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Greetings XBHP-ians...!!
Dear XBHP-ians,
First of all, a big 'thanks' to the admins/mods for granting me the membership of XBHP. I have been a silent follower for a very long time.
This is Nawaz from Kolkata. Ever since my childhood days, I have always been fascinated by automobiles, and specially 2-wheelers. Back then, I knew nothing of super bikes or super cars, and the knowledge was only limited to the vehicles that were available to the mass-market. However, any bike/scooter passing by, and I knew which model it was, without even looking (I'm Stupid
). My favorite pastime was to make pencil-sketches of bikes/scooters from newspaper advertisements, and I was happy 
.
The interest grew deeper when my Dad decided to bring home the LML Vespa Select II for his daily commute to office. The joy I felt, just by realizing that I would now be able to sit on a 2 wheeler, is something that I cannot find words to describe. Slowly and steadily, the Vespa took the responsibility of taking us places. Though I was too young to ride and too lean to even move the scooter, I felt joy by just sitting as the pillion and roam around with my Dad.
5 years passed by since the Vespa became a family member, and I was never short of insisting my Dad to teach me how to ride. Slowly and steadily he taught me the basics, first only the accelerator (while he managed the brake and clutch), next both accelerator and brake (while he controlled the clutch and gear changes), and finally all 3 of those.
Even though I was able to ride, I never had the courage to take it out on my own (I was in Standard 7th that time). And since I was a very obedient child, my Dad would himself allow me to ride (with him as the pillion of course) sometimes to boost my confidence and experience.
The Vespa stayed with us for 9 years, when my mom convinced my Dad to get a bike, as bikes were more comfortable and safe. I begged for the Pulsar, however, Dad had been brainwashed by his colleagues that Pulsar is a very fast bike and unsafe too(Damn them), and since Pulsar was out of the equation, the next eligible candidate was the Hero Honda Achiever that had just been launched. A small test ride, and both me and my Dad were very much impressed with the comfort and refinement that Achiever had to offer. A silver color was immediately booked and the bike came home in 3 days, and unfortunately, the Vespa was sold off to accommodate vehicle maintenance costs. New to the family, the Achiever was an immensely capable bike, and the USP was its smoothness. Dad uses it till date (11 years already).
Then came college, and I was again in the business of pestering Dad for a new bike, and after huge amounts of effort, he finally agreed to get me the "Fastest Indian", a brand new Pulsar 220F Dts-i version. This elevated me to cloud nine, and I enjoyed the whole 6 years that I spent with it. I even took it to Pune for my first job location.
With the Pulsar 220F
It was during my Pune stay, that KTM launched the Duke 390, and I felt I should go ahead and try it. Visited the showroom and was simply blown away by the raw power and grunt. However, could not manage enough funds for a higher Down Payment and also the guts to be able to pay the EMI (in case I opted for lower Down Payment). Life had few surprises for me. I got transferred to Kolkata in 2015, and got married too in 2016. Now, my wife is also an avid enthusiast who likes to visit places. She had been long aware of my fascination about the Duke 390. Post marriage, she was able to provide me the courage to go forth with the decision of purchasing one. So, finally in July 2016, the black Duke 390 became my prized possession, and sadly, I had to part ways with my Pulsar 220F, as it is not easy to maintain 2 bikes.
Since the Duke became my companion, it has taken both me and my wife on various trips (mainly city rides, and occasional breakfast rides). It also caters to my daily office commute. I must say I am extremely happy with it, and it grows on you daily.
A few pics below:
On the day of Delivery of the Duke.
On a random ride
Dad trying it out
Wifey with the Dukey..!!
The Duke going for a wash.
Cant Stop admiring it.
I apologize for writing such a long post, overwhelmed by the first opportunity to write about my experiences..!!
Wish everyone happy riding.
Cheers,
Nawaz
First of all, a big 'thanks' to the admins/mods for granting me the membership of XBHP. I have been a silent follower for a very long time.
This is Nawaz from Kolkata. Ever since my childhood days, I have always been fascinated by automobiles, and specially 2-wheelers. Back then, I knew nothing of super bikes or super cars, and the knowledge was only limited to the vehicles that were available to the mass-market. However, any bike/scooter passing by, and I knew which model it was, without even looking (I'm Stupid
). My favorite pastime was to make pencil-sketches of bikes/scooters from newspaper advertisements, and I was happy .The interest grew deeper when my Dad decided to bring home the LML Vespa Select II for his daily commute to office. The joy I felt, just by realizing that I would now be able to sit on a 2 wheeler, is something that I cannot find words to describe. Slowly and steadily, the Vespa took the responsibility of taking us places. Though I was too young to ride and too lean to even move the scooter, I felt joy by just sitting as the pillion and roam around with my Dad.
5 years passed by since the Vespa became a family member, and I was never short of insisting my Dad to teach me how to ride. Slowly and steadily he taught me the basics, first only the accelerator (while he managed the brake and clutch), next both accelerator and brake (while he controlled the clutch and gear changes), and finally all 3 of those.
Even though I was able to ride, I never had the courage to take it out on my own (I was in Standard 7th that time). And since I was a very obedient child, my Dad would himself allow me to ride (with him as the pillion of course) sometimes to boost my confidence and experience.
The Vespa stayed with us for 9 years, when my mom convinced my Dad to get a bike, as bikes were more comfortable and safe. I begged for the Pulsar, however, Dad had been brainwashed by his colleagues that Pulsar is a very fast bike and unsafe too(Damn them), and since Pulsar was out of the equation, the next eligible candidate was the Hero Honda Achiever that had just been launched. A small test ride, and both me and my Dad were very much impressed with the comfort and refinement that Achiever had to offer. A silver color was immediately booked and the bike came home in 3 days, and unfortunately, the Vespa was sold off to accommodate vehicle maintenance costs. New to the family, the Achiever was an immensely capable bike, and the USP was its smoothness. Dad uses it till date (11 years already).
Then came college, and I was again in the business of pestering Dad for a new bike, and after huge amounts of effort, he finally agreed to get me the "Fastest Indian", a brand new Pulsar 220F Dts-i version. This elevated me to cloud nine, and I enjoyed the whole 6 years that I spent with it. I even took it to Pune for my first job location.
With the Pulsar 220F
It was during my Pune stay, that KTM launched the Duke 390, and I felt I should go ahead and try it. Visited the showroom and was simply blown away by the raw power and grunt. However, could not manage enough funds for a higher Down Payment and also the guts to be able to pay the EMI (in case I opted for lower Down Payment). Life had few surprises for me. I got transferred to Kolkata in 2015, and got married too in 2016. Now, my wife is also an avid enthusiast who likes to visit places. She had been long aware of my fascination about the Duke 390. Post marriage, she was able to provide me the courage to go forth with the decision of purchasing one. So, finally in July 2016, the black Duke 390 became my prized possession, and sadly, I had to part ways with my Pulsar 220F, as it is not easy to maintain 2 bikes.
Since the Duke became my companion, it has taken both me and my wife on various trips (mainly city rides, and occasional breakfast rides). It also caters to my daily office commute. I must say I am extremely happy with it, and it grows on you daily.
A few pics below:
On the day of Delivery of the Duke.
On a random ride
Dad trying it out
Wifey with the Dukey..!!
The Duke going for a wash.
Cant Stop admiring it.
I apologize for writing such a long post, overwhelmed by the first opportunity to write about my experiences..!!
Wish everyone happy riding.
Cheers,
Nawaz
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