For Rich, Bikes Now Magic Bullet for Stress

Six months ago, Laju Augustine was determined to buy a Toyota Fortuner. The 34-year-old head of sales at Cushman & Wakefield, whose family owns a fleet of cars, was keen to upgrade to the luxury sports utility vehicle with an on-road price tag of just under Rs 25 lakh. But the Fortuner never made it into Augustine's garage. Instead, he found himself cruising on a Harley-Davidson SuperLow, his first bike. "I used up the money (budgeted) for a Fortuner to buy a bike for the sheer leisure of riding," he says.

Augustine is one of many of India's well-heeled who are discovering the joys of easy riding with the wind in their hair and adrenaline in their veins. Some of the converts to biking were till recently diehard believers in SUVs, another symbol of adventure and escape into the great outdoors.

Thanks, however, to a clutch of leisure and performance bike makers such as Harley-Davidson, Triumph, Ducati, Suzuki, BMW Motorad, KTM and Kawasaki (the last two via Bajaj Auto) launching heavy premium mobikes in the Rs 10-40 lakh bracket, biking is the new weekend fad for India's loaded set. As Sanjay Tripathi, marketing director at Harley-Davidson India says: "Till recently, SUVs were considered outdoor vehicles. Now the big bikes are becoming the 'getaway vehicles'."

Consider, for instance, Delhibased retailer Ajai Gupta, who owns four SUVs: a Porsche Cayenne, a Toyota Land Cruiser, aVolvo XC90 and a Toyota Fortuner. Gupta's next acquisition: the 1800cc Suzuki Intruder for Rs 14 lakh. "While SUVs are spacious off-roaders and comfortable to drive, high-end bikes give a totally different thrill," says the 47-year-old entrepreneur.

SUV Owners Take to 2 Wheels

And Gupta is no noveau riche novice on a spree to collect wheels for snob value or to keep up with the affluent Joneses. He knows his cranks and chain rings. Evidence: the technology for the Suzuki Intruder is far more advanced as it is shaft-driven (not chain-driven like most bikes) and liquid-cooled (as opposed to air-cooled), giving it a car-like feel, explains Gupta.

SUV owners, it would seem, are more likely to take a shine to Fat Boys (Harley's iconic heavyweights) and Speed Triples (Triumph's popular model). Gopal Machani owns two SUVs - one an Audi Q7 and the other a BMW X1.

Recently, the 28-year-old, who is involved in the family business of automobiles and real estate, acquired the power-packed Triumph Rocket III Roadster for Rs 20 lakh. "After a tough week at work, riding this 2300cc Roadster is a stress buster," says Gopal, who sets off early morning on weekends for a long, easy ride. "It makes me feel I am para-gliding," adds the biking fanatic.

Another SUV buff-turned-biker is Captain Ravee (he insists that's his name, with no surname). The 42-year-old ex-army man, who now manages an education institute and owns a Mitsubishi Pajero and a Suzuki Grand Vitara, recently bought a Suzuki Intruder. He says the vibrations of the 1800cc superbike give him an adrenaline rush and transport him into a different world. On most weekends he rides an average of 800 km, from Delhi to Jodhpur, Delhi to Dalhousie and Delhi to Narkhanda (and back).