Royal Enfield Slide School: Slidin’ Around!

“It’s easy, man. You’ll have a tonne of fun and even if you fall… it’s just dirt,” said Powerdrift’s Varun Painter as we got stuck in Bengaluru traffic, where time comes to a standstill. We were heading to Big Rock Dirt Park to attend Royal Enfield’s first Slide School. And it is what the name says -- a school for novices to learn how to slide a motorcycle on a flat-track! 

If you have the skills, you can slide any motorcycle you want irrespective of its size. But the chaps at RE thought that if they are starting a flat-tracking school, they need a motorcycle that is easy to use and purpose-built. Enter the FT411, which is based on the Himalayan and was unveiled at the 2019 Rider Mania. All you need to know about this motorcycle is this -- it has no front brakes, gets a bigger sprocket, new body panels to save weight and 18-inch wheels wrapped in knobby dirt tyres, which made a lot of difference on the track! Also, there’s a custom exhaust that growls every time you twist the throttle. 

Before I go on about how it went, let me quickly explain what flat tracking is and why of all the manufacturers, Royal Enfield is the one promoting it in India. 

Flat tracking is simple. A group of riders race on an oval dirt track on purpose-built motorcycles to clock the shortest time while sliding around the corners. Sliding is not only for looking cool (which does help your Insta game by the way), it is an integral part of flat-tracking as well. More on that later. But why is Royal Enfield entering this sport? First off, dirt tracks are fairly easy to build compared to race tracks and they can be built anywhere as it doesn’t take too much space, making them quite accessible. Moreover, if you are serious about this sport, then converting motorcycles “flat track-ready” shouldn’t be such a big issue. 

The iconic bike maker is pretty serious about flat-tracking and is planning to expand the sport in India. In fact, the brand has partnered with the American Flat Track (AFT) for the upcoming season. 

But all of this depends on the brand’s first-ever Slide School and I was lucky enough to be a part of this insane experience. And what made it even more special was our team of coaches headed by the famed flat track racer Johnny Lewis who has aced both the amateur and professional levels of this sport and the other two trainers -- Nilesh Dhumal and Vijendra Nilagiri aka Nelly and Bheema. Now, I had watched professionals flat-tracking on the internet, but watching these three do it live in front of 30-odd journalists was a whole different experience. 

An unusual place to be: 

I say unusual because you have to recalibrate your mind once you are riding a flat track motorcycle. There are no front brakes; the seat, well, if you call a thin layer of rubber a seat, is a rather alien experience, and even your riding posture is way different than what you’re used to. Your back should be straight and you sit almost on the tank with your posterior off the other side of the bike, towards the outside of the turn. 

Before we even started, Lewis and his team placed some smileys on the corners. No, not to mock us when we went face down on the track, but as a reference point. Being a novice, I was told to keep my right wrist in control and focus on improving my lines. Although I found myself keeping the bike in first gear (most of the time), there was a lot of throttle modulation that was needed for me to stay close to the smileys, err, markers. The fact that the track was made up of dirt, there were a lot of criteria, including weather, moisture content, which part of the track had the most grip and so on, that we had to look into. After the first session, the grooves on the track were really pronounced and it even started drizzling for a few minutes, which didn’t help my case much either. 

Once we settled in our new roles as amateur flat-track riders, the next step was to increase the speed. Now, Johnny asked us to carry enough speed while entering the corner and gas it while exiting. This meant I had to go from 1st to 2nd gear for the second session. I know this sounds easy, but with no front brakes to save me on a slippery dirt track, it is easier said than done. The moment you go from 2nd to 1st on a dirt track, the rear tyre just wants to slide around, which can be a good thing because you want a nice, clean and crisp slide. But it does scare you a little bit the first time! 

Once you get a hold of what you are doing, you can play with the rear brake to keep it upright. While doing all these manoeuvres, you also need to make sure that your left foot stomps the ground. This helps for two reasons. First, it increases the lean angle, which helps you to get that perfect slide. Unlike track riding where you can completely lean in to take a corner, flat tracking requires you to slide in the corner because due to the lack of grip, you just can’t lean in to that extent. Second, you can use your left foot to keep the bike up in case you go into the corner too hot. Don’t ask me how I know this.   

The right riding gear:

Most professional flat trackers prefer to use leathers. If you want to start off in this sport, You should at least get motocross gear

What if you want to have a go at the flat track?

Yes, you can! The Slide School was not a one-off event. Royal Enfield is planning to launch it in more cities in the near future. While it has kicked off the school in Bengaluru, RE is yet to decide which cities will make the cut. So if you are in Bengaluru, you really should go there and attend it. It’s quite affordable as well. If you want to take your own motorcycle, then it’s just Rs 1,500 per session. However, Royal Enfield is also providing the option to ride the BS6 Himalayan (Rs 2,000) or the FT411 (Rs 2,500) for a three-hour session. 

As far as I’m concerned, I’m already planning my next trip to Bengaluru! Because the above image is proof that I have completed the course… without dropping the bike even once. A fact that my colleagues do not believe!