Very Sad ..... Bikers, Beware....... :-{

Hi all…..

Yesterday morning, as usual, I was happily cruising down one of the empty stretches en route to my workplace. I will, usually, be in a world of my own with no snarling traffic or any eventful/ uneventful incident to lapse my concentration. This moment, yesterday, was very short-lived as one untoward event manages to divert my attention, well, in a bloody manner.

A plume of dust gathered in a violent way to draw my attention. And when it cleared a bit, I spotted a bike on the ground with a person – seemingly the rider himself - immediately next to it. And an elderly poor man was lying on the middle of the road. I expected him to at least budge away from that point as it was a road frequented by some of the most ill-mannered drivers. Even the most disciplined can’t help running him down if he lays this way. Luckily, the road was deserted which meant even prolonged stint at the same location meant no further damage was wreaked.

Crowd gathered at a rapid pace. I immediately parked my bike and scampered to lift the old man off that perilous place. Folks, his face and his state was heart-rending. He was at least 75 and was bleeding profusely from his head sustaining wounds on his hand and leg. I immediately gathered his belongings that was strewn across the ground and headed to stop a car to take this old man to a nearby hospital. I was cocksure the very first vehicle would halt and lend his helping hand but I was proved wrong. The conventional TV/film scenes of cars on the highway shrugging off this kinda incident prevailed. Some people with managerial image plastered on the face driving the likes of Santro just ignored my pleading request.

In the mean time, the biker, who was also hurt, diverted people’s attention fabricating and narrating a different tale in spur of the moment. He was drumming up support saying a car knocked both of them down and fled the scene. Since it was only the fall that caught my attention I wasn’t sure who was the real culprit. Is it the biker or was it really a car as the biker tells. He was shell-shocked and I mean it, as his face was in such a state of fear. He could not speak. Words were flowing out incoherently. But he was also begging and pleading the oncoming cars along with me to fetch him to hospital.

Anyway, after repeated attempts to stop a car, one “human” stopped and offered to help. One lifted his torso and I lifted his legs and placed him into the car. 2 of the bystanders went into the car along with him. And the car sped off to a nearby hospital. And the biker also left the scene literally in a tearing hurry. Hope the old man is safe now. I was in a double bind as to proceed to the hospital or to carry on with my trip to office. I chose the latter after thinking for few moments as there was already a couple of people accompanying on top of 2 guys in the car. And the hospital was very much at sight – hardly 2-3 minutes. I was content [to some extent] with stopping a car and making them take him to a hospital.

In hindsight, I was contemplating what could I have done better amid this chaos or what could the biker have done had he really been the culprit.

POINT 1:
Firstly, I was angry with the biker, who, according to me, was the culprit. I don’t remember seeing a car knocking them down. But since I was not sure about this, I refrained from squaring the blame plainly on him.

His position was also understandable as he didn’t flee the scene and was frantic in his attempts to get the hurt man to the hospital.

I, again, thought; would anyone have the guts to claim responsibility of running someone down that to amid an unknown horde of people? Police case and local thugs resorting to extortion citing some cheap points – making business out of this pitiful and untoward event – are well known.

Even if he had done, chances are that the attention would have shifted to either beating him down or hurling him with abuses instead of expediting the act of helping the old guy.

What if my close friend was in a similar position? Would I go ahead in handing him over to police custody or would I try to play it down at any cost by fabricating an equally plausible story from my end?

Most importantly, what kind of treatment would I want to be meted out to me should I be held in the biker’s shoes?

I even thought at least, that biker could have accompanied the injured to the hospital at least to foot the bill that’s gonna arise out of the treatment, which he failed to do so. What if the old man identifies him as the culprit after getting back to normalcy?

POINT 2:
Secondly, the speeding cars. What stops people from taking injured and suffering people, who are fighting for their lives, on their car? I cannot fathom the reasoning behind it. For some, still, is the blood-stain on their seats matter more than the injured person’s life?

On this front, I thought; what would I have done had I been driving a car and someone begs for help?
Trust me, I was more than 100% sure I would have stopped by and would have proceeded with offering help.

Or did they think stopping their car would result in a police case where they might have to play some part no matter how trivial it is?
Still, a silly point to ponder especially in such a situation.

Or they whizzed past without helping just like that without even a rational reasoning? – Just “Why to unnecessarily get into trouble” attitude?
This is dastardly, atrocious and unacceptable. Would they stand and smile in the future if they were given a taste of their own poisonous medicine by equally careless onlookers and bystanders in case of a grave mishap playing with their lives?

If people are asked to choose between “helping the injured with a lift on their car” and “shrugging off”, looks like majority of them would choose the latter. Pathetic.

It’s an uphill task for anybody to avoid accidents as we all are caught unawares while meeting up with one. But, I still cannot forgive the ones fleeing the scene just like the car guys did.

Accident is beyond control and even the person who inadvertently triggered it could even be condoned but not the owners of the car who shrug off the incident. The accident causer has no choice but these car owners have choices to choose from.

In my perspective, it is these car owners’ act which is more horrendous than even the biker's, who allegedly caused the accident.

POINT 3:
Here comes our subject – BIKERS…!!!!!!! Had it not been for the careless and reckless ride of that biker, this old man would have walked his way to his destination. If his tale of a car knocking the old man was true, excuse me.

School zone, market area, temples, outright residential area are some places where I witness some fast and reckless riding by most bikers. Ironically, these are the places where one has to keep his speed under check.

Last week, when I was coming back home where my mom was sitting pillion, I was hurt. Whenever I carry a pillion, I deliberately move at snail’s pace averting potential dangers of fast biking. It was a small street and I was doing 25-30 kmph. A school girl on her bicycle, who was holding a steady line till now, turned back, probably to adjust her bag or just like that – came diagonally opposite me and the cycle pedal hit my legs. My toes are hurt pretty badly, which I am continuing to nurse. This incident happened in split second.

