Long before my tenure at Saud Bhawan Group (SBG) in Oman was about to end, I had resolved to purchase a 'Bullet' and resume 'biking' (old age and creaky bones notwithstanding) once I relocated to India. This used to be a frequently discussed topic during various informal interactions with colleagues at SBG and was an important part of my bucket list. Around that time we heard about Royal Enfield introducing two new models with twin cylinders viz: Interceptor 650 and Continental GT 650. The former is a retro styled bike with an upright seating stance and the latter is styled as a café racer which for me has a very awkward seating position. The promise of 47 bhp of power and 52 nm torque in a twin cylinder 650 cc bike with good looks was really appealing. The focus then shifted to possessing this particular model.
Once I had settled down at Noida after leaving Oman for good, I booked this model at the local Royal Enfield dealership and was promised delivery in the first week of Feb. A query on 5th Feb revealed that there was no hope of getting it before March end owing to heavy demand and a slowdown in supply from Royal Enfield. I had nearly decided to purchase a Bullet Classic 500 instead as I was not willing to wait for an indefinite period to get an Interceptor. It is at this point when things got interesting - my elder son and a biker cousin of his started to dig around using their resources and 'जुगाड़ ' and informed me of a particular dealership in Delhi where just two Interceptors were available for sale against cash purchase. This is what my Omani friends would call using 'Vaastaa' (वास्ता ) to get the needful done. Anyway, by the time we called up the dealer near Rohini in Delhi, we came to know that only one bike was available. We proceeded to the said dealership on 15 Feb (the ride to that place on my son's KTM Duke 400 was a nightmare) and finally laid my hands on this 'beauty' which is a 'beast' as well. The sales in charge told us that this was the only bike available in Delhi NCR. This was truly a case of 'Intercepting' the Interceptor !
Haven't ridden it around much as I want to get it registered in Dehradun and get the first free service at 500 km done at that place. The first impression is really good. The positives are good looks, smooth engine and gearbox, enough power on demand and the entire package being very competitively priced. The only negatives discernible at this point of time are awkwardly placed foot pegs for the rider and position of the handlebar. These are minor glitches which one can get used to or get them corrected. Following are some pics of this beauty/beast (click to enlarge):
The bike at BNT Motors Showroom
Receiving the Bike
Taking a spin within our colony
At Sector 63 after dropping my younger son
Watch out for "Motorcycle Stories" in due course. Gotta sign off now ! Adios !!