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Room for Improvement

AT THE VERY OUTSET I WOULD LIKE TO CONGRATULATE ARAVIND KP FOR FINISHING THE Dakar Rally. The issue of Indian riders not being able to compete with their international counterparts and fighting for podium positions in any form of motorcycle racing, be it motocross or racing on the tarmac, still remains. In this issue we have done an interview with Aravind KP in which he mentioned that this time he was riding between 65 and 75 per cent of his riding capability and that this helped him in not crashing during the raid. Because our boys lack the out and out speed of the international riders, they have to ride at 100 per cent, or even beyond that, just to keep up with a top-class rider.

The solution to this is to start racing at the age of four or five years and racing with better
riders. It should not matter to you that you are not winning races; your aim should be to
become a faster and better rider and then success will automatically follow. For me, finishing
the IOM TT race was more satisfying than winning all the races I have won put together.

Last month we gave away the Bike India Awards. We had 34 two-wheelers vying for those. As many as 13 sub-200-cc motorcycles were launched during 2018 and there were 19 premium motorcycles contending for the Two-wheeler of the Year Award. After facing competition from the best in the world, the Royal Enfield 650 Interceptor was crowned the Two-wheeler of the Year. The Royal Enfield team, led by Siddhartha Lal, deserves all the accolades, for they have created a fantastic motorcycle. It is not that they made an excellent motorcycle and priced it out of the reach of the enthusiasts; their pricing is the real icing on the cake.

 

Aspi Bhathena
Editor

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Industry Facing a Tough Time

The Indian economy is going through a to ugh time and especially the farming sector is facing a crisis. Naturally, this is taking a toll on the sale of two-wheelers, with most of the big manufacturers showing a de-growth or flat growth for the first time in many years.

The Indian Motorcycle of the Year (IMOTY) award ceremony was held last month and the new Royal Enfield Interceptor had a landslide victory. The Royal Enfield team, headed by Siddhartha Lal, has done a fantastic job with the 650 twins and they deserve all the success. No doubt the twins are fantastic motorcycles, but the icing on the cake is the price; Royal Enfield are not ripping off their customers like others when they add a cylinder and double the price.

Finally, after many years the Pune police are enforcing the mandatory helmet rule for twowheeler riders. Resistance to this is coming from many quarters. Starting with the ordinary citizens, politicians and doctors have opposed the helmet law; some of them saying that you don’t need helmets within city limits since the roads are congested and the speed is low. Incidentally, there is a case in point. I was waiting at a traffic signal and an elderly couple on a two-wheeler were nudged from behind by a three-wheeler. The rider lost control which resulted in the old lady falling backwards as she was sitting side-saddle. Her head suffered a knock on the road and she lost consciousness. She had to be rushed to a hospital. She could have walked away only if she were wearing a helmet. All this happened at less than 10 km/h. Thus, it does not matter at what speed you are riding; wearing a helmet is a must. Wearing a helmet does impede your vision somewhat, that is why you should use rear-view mirrors
while riding your two-wheeler.

 

Aspi Bhathena
Editor

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Additional Financial Burden

Two -wheeler sales have been heading southwards for a couple of reasons, the first one being the cost of fuel and the second the cost of the mandatory five-year insurance for new bikes. This has added another Rs 5,000 to Rs 6,000 to the cost of the entrylevel 100/110-cc motorcycles and scooters. Needless to say, this is a considerable increase when someone is scraping the bottom of the barrel to buy his or her basic mode of transport.

Retro motorcycles are the flavour of the month. After the Royal Enfield 650 twins, Classic Legends have now launched the Jawa 300-cc motorcycle. The big difference between the two is that the Royal Enfield 650 is a modern retro design while Classic Legends have replicated the 1960s’ Jawa. It is a gamble they have taken and only time will tell whether they succeed with its styling. The second problem for Jawa is that Royal Enfield have set a new benchmark with the 650 twins in terms of performance, all-round rideability, and build quality. To better this, Jawa have their work cut out; they will have to produce a phenomenal motorcycle. In this issue you may read the first-ride impression of the Jawa bikes.

The police want to enforce the helmet rule for two-wheeler riders from 1 January 2019 and people and politicians have already started raising objections to it.

I would like to wish all our readers a happy New Year and please wear a helmet while riding. Please don’t drink and ride. Obey all traffic rules, because you don’t only put your own life at risk, but also those of other road-users by not doing so. Think of the loved ones waiting for you at home.

Wish you all a happy New Year once again and safe riding.

Aspi Bhathena
Editor

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Double Delight

LAST MONTH I RODE THE ROYAL ENFIELD 650 TWINS IN THE US AND WE WERE REALLY impressed by the two motorcycles. At that time I speculated that the Conti GT would be priced around the Rs 3 lakh mark and the Interceptor around Rs 2.75 lakh. However, Siddhartha Lal blew us all into the Arabian Sea in Goa at the launch with the announcement of the prices: Rs 2.50 lakh for the Interceptor and Rs 2.65 lakh for the Continental GT. In fact, Siddhartha reminded me about a discussion we had had at their technical centre in the UK last year about how manufacturers tend to double the price of a motorcycle when they add a cylinder to the engine, say, from a single to a twin-cylinder. The single-cylinder 535 Conti GT was priced at Rs 2,10,000 and now Royal Enfield have not doubled the price, but just charged the cost of adding another cylinder. With this pricing Royal Enfield are sure to shake up the motorcycle market and, in the process, have also shown how manufacturers have been taking the customer for a ride.

Mahindra’s Classic Legends have brought the Czech brand, Jawa, back to life by launching the Jawa 300-cc, the “Jawa forty two”, and concept Perak with Bobber styling.

Last month Hero MotoCorp showed four versions of the X Pulse at the biggest motorcycle show in the world, EICMA (the Milan Motorcycle Show). The four variants looked very impressive. After parting ways with Honda, Hero have gone from strength to strength. Taking on the best global players head-on is no mean feat. Hats off to Pawanji for achieving monthly sales of 7,50,000 motorcycles. A great job, sir!

Aspi Bhathena
Editor

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Worth the Wait
IT HAS BEEN NEARLY ONE YEAR SINCE ROYAL ENFIELD UNVEILED THE INTERCEPTOR 650 AND the Continental GT 650 at the Milan Motor Show and, finally, last month I got an opportunity to ride both the bikes in Santa Cruz, California. I was wondering why I had travelled half way round the world to ride motorcycles manufactured in Chennai, India. I got my answer after the ride; because these were among the best roads I had ridden on and probably the best in the world.

The reason for the delay was that Royal Enfield did not want to take a chance with these bikes, being intent on ironing out all possible issues before the actual launch of the two twins. I was really impressed by these two motorcycles that Royal Enfield have come up with. The second surprise for me was the riding capability of Siddhartha Lal. A number of CEOs and MDs say that they can ride a motorcycle, but Siddhartha can genuinely ride well. We were riding hard and he kept up with us. His passion for riding also shows in the products he has launched. This time Royal Enfield have really nailed it.

The cost of fuel is on a northward trend on a daily basis and, needless to say, this hurts the ordinary man, especially the lower middle class who rely mainly on two-wheelers. The government knows that one needs to buy fuel for one’s daily commuting; it is a necessity and not a luxury. This rising fuel cost will also have an adverse impact on the sale of new motorcycles and scooters. They claim that it costs more to build new roads than the road tax paid by the citizenry, which, by the way, is among the highest in the world. Furthermore, if the road happens to be half
decent, one has to pay toll for that “luxury”.

Aspi Bhathena
Editor