Bulleting

There are many bikes on Indian Roads. Enfiled Bullets stand out among them. It's basically due to the thump they produce and the size of the engine, and the feel. At present, there are no bikes which can be compared with this motorcycle in terms of cubic centi capacity of the engine. So, the engine is bigger, that makes the attached fins bigger and correspondingly other parts too go big near the engine area and you end up getting a bigger feel. The contrast is clear when a bull is parked near any other two wheeler. And when it comes to long rides, it's the bull that's favorite. 

So, is that just it? I thought it's just the size, the macho feel, the thump etc  makes bullets different. I was wrong. There's something more to it. And I can say it because I have ridden my bullet for more than a thousand kilometers now. There's a certain feeling which takes you over when you are on a bullet. It can't be told. It's like bliss. You can feel it, but you can't explain it in words. I now use the car only when Biwi is with me as she cannot ride on the bike while pregnant. And at all other times, it's the bull. And the bull has spoilt me thoroughly. I don't even go to buy the morning milk without the bull. Earlier I walked. Now I ride. 

There was this guy who came to the induction program with me to the new organization that i am joining. He had come to india after many years in the gulf. I had offered to drop him back in the evening as his hotel was in the way to my home. When we came out and i took out my bullet, I could see the joy and glee on his face. He said, "Wow, royal enfiled, great, i am so lucky to ride behind a bullet on my first day here."

I looked at my bullet and said "yeah, that's 500 cc horse for you, you'll love it, hop on"

Tiru

The Birthday Bullet

Biwi took out a piece of paper from her handbag and showed it to me. She had a mischievous smile on her face. It was still two days for my Birthday. The 30th one. I had a look at the piece and my heart skipped a beat. It was the receipt for the advance pai

d for 'Machismo 500 Black' towards Royal Enfield Motors. It took some time to sink in.  I remember telling Biwi many times that I love Bullets. We had hired a bullet in Manali to roam around. She had noticed the joy I got out of riding a bullet. I guess, it was then that she made up her mind to get a bullet for me. I am not sure. Biwi had once asked me about various models of bullet while piggybacking on my TVS Victor. It might have been that she was thinking about it then. Then there were times when I used to lustfully look at bullets at traffic junctions while the signal was red. Biwi might have observed it. And then there were times when I spoke to her about my wish to go on a Ladakh trip on Bullet. 

I asked Biwi the reason for such a big surprise. She replied, tongue in cheek, “You are getting old and I guess you have very less time left to start riding a bullet!” Well, that’s right. Quite right. I never realized when I finished my 20s, always dreaming about owning a bullet and postponing every time due to one or the other reason. Even now, I was not sure whether it is a good decision for us as a family. We are expecting a baby and seriously considering buying a new car. We have FIL’s Maruti 800 with us but we thought we need our own car. Finally I 

gave in. Biwi asked me to choose the model I want though she had booked a Machismo 500. 

It was then that I realized that Biwi had done a lot of research. She knew about machismo’s AVL lean burn engines. The pros and cons. The thump issue with aluminium engines. The silencer modification on machismo. the mileage, the feel, the looks, the 350 vs 500, electra vs machismo vs thunderbird debate etc. I was actually more surprised with her knowledge on bullets than with the fact that she is buying me a bullet! And she knew the exact price of each model, and I didn’t. Biwi hates gadgets and machines and here she was, researching Bullets for me.

 The showroom guys went bonkers when they saw a lone lady coming in to buy a bullet. Anyway, we went for a test drive the next day. I test rode Electra and Machismo 500. I felt good on Electra but Machismo 500 shook me. All my doubts melted once I rode M500. I had made up my mind before the test ride ended.

It is Biwi’s gift on my 30^th Birthday. And whenever I ride my bullet, I feel I have knocked out 20 years of my life. I feel as happy as a child on his first bicycle. Biwi couldn’t have given me a better anti ageing medicine.