Royal Enfield Rider Mania 2012
The annual three day congregation of Royal Enfield enthusiasts from all over the world, Rider Mania 2012, concluded recently at Vagator, Goa. A total of 1600 fans, 1000 of them being riders made this the biggest ever Rider Mania in the history of the company.
The event was flagged off on November 23 with the Slow Race and Figure of 8. In the former, the rider taking the longest time to complete the track without putting his/her leg down or cutting across the other lane is declared the winner. A team event, the Figure of 8 requires team members to ride around a loop which is in the shape of 8 in relay format without putting one's foot down and within the shortest possible time.
On the second day it was time for the Assembly Wars and Dirt Track races in both 350 and 500cc categories. A four-member event, the Assembly Wars requires participants to remove and then reassemble parts of their motorcycles. The Dirt Track requires riders to slug it out on a purpose-built track. The last day had the Cleanest Bike, Lemon and Spoon race, Popular Custom Bike awards and the Celebration Ride. Javeen from Kerala won the Popular Custom Bike award with the maximum number of votes for his 'Egg bike'.
Venki Padmanabhan, CEO of Royal Enfield commented, "All great journeys deserve great destinations. Royal Enfield has pioneered great journeys for decades on Indian roads. And for a decade now we conduct an annual festival called Rider Mania to create a compelling reason for riders across India to collect their friends and go for a long ride. For the past four years that destination has been on Vagator Beach in Goa. Over these 10 years mostly, through word of mouth, the attendance at this festival has grown to almost 1500 participants this year from across India, spending three days of music, mirth and odd riding skills!"