Image Courtesy : http://www.motorcyclesdetails.info
Image Courtesy : http://www.premjis.com
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I write this while experiencing exruciating pain. But duty calls and bringing this grave fault to the fore, immediately, for the betterment of the biking brotherhood is of paramount importance. For the fate of the future of safe riding experiences in India and the improvement of safety features provided by the Indian Two Wheeler industry rests on my ankles. Errr.....shoulders.
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Cutting the drama short, just take a look at the two bikes catering to completely different sections of riders. One is a Bajaj Pulsar 150 costing around Rs.64,000/- and the other a Royal Enfield Electra costing around 80,000/- on road. One sells the commuter a promise of stretching that last drop of fuel to light years while the other promises a riding experience unmatched by any other piece of metal on two wheels.
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Again, lets cut the drama short. I have ridden the Pulsar for quite a few thousand kilometers to understand that the promise is a little far fetched but it sure is a nice city bike. I've been down quite a few times from its saddle but never seriously hurt. I own the Bullet and have ridden it for over 9,500kms over last 6 months and it too fulfills the promise to quite an extent. Again, i've been down from the saddle 2-3 times (you don't ride a Bullet like you would ride a Pulsar!). Nothing major, injuries or rather lack of it, exactly similar on both bikes. Crash guards, placement of RVM's, handlebars, footpegs etc, pretty safe to avoid any major injury from the components of the bike itself. Well what else can you expect in terms of safety features on an Indian bike except discs? Airbags?
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All looked fine with my Bullet, until last Friday i.e. 25/05/07 when I had my next freak fall from, rather along with, the Bullet. While taking a left turn when the light turned green, thanks to the generous rubble thrown on the road by the PMC, the rear gave away and i fell to my left with the bike on top. The crash guard in front & the left footpegs ensured i didn't get crushed under the weight and break anything. But guess what? Take a look at the way the Bullet exhaust/bend pipe has been designed? Jutting out from the engine block, it turns to the right coming out like some design element on an Italian beauty and runs right next to the riders leg. The break pedal is in fact resting on it.
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As i fell to my left, my right leg left its normal resting position on the right footpeg and was airborne for a while. Only to land on the exhaust!!!! Need i say more? I for once, felt the pain the cattle feel when they get branded with hot, flaming signatures on their backs!! An instant was all that was needed for the metal heated to hundreds of degrees to shrivel & peel my skin off the leg. Now i sit here writing this, nursing a bad burn on my right leg right on the ankle thats also got infected. Forget pasting pictures of the damage to my leg cause the weak hearted are sure to black out!
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So coming to the point? I walked away with no broken bones, twisted joints or what ever since it was a small freak accident at around 25kmph or so. Could even these burns have been prevented on a Bullet? Which is where the picture the Pulsar comes into play. The bend pipe on the Pulsar is designed to emerge from the engine, run straight in front of the engine & then turn towards the back. Always as far away as possible from the rider's and pillion's. The exhaust also features a heat shield, which saves the pillion from accidentally getting burnt from the hot metal. All this on a Commuter Bike that costs 2/3rds of the Lifestyle Bike.
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I love the feel of a Bullet on the long rides and spend atleast a grand every month to keep it up and running. Its the only bike that can do what it can do (ZMA comes close or almost matches it and is space age technology compared to RE!). But it feels stupid at times like these to like a bike with WWII technology & costing close to a Lakh (100,000/- for firangs). For that price, even the Disc brakes are optional!!! RE sells only around 25,000 to 30,000 bikes a year and probably have to make money out of only these sales. But that doesn't mean a compromise on safety and good design. Look at the new Pulsar 220 from Bajaj that costs a good Rs.10,000/- more. I don't even want to draw a comparison of features cause the only plus point on the Bullet's side of the chart would be "Its a Bullet!". Thats good in the matters of heart but rarely in cases when life and limb are at stake! What would have been the extent of burns had I fallen on the right side and my leg trapped under the hot bend pipe/exhaust? I sure would'nt have walked away with superficial burns and ridden the bike myself to a doctor. Wonder if RE is listening!! People luv the Bullets for what they are but that doesn't mean we can't take newer, improved Bullets! Give me a safer, superior and faster Bullet and thats my reason to love it more than i already do!
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