General biking discussion approved.

The answer to your question can be given in both 'yes' and 'no.' By the looks of it, yes we bikers look different than the crowd, and some people even find this weird. But, being different is our identity. We look different because we are different. Even people think I am weird when i wear helmet in Ghaziabad. But i just don't care. Though admittedly i find it uncomfortable wearing my full riding gear all the time because of unnecessary attention i get from the crowd, but i love it too most of the times, i feel like a celebrity. You'll get used to it with time, you'll start enjoying and so will people around you.

Am i Weird to wear Arm and Knee Protectors in street?

A month Back i got a set of AXO arm and knee protectors (yeah, i know they are cheap, but that was my budget), thinking that they will provide me with some safety in streets (already faced many accidents) , the day i got them, i have been stopped many times by cops, most of them accuse me of being a stunter, (i dont even know how to pull basic wheelies), and people, just look at me weirdly. A few praise me, while most of them will just taunt.. :|




I havent seen 1-2 people except me, riding here in delhi with these stuffs, is it that these stuffs are only meant for stunters ?

well it looks wierd (not normal to the eyes of public). u only get to see the gears in movies or stunt shows and obvious public will think of those shows and stare at you.

well sometime i get funny stares and giggles when i wear HELMET and i am wearing shorts or 3/4ths while riding in my neighbourhood. even i feel wierd but i know in doing the best thing and its for my safety so i just ignore them.

even my colony friends ridicules my decision of wearing HELMET even when i have to ride it to my nearby friends house and not more than 2kms. but i dont listen to them. i only say "tu bas peech baithne ka kaam kar.....aaand matt kha"

These Hawaldars in Mumbai always catch me on NHs whenever I'm on with full protective gear ! Damn..
@ Above, my building friends' mothers were actually complaining my mother for giving me RS1500 for an Aaron Helmet ! HuH

My friend met with an accident around 5 months back. He's really lucky to be alive. His whole arm got a bad scrape, which is a scar now. His shoulder faced the same fate. He wears a helmet just because it is the law now.

When I bought my new bike, he told "Why don't you get a good helmet?" Meaning, Get the cool graphics one. I buy a new helmet. Did cost a lot and now he says, "For Rs. 3,200, I would buy 6 helmets!! Hahahahahahaha......" People still think I'm nuts to buy an expensive helmet. Another one wanted to TRY my helmet on!! @#$^&& Don't you know that a helmet is for ONE rider and the size which he has bought is for HIS head size?

[QUOTE=csajal;382769]I would have said to that poser - "Not unless your Dad gifted me that 220 out of your pocket money!!"

Well jokes aside, my Mom says that the time difference between you being right and you being thought as insane for being right is very little.

The common Indian commuting mentality has hardly moved over Avon and Hero Cycles till date on which if you tumble (and not crash) you end up getting scratches and brusises and going by the "Mard ke seeney main Dard Nahin Hota" philosophy..... it's not a big deal...

So, when you are right by having a full riding gear on.... people think you are insane because they think how much you are scared of getting those scratches and bruises!! Even people in my office try to laugh me off, when I put on my riding jacket, gloves!!

IMHO.. people think - " what is the need of all this ?"
people in mumbai are anyways more - "i give a damn " types... so they think it is complete waste of time..

but what is also funny is that u see quite some people using some modified riding gear .. like a handkerchief to protect them from da pollution...

gloves are a common sight i think...no great stares for that.. riding jacket.. well ... if its summer then u might get to see a few question marked faces...
but boots and knee guards... those are the things that invite some real attention....

the best thing to do is.. have a tinted visior helmet when fully loaded and watch the fun !!

Ogrish has become LIveleak after a dispute I think!

I won't mind people staring at me coz I'm in gear. That way I'll know that they at least do notice me, as most motorcycling accidents happen coz the other motorist did not see the motorcycle.

And I do like the attention I and my bike are getting.

Varied responses to riding gear on my long ride

I was on a 800km trip on my Unicorn, of which for 300 Km I put on complete riding gear.
I was on my way to Chennai from Hosur;
1) A Bajaj Discover rider chased me for 50km straight at 100Kmph upon seeing my riding gear, on the Hosur road near Bangalore.
2) A Unicorn rider felt the urge to race with me on the Bangalore highway near Vellore.
3) A HH splendor rider cut in front of me and practically blocked my way near Chennai on the Highway for sometime. He kept looking back at the menace that was wearing fancy clothes I let him have his way and kept going on at 80Kmph. I smoked him eventually.
4) A RE Thunderbird rider urged his co-riders to make way for me after we rolled on from a red light inside Chennai.
5) Commuters on buses all along gave me queer looks.

There you have it...people do act weird when they see riding gear...

me too will show my friends first!
they think im crazy to spend money on riding gear!

Loved that advice!!!
AWESOME

I think i will try and show them to my friends first
They laugh and ridicule me for waring a helmet and gloves

nice one @ googboog

Damn, that's one insane advice!!

carry a few photos of bike accidents from ogrish and rotten.com with you inside an envelope, next time someone asks you why you're wearing gear while riding your bike, give them that envelope and tell them that you'd rather walk away from a crash than have many different people picking you off the ground using sponges and paint scrapers... i found these pics on another forum...

Buddy.. Its better to be killed by your Dad than on the Road.

Jokes apart, if you make your Dad understand how these things save lives, he would totally understand.

My Helmet saved my Life once, and if I was wearing Knee Pads it would have also saved my right knee from getting busted.