MAD Biker: Riding Passion

MAD Biker: Riding Passion

“Get your motor runnin’, Head out on the highway; Looking for adventure, In whatever comes our way”, goes the lyrics to the Steppenwolf hard rock classic ‘Born To Be Wild’ and it holds true for the gasoline twins of Bhubaneswar and Cuttack Suman Parida aka Papa Wheelie and Abhijit Samantray aka Chichin. These two heavy metal thunders have been riding their passion together since 2016. 

Suman is an engineer by education. He had plans to pursue higher studies but instead got placed in TCS. After working in Kerala and Maharashtra for around three years, he had to return to Odisha in 2016 to take care of his parents who were having health issues. At the end of that year he quit his job to join the family business. Abhijit is an environmental engineer and holds a Masters degree in the subject. After completing his studies, he started working for IMFA. 

Abhijit’s passion for bikes came naturally as he saw his uncle, an avid biker, ride his Yamaha RD 350 with passion and care for it like his child. “Although I didn’t know anything about the bike back then, it was like a bomb to me. It was a huge 350cc twin cylinder monster,” he shared about his first love with a grin. 

Kicking Off 

At ITER, where Abhijit studied, Suman was into bike stunts with his Bajaj Pulsar 220 DTSi. He had installed a wheelie bar on his bike which attracted everyone’s attention. That is where Abhijit first came across Suman. Later on, in 2016, both of them got to know each other at a G2G get-together, through a group called ‘xBhp Bhubaneswar’, a group for motorcycle enthusiasts. “Our first ride was from Puri to Konark through the Marine Drive. It was me, Suman and his younger brother. That was the day I felt an indescribable freedom in riding a motorcycle,” said Abhijit with a satisfied smile.   

Suman got his first superbike in Pune and had a good company of bike enthusiasts. While riding back to Bhubaneswar when he was transferred in 2016, he wondered how he would find like-minded people in Odisha who enjoyed bikes. Once he was here, he found a couple of people who shared the same passion as his for bikes. It became easy for him to patch along and start going on rides. “One fine day, I came across this guy who was riding a big bike and he was so calm and not showing off or anything like that. He was all within himself, away from the crowd, having a cup of tea. Somehow I realised that this is a guy who knows what he is riding and still doesn’t show off. Instantly I knew this was my comrade. We connected instantly and that’s how it all started,” shared Suman about his first encounter with Abhijit. 

Switching Gears

Over the years riding has evolved for the two motorheads. “I started riding during my +2 days with my friend Rachit. I would get a Yamaha RX 100 to his house and we would go to college together. During my engineering days I got my own bike which was a Yamaha FZ 16. The first thing I bought with the bike was a helmet because I had realised that for a true biker a helmet is a must for safety reasons. My uncle bought me a riding jacket which was a first copy of Alpinestars. I did more than 2.5 lakh kilometers on the FZ 16 before getting a Karizma in 2010 and a KTM Duke 3 in 2013. In 2016 I started riding with Suman and we evolved into people who enjoyed our motorcycles and rides as they brought a sense of peace and beauty. We would feel and enjoy the breeze, the roads and the views,” explained Abhijit about their evolution into proper motorheads. 

As the motorcycle junkies rode through the scenic roads of Odisha and life, they felt like they wanted more. They wanted to cultivate a culture of riding in Odisha; riding that is fun, safe and gave an adrenaline rush. And they found the solution in MAD Biker, a one-stop solution for everything related to riding. They realised that there was a big issue in the way we ride our bikes but nobody cared about it. “Injuries and deaths in road accidents are an accepted part of our society,” rued Suman.

Suman started riding when he was  in class 6. When he was in class 9, one of my uncles gifted him a helmet. His uncle understood the necessity of it but Suman’s father would say we don’t need such things in Bhadrak (Suman’s hometown). But Suman was happy when he rode his father’s Bajaj Chetak wearing the helmet as he would feel like the people he saw on TV riding sports bikes with all the gears. He was addicted to the helmet. Later on during his college days, he joined a stunt club. 

“Of course it was bad sports as we were ruining our bikes but the positive thing for me was that I saw people wearing helmets and guards and I bought a couple of guards and a pair of gloves for myself. Every night before I got my Bajaj Pulsar 220 delivered, I would wear all my gear and test them by jumping off of my bed to see if they worked. Back in those days, me and my roommate would eat gupchup for dinner to save money to spend on fuel for our weekend rides. We would get dressed in all our gear and go for rides and that is how I developed an affinity for riding with gears,” he shared about how gears became an integral part of his riding experience.  

He added, “As time passed, we moved on to superbikes. That’s when we faced the challenge of finding the right gears for our new bikes. With more speed you need better protection. The gears we had were not good enough for the bigger bikes. We started looking for premium gear and we had to go out of Odisha to places like Pune, Bengaluru and Chennai just to pick up a pair of gloves.” 

The Quagmire

When Suman returned to Odisha in 2016, things had changed a lot. He joined Triumph Motorcycles in 2017 where he met people who loved riding but faced the problem of finding the right gears. They were able to get high end bikes but not gears. After three months at Triumph Suman switched to Harley Davidson and met more people who were investing in gears but were not aware about what gears they needed. One evening Suman, Abhijit and their friends were together when Abhijit proposed that they should open a gear store as there were no good gear stores in Odisha. 