Nail is partially broken despite wearing shoes. And the wound under the nail is still hurting me. No one fell that day. Majority of the blame has to be on the school girl while I could also have avoided the accident by being extra cautious. Had my mom not been there with me and had the girl fallen down and had there been people watching this, I’d be the person bearing the brunt of the girl’s mistake.

But the slow pace – which I stick to in busy streets, or when I am with a pillion – saved me, my mom, and the girl. I don’t grudge the girl either as I was far more rash on my bicycle in my school days. And the school zone and normal streets rightfully belong to kids and pedestrians just like the highways are for the bigger machines. And we bikers just don’t belong there let alone rocketing down those small roads.

No matter what the accident looks like, how many people are injured or no matter which party is culpable of that incident, the biker image is all geared up to hold you at the receiving end of a real raw deal. If the bike is a Puslar, Yamaha, Apache, Zma or any other bike dressed up in racy fairing, that’ll be the last straw in getting you convicted of the crime.

The bottomline is – BIKERS need to be ultra careful while on the highway or any other place for that matter. Try your best in foreseeing any impending danger and avoiding it. We bikers need to save ourselves, the peers on the road and the image of the bikers at large, especially in the face of plunging respect for bike-borne(s).

POINT 4:
Anyway, after seeing this incident at close quarters, several thoughts raced through my mind. I just wanted to share this with you all. If at all that biker was a culprit, I am sure, his conscience would do the needful. In this case, luckily, I was there at the scene of the accident and the victim was rushed to hospital in no time. It’s usually a road deserted especially around 11 in the morning. And the hospital was just a stone’s throw from that place.

What if there was no one around and a poor man is suffering for his life and you alone are there? No one expects these kinds of incident to be faced with and when you face, you’ll, for sure, be unsettled which won’t result in any rational and sensible action. On this count, a little homework can help.

a. Noting down nearest hospital number.

b. Knowing the hospitals that are nearby your home-workplace route.

c. Knowing the helpline numbers – ambulance and police.

d. Having a first aid kit with you.

e. Or at least be normal enough to call someone to seek help.

Everyone cannot be expected to carry a smart act in the light of grave instances and on these occasions, a little homework by foreseeing some of gory things that might require our help, can be paramount in helping us keeping our cool and letting us do at least the not-so-dumb things.

At the end of the day, I am at least happy that I could jump into action and acted like a human if not like a Good Samaritan. Literally, when you get a chance to help someone like the poor old man, it feels good. Makes you feel that you aren’t that bad. We can be replete with confidence that there would be people to come and help me should I lie on the road injured (TOUCHWOOD). Some might even say I must have gone to the hospital and followed up on his condition. Some might say, in today’s world, it was good that you ensured the man was taken to hospital. But at the end of the day, helping the needy gives you a feeling of content and gives me the right to whine and blame if I am left helpless while injured. And I can also be confident that I can do a better job next time around should I witness an incident on same lines [TOUCHWOOD, again].

Anyway, what would have been your actions had you been one of the following?

a. The biker, who allegedly caused this mishap.

b.Car owner driving past taking notice of people’s plea to take the victim to hospital

c. A bystander

Also, chip in with your points to what can we be armed with when we face things like these, so that we don’t falter at the hour of need and perform some sensible and sincere action, and of course, end up setting an example, well, a good one at least for the fact that some day, our dear ones don't remain helpless because of cringing pubic and careless people!!!!!

Buddy, helmet...........!!!!!!!!!! Else, hell, mate!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thank goodness! After having toyed with the notion of making helmets mandatory, for ages, TN govt. has finally decided to induct the “ride with helmet” rule across the TN state in a phased manner. It is definitely something to heave a sigh of relief on as the grave reality has at last dawned on the senses of the govt. given the string of gory accidents, which has been ringing alarm bells all these years only for the corridors of power to turn a deaf ear to the wails. Who should we cast the blame upon for the delay? Is it the govt. which shelved this rule for eternity or the intransigent commuters who literally flee the scene when it comes to wearing helmets? Let’s contemplate.

Firstly, let’s discuss the obstinate commuters. It’s an open fact that helmets and commuters are an incongruous pairing in Chennai or any other city for that matter where a stern rule is not in place. Being a Chennai-ite myself and a dyed-in-the-wool bike enthusiast, I must mention that I have had a ring side seat when it comes to learning the hassles endured by them in wearing a helmet not to mention that I wear it at any cost albeit braving the about-to-be mentioned pitfalls. Adding to the usual excuses, Chennai is the epitome of typical Indian summer and this immediately rules out the possibility of making helmets mandatory.

Let me first zero in on the excuses made by people for dispensing with helmets, which are, to some extent, legitimate. Owing to scorching heat, the head inside the helmet has a greater chance of sweating and eventually getting drenched in it completely thereby leading to foul odour and hair-loss. We all know hair-loss is a nightmare for all and sundry. With helmets put on, the field of vision gets obstructed or limited, which again, is quite true. One also faces a brief hearing deterioration as the ears are almost shut, which can diminish the probability of hearing the horn-tooting vehicles and siren-blaring ambulances. Finally, all bikers are posers and would want to show off and look good without helmet, exposing their visage to the PYTs on road. Suppose, the rule gets enforced and helmets are made mandatory, I surmise, this would spawn a zillion new problems, finding and ironing out of which, would be Herculean task.

In spite of the hue and cry raised against helmets, if this rule gets imposed, we’ll have to face the music in the following imperceptible form. The rider may cough up a lump-sum in buying a helmet which doesn’t fit him snugly and might forget to fasten the chin straps up after wearing it, which again, is synonymous with going on a suicidal mission. Just for the heck of donning a helmet and escaping the clutches of extorting agents, oops… cops, one would knowingly or unknowingly settle for a low-quality, uncertified helmet, which in turn hangs the life of the rider in peril.

