Owning a bike is easy however, it’s passion that makes one an enthusiast

I remember fiddling with my Pulsar 180 to replace a broken indicator. That is when I realised that a small motorcycle like the Pulsar is a simple machine, which allows a novice person like me to tinker around without damaging the machine. Once I had the indicator replaced, I started doing research about how to fix various other things. After a lot of trial and error, I managed to learn how to carry out basic service of the bike. That is how I fell in love with motorcycles.

Since then, I have always tried to explore the motorcycle beyond its looks. I regularly try to look beyond the obvious and then reach a conclusion about a bike. This of course involves riding the bikes extensively and then learning how it behaves. However, I have hardly seen anyone else take the effort of exploring the bike in depth and then reaching a conclusion.

We all strive to be enthusiasts however; many of us just want to look cool. I have infact seen people buy multiple motorcycles just for the heck of saying that “I own two/ three or even four bikes”. This may sound impressive however, when you look at how such a person keeps his/ her bikes, you will feel ashamed.

I have seen big bike owners do the same and they call themselves real bikers just because they have big bikes. But there is a very small number of people who maintain their bikes regularly and ensure that everything on the bike is working fine. Such people are the real enthusiast, who take time out to make sure that their motorcycle receives proper care and love it deserves. They talk about bikes, plan and execute rides, ride hard (in a safe way) to improve their skills, they make motorcycles a major part of their life. These are the real bikers. Not all of them own a big bike in fact; many of them are owners of small bikes. There is no shame in caring for your bike because that is what a true enthusiast does. You don’t have to be a big bike owner to call yourself a biker. Your FZ or Gixxer or Bullet is enough, all you have to do is simply make sure that you ride it hard and take care of it and do not forget to make motorcycling a big part of your life. Because to be a passionate and enthusiastic biker, you need to be in touch with your bike and not just ride it and then ignore it when it is standing alone in your parking. I urge every biker to invest some more time and passion into motorcycling, because after all, we are a nation dominated by motorcycles. Until next time, Ride Hard!