse’ graphics, the Star City would have looked a bit dull.

All three of these bikes have excellent build quality and apart from the Bajaj, the other two have a good reputation for reliability as well. However after our ride, the Discover remained free of any rattles or other niggling problems and Bajaj seems to have caught up with the other two in this department.

October 2009

20

ErgonomicsThe Star City with its capacious 16 litre tank,

wide, accommodating seat and big fairing feels like a much bigger motorcycle than it actually is. The soft seat squab makes the rider as well as the pillion feel instantly comfortable. But ride it for a long time and its flaws show up, as the soft and oddly stepped foam gives way, you can feel the hard plastic underneath and the high-set foot-pegs make your knees rise above the

waist level, which feels awkward. On the contrary, the Discover, inspite of being the longest bike here feels tiny. The seat is wide and supportive, but is slightly hard. The knee recesses in the fuel tank are strictly aesthetic and instead of accommodating your knees they actually prod against them. The Splendor NXG has simple tank and a seat but the ergonomics are so well judged for the average Indian frame that you feel instantly at home, be it for long rides or short.

21The 3 Musketeers (not us, the bikes i.e) taking a brief respite beside a lake Broken roads like this were a norm rather than an exception

October 2009

22

The Discover has a very distinctive front-end with the floating visor and the pot shaped headlight. The NXG’s doesn’t have a perspex visor, the fairing is a one-piece unit. The Star City’s fairing is big, but a bit plain

The Discover gets an LED tail-lamp but the chrome garnish looks a bit garish. The Splondor NXG’s tail might be the the biggest one I have seen to date on a motorcycle. The Star City’s flush-fitting brake light is the most elegant

We love the ‘leaping horse’ graphics of the Star City. The NXG’s stickering is a little overdone. The Discover’s graphics are subtle if a bit busy

The Discover’s headlight is the best of the bunch with nice throw and cool eyebrow shaped pilot lights

The TVS uses a single downtube frame with the engine as a stressed member and a box section swingarm

Star City has clean white faced dials alongwith the Economy and Power ‘Nanny’ lights

The Discover gets gas charged shocks and a box section swingarm

The Hero Honda gets the most basic cycle-parts with an old-design suspension, tubular swingarm and the slimmest rear tyre

The Splendor NXG’s head-lamp is the weakest of the bunch with a weak beam and too much spred

The Splendor gets a scooter like console featuring a big speedo with a bold font

The Discover gets the most comprehensive switchgear with the ‘Ride Control’ switch which we didn’t really find any use for

The Star City gets thumb operated preload adjustment for the rear suspension

October 2009

24

Value For Money All three bikes here have electric-start and alloy wheels

as standard. But the Discover is the most well equipped bike here. It tries to outdo the other two in every department. It has a 5-speed gearbox, the Hero Honda and the TVS have only four ratios. It has gas-charged rear suspension while the

other two get conventional spring-dampers. The Discover gets LED tail-lamp and eyebrow-shaped pilot lamps while the other two get the normal bulbs in their units. And not to forget it has two spark plugs while the other two only get one spark-plug each!

Inspite of all this it’s the Hero Honda which is the

priciest of the lot at 48,700 Rs. OTR, Pune, commanding a premium of nearly three thousand rupees for the company’s reputation. But, it will definitely retain its value better at the time of resale. The Discover retails for Rs. 45,700, offering great value for money while the Star City at Rs 45,000 On-road, Pune costs roughly the same as the Discover.

“The Discover mighT be having The smallesT engine on TesT here, buT iT makes up for

The lack of ccs wiTh iTs effervescenT

aTTiTuDe.”

Fuel efficiencyLet’s be perfectly clear about one thing beforehand, all

three bikes here are extremely fuel efficient and if you have a problem with the fuel efficiency of any of the three bikes it is your fault not the bikes’. Also, during our trip the bikes were being ridden at full throttle more often than not and hence the fuel efficiency we got is the minimum possible real world figure. You can safely assume a 25% rise in fuel efficiency. That being said, it was the Discover that returned

a maximum of 66 kilometers to the litre. Thanks to the peaky power delivery and the availability of a well judged fifth gear, the Discover pulls from speeds as low as 30 all the way up to 80. No wonder then that we have amongst us the newly crowned ‘Queen of the Average’ (pun intended). During our ride, it managed to run lower revs than the other bikes in the competition, and hence the stunning lead over its rivals. The ‘Fill it, shut it, forget it’ bike came second with a kpl of 56. However, the NXG is more at home on city streets and

will claw back some of the lost ground to the Discover on its home turf. The Star City, thanks to it being tuned for out-and-out low end performance delivered a fuel efficiency of 50 kpl. The TVS also had some snag in its fuelling when it was delivered to us with it misfiring its way to glory every time the rider went off the throttle. We got it rectified at a service centre the next day but, we suppose we lost the ideal carb setting in the bargain, heavily compromising the Star City’s mileage.

25We just had to stop here. The bikes just couldn’t resist the beauty of this place!

Engine-GearboxThe Discover might be having the smallest engine

on test here, but it makes up for the lack of CCs with its effervescent attitude. It’s a surprisingly free revving unit, remarkably refined at lower revs and acceptably refined at the red line. It also has a fantastic throttle response to boot. It is the quickest accelerating bike on test here and thanks to the mini-Pulsar exhaust note, feels even quicker while riding. In our two-up, roll-on tests*, it turned out to be the quickest bike in all three gears, with a timing of 15.7 seconds in third, 21.3 seconds in fourth and 20.5 seconds in fifth gear. It has a weak low end, but it almost makes up for it with its lively top end & goads you into riding faster than you usually would on a 100 cc bike. However its gearbox is the weak link here. It misses downshifts and lacks feel. This gets annoying at times, especially since you need to triple downshift at times, thanks to the combination of

5-speed ‘box and lack of low end torque. The 5th gear does make it perfect for all those ‘lane hoggers’ who like to roam all over the city in top gear at 40kph.

The Star City has the biggest engine of the trio and TVS has tuned it to deliver the maximum possible low end bang. It returned respectable figures for the double seat, 30-70 kph roll-on test of 15.8 seconds in third and 25.1 seconds in fourth gear. It is a smooth operator and wonderfully drivable upto 60 kph after which the performance trails off and it gets a bit strained. I rode the smaller 100cc Star Sport a couple of months back and its engine felt much more free and linear than its 110 cc sibling, so good infact that I started wondering if we included the right TVS in the test. The gearbox works quite well but there is a minor snag, you can’t crank up the electric starter unless you put her into neutral.The 97 cc ‘sloper’ unit in the Splendor NXG is legendary, and there’s a reason for it. The engine has been honed

“These bikes are in Dire neD of sTiffer

chassis, beTTer suspension, wiDer anD

sTickier Tyres anD powerful brakes, no

Two ways abouT iT”

October 2009

26Rains, clouds, rainbows, Amit dancing like a peacock. Nothing felt wierd in that place. It was one of those times, when you wish that you could just ride on forever...

over decades and has evolved to near perfection. It is the archetypal Honda engine, refined throughout its rev-range, right upto the rev limit. But the best thing about it is that it delivers power just where you need it. It has great tractability through the gears and a gutsy low to midrange which makes commuting a breeze. It does feel a bit out of breath with a pillion on-board though, which is reflected in its 30 to 70 kph roll-on times of 17.1 seconds in third and 30.6 seconds in fourth gear. Complementing the fantastic engine is an equally fantastic gearbox with short throws and slick, positive shifts. The powertrain is what makes the Hero Honda so special among the bunch. It is the be all and end all of this bike.

All three bikes have a common shortcoming though; none of them have the globally accepted one-down-rest-up shift pattern.

Ride-handlingOur riding route consisted of some brilliant

snaking tarmac, just right to get a feel of the bikes’ handling and a huge stretch of broken village road with enough potholes to test the ride quality. Basically all three of these bikes have been adapted to tackle the cut-and thrust of intra-city travel. They are lightweight and have a compact wheelbase. This makes them extremely nimble at crawling speeds.

The Star City has extra soft suspension making it ultra comfortable over isolated bumps, but throw in a series of undulations and it wallows all over the place. The Splendor has the most bare-basic frame and suspension of the trio. It also has the slimmest tyre, a mere 2.75 section at the rear. It absorbs smaller bumps well but tends to get unsettled when faced with the bigger crests and troughs. The Discover has

October 2009

Trying to get a perspective on things, from under the ‘bow.

Brilliant snaking tarmac through thick forests, is this biking nirvana? *Performance testing consultants : Testing Dynamics India

the best ride-handling of the group. It has a stiff chassis, gas charged shocks at the rear, and 17 inch wheels. Though the setup might be a bit on the stiffer side, it never bottoms out and holds its line rather well.

All three of these bikes come with drum brakes as standard which leaves a lot to be desired on the braking front. None of them offer disc brakes even as an option. In fact all the bikes desperately need better cycle-parts. For ages manufacturers have paid a lot of attention on developing the engines only because engine developments can be bragged about as fuel efficiency, power or performance numbers. But in the bargain, they have neglected the chassis-suspension and continue to offer the bare minimum. All these bikes are in dire need of stiffer chassis, better suspension, wider and stickier tyres and powerful brakes, no two ways about it.

