Ather Energy Becomes First Electric Manufacturer To Participate In INRSC Bangalore

The first round of the FMSCI Indian National Rally Sprint Championship took place between 18th - 19th May 2019 in Bangalore. Usually, one would witness a horde of ICE (Internal Combustion Engine) powered bikes and scooters participating in the off-road event. But this year had one exception, and that was Ather Energy. The electric scooter manufacturer has been creating an electric buzz around the country, and to prove a point, it pitched its Ather 450 against other souped-up IC engine scooters. And guess what? It clinched third place in the scooter division!

The Ather 450 is the first electric scooter to participate in an Indian off-road motorsport event. Leading the charge for Ather was none other than Abrar Bin Ayub, a well-known face in the motorsport community. If you didn’t already know, he’s won a couple of SEA BAJA events and even qualified for the VW Vento Cup and Toyota EMR Cup back in 2015. In 2016, he took part in Raid de Himalaya, one of the toughest motorsport events in India, where he performed well and had clawed his way to the 5th place before pulling out due to a mishap. Two years later, he returned to the Raid de Himalaya and snatched the title in the Alpine category of Xtreme Moto astride his tricked-out Hero Impulse.

Abrar has been working closely with Ather for a while now and grabbed the opportunity of entering INRSC when it came along. Interestingly, to keep up with its tricked out competition and to stay within the weight limits, the scooter had to shed some weight and add a few off-road components to make it more off-road friendly. For instance, Ather got rid of the front indicators and rear fender while slapping on a high mounted front mudguard and knobby tyres for grip. The company even installed what looks like an external fan to cool the electric motor.

Powering the Ather 450 is a BLDC motor pushing out 5.4Kw (7.3PS) peak power and 20.5Nm of torque. This comes paired with a 2.4 kWh lithium-ion battery pack that delivers a true range of 75km in Eco and 60km in regular mode.

Funnily enough, the only problem they faced throughout the race was the lack of “noise” from the scooter. Essentially, the scooter was so silent that it became difficult for spectators and photographers to tell that an electric scooter was ripping through the circuit. Nevertheless, Abrar, astride the Ather 450, managed to perform really well and won himself a podium position.

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FMSCI Indian National Rally Sprint Championship 2019 comprises of six rounds. The second round of the off-road event will be held on 8th and 9th of June in Mangalore. We really hope the young rider is able to take the crown this time around and prove to the world that electric mobility isn’t boring, and in fact, is what the future looks like.