Roadside hawkers are a rage as they will jump at this golden opportunity and can pull a fast one on ignorant commuters by luring them into buying the spurious helmets, just for the heck of earning a quick buck. Believe me; they certainly have the gift of the gab to do it. With a tinted visor at night, the vision would be far from clear and can lead to many spills and close calls. With these entire intangible rule-flouting in place, which is just the tip of the ice-berg, with more to follow, we’ll have to end up championing a lost cause, if the rule gets imposed bluntly. This makes one thing clear that “rule enforcement” would turn out to be a bitter pill for the commuters to swallow, which has long been its besetting sin. This forces us to scratch our heads in devising a plan palatable to both govt. and commuters and which would ensure that helmets are worn religiously and with steadfast resolution.

After having expended our energy in learning the flip side of helmet-rule enforcement the hard way, let us try to invent some clever way of dealing this rather delicate situation. With bikes burgeoning like crazy in the market and roads getting narrower and more congested, the chances of accidents soars sky-high. This looming threat of helmet-free rides and wearing improper helmets can be tided over by having a two-pronged approach in place. Firstly, raise awareness amongst the commuters on “Importance of helmets”. This would draw educated and level-headed people. Secondly, a last ditch attempt needs to be launched in selling the helmets based on style factors, features and comfort and this attempt would appeal mainly to the snobs who are brought up and weaned in expensive creature comforts.

Apart from taking stringent action on those shirking from wearing one, they must be enlightened on the aftermath of an accident with and without helmet. Some work-shops by renowned bike-groups ( FYI, I hail from Korrupt Ryderz, Chennai :-)) can be put to good use in making people realize how helmets can turn up trumps at crisis. In order to leave a lasting imprint in the minds of commuters, heart-rending pictures of real life accidents, which could, at times, be nauseating, can be resorted to. After all, instilling fear is the key many a time in achieving something out of benign intent. The going rates of the helmets need to be slashed so that it is made easier on the wallet procure. Offering discounts when more than a helmet is bought and giving away freebies can also help. While only a modicum of points can be thought in explaining the importance of wearing helmets, a lot more can go in the form of style, technology and features in achieving the same.

Markets and countries, which have learnt the tricks of the helmet trade, can help other countries in bringing home the bacon. For instance, helmets with ducts and vents can alleviate the sweating issue. Air-conditioned helmets are also up for grabs. Ready made options to switch between plain and tinted visors can come in handy while riding during broad daylight and during wee hours. Helmets offering better field of vision with vents near ears can also eclipse visual/hearing hassles cited. As people are loath to buying plain-Jane designs, embossing Rossi/Schumy/Ferrari/McLaren effigies with jazzy hues which are akin to international standards can go down a bomb with buyers. Star-studded campaigns in propagating the same can ensure that it ain’t a botched mission. Helmet companies should kick start a custom of bringing family oriented helmet set (right from the notorious kid to the responsible missus) to the stores. To resolve the nagging problem of carrying helmets when the bike is parked at a lot, making helmet locks as stock fitment on the bikes can do us a world of good.

Adding to the slew of advantages what a helmet-donned ride has at its disposal, it keeps ominous exhaust spurts at bay, shoos swarming flies away, protects us from punishing sun beams (in case of a tinted visor) and does hell of a lot more. In spite of all the odds stacked against implementing this rule, govt. must take strenuous efforts in going the whole hog of persuading commuters in wearing one dutifully by spurring the narrated points into action tactfully instead of just inducting it. The underlying theme of this article is to make bike/helmet/rider combo indispensable by displaying the facts and injecting the oomph factor into the custom of helmet-donning. Helmet-buy should also be made a formality along with road tax, insurance and stuff when a new vehicle is bought. The OTR of any vehicle should be inclusive of an ISI certified helmet. This might sound like a quixotic project but we are in dire need of this rule ‘cause we ain’t Lord Ganesha to get blessed with a second head in case of accident.

~Rodeobiker

PULSAR – The bike that made Bajaj an overnight star…..!!!!!

The yesteryear heroes:
It was early 2002 and all the bike freaks were already happy with their RXs and CBZs which were the epitome of performance. It was also time every biker started rooting for 4-strokes, which are greener and also because the 4-strokers were the lesser of two evils. While 4 strokers had got the better of 2 strokers, CBZ was whole-heartedly confirmed and accepted as the first performance bike of the modern era. The man in the street didn’t have the capability to look beyond CBZs and was content with it. The RX has already been dubbed street hooligan and CBZ got the tag of being the most rakish bike possessing blue-blooded manners. The CBZ was an immediate hit. Its instant stardom was attributed to the absence of any competition in the 150cc segment and a deliciously welcome styling and it was just plain sailing in the 150cc waters from then on. TVS pitted its own 150cc challenger, Fiero, in a bid to steal the crown and it also gave a decent fight but the CBZ was not to be dethroned as it thrived on the much-revered Honda badge and commendable performance that pampered the average commuter and tingled the enthusiast. That was the time our home grown bike maker, Bajaj, who took a brave decision to soldier on relentlessly with more audacity even after parting ways with its ex-Japanese counterpart, Kawasaki, burst on to the scene with a bike which radically changed the face of Indian motorcycling. Yes, I am boasting about the Pulsar that stormed into the market in 2002 and is yet to be bested by even the best in the international business and has been a leading light ever since. Being a hardcore bike enthusiast myself, I decided to look back at some of the unrivalled Bajaj strategies that pulverized the competition and eventually made Pulsar a winner. Lets look back at the classic moves shall we?