VerdictThe Star City feels big and comfy during initial impressions,

but it is starting to show its age. A new one is due in a couple of months and we have great expectations from it. Mrs. Mukharjee loves it for its comfiest pillion perch. Poor Babu Moshai, he is going to get badgered by his wife into buying the TVS just like he was badgered into marrying her by his family. But in our comparo, the age-old rivals from Hero Honda and Bajaj Auto manage to over-shaodow the TVS by the slightest of a margin.

The Discover is by far the most fun to ride bike among its peers. She entices the two prospective grooms in our story Mr. Rathore & Mr. Dixit with her zesty engine, taut road manners, lots of goodies and the icing on the cake, her frugality. She is the modern metropolitan

woman. She’s a raven. She might even make a good home-maker, one who will sing the kids to sleep and then party at the Hard Rock Café. Mr. Amit Singh Rathore is ready to take the plunge. It might turn out to be a match made in heaven. She might be able to tame his wild ways with her tact. But even if things don’t quite turn out to be that way, even though they part ways after a while, he will always remember his fling with her, fondly. And going by the fact that Bajaj sold a lakh Discovers in a matter of just 50 days it seems that a lot of Indians folks are looking for a ‘fling’ nowadays.

Mr. Dixit however, likes the Hero Honda better, because it’s a safer bet. He understands that in the long term, the Discover comes with a risk factor involved. But our man doesn’t like taking risks; he likes to be 100 % sure. He is not a rebel; he is perfectly comfortable

October 2009

28Evaluating the bikes’ nocturnal abilities.

The WinnerThe Winner

October 2009

29

with the traditional match-making. Love is not his cup of tea; he prefers the cups of tea that he will be served before his arranged marriage. He seeks marital bliss and the Splendor NXG is the bride of his dreams, effortless to own and effortless to ride. It fits the given role to the proverbial t. and is the winner of this shootout. Now I know why Hero Honda sells three and a half lakh two-wheelers every month.

Testing Consultants

The Fireblade takes Rohit Paradkar on a 2,200 km journey through rain and shine, leaving his soul craving for more at the end of it...

Words & Photography Rohit Paradkar

01. Thanks to the stability, taking a photograph even at 117 km/h is no big deal

02. The new model has chucked the hydraulic clutch for a conventional wire-actuated unit

03. Once on a litre-class bike you have to careful about every degree of throttle input if you care for your dear life

04. At 200+ km/h a small dot on the road suddenly turns into a truck as big as this. And you thought this speed was no big deal!

05. I guess I was already missing my favorite online farming game, hence the picture with those sunfloweres in the background

October 2009

31

01

05

04

02

03

11:00 am, Monday morning – it’s that time of the week when most offices around the globe will indulge in a group meeting to discuss

the strategies for the week ahead. But at Motoroids, it’s different. Our Editor and I were laid back in our recliners, competing with each other on digital CBR1000RRs on a Playstation riding simulator. And that’s when this thought crossed our mind – the 2009 Fireblade has been here for more than 6 months, but still the bike hasn’t seen the sun rising on a race track; so why not do a good deed for once and set the caged bird free in its natural habitat? With a smile on his face, Amit agreed to the idea and out came his cell phone. And Voila! Come Wednesday and a fully-serviced CBR1000RR stood in our parking waiting to be cranked up for a journey down South to the Kari Motor Speedway!

There was a catch though –Honda wanted the bike at the race track before Saturday as it was to be exhibited at a race

“I treaded on through the swarm of twIlIght bugs to cross the language borders and entered KarnataKa ”

event. With all the travel related chores still undone, I was left with two and a half days to reach the destination. Since we were talking about a litre-class bike here, it all sounded easy. In reality however, there was a different story reeling up. A popular map application told me I had approximately 1,200kms to cover before I could reach the race track in Coimbatore – which, in sportsbike-speak,

translates to a journey that will break your spine, wear out your wrists, inject innumerable amounts of mental fatigue and leave you wishing that you never attempted such a feat. There were quite a few volunteers ready to tag along as a pillion-cum-backup-rider but the caring angel that I’m, I had to give them a sour denial - ‘cause the small rear seat of the Fireblade can grant comfort to nothing more

animate than a standard sized backpack. But the comfort apart, probably the dark side of me didn’t want to share the sense of achievement I would beget after the trip concluded.

With everything packed and ready, it was time to roll. As I thumbed the ‘blade, I was expecting the typically refined Honda exhaust note coming to life. What I was greeted with however was a

starter failing to crank up not because there was some mechanical issue, but because the battery had drained big time – blame that to all my friends who left the ignition key on while taking photos for their Facekut and Orbook albums. You see, the bike is a CBU-import from Europe where the EU follows a concept called ‘Daytime Running Lights’ (DRL) which needs one headlight to remain illuminated

October 2009

33

throughout to ensure visibility of the rider to the oncoming traffic even during the day. Since a bike like the 1000RR does not run on a daily basis, the always-on headlight takes a big toll on the battery mileage. A jump-start later, I was finally off, facing south-east as I headed down the NH4. The route was crowded as usual, and to make matters worse, twilight greeted me earlier than I expected. I treaded on through the swarm of twilight bugs to cross the language borders and enter Karnataka – an Indian state where the NH-4 suddenly transforms into a

superbiker’s dream. Having ‘driven’ here many times before, I always longed to cane a multi-cylinder two wheeler on those fast flowing corners and the long long straights. Even though the night had fallen, I was able to maintain speeds in excess of 140km/h (much higher, actually) on this road primarily owing to 1000RR’s unparalleled illumination and also because there was not a single soul on that stretch of the road. But then, it was a compromise. It’s a shame to waste the capabilities of a Fireblade by riding it at such slow speeds on a beautiful road like

this. Without second thoughts, I pulled over at a motel near Nipanni where I spent the night. As the next morning dawned, I was filled with excitement! After heating the bike up to optimum temperature, I decided to whack open the throttle…

What I was expecting was a big surge of power to hit me in the face; and the gravitational forces pushing my tongue down the throat. But no, that was not to be! Instead the 1000RR hands you over a linear power delivery throughout the rev range. The only time you know that you are in the powerband

and kicking some serious dirt is either when the windblast pushes mightily against your head and torso or when you have the balls to take your eyes off the road and onto the speedo! Fortunately the exhaust note is a saving grace. While the stubby exhaust muffler is relatively silent at low revs, the larger butterfly valve opens itself when the revs go past the 4,000 mark and a serious growl emanates. It’s an angry growl, and not the typical sweet-talk of the Fireblade’s a couple of generations back. At this rev-mark, the second set of injectors gets activated

too, which deploys armies of stallions down to the rear wheel propelling the bike over the 200-kmph mark in a jiffy. On this highway there’s a particularly straight stretch where you can see at least 4 kilometers ahead of you. This is where I made the 999cc mill spool all the way to the shift indicator in the first five gears and close to 11,000 rpm in 6th-gear. If I know my calculations right the trap velocity should have been close to the maximum limits of this litre-class wonder. Top speed apart, the ‘blade’ reportedly finishes a quartile mile in less than 10 seconds under stock fitments. I had no reason to doubt that considering the way she was swallowing the miles eń route my next stop –Bangalore.

While I had covered almost 300 kilometers from Nippani in less than 2 hours, the final 200 kms till Tumkur took me over 4 hours- thanks to broken roads ahead of Davengeree. From Tumkur, I was back onto a good stretch of road where I happily nudged the 200-km/h mark again when, suddenly I saw a black spot

01. Since I didn’t have access to a wind-tunnel to analyse the ‘blade’s aerodynamics, I decided to use a swarm of bugs to mark the aero-lines

02. Since my paunch prevents me from ducking down completely, the helmet had to eat some bugs too

03. What a pity! You can’t get premium grade fuel everywhere, so the poor bike has to suffice with whatever’s available

04. Don’t come after me PETA, I did not do it on purpose. He was the one who crashed into me

05. If this light stays on, you are good - the bike won’t skid even if you slam the brakes on road surfaces like the ones on the left. If it starts blinking though, you are in trouble

06. A picture speaks a thousand words. The ‘blade took those surfaces in its stride rather well

01 04

0502

03

06

October 2009

35

01. South India has some amazing people carriers. The one on the left is a simple state transport bus while the uniquely painted bus on the right is private transport

02. Thanks to the perennially-under-construction roads, such sights aren’t unusual

03. At last, a self-potrait

04. The staple breakfast for two weeks

05. This road is supposed to be a two way, but the truckers will never give way - even to a 1000RR. Perhaps you need a Bullet here.

06. No photograph can do justice to the Fireblade’s real beauty

07. Muscle, curves, strength, speed, ability to fly and utter loyalty - guess who I’m talking about?

01 0102

0304

06

07

05

October 2009

panning perpendicularly towards me. I didn’t know what it was, but for a second I did feel a slight jitter in the traction. After a refill on the other side of the road and a U-turn later, I realized that the black spot was actually a bird that I had reduced to mince-meat. With a sad heart, I carried on to reach Bangalore to spend the night. For the party animals here, sighting a superbike is no big deal. Hence, I decided to ask for a few opinions regarding this Fireblade’s looks – and I can comfortably conclude, chicks dig this bike! It may look like a parrot in the pictures, but in flesh, this machine is a chick magnet – trust a fat biker when he tells you this.

