These are two things I have been asked time and again since I bought my bike around a month back. I have covered around 2500kms and traffic lights and fuel pump stoppages have been source to these interesting questions. Going back to the day I decided to buy the bike, I was ripped between the choices of performance to fuel efficiency. I chose the former and almost thought I had taken the wrong decision as the news flashed an increase in fuel prices the day I booked my bike.

Nonetheless I went ahead with my choice and took delivery of Zurina (that’s what I call her), a Yamaha R15 v2. I rolled her straight to the nearest fuel pump outlet and bang came the questions, “Kitni Ki Hai!!! Kitini Deti Hai!!!” At mentioning the price and the expected ‘mileage’ of the bike, I was given this weird stare. “Meri tho aadhe se bhi kum daam ki hai aur dugni chalti hai”. He meant his bike costed him less than half and gave him more than double the mileage I was getting. This statement made me sit up and think. Being a petrol-head, it was kind of weird that I was thinking like an economizer.

Keeping all thoughts in place, the whole concept of save fuel, and the pleasure of riding i questioned myself, “Am I guilty of wasting fuel?” If I’m guilty, aren’t the manufacturers of such machines equally guilty? Automobile manufacturers are supposed to reduce their carbon footprint by producing more number of ‘green’ machines. How does that help? For every fuel guzzler they produce they sell five or more ‘green’ machines. Aren’t we right where we started?

I was brought back to reality when the fuel station attendant asked me to pay up. I started the bike and the rumble between my legs and the sheer power when I twisted the throttle made me leave behind all the thoughts and I started looking for an open road to live life all over again.