The star is born:
Bajaj unveiled the classic Pulsar, more importantly, in 2 variants. The first one, which came fitted with a 150cc heart, was obviously for the mundane masses and its elder sibling; the 180cc version was absolutely meant for the performance minded and were christened Classic Pulsars by bike punters thanks to a host of visual and powertrain tweaks it got later. Little did they know the placid pulsar ripples would morph into humongous tidal waves in premium segment. The launch was a precedent of sorts as no bike maker, by far, has garnered the mettle to roll out 2 different bikes, one meant to straddle the quasi performance areas and the other to delight the speed freaks, under the same product name but in a segment which has consistently failed to rake in respectable numbers. This is the reason why all manufacturers kept shying away from exploring the 150 and beyond and dwelled in the happy 125cc medium. The classic pulsars were the most stylish machines the country has ever witnessed. With its macho lines, nicely chiseled petrol tank that looked like a body builder’s nicely toned up broad shoulder blades directly coming out of a gym after a strenuous workout. “Definitely male” slogan seems to have turned the tables on its competition. Till now err … even now, every bike has been addressed with a feminine gender but Bajaj is the one, which gave its bikes a touch of musculature thereby making everyone look at their bikes from a different perspective. That seems to have worked. The overall styling resembled a naked roadster and yeah, people fell head over heels in love with it. The performance of the 150 was not spine chilling but was ahead of its competition and set new benchmarks in the fuel efficiency areas too. Pulsars soon turned out to be a fashion statement among teens. Above par mileage, aggressive naked roadster styling, deceptively large fuel tank, class leading performance and head turning exhaust note were declared to be Pulsar’s hallmarks and the Bajaj’s sales figures already started to skyrocket. This is where Bajaj evokes our praise, as it was that first bike, which started selling as good as 100cc bike. Every Tom, dickk and Harry was complacent and couldn’t ask for more from the Pulsars but the bike makers themselves could not rest on their laurels and gave the classic Pulsars the first ever facelift. Here comes the DTSi.

DTSi storms in:
Yes, the DTSi made its way into the market like a bolt out of the blue. When classic pulsar’s full potential was yet to be harnessed, the DTSi avatar had us all at sea. This brand new avatar was there for a purpose and not for mere show-off. The DTSi’s sole intention was to increase the power and low-end torque along with a hike in fuel efficiency. This statement might sound absurd and would make you sport a derisive smile as the aforementioned features ameliorate at the cost of the other. Hey wait! Bajaj actually achieved the impossible. The DTSi version was already more powerful and more efficient than its predecessor thanks to the twin spark plugs that ensured better and full combustion of fuel. The performance improved by leaps and bounds with its top speed being in a different ballpark. The DTSi bettered the classic version in every possible facet, be it the 0-60,80 sprint, power/torque outputs, top speed, stability, fuel efficiency and even styling departments. Along with a slew of engine tweaks came in Pulsar’s first style tweak. The conventional round headlamp was dumped in favour of a jazzy fairing and voila it gelled well with the body and it gave a breath of fresh air to its overall styling. While the conventional round headlamp version was still available in the market minus an electric starter, its faired counterpart came laden with all the goodies. Here ends the first DTSi’s story but starts the story of another set of revamp that ensued the first one.

Bajaj’s makeover:
After the first revamp, which came out like a thunderbolt, the consumers woke up and started demanding more. The result, a Pulsar fan club website where all the Pulsar aficionados thronged to chip in with their valuable inputs and constructive criticisms to make it even better. We thought the Pulsar’s response time would be more but it again bounced back with a new makeover. This time, it had nothing to do with the product but with the company at large. The immaculate retro Bajaj logo, which was reminiscent of the urban scooters Cub, Super,Chetak, was removed. In came a contemporary logo that gave a fresh lease of life to the company’s new philosophy “Inspiring Confidence”. In the blink of an eye, there was a significant rise in the number of bikes that were sporting the new logo and it spoke volumes about how well the company was doing. The Pulsar, at this point of time, forces us to think about the drastic transformation the company underwent in a very short span of time. It started off its career by making just scooters, which catered to the urban and rural populace. They were doing quite well as scooters didn’t look odd at that time. Times started changing and scooters were claimed to be an anachronism from the past and apparently gained the status of a museum’s belonging. It spurred the company to veer off a bit and start concentrating on their bike manufacturing. Bajaj were quick off the blocks as good bike makers with its models 4 champion and others that followed. The bikes were just run-of-the-mill ones with nothing special about them but were accepted as safe products as fuel efficiency was the underlying theme of any Indian bike and Bajaj seemed to have got the equation quite right. Oh god, I am lost. Where am I? I was supposed to narrate the evolution and the success story of the Pulsar right? What the heck am I doin now? Ok, lets get back to the subject.

The revamp story continues:
After the DTSi bikes established themselves as quite a package, Bajaj started facing a knotty problem. While the 150 Pulsar owners were cock-a-hoop with their bikes, the 180 owners were simmering with anger, as there was no visual differentiator between the 150 and the 180. The reason for the anger is justifiable as 150 was just the spitting image of the 180 and that viciously hurt the pride of the 180 owners. They wanted Bajaj to do something about it. To make things clear, peel the “180” sticker off the tail panel and it’s a case of mistaken identity. Bajaj was a bit lethargic to respond in this regard but they did, ultimately, about which you will be reading in the later part of this article. The situation where every alternate bike is a pulsar arose but Bajaj was not to rest. By the time we started thinking about “is there any way of making this pulsar better?” and from most of the bike enthusiasts, the answer was a resounding “no”, Bajaj had everyone perplexed with its 3rd revamp. They were in a purple patch with every endeavour reaping rich dividends. The revamped bike was already up for grabs and every teen made a beeline to get one, as the styling was, in one word, jaw dropping. For the first time, alloy wheels came in as standard fitment along with a boost in power, again. With 13.3 bhp on tap, the Pulsar was all set to rewrite the rules in the 150 segment and the rival bike makers also followed suit but that’s a different point. The physical dimensions underwent a subtle revision, for good. The fairing was slung a bit lower and the petrol tank shrunk in size and it can hold only 15 litres of fuel vis-à-vis 18 litres on the erstwhile versions. It was a stunner in terms of looks and screamed away with the “style” award. The new look pulsar was heart-achingly beautiful and was peerless. A lot of tech stuff, which was almost Greek to all of us, accompanied the latest version. The SNS suspension was all set to make the ride pampering. The “EXHAUSTec” was the other tech weapon hurled to make this bike all the more special. The best bike in the 150cc segment was a foregone conclusion as none of its competitors could keep pace with Bajaj. Seeing off the fragile competition was nothing less than a cakewalk for Bajaj.