Next day, it was business as usual as I set off for Coimbatore. Since the lazy me planned to exit Bangalore during the rush hour, I had to pay for it by getting stuck in kilometers of slow moving traffic. It was a nightmare! The Fireblade sure has a large radiator, but it needs a constant wind gush to maintain an optimum temperature. In traffic conditions, the coolant will boil to 109 degrees in no time and within a couple of minutes of riding at that temperature, the clutch will start slipping, the bike will return unnerving jerks and the engine will finally stall. Happened to me a couple of times. After managing to defeat the traffic, I found myself onto one of the most brilliant stretches of road so far! Forget all those straights on NH4, it was time for some sport riding…

The road ahead of Hosur has curvy roads laid out in bumpy yet sticky tarmac. Some curves allowed me to be in the 130-150 km/h range without the bike exhibiting the slightest hint of nervousness! After almost an hour of riding, I stopped for a chai. This is where

01. Thats the kind of road surface I pushed the bike on for over 2 hours

02. I can understand that sign, but there also needs to be a sign to warn you about the big cats in the wildlife reserve

03. The ‘blade meets some friendly monkeys on the way

04. Two shady characters who claimed there was no fuel at the station apart from the 1-litre bottles which cost Rs 110 each! Talk about daylight robbery

05. This road sign brought a huge smile on my face! Sport riding with all the luggage on is an experience in itself

01

03 04

02

05

things took a wrong turn. Did I say ‘business as usual’ sometime back? My foot! I’m sorry if I’m hurting any sentiments here, but I feel that the Karnataka and Tamil Nadu governments do not want tourists to feel at home in their States. I’m not exaggerating, but not a single road sign was in Hindi or English. Everything was in the local languages which meant I had to ask for directions. But since the helpful people out here and I don’t understand each other’s language, everytime I asked for Coimbatore, I got fingers pointing in varied directions. After toiling around for quite some time, five people guided me in the same direction which was kind of reassuring. A soothing country road followed,

but hardly for 5 kms. What greeted me further was more than 120kms of dirt-road, which surprisingly wasn’t all that difficult for this bike.

But then disaster struck! The fuel reserve warning came on – giving me hardly 10kms in hand before the CBR dried out. I pushed the 190-odd kilo bike with my entire luggage to a nearby village, where I got a refill for 110 Rs. a litre! The shady bloke granted me only 3 litres of petrol; with which I toddled further. With no road signs or civilization, I still didn’t know where I was when suddenly, like an oasis in a desert, I saw a nice stretch of tarmac disappearing into a forest. There was a huge barricade which I had to cross but

there wasn’t a soul who could unlock it. I saw a small sign that read ‘Hasanur range’. I didn’t know what it meant, but the road was inviting. I had less than 3 litres of fuel which meant I had to keep the throttle under check till I found a fuel pump. So, without wasting any more time I went off road and hedged the barricade and got on to the tarmac.

As I continued further into the dense forest, I saw a stag running across the road. I had started sensing that I was in some kind of a wildlife reserve. I was elated. It was one of the most scenic avenues to ride through. Soon I spotted a small waterfall at a distance which seemed like the perfect frame for a

01. Is it just me or do these headlight impressions really look like those of a ‘08 Goldwing?

02. With the bike comfortably parked in the Honda exhibit (04), I spent some time judging my riding skills on the riding trainer. I crashed on every corner; do I really know how to ride?

03. After riding through 100 kms of heavy rain, the bike rests outside a chai-stall

04. She stood there like a statue for two days. It was one of the most frustrating sights ever

05. Its rejuvenating sometimes to take a break and appreciate the natural beauty you missed while zooming through the highway

01

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Yes, I have fallen in love all over again.

Couldn’t help but kiss her to my heart’s

content

One of India’s best track tools paid us a visit on the track

On a straight like this, the ‘blade can spool

all the way to 260 km/h before braking

safely for the next corner

scenic shot. As I coasted closer to the spot, I felt some movement on the tree near by. To my horror it was some big cat, - am guessing a leopard, which was resting on the big branch. Even before I could gather my senses, my wrist had already wrung the throttle and I was set to flee! Fortunately I covered the entire stretch with the little fuel I had.

With my heart still pounding, I at last reached a petrol pump where I not only got the much needed

fuel, but also got the right directions to Coimbatore. It was a smooth ride hereafter till the race track where I handed over the bike to the Honda blokes. It was to stay there as a showpiece for the race weekend, after which I could have it back.

5.30 A.M, Monday morning –that time of the week when everyone wants to hide under their blanket, wishing that the weekend was not yet over. At Motoroids, it’s different. I was up, about and

raring to take the bike to the Kari Motor Speedway –the place where I was going to unleash the power of the ‘blade in whatever meager capacity I had. It was an emotional feeling, when the friendly guard at the race track opened the gates especially for the ‘blade and me. As I stepped onto the empty race track, I could feel shivers running down my body. I have ridden a respectable amount of laps on both the Indian race tracks, but today was different. I

wanted to set the bike free, but at the same time, I had to make sure it wasn’t her first AND last time on the track. I had to be careful, and so I was – throughout the first two laps, I did not exceed the 6,000 rpm mark. By lap three I was starting to get into the groove. This was the first time I was riding a litre-class bike at Kari. On the long straight I was already clocking close to 250 km/h. But as I braked something felt weird as compared to bikes

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I have ridden before. While braking into the first right hander I was expecting the habitual nose dive – but I was taken aback when the bike showed no drama what-so-ever. The Combined-ABS was constantly dabbing a portion of the rear brake to distribute the braking forces equally, thus eliminating any nose dive. For hardcore racers, this facet can get unnerving till they come to terms with it; but for a newbie like me, it’s a blessing in disguise, especially when you are not trying to squeeze out every bit of power from the machine. Then is the rock-solid stability of the Honda that we have been talking about for decades now. Thankfully, the ’09 ‘blade takes to a whole new level with the HESD2 steering damper - Kari speedway is known to be a bumpy bitch, but no matter what part of the track, the CBR1000RR didn’t lose its calm. After having spent a decent amount of time I started dropping almost a second per lap, with my fastest timing at the end of the afternoon being a 1min22s. It was rejuvenating!

What continued after this splendid time on the track was a 500 km ride to Chennai, for the FIM Asian GP. It was a usual highway from Coimbatore to Chennai. But after the action packed track day at Kari, the highway felt more like a city commute.

I will blame that to the CBR. I may sound pompous, but I have ridden a lot of such bikes, but this one has a charm of its own. If you were to close your eyes and dream about the perfect sports bike, this

01, 02, 03. This bike defines handling, stability, quality, reliability and ease of use. Be it a newbie like me or a hardcore racer, the Fireblade wil never disappoint.

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04. I couldn’t help but take some time out and keep staring at the bike in awe for everything that both of us went through in those few days. She never betrayed me, no matter what situation or terrain I was treading. She’s the most loyal friend you could ever find on two wheels!

05. A couple of hard riding laps on the track are enough for a brand new tyre to strart shredding apart

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would be the one. Why? Because this baby can be what you want her to be. She can be your companion for the day-in day-out city commutes, thanks to its comfortable seating, a decent cooling mechanism, dual-stage fuel injection which can return fuel efficiency of close to 20 kmpl, and an exhaust note that will not make your neighbors think of you as an irritating dawg. On the highway she is a dream with a smooth power delivery, an aural masterpiece and a safe ride even at top speeds, thanks to the wonderfully potent combined anti-lock brakes. And should you decide to shed your poseur hide and get this CBR onto the track, it will be a confidence-inspiring companion for a newbie as well as a hardcore track tool for the experienced racer. For, me it was 2,200 kilometers worth of experience that I can never forget. After all, you don’t unsheathe a blade only to make a cut, sometimes you unsheathe it to appreciate and restore the beauty of its sharpness. This blade however, was so beautiful in all respects, that it leaves me craving for more – for I don’t own one of these.

Words Photography Rohit Paradkar Rohit Paradkar/Aditya Bedre

It’s been more than a decade now since the last International two-wheeler circuit race took place in our country. But this year it was set to change, as one of the most prestigious racing

championships of the Asian continent – the FIM Asian GP, included India on their season map. In India, the arrival of this event has spawned a new concept called the ‘Indian Festival of Speed’ which will be held every year from now on to showcase, organise and celebrate the Indian motorsport on an international level. This year the sponsorship gauntlet was picked up by Sidvin Coretech and the obvious choice was the Madras Motorsports Race Track (previously MMSCT) which is known for combination of fast flowing as well as tight corners. The preparations for this event started more than

six months ago, not only on the track, but off it as well. While the Indian lads pushed their machinery harder to shave valuable seconds off their race pace, the blokes at MMSC and FMSCI worked towards upgrading the MMSRT to international standards. This was achieved by primarily increasing and improving the run-off areas, installing intermediate lap-timers, relocating the marshal-stands for higher safety, relaying the track surface for better grip, installing high standpoints for videographers and other media and extensively training the marshals for safety, flagging and medical assistance.

The Indian riders who were finalized for the event were Preetham Dev Moses and Krishnan Rajani of Red Rooster Racing, Emmanuel Jebbaraj of Ten10 Racing and Alisha Abdullah, Vivek Pillai and R.

