Forget the rippling muscles and tattoos, women are
whizzing with passion
It’s
a man’s world - the term attached when it comes to riding bikes is fading with
an increase of women bike riders in the country.Initially there was a phase
where motorcycles were typically associated with machismo:
rippling muscles, coloured tattoos, rough rides and new conquests
.However
it is not only restricted to and women are not afraid to whiz
into this space.
In many shows, we normally see boys and girls
who ride bikes — there have only been a handful of women who actually rode
them, instead of riding pillion. However times are changing.
The trend of women being part of various bike
festivals is also increasing. Out of many, India Bike Week, one such festival
for bikers, attracts bikers from across the world and has a good participation
from the women folk.
The
Bikerni – An all-female riders club and regular at IBW are one such riders
group that spearheads women empowerment through the medium of motorcycles. The
Bikerni was kickstarted by Urvashi Patole in January 2011. Her aim was to
create a platform for women who ride motorcycles and for those who aspire to
ride motorcycles as well.
With the help of a few dedicated
women, the foundation of The Bikerni was laid in cities all over India.
Sonia Jain, a biker, traveler and marketing professional has
been riding since 2009 and now owns Yamaha MT 01, Royal Enfield classic 500 and
Yamaha FZ 150.
Sarika Mehta just concluded riding her Ducati in Europe and Labhdi
Shah owns a Harley and Kawasaki 800 and rides a lot.
Sheetal
Bidaye, 36, became the first female solo biker to reach the world's highest
motorable pass, Marsimik La, and won a place in India's Limca Book Of Records
for her feat.
For them it is an inspiration, overpowering
experience, bending the rules and most importantly following their passion – to
ride.
Soaking
in the 10 acre festival village in Vagator, Goa India Bike Week, the largest
biking festival in India saw more than 12,000 riders and bike
enthusiasts ride cross-country to Goato celebrate the
spirit and lifestyle of the Indian Biking community.
India
is a country where two-wheelers are the vehicle of choice for millions.
Motorbikes have always been popular in India and seeing a woman on a motorbike
is not uncommon, but they are usually the ones taking a backseat. When you see
a woman pull up to work on her Karizma, she is certain to get some strange
looks and some men with a narrow mindset are of the opinion that ‘girls should
only be riding scooters. However, over the last 3-4 years this philosophy is
seeing a gigantic change--more and more women are riding these machines, and a number of female-only
clubs have helped kick-start this trend, and reverse the widely held typecasts.
One
of the frequent hurdles faced by female bikers is undue male attention.
Watching women displaying riding skills that were once entirely in the male
domain are kind of intimidating to the men folk. Female riders tend to get
followed and bullied by the men riders and that is quite a turn off.
On
the positive side,women today have equal opportunities and freedom to an extent
to be able to choose the kind of lifestyle they desire. Motor biking for
females is no longer a taboo, at least not since it has been declared
that female riders are way less often involved in rash driving than men.
One
such woman biker Sonia Jain is an avid traveller and marketing professional. “I
have always wished to own a bike, even as a child. However ‘buy gold, buy diamonds,
buy a car but never a bike’ was the daunting message I got from home, every
time I tried to persuade them to buy me a bike”, says Sonia adding “but that has changed now. I have been
riding since 2009, I own so many bikes! A Yamaha MT 01, Royal Enfield classic
500 and Yamaha FZ 150. I like to change my motorcycles from time to time to get
acquainted with the other beastly machines out there, so I do not name them, It becomes difficult to replace
your machines once you get too attached to them”.
She
further admitted “On the positive side, today
men have started taking female riders seriously and share their
expertise and technical guidance with them in order to help them better their
riding skills. Male and female enthusiasts come together to celebrate this
mutual love for biking at major biking events, and one such biking festival is
India Bike Week which I have attended since 2013.”
An
increase in female biking trend is automatically seeing a number of female-only
bike clubs come into existence in India. The
Bikerni from Pune – an all-female riders club and regular at India Bike
Week is one such riders group that spearheads female empowerment through the
medium of motorcycles. They organize events and rides encouraging women who
enjoy motorcycling to go on adventures they never thought to go on before. So
now it is not just men, but even women who would like to be associated with the
mayhem, thrill, freedom and the passion of motorcycling.