All about p-180:
When we keep blowing P-150’s trumpet for a long time, how can I resist from boasting about the maddening 180 power and wont I be perpetrating an unpardonable crime if I do so? Here comes the most interesting part to make the speed freaks let out whoops of joy. “One eighty DTS-I”…!!!!! Doesn’t it pamper you with gratification of all your senses? That’s the magical spell the 175cc power plant cast on the enthusiasts’ minds. While the 150 sibling was already destroying its 150 competition, 180 audaciously took on the 225cc class, the Karizma. The 180, even though, could sniff and at times outpace the Zma in short bursts of acceleration, the 50cc handicap was tangible when going flat out and as a result, Zma showed a clean pair of heels to the 180 in the straights. The Zma easily kicked dust in the face of the Pulsar in highway stints, no doubt. Nevertheless, Pulsar scored over its 225 rival on mileage front, which was paramount to Indians. But the clincher was the aggressively low pricing which already made Zma see the cloud in the horizon while it was a win-win situation for Bajaj. As usual, Bajaj stuck to their customary philosophy of evading the feeling of complacency at every possible turn of achieving success. Pulsar made Bajaj an overnight star, no doubt. The worst critic might dub their success as mere beginner’s luck but the very same baseless comment was rubbished and thrashed by the iconic status their company attained and more importantly, how they capitalized on it courtesy the Pulsars. Unable to bear the ignominy of Zma netting the “the fastest in the country” title, Bajaj boffins racked up their grey-matters to unveil the most ferocious beast, 180 DTS-i. This revamp, though not a major one on commercial lines, was a huge morale boost and a matter of pride for the Bajaj think-tanks.

180 gets the facelift:
Whilst the list of goodies on the 180 dtsi was as good as the ones in the 150 version, performance, power, speed and the ownership value was different altogether. The refurbished Dts-I hit the showrooms. The ever-hungry bike journos grabbed the machine and pitted the out-for-revenge Pulsar against the laidback karizma to ascertain the king of Indian roads. The hot tarmac under the blazing sun was all set for the biggest and hottest shoot-out. On paper, the Zma was the winner as it had the CC and BHP preponderance over the reworked Indian rookie. It was status-quo in initial drags but the Pulsar had every Indian aghast by registering almost equal top speed as that of Zma. While the Zma had an equally performing machine, Bajaj betters it as an overall package with excellent value for money proposition. There was a world of difference in pricing and fuel efficiency with equally stunning performance. Infact, the real world performance is more pronounced in the Pulsar thanks to the 175cc engine, which was sheer hooligan in its character. The writing was clearly etched on the wall. Before we all could learn about the 1st gen dtsi, we all ran amuck hearing about another round of revamp. The 180 version, along with the 150cc cousin, came fitted with 6-spoke alloy wheels. Enough has been boasted about the changes that accompanied the alloy-wheeled versions. The string of style upgrading plans was shelved for the 150DTSi but 180 DTSi kept marching ahead with its head held high. Here comes the final (well we are fools if we think this way) visual enhancement for the Pulsar. Atlast, Bajaj has refrained from turning their deaf ears to the angst filled cry of the 180 owners seeking a visual differentiator between the 150 and the 180. In a bid to satiate their hunger for difference, Bajaj painted the 16.5 BHP heart and the 17” alloys all black. The step taken was a simple one but the end results were jaw dropping and bore fruitful results especially for the imminent 180 owners. The look was red-hot. This new all-black version was popularly advertised and propagated as “fear the black”. The red-black combo was the meanest bike our country has ever witnessed and this very diabolic outfit could very well shame the likes of the universally renowned R1. The overall look resembled a bowelless satan unleashed right from hell to mercilessly chop the competitors’ heads off. The “fear the black” attempt clipped the wings of the foible Zma, which was already floundering in the face of the 180 DTSi. The Pulsar’s victory was pronounced officially but the Honda was way ahead of Bajaj in refinement but who cares, people preferred Pulsar’s rough nature to Zma’s laidback demeanour.

