It was love at first sight. Roughly two years ago, Sunitha Simon’s eyes fell on the Triumph Thunderbird Storm when she accompanied her friend to a high-end two-wheeler showroom.
Completely besotted, Sunitha couldn’t get the 350 kg, 1700cc twin cylinder beast out of her mind. “I can cycle, but on bikes, I’ve always been a pillion rider. I had never considered riding a two-wheeler until I saw it that day,” Sunitha recalls with a smile. She kept dreaming of owning it.
Owning it wasn’t simple. First, she had to learn to ride a two-wheeler. Since neither of her parents rode a two-wheeler, she got her driver to teach her on his Hero Honda.
After 20 days of daily lessons and practice, she was “confident about riding the vehicle on which I was learning. I took another couple of days to ride it on my own around my neighbourhood.” All this preparation was just enable her to ride the Thunderbird Storm.
Even when she brought the bike home, her mother had to persuaded to let Sunitha ride it; she took her own time to agree. “My bike might weigh 350 kg on the stand, but when I am riding it, it feels nimble. To me, riding the bike is all about challenging my limits. I’ve always done and wanted to do what is unconventional. So when I wanted to pick the beast, my dad was not surprised. Besides, probably no other girl in India rides the Thunderbird Storm in India as far as I know, so that makes me proud of myself,” says Sunitha.
Sunitha is among the handful of owners and riders of this classic British engineering beauty. She still considers herself a baby-rider and is learning to ride like a pro with a small group of riders.
On Women’s Day, Triumph India featured Sunitha on their Facebook homepage as one of the few Thunderbird Storm riders in India. As a proud owner of the beast, she didn’t modify the bike at all and wants to ride it the way it should be; “The thundering sound is its ultimate ornament,” she says.
Riding may give Sunitha immense confidence, but at the same time she’s not big on speed. “I prefer relaxed rides. My bike rides help me meet my other two passions — travel and food. However, when on a ride one has to be careful of what they eat. I learnt it the hard way. On one my rides, I couldn’t resist the lassi I saw at a dhaba . After a glassful, I couldn’t continue the ride as I felt sleepy. I was forced to stop and that held back the other riders. Thankfully, when we go on rides, it is all about taking care of each other’s back,” adds Sunitha.
A marketing professional with a leading telecom brand, Sunitha is a handloom sari-clad young girl at work. She says her newest passion i.e., riding has extended her wardrobe. “From shoes to the helmet, riders need their gear. The gear is as important as knowing how to control a vehicle. I wear a L52 helmet, boots and jacket by Triumph, Scott’s gloves and knee guard. Sadly most of the stuff isn’t made for women. So getting a jacket for my size was a big task, Finally I settled for jacket that is a size bigger because there is no way I would ride without my gear. It’s safety and responsibility over style,” assures Sunitha.
She is thrilled to bits that one brand has come out with gloves for women, “with a pink band around the knuckles,” she chuckles.
Having done three long rides that includes a trip to Araku, Tippeshwar and Bengaluru, Sunitha is looking forward to more rides. “These rides are helping me discover places. I love being independent, so going with a big group doesn’t serve my purpose. I ride with a small group of like-minded peopleto plan and ride better,” she adds.
What’s next? “I want to learn to go off-roading for which I want a bike with better ground clearance, so that is definitely playing on my mind now.”
