Over 1300 enthusiasts participate in Delhi Bikers Fest

Dubbed as less of an auto show and more of a celebration of the people who ride, the Delhi Bikers Fest saw over 1300 participants, mostly motorcycle enthusiasts, their family and friends, artists, volunteers and vendors.

Organized with the motto – Ride –Respect – Relax, the Delhi Bikers Fest is described as a festival by the motorcycle community of the National Capital Region. Strictly a “no-alcohol” event, the DBF saw not just bikers but their families and friends also bond over a day of events and festivities.

“DBF hopes to be a grass root based festival that celebrates bikers and not what they ride. Our strength is creativity, community and cutting edge love for our city. We hosted DBF partially to reunite with all the contacts we had made over the 50+ Breakfast Runs we had hosted and partially to steer the motorcycling scene in Delhi,” said Joshua John, the brainchild behind the fest.

More than 80 motorcycle clubs participated in the event, most of the participants at the fest old acquaintances and friends from the Delhi Bikers Breakfast Runs hosted since 2009. Most of all, the festival was just an excuse to catch up with old friends and biker buddies.

Custom bike builders from Delhi and around participated at the fest. The likes of Bull City Customs, XLNC Customs, TNT Motorcycles, Young Kid Customs, Vintage Thumper Motorcycle Co., Karman Design and Old Delhi Motorcycles displayed their builds.

Interactive games like tug-of-war, slow race kept both participants and the audience entertained. Children were busy swimming in the pool or taking rides in a Royal Enfield sidecar, while the DJ kept up the tempo to keep participants swaying to his beats.

There were classic bikes on display too, like Yamaha RD350s, Jawa Yezdis and retro BMWs.  Stalwarts of the motorcycling scene gave inspirational talks ranging from building bikes to adventure touring. Vijay Singh of Rajputana Customs shared his journey so far of building custom motorcycles.

Maj Gen (retd) RK Jain talked about his solo scooter ride to London from New Delhi  at the age of 59 and then to Sydney when he was 70. Arun Nangla talked about his solo ride on the world’s longest road (Alaska to South America).

All in all, it was a fun day for bikers and their family and friends to bond over their machines and to swap and share stories about bikes and bike rides. The organizers are now looking to make the event even bigger, introduce more activities, music, arts, exhibitions and a bigger venue to host at least 3,000-5,000 people.