Deepak as private entrants. Though these racers had the home-track advantage, they were aware of their competitor’s strength and were ready for a tough battle. For the visitors though, it was business as usual – arrive on Thursday, setup the pits, practice on Friday, qualify on Saturday and race on Sunday. This event consisted of two major races – the 600cc Supersport and the 115cc Under-bone. With zilch experience the riders of both these categories started their practice on Friday as per the given schedules. The quest was not only to learn the flow of the Sriperumbadur but to adapt to it, find the fastest line, setup the bike accordingly and then improve the lap times even further. With a day’s worth of practice laps and setup data under their belt, it was time for some qualifying action for Saturday.

When qualification began, the lap times that we are used to so far started to get demolished with every passing lap. The days of 1min50s were over! The 600cc front-runners like Decha and Chalermpol and Indian racers Rajani were already clocking lap times between 1min45s-1min47s without much hassle. The under-bones on the other hand were in a composition of their own with the front runners spaced between 2min02s-2min04s!

As race-day arrived, the ‘Festival of Speed’ title came alive with a lively festive environment building up around the race track – enthusiasts, non-competing racers, teenagers – they were all there as a part of the audience. As the races began, it was a petrolhead’s symphony playing with the souped up race machines red-lining out of almost

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K Rajani had some minor issues with regards to handling during the practice runs...

Baharuddin was a one man show throughout - the guy unloaded, assembled and setup his own bike and even the pits!

No MotoGP-style cleavage flauting ‘firangi’ pitbabes here, but nothing beats the beauty of an Indian lady, does it?

TVS ran their Asian market Neo110 under-bones. Though the bike itself wasn’t competitive enough, the riders were!

The legendary bridge exit at Sriperumbadur will always force a fast rider’s bike to be up on one!

...but within a few laps, our Indian lad got to terms with the entire setup and starting shedding some serious seconds off the lap time

Our friends at Honda are doing a great job by fuelling the passion for racing in the country, in more than one ways! Way to go guys...

The Suzuki powered under-bones dominated the entire class throughout practice, qualifying and both the races

Decha (24) had a great weekend with a sad end. He qualified on P1, stood 1st in Race1, but crashed out in Race2

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Privateer Vivek Pillai had a very good run throughout the weekend. We are sure he’s learnt a lot through the weekend

The Asean teams (like Y.Y.Pang above) showcase their professionalism right from the way their pits are setup

K. Rajani on his comeback lap - relaxed and content about his podium finish

Decha proudly flaunts the Thai flag after winning Race1 and coming close to championship leader and compatriot, Chalermpol

Ten10 had an unfortunate yet great weekend. Though the bike had some problems, there is a lot the team has learnt

Its always great to see an Indian on an international podium. On this day, it was K. Rajani who made the country proud

Chalermpol was consistent throughout, with a P2 in qualifying, 2nd spot in Race1 and the top podium spot in Race2

Did we say no firangi babes?? Well, Red Rooster always like to make a difference - no matter what facet of motorsports

Decha takes the hole shot in Race1 as the rest of the pack follows to hunt him down

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every corner. The 600cc Race1 saw championship contender Decha take victory over his team mate and compatriot Chalermpol. Indian lad, Rajani, battled it out with the Kawasaki of Ahmad Baharudin for most of the race before overtaking him in the final few laps. Race2 was even more action packed as Decha was looking set for a double win by taking the lead from Chalermpol in the early stages of the race. Rajani continued his battle with Baharudin and once again overtook him to take the fourth position as the race was in the final stages. In the second last

lap however, Decha, who was involved in a dog fight with Chalermpol overshot the final chicane which ended the race for him This incident promoted the consistent Rajani to third place, thus earning India a proud podium finish. The 115cc under-bones, like the qualifying, were in a league of their own, with multiple intense battles happening at various spots within the grid. There was high drama with racers rubbing everything, from elbows to exhausts with their fellow competitors. Finally the Suzuki Smash Revos proved victorious with Mohd. Affendi Rosli

and Mohd. Iskandar Raduan taking victories in Race1 and Race2 respectively.

Overall, the race was an eye-opener for many. As most of our Indian racers agree, the body language and commitment towards racing is of a much higher level with these visiting racers as compared to our own lads. It is primarily blamed to the lack of sponsors and factory support. Karthik Purshottam, who raced a TVS Neo in the under-bone category, quotes “All their bikes are worked up to optimum level to fight for their win. Whereas in

India, we don’t have sponsors to support the riders for competing in FIM Asian GP”. The silver lining comes by way of the new experience that our racers have earned from this event. The boys have certainly learnt new techniques to tackle such a competition and have new benchmarks in front of them which they will gun for in the times to come. As for the Asian GP, if all goes well, we may soon see a five-year contract being signed with the FMSCI for an Indian round like the one that’s happened.

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Motocross Gladiators once again unleased freestyle fury at the 2009 X-Fighters freestyle motocross tour

Mid-air Fight Club!

Words Photography Pradeb Biswas redbullxfighters.com

Do not commit the mistake of associating the X-Fighters international freestyle

motocross tour to your interpretation of an ‘average freestyle motocross tour’. The Red

Bull X-Fighters is a professional international freestyle motocross world tour which

was first held in 2001. At every tour stop rider participation is by invitation only!

Also, every single event can comprise of a maximum start grid of just 12 competitors. At every

event one gets to see the top 12 freestyle motocross riders in the world vying for top honors.

Every X-Fighters event stop in a particular location or country becomes the ‘Mecca’ for all

motocross fanatics living nearby who desire to watch the crazy and daredevil antics of the world’s

top FMX riders. Each event at a tour stop in the particular season is hosted at landmark venues

ranging from bullfighting arenas, motocross tracks to power stations! The riders captivate the

spectators while pleasing the judges with their display of gravity defying stunts in pursuit of higher

points.

The competitors at X-Fighters events are modern day motocross gladiators who utilize

thoroughbred machines to claim glory and vie for a place in the record books. Take a good

look at the pictures splashed across these pages to get a fair idea of the competitive spirit,

showmanship, daredevilry and immense skill of these ‘high-on-adrenaline’ freestyle riders. Till

last year motocross legend Travis Pastrana was a regular at all Red Bull X-Fighters seasons was

the overall winner of the 2007 season.

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The 2009 Red Bull X-Fighters world tour has ended with the London hosting the final event

of this season. The X-Fighters event has been held twelve times in its seven seasons till date. The

2009 world tour was a five part series event. The season kicked off on 27th March with the first

event taking place at the Plaza De Torros in Mexico City. Since 2005 the legendary monument

has been the traditional opening host to every X-Fighters season. The inaugural event of this

year’s season was won by 17 year old rookie and wild card entry Levi ‘Rubber Kid’ Sherwood.

The next stop was at the Stampede Park on 31st May in Calgary, Canada with Robbie

Maddison taking top honors. The third event was held on 27th June at the Fort Worth in Texas,

USA. The European riders couldn’t acclimatize to the sweltering heat of Texas resulting in local

hero Nate Adams notching up a comfortable win. Cameron Sinclair earned the distinction of

successfully landing a double backflip in the main event. Although the 24 year old Australian

rider got eliminated in the semi-final he was happy to have inked his name in the freestyle

motocross record books.

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The fourth stop of the season was at the Plaza De Toros De Las Ventas bullfighting arena in Madrid, Spain

on 17th July. Spanish rider Dany Torres managed to regain his form and won in front of a home crowd.The

final stop of the freestyle motocross world tour was at the Battersea Power Station on 22nd August at London,

UK.

Every tour stop comprises of a three day halt. The first day is allocated to rider briefing and on-course

training. On the second day qualification round takes place with the final event being conducted on day three.

Two qualification runs are held wherein each rider is given 90 seconds to utilize the course and showcase their

freestyle motocross prowess. Each rider is awarded points in the number bracket of 1-100 on the basis of which

they are awarded a rank.

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After qualification the riders compete in round 1 in reverse order of rank

apart from those in the top six. The top six riders automatically progress to the

2nd round. The 2nd round is an elimination round among the top eight riders.

The competitors are paired up head-to-head against each other in four heats

with the lower ranked riders having a go first. In the semi-final round the four

emerging qualifiers from the 2nd round compete against each other. The losing

semi-finalists compete for third place glory

There are two separate judging panels for each event of the X-Fighters tour.

The qualifying session and round 1 are judged by a panel comprising of three

judges with the emphasis being on overall impression. The proceedings from

round 2 onwards till the final round are judged by a panel comprising of five

judges with each one judging a particular criteria. Points are awarded to the

riders for overall impression, variety of tricks and usage of the course, difficulty

and execution of tricks, style of the rider and the crowd’s reaction to the rider’s

performance.

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At every X-Fighters tour stop competitors are awarded points based on their final position

at that event. The winner gets 100 points, the first runner up gets 80 points, and the second

runner up gets 65 points while even the last placed rider gets 5 points. At the end of every

season, an overall winner of the Red Bull X-Fighters season is crowned on the basis of the

highest number of total accumulated points.

The final round of the 2009 Red Bull X-Fighters season was spectated by around 17,000

motocross crazy fans. Amongst the grid of 12 competitors Nate Adams, Eigo Sato, Robbie

Maddison and Mat Rebeaud qualified for the final showdown at the London X-Fighters

event.

