Bike enthusiast and cricketer extraordinaire, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, recently announced the first edition of South East Asia’s largest bike festival the ‘Bike Festival of India’ (BFI) at a private evening along with the Biking communities across the country.
BFI will be a unique platform for biking enthusiasts to come together, to be a part of this first-of-its-kind biking adventure in India. While adventure is an integral part of BFI, the most unique feature is that it accentuates the importance of safe biking. South East Asia’s leading biking festival will bring together over 120 biking communities from across the nation to participate in a series of events as part of the festival whose finale will be held in October this year at the mecca of biking – The Buddh International Circuit.
The event marks the coming together of Event Capital, a division of the Laqshya Media Group, and Rhiti Sports, India’s leading sports management firm. The event has been conceptualised by Vikram Shankar- VP of Event Capital and Ikjot Singh- the superbiker who also is the founder member.
MS Dhoni, aside from being one of India’s most prolific cricketers, is also a passionate biker and hence has chosen to grace the occasion with his presence. When he’s not knocking the ball out of the park, Dhoni is known to hit the road with one of his many bikes. His love of biking is celebrated as much as his batting prowess.
Talking about the Bike Festival of India, MS Dhoni said, “Biking for me is a passion, which is why I am excited to be part of this initiative that not only is an adventure in its form but also promotes safe biking. BFI will be an annual platform for the biking community to meet, interact and share adventures together. Meeting with the presidents of various biking communities from all over India has been enlightening and I look forward to joining them sometime on the track.”
The Bike Festival of India will start off with a cross country bike ride in the first quarter of 2014, mapping each and every state in the country. This will be at least a month long and is expected to put India in the Guinness Book of World Records. This will be followed by a racing championship at the Buddh International Circuit in March. Thereafter the Bike Festival of India will also host a Dirt Bike Championship and a Rally Championship. The festival will feature a series of competitions such as stunt riding, wheelies, burnouts, stoppies and group rides. In addition, there will also be several off track competitions such as weight lifting, arm wrestling, bench press, push ups and food festivals. Exhibitions of various bikes and bike accessories will also be a significant part of the festival.
Talking about the upcoming festival, Arun Pandey, Chairman and Managing Director of Rhiti Sports, said, “We are excited to be joining forces with Event Capital for the biggest bike festival to ever happen in South East Asia. There is a sizable community of biking enthusiasts in this country and it is important to create an event for them to meet, exchange ideas and have a great time. We have been associated with biking in various ventures. Our Superbike team – Mahi Racing Team India finished at Numero Uno in 2013 and we are looking at keeping this momentum going”.
Deepak Choudhary, Director and CEO of the Event Capital, also echoed a similar viewpoint about the forthcoming bike festival. “Event Capital prides itself on creating event IPs that are unique and interesting. The Bike Festival of India is a property we are proud of because it is a unique festival that will bring together bikers from all over the country with a shared love of adventure and biking, while emphasizing the importance of safety. Moreover the festival will be held at the Buddh International F1 Circuit, the only F1 circuit in South East Asia. We are also thrilled to partner with Rhiti Sports, one of the country’s foremost sports management companies and with MS Dhoni, biking enthusiast and India’s most successful cricket team captain.”
The Bike Festival of India will have no professional restriction on participation. The Bike Festival of India is open to anyone with a love for biking and will showcase various kinds of bikes – street bikes, sports bikes, super bikes and off roaders.
Go to NEXT PAGE for more pics from the launch event