180’s envelope pushed even further:
Unable to hold its own horses, Bajaj, again, has refurbished the already-eye-popping 180 Ditsee. This time, swaying slightly away from 180’s unique lines, Bajaj forced the “Fear the black” to follow in the footsteps of the pipelined 220. The Zma beater pipped even the impending 220 at the post as it plundered many tech bits from it even before the pioneer’s launch. Will this surprising/shocking move of robbing 220’s USP and charm mar its repute? It is for the Pulsar fans to answer but I hope not. Zeroing in on the updates first. The 180 has been given an upper crust treatment and it says it all. Firstly, the most striking aspect for any speed demon, the Speedo. Bajaj has given a digital treatment here. With orange-lit background, the speedo displays almost-accurate speed at all times and to keep the biker’s passion hot, the analog tacho has been retained. The moment you insert the keys and turn it on, the tacho briskly zooms to the rev limit and comes back, which is a feature taken right away from the superbikes. Good work, folks. Its face has also been made up with a black treatment at right places to give it a frowning look. The tail has been sharpened to a razor’s degree and comes fitted with LED lamps now. Street racers and high-speed corner carvers can forget the pain of switching the indicators off after booming along the curve at breakneck speed as the bike itself does this dutifully courtesy the industry-first self-cancel indicators. The switches are also backlit to keep its visual appeal stunning even in the dark. Bajaj doesn’t believe in an all-cosmetic makeover and this 180 spruce-up is no exception. Bajaj has subtly worked on improving the already spine-chilling midrange and in the process; the top whack has gone up by a good 3 units at 121kmph. A shift indicator has been appended too, which serves a dual purpose of blinking at shift points and also by raising an alarm in the same fashion when the amount of fuel peters out to less than 4 litres in the tank. It has a digital fuel-gauge too. So, a Pulsar rider should never run out of fuel by any chance and if it happens, the blame has to be squared on the rider alone and not on the bike in any case. In usual style, the 150 DTSi has also been reworked. This time, the not-so-liked all-down pattern has been taken off to join the likes of other 150s by employing the universally renowned 1-down, 4-up pattern, which I think would do a world of good to us as well as to the 150. Power has also been reportedly upped to 14-odd BHP, which should see a hike in its already ballistic performance. All the mentioned 180 feature upgrades have made an appearance in the 150 too, which I think, is a fitting answer to the new CBZ Xtreme from HH. In a bid to keep 180 owners in seventh heaven, the all-black paint scheme has been avoided in the 150.

Keeping our fingers crossed:
Bajaj is going great guns with its current strategy. It sill plays second fiddle to HH in sales but its daredevilry approach in every facet premeditates Bajaj to be a formidable force to reckon with. We don’t have to be clairvoyants to predict this simple thing do we? Bajaj have conquered the 150+ segment and ruling it with dictator’s dominance. While it is level pegging in the 125cc class, HH still remain the drawing card in the 100cc segment. In typical Bajaj style, 2 fusillades, with a single-minded purpose of eating into HH’s share, CT100 and Platina were launched. The result, both have sent warning signals to the segment leaders by sporting a very low price tag, eye-popping fuel efficiency figures and respectable performance to boot thereby finding a very special place in Indian skinflint’s heart. Moreover, they have set the sales chart ablaze with stupendous marketing strategies. Bajaj may be no.2 in overall sales figures but the rate of growth of Bajaj is streets ahead of HH’s growth rate. Bajaj is closing in on HH for the world No.1 title like a raging pit-bull chasing its toy. They might snatch the title any time now and they truly deserve it. Won’t an out and out home-grown maker leading the biking world do us proud? Yes it will, without an iota of doubt. Anyway, Bajaj is still forging ahead with its trademark tenacity and a pugilist’s pugnacity. They have also planned to make the biggest and grandest launch in India with their forthcoming weapon, Pulsar 220 DTS-Fi. It comes with many “India first” and a few “Industry first”. Some tech stuffs are out of our imagination’s scope. Bajaj is the only manufacturer to officially pitch in a challenger to Karizma. Needless to mention that the upcoming 220cc is in a different plane altogether. Virtually, before the launch itself, Zma has been written off. Even though the P-220 falls in Zma’s category, DTSFi’s target is the much-awaited fazer250 and Twister250, which are the rumour mills’ latest churns. Bajaj still claims that the model road-tested by top-notch journos was just a prototype version and a host of works is still due to make it market ready. Can we ask for more? Seeing the kind of revamps, facelifts, upgrades what the Pulsar has seen in these four years, it really makes me wonder if the Flagship superbikes like the R1, Ninja or even the ‘Busa would ever have endured this many upgrades and attention. Well, that’s what makes Pulsar and Bajaj combo a special one in India and they are getting a universal acclaim too. Way to go guys. Beware, by the time you finish reading this rather long article, a brand new upgraded Pulsar might have hit the showrooms and that’s what I call wishful thinking.

UNICORN - My most prized possession

“The civilized beast” is the befitting term for the unicorn. Well, some might scratch their heads wondering what the hell this senseless half-wit is blabbering. If you think I am referring to the mythological horse sporting a spiral horn on its forehead, you are absolutely incorrect as I was talking about my most prized possession, Honda unicorn and its nothing but a recently unveiled bike from the Honda paddock which I luckily managed to buy some 6 months ago. I was sick of witnessing “every alternate bike is a Hero Honda” situation and was in dire need of a bike, which has some semblance of performance if not like the lightning quick and incredibly fast track bred Superbikes. Honda really seemed to have perceived the thought running in my mind and launched the most technically advanced and superlatively refined bike, the unicorn. My brief 6-month stint astride this lovely and really capable machine has forced me to document how my perpetual hatred towards Honda amazingly transformed into ever lasting love and here I go.

Let me start with the most mundane aspect of any bike, the styling (mundane in the sense that every common man would have a natural inclination towards a bike’s styling more than anything else). The bike is definitely no head turner and every bike enthusiast would vehemently concur with this very fact but it doesn’t implicitly undermine unicorn’s style statement. Well, the bike is very much known for its prosaic looks just like pulsar is known for its aggressive styling. Honda’s very late foray into Indian market convinced every bike freak that the numero-uno manufacturer is all set to fire its lethal salvo and firmly believed that their debut bike launch would be an imposing landmark in the history of Indian motorcycling especially after watching Bajaj, the Indian bike maker, which kept on unveiling new models and they literally sold like hot cakes. Much to their chagrin, it happened the other way around. When people’s expectation was an obvious “aggressively stylish bike” (more aggressive than the pulsar), Honda launched its sedately styled unicorn. It’s only Honda’s styling department that played spoilsport and made what was supposed to be a landmark launch, a damp squib. But being genuine bikers at heart, we should not needlessly expend our energy in cursing Honda’s design engineers, instead lets overtly praise the computer sculptors who were responsible for astonishing “pulsar styling” after all its our Indian blokes who had the wherewithal to leapfrog even the Japanese guys in the design area. Full marks to them. I think the topic is slowly getting steered off towards pulsar, now lets get back to our intended subject. After spending few years as a mute spectator by making just scooters, I’m sure Honda would have learnt its vital lessons on “Indians’ expectations from any bike maker”. Till now I had been voicing the common man’s standpoint and here comes my viewpoint on unicorn’s styling.