Swiss rider and 2008 X-Fighters overall season winner Mat Rebeaud had a nasty crash

during the final ending his hopes of successfully defending his title. Robbie Madisson got the

better of Sato by earning more points and securing himself a place for the final showdown

against Nate Adams.

The London X-Fighters event was won by American Nate Adams. He faced tough

competition from the 17 year old New Zelander rookie Levi “Rubber Kid” Sherwood. The

brilliant performance displayed by the “Rubber Kid” bagged him second place on the podium.

Spanish rider Danni Torres rounded off the podium.

It was a memorable comeback for Nate ‘The Destroyer’ Adams from an injury filled

2008 season for he also won the overall champion trophy of the 2009 Red Bull X-Fighters

season. The 25 year old was visibly elated with his overall season win and acknowledged it as

the greatest achievement of his career. Admitting the pressure was huge he said it was a great

feeling to win against the best riders in the world. Robbie Maddison occupied second overall

champion slot with Eigo Sato rounding off the podium.

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This picture gives us a fair idea of how high and how far these motocross gladiators could fling their steeds in an unparalled show of skill, daredevilry and showmanship

It’s easy for a motocross rider counted among ‘The world’s top 12’ to jump over anyting in style even if it’s the Royal Palace Guard

The Battersea Power Station surely became the mecca for all Motocross lovers in London where the X-Fighters event was held for the first time in history

The Battersea Power Station at London hosted the final round of the 2009 Red Bull X-Fighters International tour and was spectated by around 17,000 motocross crazy fans

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This photograph has been taken from the judges arena. Apart from a bird’s eye view from the top deck of a bus they also have an individual screen to view the replays while awarding points

U.S. rider Nate Adams sure took home the overall winner and the London event winner trophy. Apart from them we are not sure if any blondes also accompanied him home

Once the bubble bursts, it dosent stop quickly and is hell bent on spraying at every beautiful thing in its path. Right blokes?

The intricacies of a freestyle Motocross jump is captured by the lens of a slow-mo camera

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Words Photography Dhairya Gupta Tanmoy Mookherjee

Riding high

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Risin’ up, back on the street, Did my time, took my chances, Went the distance, now I’m back on my feet,

Just a man and his will to survive

So many times, it happens too fast, You change your passion for glory, Don’t lose your grip on the dreams of the past, You must fight just to keep them alive.”

These lines from ‘Eye of the Tiger’ very much describe my trip to “Chanshal Pass.” The only difference being, that it did not involve Sylvester Stallone or a boxing match, but instead, it involved me, my Pulsar 200, a friend on his Avenger 200 and a long weekend ahead. With this, we set off on our adventurous weekend ride.

We left from Delhi via NH1 till we reached Ambala; then took NH 22 to head to Khandaghat and turned towards Chail. Though this road is narrow and prone to heavy traffic, it’s a very scenic route. The road meets the NH22 again at Kufri which got us back on the smooth wide curving road until Theong. As soon as we took a detour towards Rohru, the road conditions transformed from a MotoGP racetrack into Paris Dakar Rally.

The Pulsar 220 passed with flying colors in all tests. On straight NH1, it was cruising with composure while on the curvy roads after Kalka it swiftly made its way through every corner. On the off-roading terrain, the rear tyres provided enough traction and the suspension was serving its purpose with great aplomb.

At the end of day one, we reached Kotkhai and checked into the PWD guest house. Next morning, we left for Rohru, had a long lazy breakfast there and got back to our endeavor to conquer Chansal Pass. From Rohru to Chirgaon the roads were good but on reaching Tikri, we were greeted with loose sharp stones, mud, steep gradients and loose gravel.

Thanks to our lazy start in the morning, we were running behind schedule. The treacherous road conditions here do not call for high speed riding, but for patience and caution. Short distances were covered way behind the estimated time and anxiety about reaching our destination was setting in. We decided to keep a constant

“

pace and took as few breaks as we could. My Pulsar 220 DTSi was serving its purpose

of an off roader now. I was a bit skeptical though, about the softer compound rear tyre which is not really designed for such road conditions. However with the amazing torque, I could get out of mud section without having to put my feet down.

Amidst concentrating on the road, the bike and my riding, I took a breather to look around. I found myself surrounded with gorgeous snow clad mountains in front of the meadow. Suddenly, all the torture I experienced on the ride so far vanished and it all seemed worth it.

I took out my cell phone to check for any calls or messages, and the first one I read, was from my friend on the Avenger- “Had a fall, foot rest broken, waiting.” At first, he had made up his mind, of not pushing the bike to its limit and calling the ride off. But with a little pep talk from me, reminded him of our purpose of the ride and soon he changed his decision and got back on his steed.

Thereafter, he caught up to the point where I was waiting and together we made our way through the beautiful vistas which start appearing about 4km before Chansal. The road conditions also improved slightly hereafter. Finally, on reaching Chansal we celebrated with a customary pose at the entrance.

With sun setting down fast, we geared up to descend from Chansal. The ride downhill was much faster but equally challenging as the rear wheel started to spin and fishtail due to lose soil. The total distance from Larot to Chansal and back which is about 38kms, took us more than four hours to cover.

Once back in Larot, we stopped at a small dhabha to get some grub. Couple of rounds of hot chai and Rajma Chapati, felt heavenly after long hours of riding throughout the day.

We were considering retiring for the day in Larot, so we ventured out to a forest rest house. Sadly, it was under renovation and the only functional room, was occupied. A kind villager offered us an alternative accommodation; however we changed our mind and decided to ride further closer to Rohru. This would mean, the next day would involve fewer kilometers to

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cover and more time to click snaps. After trying our luck in four different towns for a room, we finally checked in a hotel in Rohru.

Next morning we made our way through Rohru- Baggi- Narkanda route. The distance was not much, but the road conditions made it seem longer. The route is mainly used by the commercial vehicles, and making your way through these heavy vehicles and narrow roads proved to be quite challenging. Nonetheless, the ride was very scenic.

After reaching Narkanda we stopped for a quick bite and headed on to scale the Hatu peak. The 7kms road is flanked by pine trees, smooth tarmac and lots or hair pin bends- A biker’s dream! Once at the top, we were greeted with some of the most scenic views we had ever seen. We could see clouds below us rising up through the mountains. Just then the sun began setting in the horizon, behind the snow clad mountains.

We didn’t really have the heart to leave from this place, but we realized the ride downhill would only get tougher once it got dark, so we geared up and got on our bikes. After scaling down from the altitude, we checked into a nearby hotel and crashed for the night. The next day we rode back to Delhi feeling happy, satisfied and with big grins on our face which we know, will last for a long time.

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The first round of the 2009 Gulf Dirt Track Championship took place at Jaipur on 13th

Septmber. The event was organized by Sportscraft (Mumbai based) in association with Action Sports (Jaipur based). Dirt track racing involves competitors racing on each other specially laid out gravel and slush filled track. There were 15 different categories for riders to compete against each other in at the Jaipur round. The organizers deliberately introduced the various categories to encourage more participation from dirt track enthusiast and novice racers.

Pramod Joshua bagged top honors at the Jaipur round by winning in four races. He faced stiff competition from his team mates K P Arvind and H K Pradeep. The TVS Racing team rider in two races each of Indian Expert classes for Indian motorcycles upto 260cc and Indian Expert Class for foreign motorcycles upto 260cc two & four stroke. H K Pradeep tried every trick in his racing book to out-perform Joshua but eventually had to settle for second place in three events.

Local entrant Abhishek Mishra successfully exploited a Yamaha RX 135 winning two races in the Private Expert Class for 4-Stroke bikes upto 260cc. Shamim Khan astride a Kinetic Marvel won the open event for Scooters. Despite having no team or sponsor backing he successfully held off the advances of both Joshua and Arvind. R Murthy won two of the three races in the novice class for 4-Stroke bikes.

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inaugurates the 2009 Gulf Dirt Track Challenge

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP:An assortment of action shots of the competitors from the 1st round of the 2009 Gulf Dirt Track Challenge

The Kolhapur Dirt Track race organized by the Residency Club and Mohite Racing Academy was held at the Sasne Ground. It was originally supposed to be organized by

Sportscraft as the 2nd round of the 2009 Gulf Dirt Track Championship. The results of the Kolhapur round will be not be considered in the Gulf Dirt Track Championship.

Pune based motorcycle rallyist Snehal Chavan was adjudged the Best Overall Rider. He rode on unchallenged winning the 2 stroke Indian Expert Class and the merged2/4 Stroke Class. He finished second in the 4 stroke Indian Expert Class. Chavan also competed in the Activa class finishing in second place.

Team Wheelieboy Racing had an another

memorable outing at Kolhapur with two of its riders bagging four trophies. Jagjit Singh put up a strong fight for first place in the Indian Open Class but ultimately had to settle for second place. He also took home the 1st runner’s up trophy in the 2 stroke Private Expert class. While Kannan Naidu finished third in the 2stroke Private Expert class and was placed second in the 2 stroke Novice category.

