NAGPUR: It’s definitely not for the weak hearted, but those who enjoy the thrill of riding a bike swear by this high on testosterone activity. With mean machines getting better with technology, those touched by wanderlust are hitting the roads with regularity to pursue this passion.

But it may be a fallacy to assume that it is only the young going out on bikes. The city-based ‘Bawa On Bullet’ is one group with members in their late 40s and early 50s. “I used to be an avid biker in my 20s. Such was my passion that I drove to Mumbai alone on a bike,” says businessman Shahrukh Cassad. When in his mid-forties, he decided to revive this passion and bought a Royal Enfield. “Many of my friends joined me. Incidentally, as most of us were Parsees, the group got christened as ‘Bawa on Bullets’,” he says.

What also binds these bikers is their passion for discovering new areas and imbibing unknown cultures. Clocking up to 500 kms in a day on picturesque routes and soaking in the weather are factors over which these bikers bond. “It is an addiction and very difficult to shed,” feels Anmol Singh Sabarwal, a biker in his 30s who now prefers to ride alone. “Riding in a group requires a lot of planning, but if you are alone, the only thing that needs attention is the type of bike,” he says. Sabarwal now does up to 300km all alone.

For the younger riders speed, thrill and adventure are all part and parcel of biking. “It’s fun to set goals and then go out to achieve them,” says Prithviraj Mulik, another city businessman who is part of the Nagpur Bull Riders’ Club. “We routinely go up to Betul to enjoy vegetarian food served at an eatery there,” says Malik. Along with four friends, he recently rode up to Bison Retreat on Jabalpur Road just to have food there. “My dream is to go to Hyderabad to have biryani at Paradise Hotel and return by evening. I will do it once the roads have been repaired,” he says.

For Sunil Kumar, an officer in Coal India Ltd and also from the same club as Mulik, biking is a passion which allows him to be one with the wind. “I sometimes feel that my bike runs on my blood,” he says. But it’s more than just fun for him and his club. “A biker can convey many social messages,” says Kumar. “We spread the message of safety first to all fellow bikers,” he says and adds, “Each member of our club wears the safety gear from head to toe.”

The Bull Riders’ Club also organizes and participates in Mud Valley event in Chikhaldara which is attended by bikers from other districts like Amravati, Yavatmal and even Aurangabad. “Here we organize community welfare projects like eye care for the benefit of local people,” says Kumar.

Creating new benchmarks for themselves and others is the objective of riders in the Thumping Tigers Club . “We clocked 3,500 kms in 16 days on our trip to Bhutan that we finished around Diwali last year,” says Rahul Kable, a businessman. Terming biking as an addiction, he says that youth would serve themselves well if they took to safe and disciplined riding. “During the Bhutan expedition we did not have any mishap or breakdown.”

Raising the bar with their Harley Davidson bikes are the members of Orange City Hog Club . “Whenever a Harley is bought by anybody in the city, we make that person a member of our club,” says Dr Jayant Kole, a member. “For us it’s the thrill of riding and we often meet for breakfast or lunch at Amravati or Seoni,” says Kole and adds that less than 150 miles is a no-show for those riding a Harley. “It’s not about just riding. We also promote the use of helmets and create awareness about traffic rules,” says Kole.

Dividing bikers into two groups – posers and serious riders – Anukaran Singh , who founded the first biking club of the city, Wanderlust, in 2004, says that it’s just over last two years that biking has evolved in Nagpur. “It is basically a widespread sport across the world. I see it as a means of travel. All that is needed to do this is a good sturdy bike and a helmet,” he says, describing posers as those who ride expensive machines, wearing expensive safety gear. “But each to his own, I would say. We travel in a pack and cover up to 600 kms every day. It gives us immense satisfaction if we arrive at our destination in stipulated time without any mishap.”

