Feb 22, 2007 01:31 AM
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(Updated Feb 22, 2007 01:58 AM)
*Prologue
*“When you start liking a product, they stop manufacturing it”. True! Happened with my Nokia 3100, Caliber Croma & Yezdi. Like my reviews on few other possessions & confessions, Yezdi is also a part of my upbringing & repugnantly responsible for whatever I am today(read-alive & married).
The bike once campaigned as "ForEver Bike ForEverValue" & ruled the roads & my adrenalin.
Thy name is Yezdi
Have heard about Jawa? Am sure people who stay in Bangalore can’t miss the puny bike with two silencers zooming rut-fut-tut on Cunningham or Dispensary road! That’s big daddy of Yezdi. The Czech company called Ideal Jawa started manufacturing motorcycles in 1960’s from their factory at Mysore. While Jawa was 350cc & more roundish in look with a “dewdrop tank”, the 250 cc Yezdi had more lines than curves. Between 1960-85 Yezdi motor cycles were a craze in India & they were almost the official feature bike of Bollywood. The popular models were Classic, CL-II, Deluxe & a Sportsmodel. I was pleasantly surprised to see their website – https://yezdi.com still accessible with pictures, history & selling statistics!
The last machine manufactured was in 1998, the model being RoadKing, which I owned for 5 years(97-02) while I struggled to live in Delhi. 250 cc/ 16 bhp Yezdi is a lawless rebel. Yezdi emitted a raw, untamed, rage & passion akin to a Rhino or Bison. Yezdi is one* hell *of a bike. Like pure unadulterated orgasm.
Definitely beast
YRK is an all-metal bike. Other than the indicators, there’s no plastic or fiberglass anywhere in the chassis. If today’s tin, plastic, fiberglass & coat hanger assembled bikes can be termed as “definitely male” then YRK is “definitely beast”!
Like OM, Yezdi too has a cult following in India. There are numerous groups passionate about their prized possession & long hauls.
Few technical advantages of Yezdi over other bikes-
The gear on the left leg is reversed to use as saddle to kick-start. The tactics needs to be learnt carefully & practiced to perfection. One wrong kick, & the reverse pressure are powerful enough to send a massive jolt to the left knee, making it numb & the rider agonized.
Yezdi is the only bike to have single engine but twin expansions(mufflers) giving it a rocket like look & a monstrous pick-up & speed. A Yezdi can growl a cool 100kmph without disturbing the comfort of the rider.
It used a rather primitive “point system” for starting the bike. That means even if the battery is down or absent, you still can start the beast. YRK had the ID electronics fitted though.
It has 4 gears & neutrals in between each gear. It takes time to learn the art of “finding” the neutrals. Once it is mastered, the beast is tamed.
All important parts of the bike are exposed and boasted its simplicity. The two screws of the carburetor could be adjusted to ramp up/ slow the throttle & fuel consumption depending on the terrain & traffic conditions. Thus, carrying a basic tool kit is mandatory.
The 250cc engine capacity is just right for middleweights. Bullet 350/ 500 is too heavy & 175cc 3 geared Rajdoot was too uncool for urban riders.
There are other technical aspects, which may bore non-technical readers. So I will answer the FAQs, if any, on comment section.
Too young to die
I needed a vehicle to travel from Maharanibaug Hostel to college at ITO. As Delhi is infamous for public transportation or lack of it; the general trend was to travel in bikes. I was just back from Bangalore, experience of riding a modified Jawa fresh in mind. Unable to resist the irrational urge I asked my dad for 20K “loan on phone”. I had a choice between Yamaha RX100, KB 100, HH Splendor. Being a Bong mother, my mom believed bikes enticed youngsters to a cowardly accidental death on roads. I convinced her that I will buy a heavier bike, which will keep me undead. Once the first hurdle was won, rest was smoother. I got this 95 Roadking for 16.5k from an owner who favorably fractured his left leg from a car accident. One can’t ride YRK without a “proper” left leg, so he sold it to me.
Five Years in D-belt: Full Throttle
The evening I got my YRK to the hostel, I felt like a hero. I spend hours with it(sometimes it’s a she, as my girl was never comfortable with her & vice versa) unleashing its power & beauty. At 11 pm I decided to surprise my girl. She was staying as a paying guest with some moronic conservative family. I will never forget the uncle’s face on my proposal to take her “for a ride” at 12. But fortune favors the brave lovers(and the Yezdi owners).
Riding a motorcycle is divine. Robert Pirsig & Bill Aitken has written so much; I can’t really explain the metaphysics or epistemology any further.
I ruled Delhi roads(without a license, without valid papers & with a girl pillion) like a rebel.
In winters it did give starting problem, my friend Indranil pushed the bike till it fired. I must thank Indranil for his generosity for sharing the petrol cost. YRK was a guzzler & we spent round 4 times more than what the lighter Indo-Jap chics consumed.
I never had any major accidents(I mean I was unaffected on whatever I met with). Once I hit a metal roadblock, which was shattered by the impact. Then, I hit a pizza deliveryman whose pizza box got detached from the scooter. The bottomline is- YRK was invincible, so was I.
Once a traffic cop caught me jumping read light. I pleaded guilty & said I can’t afford a fine after filling petrol in it. He couldn’t believe someone can be that insane & let me go.
The pleasure of throttling a Yezdi with my girl as a pillion on a chilly winter night on Delhi roads cannot be compared with anything earthly. Next best thing to sex.
Sundays became difficult. Like any relationship, my YRK demanded regular maintenance & overhauling and invariably I used to spend most of my Sundays at Amar Singh’s workshop at Madangir.
Zen & the Art…
During my obsession with my bike I realized, that machine has life & feelings. When one gets too close with a machine, it reciprocates. It’s something grossly unscientific & totally unexplainable, but each morning when I started the bike, the “sound” of engine gave me an indication about its mood that day. Whenever I forced it against its “will”, I had problem. Our bond was so strong that I never imagined we would part with each other. Rather, I dreamt of riding the ranges & travel far off obscured by clouds places.
Epilogue
I got married, soon became a dad & shifted to Faridabad. I still travelled on YRK everyday to Delhi, but couldn’t afford the northbound petrol cost anymore. I was too passionate to leave it, so I bought another fuel efficient & modern Kawasaki. My YRK proudly stood on the porch, waiting for me to gather that mettle for the long awaited voyage amidst the mountains….
But life is not a best-seller & I am no hero.
I sold my YRK to an anonymous Dudhwala for 5 grands.
~fi-ni-to~