“The next morning a friend called and asked if we were doing it. Are we serious about what we said last night and I replied yes. The next day we went out searching for a space and that was the first towards MAD Biker. There was a problem and we could be the solution. Abhijit had been working at IMFA and he was a hard worker. I had been in the motorcycle industry for the past two years, so I had contacts and I knew people who were in need of good riding gears which means I had a client base. I somehow knew things might work out,” said Suman with a glint in his eyes.  

Moto Armor Depot – MAD Biker

While brainstorming over the name of the new venture over plates of dahibara aloodum, the duo along with their friend Rachit were thinking about the word ‘Moto’ because it is a commonly used term when it comes to riding gear companies and people relate to it. They also wanted to use the word ‘Armour’. Suman suggested that it should be about something that makes people mad about riding. They ended up with the word ‘Depot’ which sounded old school and one feels like they can get everything related to riding there. They end up with ‘Moto Armour Depot’ or ‘MAD’. “The moment we got it, I knew I had to add ‘Biker’ to it because I knew it would be the game changer,” said an ecstatic Suman. 

The MAD Biker store opened on 10 February, 2019 in Bhubaneswar. Although there are other stores in Bhubaneswar and Cuttack that sell riding gears, the range of products and variety of brands available at MAD Biker gives the riders and bike enthusiasts plenty of options to choose from. The idea is to give people a one-stop-destination for all their riding needs. In the last two and a half years since the store opened, the duo have managed to bring about a dramatic shift in how riding gears and safety are perceived among motorcyclists in Odisha. 

Talking about the customer behaviour changes, Suman said, “Our aim has always been to motivate people to ride safely and to ride with gears. In the beginning things were a bit slow but decent from the business perspective. Because we focus on safety, many of our products are costlier than what you get elsewhere in the market. When people come to our store looking for cheaper stuff, we try to make them understand that their life is worth much more than the gears.”

“We try to get those brands which adhere to high safety standards. There are brands who have offered their products at cheaper prices and higher profit margins but they will dilute our brand. The thing we have created so passionately will be wasted if we try to sell something that is cheap and becomes the reason for somebody’s death. Over the last two and a half years people have started understanding our point and they have started changing their mindset about safety. We had a customer who rode a Hero Honda CD 100 and came to get a helmet for Rs 10,000 for his daughter whom he takes to her tuitions everyday. He said he will come soon to get a helmet for himself as well. That’s the kind of change we are seeing and we think that is success,” he added with satisfaction.

Adding to the point, Abhijit explained, “When you fall on the road it doesn’t care what bike you are falling from. The vehicle that rams you doesn’t ask about your bike. So buy the helmet and other gears for yourself. People come in and ask us to give them a helmet for a Royal Enfield and we tell them that the bike is not going to wear the helmet so ask for yourself. And I guess we have been successful in changing the mindset.” 

“The most important thing while buying riding gears is the fitment. Many times people come in and ask for jackets of their preferred colour. So we tell them that it is a functional gear and not a fashion accessory. You should choose your brand and model and your size. That will protect you when you fall, not the colour. If something fits you right then that might be the best for you more than the level certifications,” he added.

Riding motorcycles is not just for men. The change is happening as women and girls are taking interest and discovering their love for riding bikes. “We are seeing more and more women riders joining this beautiful expression of freedom  which is a great sign of progress for the riding community here in Odisha. We know some women bikers who have been riding long distances and have been successful in influencing more young girls to ride. We are finally breaking away from the limiting shackles of the past,” said Abhijit about the evolution of the riding community in Odisha and how it is becoming more inclusive.

The Revolution Is The Revelation

With the store’s focus on safety and the communication about the importance of riding gears by MAD Biker, the conversation is shifting from riding faster to riding better. A few years ago the biking culture was about rash driving and exploiting the motorcycle but it is now shifting to enjoying the ride, indulging in the places you visit and enjoying the people you are riding with. “That’s where we are trying to direct the flow of energy. Bikes are materialistic things. It is you who has to enjoy the experience, the bike won’t. Right now 30-40% of the crowd that we engage with, which is mostly the youngsters, their queries are about building a community and enhancing the experience and not just getting fast bikes. That’s how the vibe has changed which makes us happy and proud,” shared Suman

The Road Ahead

Riding gears and motorcycle accessories go hand-in-hand. Right now there is not a single dealer in Bhubaneswar or the state that provides premium accessories for motorcycles. So that is the next big thing that the duo will be jumping into. This will help simplify the problems of people who are riding motorcycles and are able to save themselves but not their bikes in a crash. They are looking into accessories that are more functional than beautification like the luggage stays, top box holders, crash guards etc. They will soon be expanding to Sambalpur and Balasore in the next few months. They are almost done with their website which will go live soon. 

For Abhijit and Suman, their motorcycles have always made them feel good and gave them a sense of freedom. The mad bikers are building a community that not only enjoys riding but also makes the roads and the world a better place where sharing experiences through rides nurtures the soul.