Shows & Events

In June 2011, Shell Advance had launched a competition titled ‘The Shell Advance 7 Riding Wonders of the World’.

The competition asked motorcycle enthusiasts from around the world to vote for their favourite riding road. The final seven ‘wonders’ were then put before an expert panel of judges from around the world and, alongside, a public vote was taken to decide the ultimate route to ride on a motorcycle.

The winner? The scenic route connecting Coorg to Munnar via Ooty in South India!

On February 17th this year, the lucky contest winner Alessandro Donadello from Italy was flown down to India to partake in his victorious spoils and go for a ride through the world’s ultimate riding route on a Ducati Monster 796 and a Ducati Mutistrada 1200. Expert riders were all suited up in their riding gear while Donadello and his friend put on their helmets and sat pillion on the two Ducati bikes. The route is riddled with S turns and as you turn each corner, the vast array of mountains covered in clouds greet you. Further down your surrounded by tea leaf covered terrain, plush with greenery and the view of pristine lakes in the distance. The Monster 786 filled with Shell Advance motorcycle oil roared through the countryside with ease taking each bump that came along and begged for more.

The inner joy of riding through Mother Nature’s beauty at its best left me with a smile on my face that wouldn’t go away. So the next time you’re riding to the south of India, get a bike and ride on the amazing route.

The Learning Curve

It’s time to go back to school for our young rider as he attends the California Superbike School to learn a thing or two about riding faster and exploiting his potential

Story: Saeed Akhtar

Photography: Preethi

They say you’re never too old to learn something new. You’re also never too old to re-learn something. Like every adolescent, who had just discovered the fact that being adept at a motorcycle impresses sophomore girls, I kept two dog-eared copies of Keith Code’s A Twist of the Wrist beside me at most times. Those, coupled with the eponymous DVDs, many years of watching race telecasts on Sunday afternoons and first-hand instructions from our very own editor, were the only sources of riding tips that I ever got. So when the kind people at Preethi Appliances, the firm that brought Keith Code’s brainchild California Superbike School (CSS) to the country, invited me this month for three days of coaching at the Madras Motor Sport Club racetrack, I grabbed their offer with both hands.

Keith Code’s success story was not so much a story of shrewd business practices as one of necessity being the mother of invention. Back in the era of rock-n-roll and hippies, he was an up-and-coming racer eager to improve his craft. However, as he found out to his dismay, useful advice was sparse and hard to come by. Racers those days believed that riding fast was an intrinsic art that could not be cultivated – it just had to come from within. Code made copious notes, asked a number of questions, made meticulous observations and, at the end of it all, decided that riding a motorcycle was a science, just like flying an aeroplane or sailing a boat, and that it could be learnt just as any other science could be learnt.

He finally decided that there was enough interest to set up a school where riders would learn to go faster in a non-competitive environment. This was met with derision and laughter from most racing greats, who didn’t believe that it would yield any perceptible results. Nevertheless, Code persisted and, very soon, his roster was boasting of a long list of world champions and race winners like Waine Rainey, Fred Merkel, Doug Chandler and James Toseland. Two of the youngest up-and-coming CSS students to join that hallowed list are 2009 British Superbike Champion Leon Camier and 2010 AMA Supersport Champion Austin Dehaven and they are both here at the MMSC track with us today. We had better pull up our socks. For three days.

The first thing that strikes you about the CSS team, who have flown in from the US, UK and Australia, is their sheer professionalism and efficiency. You immediately get the feeling that they have got their teaching methodology down pat and are determined to impart to the 50-odd students whatever they have learnt about riding.

Once the introductions were over, Gary, the course controller, conducted the obligatory safety briefing, stressing how necessary it was to follow proper hand signals and also keep an eye on the marshal’s flag at all times. We were given strict injunctions that we were not here to compete with one another, but to learn the art of going faster everywhere. Racing one another was strictly forbidden and anyone caught overtaking perilously would find himself sitting out of the class for the rest of the day.

That done, we headed for our first classroom session, with Dylan Code. Sitting in a classroom with Keith Code’s son expounding his father’s findings and teachings was a surreal experience. Soft-spoken, witty and with years of riding experience in his kitty, Dylan offered us just the right initiation into the perfected-to-within-an-inch learning methodology of the CSS. To avoid monotony as also to reinforce what we had just learnt, the classroom sessions were immediately followed by track sessions wherein the rest of the instructors alternately followed and led the student, minutely observing each of his moves. If somebody was found not correctly following what had just been taught, his assigned coach would move in and demonstrate to him what he ought to be doing, either by means of hand signals or body language. One of the reasons why they’ve been so successful is the CSS’ extremely low teacher-to-student ratio. In every group, each student had to share his instructor with only two other students, thus enabling a very personalised learning experience.

For most experienced riders, who have done their bit of track riding and are fast learners, the classroom sessions, when seen separately, might look like spoon-feeding. Sample this: for a session on turn-in points, they even taped the part of the tarmac just before the corner where you’re supposed to start tipping in your bike. However, much like any conventional school, it is when you add it all up that you begin to see the quantum leap you’ve just taken. By the end of the third day, I found myself getting in and out of corners much more fluently and cracking open the Apache RTR 180’s throttle earlier and with greater assurance. Body posture, counter-steering, turning points, modulating the control levers – every aspect of riding seemed easier now and I was struggling with the bike a lot less than before.

It’s true what they say: a lot of self-practice could possibly haul a genius up to the very top, but for us mere mortals, some expert coaching will always come in handy. I will be back next year.

