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Bleak Scenario

THE ROADS AND INFRASTRUCTURE IN GENERAL IN THE COUNTRY seem to have failed to keep up with the growth in the number of new vehicles coming on to the roads every day. A recent survey conducted in the city of Pune showed that the number of automobiles was more than the population of the city. This is due to the lack of proper public transport. The bus rapid transport (BRT) lanes are not being used properly and the ones that are being used seem to be occupied by municipal transport buses that have broken down. These buses are in such a poor condition that one would hesitate to step into them.

The MotoGP fiasco in Argentina has kicked up quite a stir in the motorcycling world. None of this would have happened if the officials had done their job and black-flagged Marc Marquez for riding in the wrong direction on the racetrack. However, nobody showed the courage to do so because Marquez is running the MotoGP championship like Michael Schumacher was running F1 when he was with Ferrari. His lame excuse was that he did not know what the marshal was saying. If one has been racing motorcycles for the past 10 years and one still does not know a simple rule that one cannot ride in the wrong direction on the racetrack, then one should not race motorcycles at all.

Marquez needs to be suspended for a minimum of six months and a rule has to be brought in that every time a rider bumps someone, he should be docked with championship points. Something has to be done before someone gets seriously hurt or killed. It is not funny when somebody comes and hits you at 300 km/h.

Aspi Bhathena
Editor

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Development and Improvement

THE INDIAN TWO-WHEELER MANUFACTURERS IN THE PAST DID not have an R&D department or, if they had one, it was more like a resting and dreaming department. Most of them thought that they did not need one as it amounted to a waste of money or they were not allowed to have one by their partners. The two local manufacturers that have a good R&D facility are Bajaj and TVS, and now Hero MotoCorp have set up a massive R&D centre on the outskirts of Jaipur in Rajasthan.

In this modern age just having a good R&D department is not enough; taking part in motor sport is also very important for the product. Besides, this gives the R&D engineers exposure to improve their capability. Motor sport also helps the R&D with riders who can push the bikes to their limits and give a feedback to the engineers as to what changes are required to further improve those bikes.

If a manufacturer wants to make adventure sport bikes, then they need to take part in rallying and motocross events. If, on the other hand, they decide to focus on street and sport motorcycles, then they need to compete in road racing (circuit racing). Today TVS have a big advantage over the rest of the manufacturers because they have been taking part in racing for the past 35 years and it gets reflected in their products such as the Apache RTR160, 200 and the RR 310.

Aspi Bhathena
Editor

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Ducal Supremacy

THE LAST MONTH WAS VERY HECTIC FOR ALL OF US AT BIKE INDIA with the Auto Expo and the Bike India Awards being held in quick succession. A number of motorcycle manufacturers seemed to have decided to give the Auto Expo a miss, two of the biggest of them being Bajaj Auto and Royal Enfield.

Although quite a few motorcycles and scooters were unveiled at this year’s event, very few of them were actually launched. The press conferences scheduled back to back make it more or less impossible to attend most of them and even if you make it to the press conference, it proves pointless, for all that you get to see are the backs of the photographers. No wonder a number of manufacturers are having second thoughts about whether it is worth their while to be present at the Auto Expo.

This year there were many strong contenders for the Bike India Two-wheeler of the Year Award. Most of the 22 contenders were premium bikes from Triumph, Ducati, Suzuki, Avantura Choppers, Honda, and the latest entrant, BMW Motorrad. Since affordability is very important for the Indian market, the KTM 390 Duke walked away with the Two-wheeler of the Year Award.

Last month I rode the first production V4 Ducati motorcycle at the Valencia circuit in Spain. I have ridden most of the litre-class superbikes on racetracks and they all feel like 1,000-cc superbikes, but the Panigale V4 has set a new benchmark in the segment.

Aspi Bhathena
Editor

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Truly a Sight to Behold

LAST MONTH I WAS IN LIMA, PERU, FOR THE DAKAR RALLY. This was my first visit to South America and the perception I had about South America being a backward Third World country ruled by drug barons and goons turned out to be totally wrong. In fact, I was in for a pleasant surprise. The roads over there are far better than what we have over here and the most important thing is that people obey traffic rules.

The first motorcycle I saw at two o’clock in the morning was a Bajaj Pulsar 135. Bajaj is the most popular brand of motorcycles in Peru. They also have Bajaj auto-rickshaws with fibreglass body and doors. Our guide said that law and order in South America had improved over the last 10 to 15 years.

Two Indian manufacturers, TVS and Hero MotoCorp, are taking part in Dakar, the toughest motorcycle rally in the world. I spoke to Aravind KP and CS Santosh after the first special stage and both of them looked confident and in excellent physical shape. The bikes, at the speeds they were getting up to on the flat parts of the desert, were a sight to behold as they raced across the desert. Riding a motorcycle off road for anything between 300 and 500 kilometres a day requires a lot of fitness and both the India boys looked extremely fit..

Aspi Bhathena
Editor

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In the Company of a Living Legend

THE FIFTH INDIA BIKE WEEK (IBW) WAS HELD IN GOA ON 24 AND 25 November and it was heartening to see how the biggest bike festival has grown over the years from a turnout of 3,000 to nearly 20,000.

Some people asked me why I brought the living legend, ‘Fast Freddie’ Spencer, to the IBW and the answer is simple: because of my racing achievements and as the editor of Bike India I get to meet these legends. Our readers and fellow bikers don’t get this opportunity, so I thought why not bring him to IBW so that all of you can meet the legend in person? After spending three days with him I can say he is a humble, down to earth human being after all his achievements in life. I had to pinch myself that it was not a dream but I was really driving with Freddie Spencer and for this I would like to thank the folk at TVS Racing, CEA T Tyres and Arai Helmets for making it possible to bring Freddie Spencer to India for IBW. On his part, Freddie really enjoyed the festival, the interactions and was impressed by the turnout, saying he would love to come back to the IBW festival.

I would like to congratulate the team at 70 EMG for the fifth and India’s biggest bike festival and I hope the next one is even bigger.

The new TVS Apache RR 310 is an all-round motorcycle with fantastic handling; you can read our first ride report in this issue.

We would also like to congratulate KTM for having won the Indian Motorcycle of the Year (IMOTY) 2018 award for the 390 Duke.

Aspi Bhathena
Editor