Words: Sayantan De | Photography: Motul
When I was a young lad, I read all them auto magazines. In one of those glossy pages, I saw the photo of a dude, black t-shirt, sports sunglasses, bandanna — the works. The proverbial biker dude. I did think motorcycling was incredibly cool, though, as this was a story about 2005 Rider Mania, only in its third year at the time. You can imagine my surprise when I realised that the senior gentleman I was talking to, next to the river Ganges at Rishikesh, the president of BOBMC, was none other than the same person! But let’s rewind a little bit, and let me tell you how I ended up at this motorcycle festival!
So, Motul, whose lubricants are used by almost every serious motorcyclist I personally know, has been a long-standing partner of the BOBMC Rider Mania. They were the ones who invited us over to this community-driven event. The trademark of ‘Rider Mania’ now rests with BOBMC, and while there had been two Rider Mania events per year till 2021, in 2022, Royal Enfield rebranded its own event as Motoverse, as it was in that year BOBMC secured the trademark.
The event is attended by Motorcycle Clubs from all over the country, and even some from outside our borders as well! The Brotherhood of Bikers (BOB) is an umbrella organization that comprises individual clubs. Talking to the president of BOBMC, I saw the vision he has for the culture of motorcycling clubs in the country. I will share a few here — a BOBMC app, with an SOS button, which will alert all clubs in the vicinity that a rider or a group needs assistance, and it will have GPS location sharing for those in need. Furthermore, whenever a club goes on a ride, as long as a minimum of 4 members are riding together, those kilometres can be logged into the app and converted into discounts on partner brand products, like Motul lubricants.
The most striking thing about the event was the vibe of the place, though, as it was the exact antithesis of the big-budget corporate nature of the Goan event, with its hustle and bustle and frenetic series of activities. Another thing that was completely opposite to every other event was the community dining hall. That alone turned the event into a giant picnic more than anything else. There was a riding event, but that was not the major draw by any means.
Despite the chill nature, though, BOBMC is important enough with serious enough riders in it that a larger number of top-tier brands besides Motul are a part of the sponsors list every year. So, if you are part of a club with a few members, maybe get yourself registered with BOBMC and give the Rider Mania a try. Just remember to carry enough toilet paper and the all-important bottle with a hole in the cap!