Being a bike enthusiast myself, I was mightily disappointed with its calm styling but an eagle-eyed look left me extolling the same. Honda was simply lavish in its attention to detail. The paint job was neatly done which resulted in a stunningly glossy appearance of its body. Honda has really played it safe by cleverly designing its front fairing by making it very conventional, as fairing is something, which decides a bike’s appeal and for the above-penned lines, Fazer is a clear testimony. Fazer was phenomenally capable but was put off by many a customer due to its bug-eyed fairing. The low-slung nature of its front cowl definitely lends it a sporty look. Behind the fairing, we have the tri-pod consoles gently accommodating the Speedo, Tacho and the much needed fuel-gauge. The different angular resting positions of their respective needles and the way they make brisk movements when the vehicle is on the move will have you in raptures. The instrumentation is of very high quality and believe me, unicorn’s cockpit is way ahead of any other bike’s cockpit in the country. The omission of a trip meter is a culpable oversight. The petrol tank has been well chiseled to offer the best knee recess for comfortably housing your fleshy/skinny thighs inside, not to mention the pristine beauty of Honda’s most respected “wing” logo adorning the macho fuel tank. Just like the front dome, tail part is paramount and the sharply raked in tailpiece is simply a class act. The smartly executed rear part exudes a race bike feel, which gets heavily complemented by the brilliantly swept in taillights. The mega phonic silencer, which breathes out the carbon effluents, is jazzily upswept and wonderfully makes up for the “not so aggressive” styling in good measure. The unicorn’s body is luckily devoid of the most sought after graphics and decals, which have resulted in its cool looks. Keeping in mind its displacement and the number of valuable horses it punches out, a meatier rear tyre should have been the obvious choice but again Honda has let us down by employing a thinner rubber. The bottom line is that the overall styling of unicorn is nothing more than contemporary and looks a bit bland at times.


Now, let’s zero in on the heart of this phenomenal performer. This high revving mill displaces a mammoth 149.1cc and smoothly churns out 13.3 bhp of consistent and linear power. Having woken up to people’s demands, Honda incorporates a slickly designed 5-speed gearbox culminating with the universal 1-down, 4-up shifting mechanism, which drubs pulsar for having employed a harshly condemnable all-down pattern. Gearshift feel is awesome with proper feedback emerging every time you make a shift, which doesn’t give room for false neutrals at all. Seating position is spot on and the chunky cushion seat can house a puny framed kid to a 100-kilo hulking mass with so much hospitality that every rider will instantaneously feel at home once astride. The kick lever is irritatingly tall that one has to bend his body with much difficulty, grab and rightly position the lever with his right hand for the start. Once it’s done, all is needed is an effortless and gentle kick to fire up this ultra-smooth motor. The engine is so smooth that you’ll have to raise the acceleration a bit to believe that the engine is indeed running but I warn you, let this smoothness not deceive you. With a whopping 13.3 bhp on call, this bulky monster can post blistering acceleration times. The unicorn theoretically boasts the best pick up in its class, which is very much evident when engaging in traffic light GPs. The bike literally takes off to a flying start with proper clutch action and can comfortably win the drag race (which is a matter of great pride for all road racers) if the rider is in a sporty mood. The supreme refinement of this powerful bike can play havoc by robbing you of the badly needed sensory thrills which were abundantly present in the phased-out two-strokes but its time we moved on to greener bikes. The class leading torque figures also minimize the need for frequent gear shifting while wading through the impenetrably congested traffic and this very torque can generously help you in breezing past any slow moving vehicle with consummate ease.

Coming to serious performance! Let me reiterate one thing; don’t let its smooth nature deceive you. The bike is definitely capable of showcasing shattering performance. This mean machine can don the role of a humble commuter while lazily revving the engine at crawling speeds and can easily transform into a mature performer at staggering speeds. I have clocked an indicated top speed of 110 kmph but the irony here is the top speed was achieved on the very busy GST road. I was involved in a road rage with another bike and we kept pushing our bikes and the limits like crazy until I was caught unawares when I accidentally eyed the striking-red Speedo needle briskly sweeping its way past the 110kmph mark. My heart stopped pounding for almost a second, as I have never gone this fast on any bike that too on the madly populated GST road which is notoriously known for people’s eccentric riding anomalies. You really have to look at the speedometer to believe the kind of pace you are doing on the bike and it always endows you with a plush ride quality. The bike is bewilderingly devoid of vibrations even after taking the tacho needle to the highest RPM possible. What is the point of doing scorching speeds if you are unable to haul it down when encountering an unexpected obstacle. The highly powerful disc brake up front does its job cleanly by offering awe-inspiring stopping power with no drama staged (drama here refers to rear wheel lock-ups, tyre skid). Unicorn fares astoundingly well on cleanly laid roads and no wonder it can tackle even the pothole filled roads brilliantly. Its is here unicorn’s monoshock hogs the limelight as it can deftly ply on broken roads thereby providing a superior ride quality to the rider. The mono suspension, technically speaking, aids in “mass-centralization”, which in turn leads to its stability and agile handling thereby providing you with the extra dollop of confidence to take the corners more easily and to zip through the straight line in a very composed manner. Honda again breaks new ground by stuffing the highly cursed thinner tyre with a technologically advanced “tuff-up tube” which makes tyre puncture merely an imagination. The vehicle’s mature demeanor is strikingly evident even when you mercilessly push it to attain its claimed top speed of 114 kmph where the engine would still sing the effortless exhaust note (with slight bass tone which makes you feel its power). The brakes, performance and the ride quality set new benchmarks in the 150cc category.