In
Bangalore, Hop on Gurls is a group
for Bullet riders. Women on
motorcycles are a small minority in India, even smaller is the number of women
who ride motorcycles built by the iconic lifestyle motorcycle brand, Royal
Enfield. One motorcycle club based out of Bangalore aims to change all of that
HopOnGurls. This motorcycle club however is one with a twist. doesn’t
just encourage women to take to riding motorcycles, but while doing so actively
encourages them to try riding the motorcycles made by Royal Enfield. Royal
Enfield motorcycles weigh a portly 180 Kilograms and this weight is something
that scares most men away from this motorcycle, leave alone women riding them.
While it is another story that the Bullet is
remarkably easy to ride with its inherent stability that 19 inch wheels bring
to the table, most folks hesitate to ride this motorcycle due to the sheer
weight involved. HopOnGurls offer to teach women how to ride a motorcycle, to
be specific a Royal Enfield motorcycle.
Aparna Bandodkar admits she gets some
strange looks as she pulls up to work.
Travelling to the office on a Royal
Enfield Standard 350 motorbike isn't, after all, the regular mode of transport
for a dentist.She founded the Regals , a club for female Royal Enfield riders
in Mumbai
For
some women, biking is more than just a leisure activity, for instance Sheetal
Bidaye, 36, became the first female solo biker to reach the world's highest
motorable pass, Marsimik La, and won a place in India's Limca Book Of Records for
her feat. Some are taking to biking
professionally too. The passion to own a set of heavyweight wheels, and a racer
father were inspiration enough for Chennai-based Alisha Abdullah. As India's
only female superbike racer, she now owns a Honda CBR600 and Honda Repsol.
Girls do not ride bikes anymore to only commute; there are more of them doing off-roading
& stunts too.
Although
there is no official data to substantiate the growing number of female taking
to the road on motorcycles, industry experts estimate the number of bikes
bought by females in India is increasing at a rate of 40-50 per cent every year. Bike-makers like Hero, DSK,
Ducati, Yamaha are witnessing an uptick in sales , with the under- 35 age group
driving the trend.
Marketers and industry experts say the Indian
retail landscape is undergoing radical transformation, as more females take
up jobs and see a surge in the average household income. Another factor driving the change is the
increased availability of different types
and sizes of motorbikes. Motorbikes of different weight, height and
size can make them harder to ride for the fairer sex, but manufacturers are
introducing lighter bikes with lower height in the Indian market to tap into a
growing interest from women. For example the Italian firm Ducati recently
launched the Monster 795 bike in India, which weighs far less and is lower to
the ground.
India
is likely to see a big surge of women
bikers in a country, which is the largest maker of motorcycles in the world and
one of the largest manufacturers of two wheelers. But this change and the existence of vast
numbers of female bikers on the road will require a lot of support from
manufacturers and a change in attitude of the society alike. More manufacturers
need to to set up maintenance workshop
facilities were these bikers can learn the mechanics of motorcycles. And as
Sonia mentioned while sharing her experience, biking festivals like India Bike
Week - the largest festival for bikes and bikers - is a large boulevard were
these female riders participate, exchange stories and share their incredible
experiences that celebrate the spirit and lifestyle of female bikers in India
The
festival this year saw the event graced by ace cricketer and
bike enthusiast Yuvraj Singh, known for his enthusiasm for automobiles and is
associated with Autologue Design - a car and motorcycle customization Company
launching its new custom bike designs at IBW.Yuvraj as a first time biker rode
all the way from Delhi to Chandigarh on his friends borrowed bike and now with
his passion growing further he has expressed his interest to be a part of India
Bike Week in 2016 maybe on his own ride.
Auto
consultant Megha Choksey shared aa few
safety tips for female bikers:
• Be
Alert and attentive to both the road and its other users.
• Follow
Road Rules.
• Always
have your safety gear like helmet, knee guard on while riding.
• Always
be seen and heard. Share your detailed
itinerary with your family and friends, ca
Carry extra cell phone and use GPS while riding.
• Always
carry the must have weapons all times – Pepper spray and safety knife and lastly
• Be
Confident.
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