KOLHAPURDirt Track Event

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CLOCKWISE FROM TOP:Competitors gun for a hole shot - Jagjit Singh power wheelies his Yamaha to showcase his triumph - Kannan Naidu (right) and Jagjit Singh (left) of Team Wheelieboy Racing pose proudly with their medals - Kannan Naidu receives the Ist runner-up trophy in the 2 stroke Novice category

After earning name and fame in the world of Indian motorsports, Shreekant Apte is gearing up to return the favor by making the next generation’s entry easier.

VETERAN WARRIORWords

PhotographyPradeb BiswasEshan Shetty/Archives

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Born to a motorsport enthusiast father, he candidly accepts racing bikes and cars is in

their family blood! As a kid he accompanied his dad who took part in various race events throughout the 50’s and 60’s. It inspired him to take a plunge into racing which he eventually did in 1976 by competing in a race held at the Juhu Aerodome. The second race event that he competed in was at the famed Sholavaram race track in which he finished second! Since then he has competed in around 175 events including the likes of motocross, autocross and circuit racing on steeds ranging from a Jawa to a Royal Enfield, Yezdi, BSA, Honda 250, to a BSA 500 Shooting Star which especially was his personal favorite.

Shreekant Apte was a regular podium finisher at all Sholavaram Grand Prix’s from 1977 to 1982.In a racing career spanning 8 years, he

had podium finishes at hill climb races too. He won the Motorcycle Hill Climb event in 1979 and finished third at the1980 MASA Hill climb event. To better his riding skills he even attended a two day Brands Hatch Racing School in July 1980. He also participated in the 1980 Himalayan Rally and the first National Motocross Grand Prix held in 1982.

He hung up his racing boots in 1984 owing to a crash which left him with permanent disability on his right wrist. One can’t say that he has taken complete sanyas from the world of motorsports as he is still associated with it but at an organizational level. He is currently the President of MASA (Mahrashtra Automotive Sports Association) and is associated with the FMSCI (Federation of Motor Sport Clubs of India) as Director Western region and Senior Racing Steward.

When questioned about

the current state of motorsports infrastructure in the country, he coyly admits that it is still premature and not of international standards. He feels that a lot of effort is called of to improve the racing infrastructure. He is of the view that the government should take concrete steps to promote motorsports by offering land to established racing clubs to build race tracks. He is quick to point out that over the years the racing scene has indeed become more professional and competitive.

Shreekant is still reminiscent about his racing heydays when fellowship and enjoying oneself at each race was of utmost importance. In those days racing camaraderie used to be at its best and it wasn’t taboo for racers to help each other with riding techniques. Of course tuners weren’t your average friendly folk and would always keep mum about their tuning methods. With the current quality and talent of the top racers in the country he is expecting an Indian rider entering the elusive world of MotoGP within the next five years.

During his racing heydays sponsorship opportunities were non-existent. Racers needed to possess an innate ability to beg, borrow or steal to survive in the financially draining sport. He still vividly recalls around 10,000 hard earned rupees on every single outstation race. Many of his motorsport buddies would take part at races without letting

their families know as public perception about racing was that of a very dangerous sport. It used to be a humorous situation when parents would get to know about their kin’s racing exploits owing to the winner’s picture being splashed in the sports page of a newspaper!

He appreciates the role that media has played in making the general public more aware about racing. Earlier people thought that motorsports was very dangerous and should be completely avoided. Nowadays the media attention has made people aware that racing is a safe sport provided all rules and regulations are adhered to. It has also brought about a change in parents’ attitude who can be spotted at various karting events supporting their child’s racing urge.

Inspite of having a very good number of race wins under his belt for himself Shreekant Apte still has a racing dream to realize. He yearns to give back something to the sport by building a racetrack and giving life to ‘Tej Racing School’ someday in the outskirts of Pune. He is confident that it would be a nice way of giving something back to the sport which has given him a racing identity! We heartily respect his desire to be always associated with motorsports without taking a sabbatical and wish him luck in realizing his remaining sole racing dream.

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT-Mr. Apte at the start of the Sholavaram Bullet class race (No 4) - In action at the IARC Scramble held at Vikroli,Mumbai - On board a BSA 500cc Shooting Star at the start of the Four Square Kings Scramble - Receiving the award at the Four Square Kings Scramble event.

1. When and where was the club formed? The club, Roadshakers, was formed in Sept 2001 in Pune when like minded people like Sachin Chavan, Kiran Jois, Rohan Pim-pley, Santosh Kumar, Stepehn D souza , Pawan Amberdekar, Chandrshekar Wyware and few others came forward with this concept of forming a Bullet club.

2. How often do members meet up? We meet up every Wednesday at 8.00 pm on Pashan road op-posite B.U.Bhandari Shoowroom. Discussion about weekend rides & induction of new members is followed after a small city ride.

3. Which aspect of riding is the group more into?We support all aspects of riding- be it cross country, weekend ride or sport riding. We actively participate in all kinds of riding and racing events held in the country such as the Drag Race, Dirt Race, Raid-de-Himalaya, the Sjoba rally and events on the Chennai and Coimbatore race tracks.

4. What distinguishes this biking group from others?Being a part of this club is not as easy as others. One just can’t be a ‘ROADSHAKER’. We have a system in place which every new member has to go through and earn his place in the club.

5. How many riders are currently associated with the group?About 300 plus.

6. Where is one most likely to see the group in action?Every Wednesday at 2100hrs from Pashan- University Circle- Senapati Bapat road- Bhandarkar road-F.C road.

7. Is there any biking hierarchy within the group?No. Everyone is treated equally.

8. Are there any requisites to joining the group?Yes. You need to own a Royal Enfield bike; a valid riding license, medical insurance & proper riding gear. Other than that, you need to be a passionate biker who is willing to gel in with the other members and contribute as an individual to the club.

If you want your biking group to be featured on this page, drop in a mail to clubs@motoroids.com with your group’s pictures and answers to all the questions above

If you are interested in joining this group, drop in a mail to uttamauto@gmail.com

This month Motoroids caught up with ‘Roadshakers’ - the Royal En-field club from Pune. Here’s all the important information about this club.

October 2009

Ohlins Chronograph:

Looks stunning doesn’t it? With those racy yellow dials, the old-school pushpieces and the Ohlins branding, this is one watch that every biker will desire to don. But then it’s not all that easy to get. It’s not because it’s limited to just 100 pieces, but becasue of the fact that it’s not for sale. This Citizen-powered time piece comes bundled with the new Ohlins TTX36 rear shock absorber – a new unit for litre-class bikes, which now benefits from MotoGP technology. So if you have a Yamaha R1 stand-ing in your garage and you desire this Ohlins watch badly, then log onto www.ohlins.com and order a set of the TTX36 right away!

Hamilton Khaki X-Mach:

Are you one of those crazy speedsters who have taken their passion for speed way beyond the bikes and into the air? If yes, then the X-Mach is the kind of watch a pilot like you should desire to flaunt on your wrist. It’s not a banal chronograph with a tachymeter ring around it, but instead a time piece that incorporates a Machmeter within! A Machmeter is a special flight instru-ment that measures the ratio of the true air-speed to the speed of sound. When that ratio reaches “1.0” it means that you are traveling at the speed of sound. How cool is that? Design-wise the X-Mach comes finished in a PVD-treated stainless steel 44mm diameter casing which straps onto your wrist with a brown or black leather or rubber strap – all designed to ‘look’ like carbonfibre. Why not real carbonfibre then when the X-Mach asks for Rs. 85,000?

Fila Ducati Shoe

A certain bloke called Olivier Henrichot has put his obsession for ‘Ducatis’ and ‘design’ to a wonderful effect. What you see in the picture on the left is the artist’s impression of a Ducati-Fila shoe concept that is meant to look as stunning as the cra-zily designed Ducatis themselves. The athletic shoe takes design cues from the Ducati Monster’s Trellis frame while the shoe’s contours are influenced by the curvaceous

lines of the Monster’s fuel tank. We personally feel that it’s a stunning job! But alas, Ducati has licensed Puma to put the Italian mo-

torcycle brand name on clothing and fashion accessories, so this Fila concept may remain just a thought for a long time to come. But still the design itself is so desirable that we just couldn’t avoid it from reaching this page.

64

The Isle of Man Tourist Trophy has been one of the most prestigious road racing championship in the history of motorcycles. But the 2009 championship has been one of the fastest ever with the top riders propelling their steeds to over 305 km/h! Since not many of us have had the privilege to witness the TT action, here’s a chance for all to relive the excitement and drama that goes around the 37.73-mile course - the Isle of Man: TT review 2009 on DVD or Blu-Ray by Duke Video. As always, the media combines incredible camera angles, aerial footage and on-bike action to help you understand how and what happens throughout the TT week. Hi-Motion camera captures spellbinding ultra-slow motion sequences make you watch the high-definition Blu-Ray content times without number. Don’t believe what we say? Then check out the trailer right here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9OTpL0Jw9L4

October 2009

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If the content on the left hand side of this page wasn’t enough for you, then here’s something more that will blow you away – the TT 2009 On Bike Laps DVDs! As the name suggests, the discs feature on-board videos from some of the most celebrated TT racers for 2009. Watch these fearless racers zoom past trees, walls and pavements at speeds as high as 300 km/h and still not break a millimeter of their concentration. Spanning across three volumes, these DVDs bring you rider-eye-view of the practice and/or race laps of racers like John McGuiness, Guy Martin, Steve Plater and side-car racing expert Tim Reeves. If you have already seen similar video angles at the MotoGP races, then these DVDs will make you realize why the Isle of Man: TT is one of the most dangerous motorsports in motorcycling history.

