Roaring 50's into the 11's!

I want you to picture this – thump…thump…thump…at regular intervals. Sort of like your heart beating.  Now I want you to multiply that thump by 50+. 

Can you hear it? 

The thump is now a ROOOOOAAAAAARRRRRRRrrrrr…

A roar from the heart, from the soul and from motorbike engines that range from 350 to 900 cc.

All thumping as one.

Now let’s add some visuals to this auditory symphony. A chain of pearls – a string of lights – extending almost as far as the eyes can see, on roads that were winding till where the sky kissed the tarmac.

56 bikes, riding in tandem.
56 riders putting aside all and any differences.
56 bikes moving as one united column. 

Now, imagine being part of this scene. The “feeling”, the “sensation”, the “feel”…cannot truly be described, like Mohit Chauhan sang in the movie Rockstar - “Jo Bhi Main, Kehna Chahoon Barbaad Karein, Alfaaz Mere, Alfaaz Mere”…. 

That’s the scene that greeted whoever shared the highways with us on July 1^st, 2023. The highways that lead from Bangalore to Belur. And all those who saw it, reacted in more ways than one. 

Some gave us the thumbs up, some made videos, some took pictures, some came and chatted up with some of us, some waved at us, some gaped at us with mouth’s almost wide open. But, all reacted. For it is not a scene that doesn’t touch the soul in some way.

Why?

Perhaps, because it takes a different kind of person to not just be part of one cohesive whole, giving up on their “ego” and their “individualism”. Each rider owning or riding motorbikes that are so disparate – ranging from the very modern and oh-so-fast Triumph Tigers to the Super Meteors to the Thunderbirds and the Classics and the Electras and the Standards of the world (the oldest bike being a 1984 cast iron Bullet owned, maintained and ridden by a very passionate female biker). We had bikes that could do 202 km/hr. to the cast iron that can just about push 80/hr.! We had female riders and male riders. We had bikers in all shapes, sizes and colors. From different social and economic backgrounds. But all of that came to naught when the engines roared, for they roared as one.

When battalions learn to march as one or fight as one, it comes with hours of practice, years of discipline, hours of drills and very regimented living. But when we pick up our bikes on a “ride-day”, mostly before the sun comes up, we meet complete strangers, we shake hands with those we don’t know and hug those we do. We are not man or woman. We are riders. The road doesn’t discriminate basis our gender and we don’t discriminate either, once we are astride our steel horses, and geared up in our motorcycling gear.

And then with no prior practice, no early morning drills, nothing, we still come together as one. We ride at the pace set by the “*Lead” , we do not overtake, we do not “show-off”, we have nothing to prove. There is no “race” of any kind. And we thump together, creating this incredible experience. We leave no one behind and for a brief period, in our shared history – on those days – we all share a bond, an experience, that families will strive to emulate. Most often, then not, we do not know each other’s last names, designations, status, religion, caste...nothing. But we do know what bikes each ride, their unique riding style etc. And on that ride, we are more than family.

This though comes with a Caveat. Not all riding clubs follow this level of discipline or the same kind of bond.

Why do I say this?

Cause I am most grateful for having had the pleasure and privilege of having ridden with a few other clubs (16 years of riding is a lot of riding and that sees clubs wax and wane, hence…) and I can with utmost surety say that nobody does it like India Bull Riders (IBR). I started riding with this club by fluke back in 2014 and since then have ridden several thousand kms with this club to some fantastic destinations. And IBR has stayed true to the ethos it was built on. No person rides alone, we all ride together, irrespective of the bike we ride. And if we have a problem with that, we are politely but firmly shown the door!

Here is to this club and several more decades of being true to the spirit that is the biking brotherhood, the rider fraternity. Proud and grateful to be part of this incredible experience and this club. 

Proud IBRian.

P.S: (For those not from the motorcycling fraternity, *"Lead" is the position right in the front. There are several other important positions in "group riding" some of them are - "Marshals" - those who move up and down the column conveying important messages and keeping the group in check, the Sweep - one of the most important of positions since this has to be a rider with the most experience and maturity and is fully capable of handling most situations on the road and who rides at the extreme end of the group.) 

(All pics are courtesy of several IBR's members)