Dear Media,
Much has been written and spoken in the last week on the dark side of Super-Biking and the riders who own the machines. Barring a few articles here and there, most were blows below the belt. I'd like to point out that No, We are not the bad-boys you so love to portray us as!
I've been riding a superbike for the last whole year and I've been riding Indian bikes for the last ten years. With much conviction I can state that I've become a more safer, saner and mature rider ever since the time I bought my superbike.This is not an one off case, Id safely say the same for all the Super Bikers I know.
Its unfortunate that a young boys life was lost and you wake up to point fingers at everyone from the manufacturer, to the rider and the riders parents. I agree there was a fault, but its not fair to zero in on one person. Yes, 19 is too early to be mature enough to ride but great riders have started their careers as early as 12 yrs.
Yes, the manufacturer makes bikes that go blazingly fast but they expect you to respect that power. Yes, parents buy you a bike out of sheer love for you but they dont expect to get you killed on it.
I would strongly urge people to not gift a superbike to anyone. These machines should be earned and bought with your own money. We as humans have it in our nature to not respect anything that comes for free. Once you spend over 10 Lakhs of your money on a machine, you'll go a good distance to ensure that it remains in good shape. A tiny scratch on it would hurt.
An accident is always waiting to happen, the question is how prepared are you to face it or avoid it. Every rider I know is geared from head to toe and has many thousands of kilometers of superbiking experience. There is absolutely no question of being on a superbike and not being in protective gear. You'll never see a cricketer ever facing a fast bowler without the helmet and pads, you'll never see a doctor treating an infected patient without proper gloves but strangely you'll a few bikers without any gear but that certainly is an anomaly. I personally know so many bikers in India and each has invested a lot of money to ensure they have protected themselves.
We know that its easy to use the words like rash,reckless,crazy,immature,speed demon etc to stereotype us without realising that we are the same people who treat patients, fly your airplanes, manage your money, fight your law suits etc. If you see us in our regular office clothes you'll realise that we're just another face in the crowd who works hard for a living. So I urge you, before putting that pen to paper and begin to write another sensational story, do realise that its not a crime to own and ride a superbike in India. We might ride a little faster when the roads permit to do so and thats usually when you're fast asleep on a sunday morning. Dont believe me?Ask yourself how many bikers have you spotted on the road despite the fact that there are over 5000 of active riders in India. We go great lengths to live our passion because thats what we live for. That is our life!
Yours
A superbiker.
Much has been written and spoken in the last week on the dark side of Super-Biking and the riders who own the machines. Barring a few articles here and there, most were blows below the belt. I'd like to point out that No, We are not the bad-boys you so love to portray us as!
I've been riding a superbike for the last whole year and I've been riding Indian bikes for the last ten years. With much conviction I can state that I've become a more safer, saner and mature rider ever since the time I bought my superbike.This is not an one off case, Id safely say the same for all the Super Bikers I know.
Its unfortunate that a young boys life was lost and you wake up to point fingers at everyone from the manufacturer, to the rider and the riders parents. I agree there was a fault, but its not fair to zero in on one person. Yes, 19 is too early to be mature enough to ride but great riders have started their careers as early as 12 yrs.
Yes, the manufacturer makes bikes that go blazingly fast but they expect you to respect that power. Yes, parents buy you a bike out of sheer love for you but they dont expect to get you killed on it.
I would strongly urge people to not gift a superbike to anyone. These machines should be earned and bought with your own money. We as humans have it in our nature to not respect anything that comes for free. Once you spend over 10 Lakhs of your money on a machine, you'll go a good distance to ensure that it remains in good shape. A tiny scratch on it would hurt.
An accident is always waiting to happen, the question is how prepared are you to face it or avoid it. Every rider I know is geared from head to toe and has many thousands of kilometers of superbiking experience. There is absolutely no question of being on a superbike and not being in protective gear. You'll never see a cricketer ever facing a fast bowler without the helmet and pads, you'll never see a doctor treating an infected patient without proper gloves but strangely you'll a few bikers without any gear but that certainly is an anomaly. I personally know so many bikers in India and each has invested a lot of money to ensure they have protected themselves.
We know that its easy to use the words like rash,reckless,crazy,immature,speed demon etc to stereotype us without realising that we are the same people who treat patients, fly your airplanes, manage your money, fight your law suits etc. If you see us in our regular office clothes you'll realise that we're just another face in the crowd who works hard for a living. So I urge you, before putting that pen to paper and begin to write another sensational story, do realise that its not a crime to own and ride a superbike in India. We might ride a little faster when the roads permit to do so and thats usually when you're fast asleep on a sunday morning. Dont believe me?Ask yourself how many bikers have you spotted on the road despite the fact that there are over 5000 of active riders in India. We go great lengths to live our passion because thats what we live for. That is our life!
Yours
A superbiker.
I think all the news channels should read this and broadcast this as Vijay sir rightly pointed out that much of the darker side of biking has been shown in the past one week or so because a lad who was too young to handle a superbike got killed in a tragic event. Why defame the whole biker community for one mishap which has been glorified. Nobody points out the accidents which
ReplyDeleteare caused by cars in India, day in and day out.
People need to change their perception about bikes, first. Second, The media needs to be more responsible and should be neutral regarding everything rather than forming an opinion of its own.
This also calls for proper provisions for superbiking which obviously is in a bad state in our country.
They should rather look upto groups like GODS where safety is given the first priority so that they can set an example for the upcoming generation which includes people like me. I have my head at the right place and would want it to stay at the same place for the whole of my life.
So lets just stop playing the blame game and do something worthwhile like promoting safe riding.
Great Post at best time ;-)
ReplyDeleteexcellent write up vijay bro and i too agree a sbk needs to be earned... vj bro trust me now m one of ur biggest fan..... from zeeshan iqbal
ReplyDeleteGr8 write up...! Must be shared all around...!
ReplyDeleteHarley is life..!
I dont own a superbike, but i have noticed most of the times that the riders respect other people on the roads but very unfortunate its not reciprocated
ReplyDeleteAwesome, it's so true..very well written. Cheers !!
ReplyDeletewell written Vijay......
ReplyDeleteVijay, you have made your point that media should take note of. Well written and hope the message will reach the media.
ReplyDeleteWell wisher
Well put... I think more people loose lives to unmarked speed breakers, misplaced road dividers and super deep pot holes. But that seems to have become an acceptable loss (Sadly).
ReplyDeleteWell written and point made.
ReplyDeleteVery well said ...Ride Safe ....
ReplyDeleteAmazing I agree with you... superbikes should be earned by our money ... I truly appreciate your words :)
ReplyDelete