Hyderabadi bikers vroom together for road safety

Anwesha.Paul@timesgroup.com
Even as many were busy doing yoga and listening to their favourite songs to observe International Day of Yoga and World Music Day on June 21, over 100 bikers took to the city streets to celebrate the World Motorcycle Day. Organised by MotoWings, a city-based motorcycle club, this year, the ride titled ‘Art of Riding’ was held to spread awareness about
road safety.

“Road safety awareness helps not just you, but also everyone around you. When bikers can spend fortunes on expensive bikes, why do they scrimp on safety gears. In case of accidents, good quality protective gears can minimise injuries and through this ride, we are trying to put this message across to all the bikers,” said Sridhar, one of the organisers of the ride.
The annual ride, which began at 7:30 am from Cyberabad Police Commissioners Office, Gachibowli, brought together a motley crew of bikers from all walks of life — stunt, rally, long-distance, amateurs, seasoned rides, daily bike commuters, et al. “We rode in straight lines so that we don’t congest the road for other commuters. It being a Sunday, there was less traffic and the cloudy weather made the ride an enjoyable one,” said John Tony, a 44-year-old rider from Hyderabad.

After riding for 5km, the bikers reached the end point — Phoenix Arena, Hitec City — in 30 minutes and participated in a discussion where they shared their riding stories. “I took up riding because of my son’s encouragement. I feel women should shed their inhibitions and start riding without caring about what the society thinks of them,” said V Syamala, head constable at the Punjagutta Police station and a champion for safe riding on Twitter.