I have been using the Daijya Kintaro helmet for over an year now. The helmet cost me more than 5000 bucks back then. While I am generally happy with the performance of the helmet when compared with most of the Indian and some less expensive international brands, the price I have paid for the lid leaves a lot to be desired. First of all the wind noise at high speeds is a tad too unnnerving. I start getting whistling noises within the helmet at speeds as low as 50-60 km, and the sound becomes quite an issue to handle once I cross the 100km/h mark. That said, the quality of materials used is quite good and various components like the shell, the visor and the inner padding have withstood the test of time rather well. One common problem that I have witnessed among Daijya helmets is the breakage of the fastener button at the end of the strap. I have seen the buttons of most Daijya helmets (including mine) fall apart in due course of time. I am generally happy with the finish and materials quality of the helmet. However, it could have been much better in the engineering department.

‘Strada’ in Italian stands for ‘Street’. The Spidi Strada glove hence, in simple English would mean a street glove, or gloves meant for road use. This product borrows some of the safety elements of Spidi’s high end racing gloves, while being extremely comfortable for everyday (street) use. I have been donning these gloves for over an year now and boy they have impressed me!

What I particularly like is their fit and finish. I ordered these gloves online without trying them out. I simply referred to the sizing chart and the fit has been perfect. With over 12 months of

rough use, there is still no hint of tear or stitching coming off. The reinforced palm section has not shown any signs of wither yet – which I can’t claim for some other branded

gloves I have used for an equal duration. The extended cuff has been doing a good duty in preventing the rain from entering the glove. On the Fireblade trip I last month, I fell in love with the perforated bits around the glove which facilitates air flow to keep the heat away from the palm. Really came in handy in the hot weather around Bangalore and Comibatore.

ACID TESTNew gear, more often than not will work perfectly. We tell you what state it’ll be in after it undergoes some hammering

Too much wind noise at high speed is a bother for our shutterbug

Inspite of being subjected to rough use for over a year, it still continues to amaze him.

Eshan’s Daijya kintaro hElmEt

rohit’s spiDi straDa

October 2009

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Our good old friend Gurpreet Singh Pahwa flew away to the U S of A about a year ago and left his Royal Enfield Bullet with us. While Gauri Lokare, being the ardent Bullet fan she is would have loved to use the Bull with pleasure, there was a problem. The RE machine was carrying a Rajasthan number plate and everytime she would want to take it out for a ride a

cop would catch her on the very first traffic junction and then she would be poorer by 100 rupees. So we decided to keep her resting until she got its registration transferred to Maharashtra.

In the meantime, we once decided to make the biggest biking blockbuster of all time - Motoroids ki Jwaala, and we required a Bullet for the shoot. All that the good old Bullet required to get her heart throbbing again was an oil change. It ran like a dream for the entire shoot, after which she was dutifully parked back in the Motoroids garage. Since the Bullet still remains a cop magnate and is largely ignored unless we require it for a photoshoot, its been feeling very sad and lonely. Pradeb Biswas, our Bengali babu and the bike, however are spotted together quite often as both of them are disowned from all circles. Pradeb of late is particularly isterested in heap of trashed bikes around our office - seems like he’s planning to buy an old M80 for the 3000 rupees he received after selling off his old Pulsar. The Bullet in the meantime is sad again having lost her soulmate. We are looking for a capable vehicle registration agent who could transfer the regsitration papers of the Bullet to Maharshtra without any hassles. If you know someone, do let us know.

No One’s Royal Enfield BulletGauri’s Hero Honda KarizmaACID TEST

I thought my Pink Bullet attracted a lot of attention, but a Yellow Karizma, in spite of being 6 years old now, is still a big head turner! Or maybe people are just amazed at the sight of a girl riding a 223cc machine. But that’s the beauty of the bike – its compatible with all sexes. Its been over six months now since I have been using this bike for my regular commute and an occasional road trip when the

Editor grants one. But never has this bike broken down even though I missed a regular service by a good 2,000 kilometers.

But that reliability apart, there are some twitches that have irritated me. The most common one is the ‘starting’ problem. For some odd reason, I have to, have to, open the fuel filler lid, shake the tank, shut the lid back on, in order to get the bike cranked up. I have complained about this problem to almost every HH dealership in Pune, but no one found a permanent solution. Next is the bad quality of plastics. I thought only my Bullet had a problem with body parts going loose. But the Karizma is even worse! They don’t go loose, they break apart! In the last six months, I have spent more money on buying sellotapes than beer. Rohit tells me that he used to face the same problem with his old Karizma as well and the only work around was to religiously change the tail-panels every six months like you change a tyre.

Speaking of the tyres, the tube-type tyres are a big let down. If you want to go on a road trip, you have to change to tubeless tyres unless you want to be stranded with a flat tyre. The rear tyre is still ok, but the front will go flat within a few kilometers of riding off road. To make matters worse, till date, I haven’t found a single pair of tubeless tyres in the 18” configuration – so if you know where I could get a pair, let me know. But once on the highway, I forget all these pesky problems – and almost fall asleep on the smooth ride.

October 2009

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Report Mihir Gadre

What’s wrong with conventional telescopic forks? Firstly, telescopic forks turn brake loads into dive and limit the wheels vertical movement. When a tyre is stopped too hard and it loses traction, the energy stored in the front spring of a telescopic system is suddenly released and it punches the tyre further making the chance of regaining traction nearly impossible.

Secondly, the forks are akin to a bar bending between fulcrums. It suffers pure bending loads. Hence the forks have to be extremely strong and thus heavy. This not only increases the unsprung weight (the enemy of suspension engineers) but also increases the polar moment of inertia which sustains the ‘headshakes’ and

causes tank-slappers. Inspite of being aware of all these problems,

bike manufacturers, basically the Japanese big 4, having invested millions into R&D of telescopic forks are reluctant to shifting to different systems front just like our own Bajaj & TVS are reluctant to shifting to a monoshock rear.So then what was the solution?

Back in the mid 70’s, Norman Hossack, a German engineer set out to bring some new thinking to motorcycle design. He left McLaren with a wealth of experience seeing how racing cars developed and how Formula 1 addressed their technical problems. He addressed the very basic problems of motorcycle suspension,

Tech SpeakMonoshock Front Suspension

Norman Hossac aboard his 1979 Hossack BMW

namely by improving the rigidity, lowering the weight, lowering the polar moment, and killing stiction. Among the 5 different designs options that he had, Hossack implemented the one which he could with the limited resources at his disposal. He modified a Honda XL500 in 1979 and it worked. Race bikes running this new suspension won races and he thought that manufacturers would soon ditch the inferior telescopic forks for the new design. But that didn’t happen. He didn’t count on the inertia and negativism of the motorcycle industry.BMW the German perfectionists!

Germans have always been known for their incessant need to be at the pinnacle of engineering excellence. BMW Motorrad is responsible for a lot of developments in motorbike suspension. The first hydraulically dampened telescopic fork on a production motorcycle (1937), the longitudinal swinging arm (1950), and the long-stroke telescopic fork (1970). They seem to think that just because a particular type of suspension system is favored by the Japanese, and sold on hundreds of thousands of motorbikes every year doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s the best option.Telelever

In 1993, BMW introduced the telelever suspension. It completely separates the braking and suspension forces from the steering force. The telelever uses a single strut/shock unit in place of the telescopic forks. Telelever still has front forks, but now they only serve the purpose of making a stiff front sub-frame, and to allow the rider to steer the bike. The strut/shock unit is connected to a wishbone which itself is connected to the frame of the bike at the back via a yoke, and to the cross-member of the forks at the front using a ball joint. When you hit a bump with telelever, the suspension forces are transmitted through the ball joint, across the wishbone and up through the strut / shock unit into the frame of the bike. One of the biggest advantages of this system is that there is no brake-dive. The design of the Telelever effectively reduces fork flex under braking to near zero. It actually

feels weird to the rider as he has to get used to the lack of any brake-dive.Duolever

Never being satisfied with resting on their laurels, by 2004 BMW decided that telelever could be improved even further, and introduced the ‘Duolever’ on the K1200S. Duolever is an evolution of Norman Hossack’s double wishbone / parallelogram suspension. Geometrically it is a double wishbone system. Some of the BMW engineers must have been mighty chuffed as they now finally have a double-wishbone type suspension, both front and rear.

In duolever the pivoting links and springs are not steered. But, the physical link from the handlebars to the suspension is radically different, involving a hinged link. If you look at the image here, you’ll see the front suspension is completely independent of the steering, with the two only being connected by the hinged link at the top. The link is used for turning the bike.

Hossack’s attempt to revolutionize motorcycle design did finally make it to a production bike in the K1200S. But it left him out in the cold as the K1200S made his debut right after his patent had expired.