We kept on talking about rider’s comfort, performance…blah blah blah but what about the pillion rider who often would be your most loved ones. Unicorn treats even the pillion rider with the same quality levels and gives him/her the same good feeling without partiality. The high-perched rear seat can be a serious problem if you want to take your mom or granny and reaching it can be an arduous task for any oldie but after clambering on to it, it’ll be like heaven. By now, every reader’s mind would have started thinking about the most critical aspect of any bike, fuel efficiency. Build a bike with terrific features, matchless style and no matter what you do; there will always be a question on fuel efficiency and that’s our mentality thanks to the skyrocketing fuel prices. Unicorn doesn’t disappoint us on the efficiency front as it can return very decent efficiency figures, keeping in mind the bike’s performance and its porky weight. Honda says the bike’s high torque has resulted in going for taller gear ratios which in turn would help the bike in doing those extra miles to a litre of fuel. Ride the bike with a sensible right wrist and the bike can return you an amazing 60 km/l while riding the bike fast and really hard can drop the figures to poor numbers as I am telling it out of my own experience. I rode my bike few days in a very conservative manner (calm pace, sparse clutch action, anticipated turns and braked accordingly) and I was delighted to see a commendable 57 km/l but few days of high-speed and reckless ride plummeted the average to an unacceptable 31km/l which is considered very poor for even the thirsty two-strokes. Overall, 45+ km/l can be easily seen with occasional ripping fused with proper riding habit.

You are approaching the end of my 6-month experience on this gem of a machine. Having said all I like and hate, there are some serious areas of improvements especially in the looks department. Its high time unicorn switched over to alloy wheels at least for the fact that its competition offers it. Incorporation of a trip meter, indispensable side stand indicators, horns that need to scream high decibels, can work wonders in catching up with the pulsar in sales numbers. To be frank, unicorn trails severely in its sales as unicorn sells only 1/3rd of what pulsar sells each month. Bajaj has made several revamps of the pulsar that almost left people chanting pulsar... Pulsar. In the light of these things, Honda did strike back by refurbishing its entire model line up albeit they are just visual. It seems Honda decided to tread the path walked by all by splashing the unicorn with body graphics. The enlarged wing image is a good idea but the colour combination chosen is nothing less than stupid. Having documented my most memorable biking experience, I seriously expect Honda to correct the flaws, which can very well propel this smart machine to the top step of the 150cc podium but Honda had better watch out as its arch rival Yamaha is all set to take the 150cc world by storm with many impending launches, of course, I am talking about the launch of performance bikes. It’s ultimately a treat to watch all the bike makers going hammer and tongs in building competitive and exhilarating bikes that get better and more powerful incessantly yet improving on fuel efficiency, great work folks…!!!!!!

TVS Apache

TVS has made a giant leap in the premium bike segment by unveiling a new bike from it’s stables and have christened it “APACHE”. Several revamps, umpteen cosmetic facelifts, “Fiero is the National MX champion” slogan, all these hype and hoopla were made to promote it’s flagship model “ FIERO” in the most extravagant manner but to no avail. The brave move by TVS is really commendable as it managed to garner the energy and money to develop a completely new bike altogether. All these efforts from the indigenous bike makers take biking to a new level. Coming to the naming trend….tvs apache….hh achiver,hh ambition,hh super splendor, hh glamour… tvs apache doesn’t sound awesome and it doesn’t strike the right chord as this name resembles something like “Murugan patrick”, nevertheless sounds much much better than the hh market leaders. As far as we go by the lines penned, the “apache” seems to be a potent package, not better than the pulsars or the unicorns but will definitely live up to our expectations if not surpass. It’s like the proverbial new wine in a new bottle. Every possible bit has been revised with utmost care and the real icing on the cake is that TVS have done away with their usual 4-gear philosophy and have joined the likes of unicorn and pulsar by employing a fifth cog (hope yam is aware of what’s happening in the market and will fire a salvo soon). Coming to the most interesting part…..PERFORMANCE…..the apache boasts good acceleration times, thanks to its fifth cog. The top whack hovers somewhere around true 110 kmph mark, which is pretty good for any TVS bike. Adding on to the classy remarks, the apache seems to be rock steady and is devoid of vibes but they do start creeping in when revving beyond its peak horsepower. The bike comes shod with a 5-spoke black alloy wheels and loses out to pulsar when it comes to rear wheel width. Despite being a potent package to some extent, I think it will be relegated to sidelines as it doesn’t even come with any technological (R)evolution (at least name sake) unlike others (pulsar-dtsi,nitrox shock absorbers. unicorn-monoshock,tuff-up tube). Looks wise, the apache is very easy on the eye, didn’t experiment anything radical like the legendary yamie did with its models(Libero, Fazer- known for their LOVE IT OR HATE IT FUTURISTIC DESIGNS) but it’s sure to grab attention. Apart from this, there was no tech spec available to draw an “on-paper” comparo with other premium segment contenders. As my gut feeling says, it should come with an engine with displacement no less than 147 cc and will belt out more than 13 horses and probably it can weigh a tad lesser than it’s peers. To find out whether this bike has all what it takes to better the unicorn or the pulsar, we need to conduct some extensive and rigorous road test about which I shall keep you posted in the later edition of “Aravind's Bike Banter” until then keep your fingers crossed.