Pune’s most happening educational hub (Symbiosis Centre for Management Studies (Under Graduate)) is back with with bang this year with its bustling college fest -‘Sympulse’

Following in its foot steps, the college as it did last year, held an event titled ‘Pit Stop’. As the name suggests, the campus’s outdoor parking lot was a stop over for some of the fastest and most expensive bikes and cars Pune has to offer.

The event started off with car show, displaying the world’s finest and most sought after supercars and included a few classics. Students and onlookers were in for a treat with the Rolls Royce Silver Cloud, Bentley MK VI, Porsche Boxster, Ferrari F430, Audi RS5, Mercedes SLS AMG, Mercedes C63 AMG, Mercedes SL 500, Mercedes E350 Cabriolet, Aston Martin Vantage, Jaguar XJL, BMW 650i, BMW 645i and the historical London cab. Everyone watched in awe as each car turned the key to enthrall the crowd with the heart soothing sound that makes heads turn.

After gawking at these beauties for an hour, our eyes and ears turned to take a look at the ground shaking two wheeled marvels coming out of the garage and onto the courtyard. As the crowd surrounding the bikes grew larger, each owner who brought his/her love on two wheels started to talk about their bike and regaled the crowd with the screams of each ones engine. The bike that came for this year’s show and tell were the Indian Chief, BMW R60, BSA shooting star, BSA Golden Flash, Norton Dominator, Ducati 848, Ducati Monster, Suzuki GSX 1000R, Aprilia RSV4 and the BMW R1200GS.

Pit stop by Sympulse was definitely an evening that make you walk away with a smile on your face and longings in your heart to one day own one of these beauties. But the main message throughout the show was ‘ATG ATT’ which translates to ‘All the Gear, All the Time’. Safety first people.

BIKE India is proud to be an associate sponsor of this fest and contribute its part in fostering education and love of automobiles amongst the emerging youth of our country. and More information can be had from the Sympulse website at www.sympulsefest.com.

Pune’s premier educational institution is back with its highly popular college fest, featuring some of the most delectable machinery from around the globe

When a petrolhead thinks about supercars and fast bikes in India, he usually thinks of Bombay or Delhi being the best place to spot them. Well he doesn’t have to any more. Enter Sympulse, SCMS (UG)’s college fest, held in Pune, which hosts an event they call “Pit stop”, where the very best bikes and supercars are displayed.

Scheduled to be held from 30th Jan to 3rd Feb this year, Sympulse promises an awesome display of the world’s finest, most sought after supercars and bikes to get the adrenaline pumping. Last year, Sympulse featured a Yamaha R1, a Hayabusa, a Honda CBR 1000R, a Kawasaki Ninja and many more, including a fleet of superbly maintained Royal Enfields. Amidst frenzied roars from the crowd, all the bikes showcased revved to the limit in a deafening display of their power! This year, Pit stop is going even further with 18 bikes including the mighty Suzuki GSX 1000R and a fleet of Yamahas, and even the Italian exotica, Ducati Monster. Also featured are the Aprilia RS4, the BMW F1200 GS, and the Honda CBR 600RR.And it’s not just superbikes, Classics like the Norton Dominator, the BSA Gold Star, and the Indian Chief are also to be set on display. Pit stop promises to display a fleet of supercars that are set to awe its spectators with power fuelled madness. With cars like the Ferrari F 430, the sublime Aston martin DB 9, and the Rolls Royce Phantom set to make appearances, the event boasts of cars ranging from the Jaguar XJL, to the Hummer H3, to the Bentley VI to amaze onlookers. Other cars to look out for during Pit stop, is the gorgeous Aston Martin Rapide, the Porsche Boxster, the Mercedes E63 AMG a Chevy impala and even a London Taxi!

The distinguished guest list from last year included celebrities like Salman Khan, Riteish Deshmukh, and Miss India Universe winner, Puja Gupta. This year, the guest list will include Justice VS Sirpurkar (Acad Summit), Vikram Kaushal, Yes Bank (Acad Summit), Siddharth Agarwal, Teach for India, Pune City, Director (Acad Summit), Omkar Sane, Writer ( Prose and Poetry), actor Jackie Shroff, film director Madhur Bhandarkar and lyricist Javed Jaffrey.

Clearly a major event for petrol heads all over India, Pit stop Sympulse is definitely one event you can’t miss that puts Pune firmly on the map for cars and bikes to look out for…and if that wasn’t enough, the event is scheduled to kick off with a stunt show performed in BMX bikes! BIKE India is proud to be an associate sponsor of this fest and contribute its part in fostering education and love of automobiles amongst the emerging youth of our country. and More information can be had from the Sympulse website at http://www.sympulsefest.com/

One of the most promising bikes at the Auto Expo 2012 was the Royal Enfield Cafe Racer concept.

And now it seems that the motorcycle maker is burning the mid-night oil to make it a reality. Yes, we know the Cafe Racer concept was also showcased during the 2010 Auto Expo and it should have been posing teasingly at Royal Enfield showroom across India. But now it’s closer to reality.

Upon closer look at the concept displayed at the recent Expo, we were in awe of the fine craftsmanship that has gone on the bike. From the sumptuously sculpted tank to the single humped leather seat, the designers have captured the true Cafe Racer spirit perfectly. The low clip-on handle bar and rear-set foot pegs will give a great sporty riding position. The steeply raked front folk angle, Ohlins gas shock-absorbers in the rear and specially designed twin spar frame are sure to make it a nimble ride. Twin-pod instrument cluster, round headlights, retro taillamps and a cone-shaped exhaust work together to offer gorgeous classic looks. Powering this Cafe Race would be a 500-cc twin-spark (UCE) engine.

Fabulous classic looks and modern engineering is a killer combination. Now, all we have to say now is, “Please god, make it happen soon!”