CLUTCH TALES by

* Check out the August issue of Motoroids2 to get introduced to the characters of Clutch Tales and to catch up with the story thus far 69

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The ‘Flathead’ Model D introduced in 1929 of the very first ‘Seventy Fours’ of the 1920s. The “Knucklehead’ which made its debut in 1936

Report Mihir GadreThis month we get enamoured by the rich and rather long history of the yankee HOG.

The ‘Silent Grey Fellow’ circa 1910s

The Legendary Harley-Davidson shield logo

HARLEY-DAVIDSON October 2009

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After years of plotting and planning, Harley Davidson finally announced its plans of an official entry into our country last month, with sales commencing by next year. This month we delve deep into the history of this iconic bike manufacturer from the states to try

and find out what makes this ‘distinctly American’ motorcycle manufacturer so popular.

It all started in 1901, when a 21 year old William S. Harley designed a small 116 cc engine. His childhood friend Arthur Davidson and his brother Walter Davidson helped him build a motorised bicycle in 1903. With valuable experience gained from their first project, the boys immediately began working on a new and improved second-generation machine. The bike sported a 405cc engine and an advanced loop frame. The prototype finished fourth in a local race and thus emerged the first ‘real’ Harley Davidson motorcycle. In 1906, Harley and the Davidsons built their first factory on Chestnut Street (later renamed as Juneau Avenue) in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. This location remains the Motor Company’s corporate headquarters even today.

In February 1907 Harley displayed its first V-Twin at the Chicago Auto Show. Harley’s sported quite a few innovations in the early years. Harley introduced one of the industry’s first clutches in 1912, chain drive in 1913, a two-speed rear hub in 1914, followed by a proper three-speed transmission for 1915. Thanks to the Harley’s trademark grey paint and the motors’ reputation for refinement, they got the nickname ‘Silent Grey Fellows’.

Production increased rapidly from 8 units in 1904, 50 units in 1906, 450 in 1908 and to 1,149 machines in 1909. By 1914, Harley had built a huge factory and production had grown to over 16,000 units.

Harley had been selling their motorcycles to the police forces since 1907 and made a huge contribution to the American war effort by supplying

15,000 bikes during WW-I.By 1920, Harley-Davidson was the largest motorcycle manufacturer in

the world with dealers in 67 countries. The V-twin, which had grown from 50 cubic inches to 61 for 1912, was joined by a 74-cubic-inch version in 1921, the first of the famed ‘Seventy-fours’. This was followed by the debut of the characteristic ‘teardrop’ tank in 1925 and of all things a front brake in 1928! In the late summer of 1929, Harley-Davidson introduced its first ‘Flathead’, the “D” model, which remained in production until 1948.

Expert’s estimate that around 300 motorcycle manufacturers had come up in the United States, but, only two survived the great depression, Harley Davidson and its arch-rival the Indian Motorcycle Co. The depression did however take its toll on the company. Sales plummeted from 21,000 units in 1929 to 3,703 in 1933. Despite those dismal numbers, Harley-Davidson proudly unveiled a new lineup for 1934. In order to survive, the company manufactured industrial power-plants and built a three-wheeled delivery vehicle called the Servi-Car, which remained in production until 1973.

Despite the flathead’s virtues, Harley-Davidson felt a more advanced motor would be needed to keep the company competitive in the coming years. The “Knucklehead” OHV engined models were introduced in 1936. It lasted only a dozen years on the market but its influence was far greater than the figure would imply. It formed the basis for all Big Twins produced since, a legacy that can’t be ignored or forgotten.

Harley-Davidson again produced large numbers of motorcycles for the US Army in World War II. The company produced over 90,000 military motorcycles, many to be provided to allies. The U.S. Army asked Harley-Davidson to produce a new motorcycle with many of the features of BMW’s side-valve and shaft-driven R71. Harley largely copied the BMW engine and

The 1959 ‘Sportster’ A much relished ‘Softail’ with a hidden rear suspension Harley’s Sports model, the XR750.

The ‘Servi-Car’

The 1965 ‘Electra Glide’

October 2009

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drive train and produced the shaft-driven 750 cc 1942 Harley-Davidson XA. It remains the only shaft-driven Harley-Davidson ever made.

Harley introduced the Hydra-Glide telescopic forks in 1949. So monumental was this innovation that the company referred to the bikes themselves as Hydra-Glides. In1952, Harley introduced rear-suspension and a foot operated gear shifter for the first time on its bikes! Minor alterations were made over the next several years, but it wasn’t until 1965 that a major step was taken when riders were finally treated to the luxury of electric start with the introduction of the Electra-Glide. The ‘Electra-Glide’ name continues to this day.

In 1969, AMF bought the company, streamlined production, and slashed the workforce. This resulted in a labour strike and a loss in the quality of bikes. The bikes were expensive and inferior in performance, handling and quality to Japanese motorcycles. Sales declined and the company almost went bankrupt. Harley worked with Italian partner Aermacchi to produce the single-cylinder four-stroke, the 250cc ‘Sprint’ in the early 1960s. However, these bikes were Harley-Davidsons in name only, and proved harmful to the company’s image more than the profit they brought.

In 1981, Harley-Davidson executives regained control of the company from AMF. Some heavy restructuring followed with the adoption of modern technology. Rather than trying to match the Japanese, the new management deliberately exploited the “retro” appeal of the machines, building motorcycles that deliberately adopted the look and feel of their earlier machines and the subsequent customizations of owners of that era. A new rear suspension system that looked like the hardtail, but actually pivoted, with springs mounted underneath the bike was introduced. Harley termed it the Softail frame, and it was soon fitted to a wide variety of custom machines-and still is.

The Evolution V2 engine arrived in 1984.The Sportster’s V-twin was

updated with many of the Evolution’s features in 1986. Since the advent of the Evo, Harley-Davidson has produced a host of special models, many of which sold out before hitting the showroom floor.

BuellHarley-Davidson’s association with sportsbike manufacturer Buell

Motorcycle Company began in 1987 when they supplied Buell with fifty surplus XR1000 engines. Buell continued to buy engines from Harley-Davidson until 1993, when Harley-Davidson bought forty-nine percent of the Buell Motorcycle Company. Harley-Davidson increased its share in Buell to ninety-eight percent in 1998, and to complete ownership in 2003.

MV Augusta & CagivaHarley-Davidson recently acquired the MV Agusta Group for $109M

USD giving it the rights to the high performance MV Augusta and the lightweight Cagiva brands.

Present-day ScenarioHarley-Davidson sustains a loyal brand community which keeps active

through clubs, events, and a museum. Licensing of the Harley-Davidson logo alone accounts for almost 5% of the company’s net revenue. It operates the Custom Vehicle Operations division, which makes special editions of Harley models with larger engines.

Today, Harley-Davidson occupies an enviable position in the business world. Demand for its products far exceeds the available supply. Because dealers and buyers have both been left wanting, the company is striving to expand production in the coming years to satisfy the appetite of enthusiasts.

No Amit, the

helmet is to protect

the head, the gloves

are just for your

hands. Oh wait, is

that a rider Manoj

Kumar?

C’mon little eshan, show me what you got!

Mihir, Pradeb and Amit go head on, to compete for the ‘I can pee the furtherest’ title

He’s trying to look romantic with that flower in his hand.

No, we’re serious!

Pradeb had asked Amit for one of his kidneys..Hence, the expression!

Just in case you thought we ever work...

Pradeeb rides pillion with the Ghost Rider!

Jeevansathi profile pic Handsome, fair, 24, smart, spiritual, born again and spirit filled from respectable family seeks medium lady, beautifull from heart, age and religion no bar.

October 2009

Amit had just spotted two grasshoppers in heat!She offered Rash a cuppa chai for free to hitch a ride on the Fireblade! Yeh, Eshan, we know you can fit your puny frame almost anywhere!

Poor people from Rajasthan. Just lose it on witnessing even the slightest

rainfall. Come back to the real world Andy

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

Get a room...Rash!! The ongoing exorcism process for Team Motoroids, performed by Amit!

Small bloke with a small brain on a smaller bike! What was he

thinking?

October 2009

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Whatever happened to good old billboard, print or television marketing!

Err, No, Thank you! Already got one set at home!Phewww!! Seems like the owner suffers from the ‘raging bull’ syndrome! Reservation quota for garbage disposal???!!

Alright! Point noted!!

Would be most glad to do so!

October 2009

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Think you can get crazier than this? Send us your crazy pictures at Crazyworld@motoroids.com and we’ll feature them here along with your name.

Disclaimer : The pictures in this feature have been procured from the Internet and are not owned by Motoroids

Sure, why not?

Yup, we got the best of both worldsBathroom etiquette for Dummies

We wonder when the organs started perspiring!

Well, I believe a tad bit. Will that work?

Circus trafficking- Now, that’s a first!

October 2009

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Write to usFor feedback, suggestions, complaints, spy pics, or just to say hi - letters@motoroids.com

Letters to the editor - amit@motoroids.com

Whacky snaps for Crazy, Crazy, World!! - crazyworld@motoroids.com

Think you have a great article at hand? Send it to us, we just may feature it - features@motoroids.com

Your bikes’ / biking / travel snaps at - bikers@motoroids.com

For getting your club featured in Moto Clubz section - clubs@motoroids.com

Let us know about the achievers in the biking world at - spotlight@motoroids.com

For marketing and advertising queries - marketing@motoroids.com

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